"What surrounds me" could be expanded. "What surrounds me and what do I think of key objects?" ... "Who surrounds me and what is the nature of my dynamic with key people (or perhaps animals)?" Boiling down to -- Is the character reacting properly to the people or important things around him as dictated by the story context? It doesn't matter whether the tablecloth is pink or neon orange or nonexistent if the detail doesn't tell us anything and/or if the character isn't affected by it... I worry someone might read the nine questions and get caught up in inventory.

I'm paraphrasing a bit here, but the theatre director Declan Donnellan said something like: "An actor should never ask 'Who am I?' Much more useful are the twin questions 'Who would I rather be?' and 'Who am I afraid that I am?' " I'm not sure I'd ban 'Who am I?', but as add-ons, the other two questions are a great way to start working out your character's personal journey...

Aren't those two questions covered by "What do I want?" and "What is in my way?"?

Probably. But I like the way they're phrased in terms of identity, not external goals - internal journey, not external one.

Excellent questions - I would also suggest these as further guidance... Have each character answer: 1. What do I say about myself when I'm alone? 2. What do I say about myself in company? 3. What do I say about others? 4. How do others describe me to my face? 5. How do they describe me when I'm not around? As a performer, I go through every script with a pen and journal and answer these questions, as well as ones along the lines of Hagen's. But as a writer, I can answer them for myself in order to really nail the contrast between what is said 'out loud' and all the necessary subtext to drive my dialogue in the direction of juicy rather than nosey. :) Hope these help!

Hey Debbie, I think you're right, and Who am I changes all the time,but it's just talking about things that we can't control or don't change, not adjectives.

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