I'd quickly like to add that not every character needs to be wounded or haunted. If people think it's necessary then they rob themselves of all kinds of corruption and loss of innocence arcs.
@@pastureexpectationsfarm6412 The conflict doesn't have to be inner turmoil though. There are mostly two ways I see authors use. Either the main character goes trough a change or they change the world around them. There is also the possibility that the character doesn't have any wounds at the beginning, but he gets wounded in the story, and they goes trough a negative arc. Also-also, I have read good stories where the characters themselves wasn't even that relevant. Now, as I think about it there are many possibilites...
@@ZekeTE125 the dedication is unmatched! Thank you for coming back and saying so. It’s by far one of my favorite shows. Thanks for watching and for the comment!
Luke Glanton in The place beyond the pines. Luke was haunted by his past his absent father which un turn made him feel like a ghost to his own son and.later he too becomes an absent father. Beautiful writing
These writing tips are great, theyre so in-depth and detailed and really gets me thinking about my own charcters an their stories. Ive only watched two of your videos by far, and enjoyed them both greatly. Keep doing what your doing dude, Im subbing!
Oh, no doubt. The show Jamie vs. book Jamie are treated totally differently. I hope when (if) the books come out that we get a bit more of what his character could have been.
watched the full video then checked the views, how the hell is this not in the 100ks?!?!! thanks i think i might try out writing sometime and this is some great advice
I really appreciate your comment!! We are in our growth phase so hopefully we keep reaching a wider and wider audience! I really appreciate your comment and am so happy you find my videos helpful. Happy writing!
This helped with putting some of my thoughts into words, thank you! I'm currently majorly restructuring my story and its world to thematically revolve around the main character. My MC already had a wound, in the form of growing up with chronic depression and the gruesome loss of her mother, yet I struggled to make her engaging after the first act. I now realise I should delve deeper into that grief: I'm rewriting her experiences during her pilgrimage to help her process that grief and overcome the self destructive thought patterns of a long term depression. My main character is shaping up to become painfully relatable, I can't wait to see how it'll change my story about the last war in a world fated to soon die
I suppose I'm wrestling with a character whose wound lies at the intersection of these four things: she doesn't believe in her ability to lead (gravity), *because* her subordinates have died on an important mission (grief & guilt), to solve the curse on the temple of her goddess (grievance). My problem is that I don't want her to take over the story, she's supposed to be one of five main characters not The Heroine™️ but I feel like each of these topics demands attention. The other four main characters all possibly have one of these wounds (there is one I'm still unsure about but I think his will be the guilt of falling for a con which caused his friend to be injured). So it's good in a way that the fifth character is sort of at the intersection of all of them? But I'm worried that will make the other characters seem less complex in comparison, and therefore seem like they are supporting roles despite all of them being perspective characters. I really want to get away from the singular hero with this story, and give all the main characters equal complexity because 1) I want the reader to understand they are all essential to the finale (basically if I see any video saying "why X is the real hero" of my book I will cry inconsolably) and 2) I want the secondary villain to be...well that kind of traditional loner hero type. I want him to be an zealot who did some truly heroic things, but through his inflexibility brought about the destruction of his community and in a moment of desperation ended up causing the temple curse. I'm not sure yet whether I want this to be a Faustian bargain situation or a reckless meddling with powers beyond comprehension kind of situation. In any event I want the heroes to avoid making the same mistakes as the villain by being interdependent rather than independent.
What might help is to have some of these backstories intersect with one another or at least let them relate to each other's wounds. This is a great question/comment and demands a better analysis than a follow-up comment haha, but I would say that this complex web of character emotions is a REALLY good problem to have. One thing that might help is taking a step back and looking at the overall arch/trajectory of each character's emotional state. If you look at them like different timelines, you can start to plan out how and in what order you want these characters to deal with these wounds. This will also help in not having ALL of your emotional resolutions happen at the same time and each can feel like they are all having their own fulfilling arc. You might have to play around with your plot structure and pacing too. Thank you for the comment!
