Character Development Exercise – Love, Compassion

Exercise: Write one or two scenes using a male and female character who are loving and compassionate not only to others but to themselves as well. They do not have to be a part of the same storyline/scene.

Purpose: The purpose of this exercise is to help you learn and get used to using emotions to enhance the characters you create when writing creatively. Part of what makes a good creative story a wonder to read is the writer’s ability to take readers on an emotional journey through storytelling and character development.

Emotion(s): Love, compassion

Sex: Male, Female

The Basics for Character Depth: Names
Appearance
Possessions / props
Speech
Body language
Habits
Behaviour
Background
Major traits

Tips: Before you start this exercise take some time to get a feel of what “love” and “compassion” actually mean to you. What does it mean to “love” someone? What is compassion? What are some of the many ways someone can show love and compassion? Be sure to relax and let yourself feel these emotions as you write. While you are writing, live in the moment. Live in your own story because when you stop typing or when you put your pen or pencil down, then the world reappears around you. Until then, it doesn’t exist.

If you would like to have your story posted, please fill out this submission form. By submitting your work, you can gain valuable feedback from myself and fellow readers. I reserve the right to decline any submission for any reason.

This post was written by:

Tressa Sanders - who has written 107 posts on Three West.

Tressa Sanders, founder of Three West Creative Development, Asabi Publishing, and Ijaba Films, provides active learning, workshops for business Image, publishing, creative writing, graphics design, and filmmaking. In addition, she has authored the curriculum for the Big Bad Business Image, Concise Publishing, and Creative Writing workshops as well as several literary titles. Tressa also holds a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Psychology and authored the introduction for a book titled “A Peek Inside the Goo: Depression & The Borderline Personality”. Prior to becoming a filmmaker, Tressa was a well established Information Technology professional working with the largest IT, communication, utilities and financial companies in the country. Some of the companies Tressa has worked for include, the New York Independent System Operator, GE Capital Business Asset Funding, IBM Global Services, AT & T Wireless, Hewlett Packard, MCI/Worldcom, GTE, and Sprint. Her areas of expertise include: Publishing Startup & Planning, Business Image Planning, Creative Writing Development, Effective Graphics Design, Cost Conservative Filmmaking.

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