Series of Characterization Exercises (for your information) Critiques Welcome

Note to those who clicked on the tile expecting exercises for you to do: You can do these exercises too! These are the writing excerpts I did with them. Exercise One, take your character through their morning on a typical day. Exercise Two, write a dialogue about your character as a conversation between two or several other characters without the main one present. Exercise Three, write a scene where your character has an opportunity to obtain a short term 'want'. Exercise Four, write a scene where your character is in trouble, imagined or real. Exercise Five is a bio sheet, AKA identity particulars such as those that might appear on a profile or a wanted poster. There is a blank copy of this for you to copy and paste at the bottom. These may be interpreted loosely; you have broad discretionary power in using these exercises. They're not mine either, so don't credit me with them.

My suggestions for completing these: use them with all your major characters. You can use them for minor characters too, but it's probably not as important. Take 5-15 minutes on I-IV each, and time yourself. I handwrote these and then typed them up, so that's why some are rather short. With V, take as long as you need, but no more than 20-30 minutes. The last category is essentially additional information. Anything about your characters may be changed at any time; you're the writer.

Here are my examples. I used the character Treali Storm, whom some of you may recognize.

I. Morning Routine on a Typical Day

Treali Storm woke about a half hour before the sun rose. She spent ten minutes dressing herself and another ten contemplating her solitude on the island. She spent another half hour walking down twenty-two flights of marble stairs. Outside, she walked two laps around the island. by then, the sun was a halo above the trees. She performed a series of stretches on the marble tiles, and then sat in meditation.

An hour later, the sun framed the top of the eleven story temple that was her home. Her cousin's daughter, Karmii, joined her on the terrace, carrying two cups of tea. Treali arose from her meditation and shared the tea inside the gazebo.

II. Conversation Concerning X Without Them Present

Casie: She's vicious! She's a psychopathic killer and needs to be stopped.
Kelsy: Well yes, I agree, I mean she did kill…like…a couple hundred people without any real thought to it…
Casie: Exactly.
Kelsy: But I went to school with her—
Casie and Natalie: Say what?
Kelsy: —In school she was never vicious or violent. There it was like she didn't exist. Almost as if she was invisible. I know that doesn't change anything now, but still…
Casie: She'll kill again, and again, and again. People like Treali Storm are like vampires. They suck on one person's blood and they're hooked for life. They don't want to kill; they need to.
Natalie: You guys are so judgmental. Storm's just another person, like you and me. She does things because…well, I really don't know why specifically, but there are reasons.
Kelsy: You're the psychologist.
Natalie: But I've never personally met her. If I could talk to her, you know, in a one on one, I might understand better.
Casie: No one understands those creeps. We just arrest them and put them away. For life. Treali Storm is a vicious killer. She's not even human anymore! No human could do the type of stuff she does…

III. Scene Where Character May or May Not Obtain Short Term 'Want'

Treali Storm watched the men trail in and out through the door. There was an old man with scraggly white hair and a purple bow tie, and a young punk with green spiked hair. There were white men with arrogant faces and white men with a defeated aura about them. There were black men with arrogant faces and black men with a defeated aura about them. There was a rebel; she could tell by the way he loitered by himself, casting defiant glances at the security personnel. There was a pickpocket, a businessman, even a drug dealer.

And then there was the prize. A tall, well-built Arab with a warm skin tone and such dreamy eyes. His dark hair was luscious and his face radiant. He was everything she wanted in a man. He was power, courage, strength, beauty, and kindness. Treali longed for his touch, longed for a true, loving relationship. It was a word away.

She looked around, noticing for the first time the women. Some were obviously wealthy, wearing thousand dollar clothes and flaunting fat purses in the workers' faces. Some were simply desperate to get where they were going, worrying they might miss their flight. Some of them, prostitutes no doubt, were all over the men, especially the younger, lusting ones. Treali looked back. He was still there. But he did not lust. Neither did she. Instead, she gave.

She tried to think of what she could say to him to feel the comfort of love again. Would she greet him the proper way? Or simply ask outright? And if he said "no"? What, then, would she do? She stared at him, admiring the contour lines of his quintessential features, the desire almost overwhelming her. But she was fragile, broken, held together with only duct tape at best. She watched him, her heart already wrapped in his arms. He started to walk away.

She wanted to follow him, to run after him, to join him. But like a leaf blown off course, she contented herself with a final silent farewell and walked in the other direction. Treali didn't look back.

IV. Scene Where Character is in Trouble (Trouble may be real to all involved, perceived only by that character, or real to all but that character, or…well you're a writer. Be creative! It's your job. )

Only one day, twenty-four hours ago, Treali Storm had been at her island home, just another day in the thousands she had spent there in solitude and tranquility. But she'd felt it that morning. Something was different. Now, only one earth's rotation later, she was standing before a judge in a closed American courtroom. There were few people inside; however, the FBI agent had told her the hearing was closed to the public, whatever that meant. There were four US Marshals and a few people in uniforms. Security? Police? She didn't know. The FBI agents were there, too. But none of them were with her. She was alone in the crowd of two dozen people.

She didn't listen to the judge's professional voice as he read the innumerable charges against her; she didn't want to hear. Instead, she heard sweet Carlos's voice, a calm, reassuring sound, but a painful, taunting one.

"Speak softly, love," he said in the moonlit gardens.

She closed her eyes, hoping to shut his voice from her mind, but it only grew more insistent, pounding at her mental barriers, shattering them into a million pieces.

"Treali, hold me. I want to forget these troubles…politics…it's a mess, really; but I don't want to think about it. Love me, Treali."

Shut up shut up shut up she said to herself, willing it to stop. It was like a razor sharp knife, she realized, but instead of cutting her wrists, it stabbed right into her heart.

