Creating characters can be a real challenge for writers of any age or experience level. How do you turn scribbles on a page into believable, complex, flesh-and-blood individuals who will feel as real to your readers as they do to you?
I’ve used this writing activity with teens several times, and it never fails to generate some great ideas, and plenty of giggles. It’s a pretty silly exercise, but it really does help get those creative juices going! We start with a discussion of characters, and share some of our favourite (and least favourite) book characters, talking about why we love or love to hate them. Then it’s on to the writing.
This writing activity couldn’t be easier, and you can tailor it to different age groups simply by varying the images you use.
Step One: Find and cut out images from magazines. Fashion magazines like Vogue are a fantastic source of strange and unusual images thanks to their editorial styling, but sports magazines and travel magazines can be great resources, too. You don’t have to limit yourself to images of human beings, though – pictures of animals can be great fun, too. Who doesn’t want to write about an adorable puppy?
Step Two: Have participants randomly draw an image out of a box or envelope. This image will be their writing prompt.
Step Three: Create a character! Encourage participants to examine their image and use what they see as an inspiration for a character. You can offer some prompts to help get the writing started. What is their character’s name and age? Where are they from? Where do they live? What do they do? What are their dreams, passions or fears? What are their interests, likes or hates? Do they have a family? Who are their friends? Do they have an antagonist? Are they the antagonist?
Participants can write full sentences or point form responses, and you can spend as little or as long on the activity as you (and your group) wants.
Here are a couple of examples from my most recent teen writing workshop (paraphrased and shared with permission):
This fellow is a 24-year-old college football superstar whose father’s college football career was derailed by a knee injury. He’s obviously talented, but his true, secret passion is for ballet. He knows his father will never accept his love for dance, and desperate to win his dad’s love he sacrifices his own dreams to pursue the football career his father never could. But as his team reaches the state finals, his need to dance cannot be denied any longer. In desperation he runs away from school, driving in his pick up truck somewhere, anywhere, with no plan other than to get as far away from football as possible. In the middle of nowhere, at a rundown greasy spoon, he meets a strange lady who seems to know everything about him. She says she can help him achieve his dreams, if only she trusts him. Who is this strange woman, and can she really help him find the courage to be his true self, while also keeping his father’s love?
This is Safira, the beautiful young princess who is destined from birth to lead her people, the Ice Nation. But the climate has been changing in their land, growing warmer every year, and the receding ice threatens her nation’s centuries-old way of life. When her father the king disappears while on a mission to seek guidance from a holy mage, the princess has no choice but to become Queen in his absence. But Safira has a dangerous secret – rather than wielding ice magic, as the royal bloodline has always done, Safira wields the power of fire, which has not been seen in the Ice Nation for generations. The last wielder of fire magic was Safira’s ancestor Pelma, who was put to death for her treason. Can Safira keep her powers secret, protect her people, navigate the changing climate and become Queen her people so desperately need?
This simple encourages young writers to think of their characters as complex, real individuals with authentic personalities shaped by their environment and their experiences. It can also be heaps of fun, and teens (and grown ups!) can really have a ball letting their imaginations run wild.
Do you have any favourite writing exercises you like to do with young writers? I’d love to hear your ideas!