@@wrestlingwithwords wow, thank you so much! Demands a better analysis?😳 I wasn't expecting any response at all! Right, intersections and timelines. That works perfectly with my style, to be honest! I tend to write scenes and then decide how to connect them: that's how this problem came up. I started with this gal looking at a map, and then all of this dark stuff just appeared following the decision to put her in a leadership role. All my other characters' backstories also emerged out of scenes like this (not always their own POV scene, one has a tendency to not think about their problems😂). But after I had written one POV scene for each person I went back and did a mind map to figure out what the opposing forces would be like, and that's where this idea for the villains came from. I really don't have a plot yet, just plot threads and characters with a little bit of setting. When I read, I consider the characters to be the most important element (I'll read a boring plot if I like the characters, but if I can't find a character to connect with I will not be able to keep reading) so I figured that was the best place to start and everything else would emerge later. It mostly seems to have worked, though I also need to figure out the magic now before anyone decides to start throwing spells around or concocting potions😅.
I totally agree about characters being the driving force. I am the same way too--usually powerful characters are more compelling than anything else. Thanks for letting me know about your process. It's always interesting to me to see how writers develop their characters and stories.
Yeah, you might not find it so hilarious when a rapture does happen, and you're left behind awaiting judgment day. There's still time to put your faith in Jesus. The gift of salvation is free for all who would receive it.
@@kayceeisonfire the rapture isn't even normal Christian doctrine, it's just something one weird American cult believes in. You have fun with your zombie god, now.
Check out the Wrestling With Words Podcast! The FULL playlist is here: ua-cam.com/play/PLlqXOF7zGtP3PFAM7XYOykUbhJH1CiLcl.html&si=CjT1NkqqQOlTIkaX
I'd quickly like to add that not every character needs to be wounded or haunted. If people think it's necessary then they rob themselves of all kinds of corruption and loss of innocence arcs.
Yep! Totally agree. There are all kinds of other arcs and aspects to developing a characters backstory. These are just the 4 wounds/ghosts.
Main character does need conflict.
@@pastureexpectationsfarm6412 The conflict doesn't have to be inner turmoil though.
There are mostly two ways I see authors use. Either the main character goes trough a change or they change the world around them.
There is also the possibility that the character doesn't have any wounds at the beginning, but he gets wounded in the story, and they goes trough a negative arc.
Also-also, I have read good stories where the characters themselves wasn't even that relevant.
Now, as I think about it there are many possibilites...
Stopped this video at the mention of the leftovers to go watch it, one of the best shows I have ever seen.
@@ZekeTE125 the dedication is unmatched! Thank you for coming back and saying so. It’s by far one of my favorite shows. Thanks for watching and for the comment!
Luke Glanton in The place beyond the pines.
Luke was haunted by his past his absent father which un turn made him feel like a ghost to his own son and.later he too becomes an absent father. Beautiful writing
Such a good example!
Thank you again for a great video! I LOVED the leftovers!
🙌
John wick. Best revenge movie franchise ever.
Oh for sure, it's up there!
It's funny how the burden of not having responsibility is often heavier than the burden of having it.
Right! I thought that was such an interesting, novel theme to explore. That twist was amazing (in my honest opinion).
These writing tips are great, theyre so in-depth and detailed and really gets me thinking about my own charcters an their stories. Ive only watched two of your videos by far, and enjoyed them both greatly. Keep doing what your doing dude, Im subbing!
Thank you so much for watching and for saying so! I really appreciate your comment and for watching my videos. Happy writing👨💻!
Jamie is the absolute most wasted character in that entire franchise, they had pure gold in their hands and threw it in the garbage
Oh, no doubt. The show Jamie vs. book Jamie are treated totally differently. I hope when (if) the books come out that we get a bit more of what his character could have been.
watched the full video then checked the views, how the hell is this not in the 100ks?!?!! thanks i think i might try out writing sometime and this is some great advice
I really appreciate your comment!! We are in our growth phase so hopefully we keep reaching a wider and wider audience! I really appreciate your comment and am so happy you find my videos helpful. Happy writing!
Great video, thank you!
❤ Thank you for watching!
This helped with putting some of my thoughts into words, thank you!
I'm currently majorly restructuring my story and its world to thematically revolve around the main character. My MC already had a wound, in the form of growing up with chronic depression and the gruesome loss of her mother, yet I struggled to make her engaging after the first act. I now realise I should delve deeper into that grief: I'm rewriting her experiences during her pilgrimage to help her process that grief and overcome the self destructive thought patterns of a long term depression.
My main character is shaping up to become painfully relatable, I can't wait to see how it'll change my story about the last war in a world fated to soon die
WOW!!
