Getting to know your character. #1

While I'm reading the First Five Pages, I'm also flipping through another book I picked up recently: What would your character do? It's a neat little book that has some good advice on building a character and then it presents many scenarios and answers... little character prompts really. I thought I'd share a prompt with you and see how your character responds.

A MOMENT OF HIGH DRAMA

Out of the blue, your character is confronted by a moment of high drama. Depending on the nature of your character and your novel, choose one of the following dramatic moments: (1) caught in a major earthquake; (2) unjustly arrested for murder; (3) tailing the kidnapper of a child; or (4) watching a loved one die unexpectedly.

Get the incident clearly in mind. What was your character doing before the moment of high drama commenced? What was she feeling? Picture the drama unfolding: the building beginning to shake, your character feeling the handcuffs going on, your character noticing a man snatching a child, your character hearing the loved one's death rattle. Once you have the incident clearly in mind, proceed to the following questions.

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1. What strength of character does your character manifest in this moment?

A) Courage?
B) Presence of Mind?
C) Resolve?
D) Calmness?
E) Self-control?

2. What weakness of character does your character manifest in this moment?

A) Self-pity?
B) Cowardice
C) Lack of resolve?
D) Mental confusion?
E) High Anxiety?

Think about your character. Pick a characteristic for each question. Tune in tomorrow. I'll list the descriptions of the different traits as detailed in the book.