and if you're lucky... get a GREAT ACTOR to do the role justice !!!

yes, it's up to us to create and mold great characters, but they can be easily destroyed or enhanced by an actor.

Not all of us are lucky enough to land a Marlon Brando or Meryl Streep, though ;-(

Character bios sheet. Sometimes I do a chacter-to-character comparison to see how they relate to each other on key plot decision points.

Never done the questionaire thing.

- E.C. Henry from Bonney Lake, WA

just a heads up, your last link goes back to the original post.

Thanks for the post Mr Scott. Really Appreciate it.


My personal way to get into
characters is The Heath Ledger Method.I make them write a diary. They tell me their stories and how they feel and what they think.

I thought about Robert Towne question and found it real hard to answer. I think it'll take time.to know that answer.

I apply narrative function to characters and mine them to uncover their greatest fear as it connects to the story.

For example, I'm writing a scifi horror (FALL OF MAN) with the theme "the faster you run from your fears, the harder the fall when you stumble." Every character's greatest fear is realized in ways tied directly to this theme and the plot.

It won't be a happy ending, but I know the character work is paying off -- an actor friend is salivating to play the lead.