This is phenomenal.
I will listen to this many times as I work out different character backstories.
Thank you so much.
Thank you so much for saying so! I am so glad that I’ve been helpful-and thank you for watching!
Actually recently finished Leftovers for the first time. Only show to ever make me tear up
Yep. It will do that!
Most definitely got my sub... I needed this explained and now I know how to deal with my characters ghost and not everybody needs one
Thank you so much! I am glad this was helpful :)
I suppose I'm wrestling with a character whose wound lies at the intersection of these four things: she doesn't believe in her ability to lead (gravity), *because* her subordinates have died on an important mission (grief & guilt), to solve the curse on the temple of her goddess (grievance). My problem is that I don't want her to take over the story, she's supposed to be one of five main characters not The Heroine™️ but I feel like each of these topics demands attention. The other four main characters all possibly have one of these wounds (there is one I'm still unsure about but I think his will be the guilt of falling for a con which caused his friend to be injured). So it's good in a way that the fifth character is sort of at the intersection of all of them? But I'm worried that will make the other characters seem less complex in comparison, and therefore seem like they are supporting roles despite all of them being perspective characters. I really want to get away from the singular hero with this story, and give all the main characters equal complexity because 1) I want the reader to understand they are all essential to the finale (basically if I see any video saying "why X is the real hero" of my book I will cry inconsolably) and 2) I want the secondary villain to be...well that kind of traditional loner hero type. I want him to be an zealot who did some truly heroic things, but through his inflexibility brought about the destruction of his community and in a moment of desperation ended up causing the temple curse. I'm not sure yet whether I want this to be a Faustian bargain situation or a reckless meddling with powers beyond comprehension kind of situation. In any event I want the heroes to avoid making the same mistakes as the villain by being interdependent rather than independent.
What might help is to have some of these backstories intersect with one another or at least let them relate to each other's wounds. This is a great question/comment and demands a better analysis than a follow-up comment haha, but I would say that this complex web of character emotions is a REALLY good problem to have.
One thing that might help is taking a step back and looking at the overall arch/trajectory of each character's emotional state. If you look at them like different timelines, you can start to plan out how and in what order you want these characters to deal with these wounds. This will also help in not having ALL of your emotional resolutions happen at the same time and each can feel like they are all having their own fulfilling arc. You might have to play around with your plot structure and pacing too. Thank you for the comment!
@@wrestlingwithwords wow, thank you so much! Demands a better analysis?😳 I wasn't expecting any response at all! Right, intersections and timelines. That works perfectly with my style, to be honest! I tend to write scenes and then decide how to connect them: that's how this problem came up. I started with this gal looking at a map, and then all of this dark stuff just appeared following the decision to put her in a leadership role. All my other characters' backstories also emerged out of scenes like this (not always their own POV scene, one has a tendency to not think about their problems😂). But after I had written one POV scene for each person I went back and did a mind map to figure out what the opposing forces would be like, and that's where this idea for the villains came from. I really don't have a plot yet, just plot threads and characters with a little bit of setting. When I read, I consider the characters to be the most important element (I'll read a boring plot if I like the characters, but if I can't find a character to connect with I will not be able to keep reading) so I figured that was the best place to start and everything else would emerge later. It mostly seems to have worked, though I also need to figure out the magic now before anyone decides to start throwing spells around or concocting potions😅.
I totally agree about characters being the driving force. I am the same way too--usually powerful characters are more compelling than anything else. Thanks for letting me know about your process. It's always interesting to me to see how writers develop their characters and stories.
How i smiled when i saw John Wick
YES!
The Leftovers sounds hilarious. Most of the world wouldn't even notice a 'rapture' scooping up all the happy-clappy Baptists.
Might sound hilarious, but man is that show emotionally devastating. one of the best TV shows there is.
Yeah, you might not find it so hilarious when a rapture does happen, and you're left behind awaiting judgment day. There's still time to put your faith in Jesus. The gift of salvation is free for all who would receive it.
@@kayceeisonfire the rapture isn't even normal Christian doctrine, it's just something one weird American cult believes in. You have fun with your zombie god, now.
You sound bitter. Maybe religion would help you find happiness 😉
@@setterfieldstray I already have a better religion than you, zombie worshipper.
5:03 *he
5:22 *his