"How do you plead?" the judge asked, his voice snapping her back into reality. Thank God, she thought, glad to be rid of his voice.

She stared blankly at the man in black robes, looking at her expectantly, not sure what he said, not realizing she had been asked a question. He repeated his words, and they washed over her. What? She looked him in the eye, and chose not to answer.

Note: The Arab man referred to in III is not the same person as Carlos in IV. The Arab man is Kazid Abu Szafir, found in The Finale. Kazid is a Muslim from Saudi Arabia. Carlos is Carlos Hodgson, a man whom Treali experienced a few years intimate relationship with before a not so nice ending. Carlos is an atheist from Denmark.


V. Identity Particulars/Bio Sheet/Profile

Note: There is a blank copy of this at the end.

Full Legal Name at Birth (includes maiden name) Treali Ka'iimamao Ylanne Abdullah-Zhang
Full Legal Name (includes prefix, suffix, professional suffix) Treali Storm
Preferred/Used Name (may include a nickname) Treali Storm
Aliases/Pseudonyms/Other Names/Titles/Honorifics Used Storm of the Horizon, Architect of Misfortune, Daughter of the Trees, T. Storm, Thalia Storm, Ylanne Sorrows, Yunan Tsii'kuai, Spirit of the Night, Harbinger of Fate, She Who Stands at the Gates, The Unfaithful Friend, Fatimah bint Batya, The Forgotten Daughter of God, The Destroyer of Worlds, The Bringer of Hope, Storm, Tempest, Kilaki, The Messenger, The Messenger of God, The Servant of Truth (Note: in my fiction works, some of these names are supposedly "translated" from various other languages)
Date of Birth 12 May 1952
Age (at main point in story) 61 (was 54, long explanation)
Gender Female
Weight/Height 80 pounds, 59 kg // 4'10", 168 cm
Eyes/Hair (color, style) Grey eyes, Grey/silver hair
Preferred Clothing Clothes influenced by Muslim wear, Japanese styles, and different Buddhist monk robes (not the orange ones)
Scars/Tattoos/Piercings, etc. Scar on left shoulder, no tattoos, no piercings
Race (black, white, Asian, Latino etc.) ½ White European, ¼ Asian, ¼ Middle Eastern/Semitic
Ethnicity (Ethnic Identity: Saudi Arabian, Sámi, Cherokee, Filipino, etc.) Mutalistinian (fictitious country of Mutalistan, the people/noun is Mutal, the nationality/adjective is Mutalistinian) (This is based off of Arabic, but native speakers please tell me if something seems really offensive, because I don't want that.)
Nationality (Place of citizenship: American, British, Chinese) Widely believed to be Mutalistinian (and was too, until citizenship was stripped), but actually is American (and was for whole life)
Education Attended primary school and secondary school but almost (although never) completed secondary school; independent studies of philosophy and religion
Occupation None
Income None
Prior Jobs None
Place of Birth Washington D.C. (in United States of America)
Place of Childhood (if different) Lu'Siin Bek (city in Mutalistan)
Current Residence Storm Isle (named for cousin, Dr. Alai Storm, winner of Nobel Prize in chemistry) (Storm Isle was annexed as a little-known territory by the USA in 1996) (This fictitious island is in the Pacific, about halfway between Japan and Hawaii, although closer to Japan. It is about 20-25 acres big)
Areas of Expertise Philosophy, Psychology (not formal), Religion
Hobbies Making/Drinking Tea, Meditation, Martial Arts, Writing (nonfiction work on aforementioned topics)
Activities (same as hobbies, see above)
Languages Spoken Arabic, Latin, English, and a fictitious language called Kiir il Eda (it's supposedly dead, too, like Latin, but still spoken by a small indigenous group of people)
Spouse None
Children None
Siblings None
Known Associates (coworkers, friends, other family) Jai Qelah Asa (cousin and childhood best friend); Dr. Alai Storm (cousin—on other side of family); Karmii Storm (Alai's daughter); Solara Storm (aunt, raised Treali)
Pets None (well Karmii has a German shepherd)
Religion Unique Beliefs
Political Ideology Unique Beliefs
Favorite Food No preference
Favorite Book, Movie, Band, Music Books—The Quran, The Talmud, The Bible, The Bhagavad Gita, The Tripitaka, The Upanishads, anything by Shakespeare; for movies, band, music, was never exposed to or aware that such things existed
Special Abilities/Powers (applies to Sci-Fi/Fantasy only) N/A
Other Beliefs (Philosophical?) Unique Beliefs
Other Quirks/Important Information On the FBI Ten Most Wanted List, the US Marshals Fifteen Most Wanted, wanted by the RCMP and authorities in several other countries, including her home nation of Mutalistan; accused (and guilty) of several hundred murders; exposed to Islam, Judaism, and Christianity in early years; grew up in a third world country where people believed in a different (the same?) God and killed each other over it; her country was ruled by an oppressive regime called the Tustison-Hodgson regime (a group of white supremacists who claimed to be Christian); she went to a school operated by nuns and missionaries (all Christians); her classmates were all different religions and all brutal to her; somewhat anti-social, quiet person, but passionate for her beliefs; believed to be one of the most dangerous people of all time; her English was learned from the Bible and Shakespeare so that's what she sounds like in conversation; she speaks Latin conversationally

Here is a link to a poem I wrote about Treali Storm, for interested parties.

Here is your blank version where you may copy and paste this into a word processor and fill it out! Use it for all your major characters, good or bad. You can use it on minor characters too, but it's probably not necessary.

Full Legal Name at Birth (includes maiden name)
Full Legal Name (includes prefix, suffix, professional suffix)
Preferred/Used Name (may include a nickname)
Aliases
Date of Birth
Age (at main point in story)
Gender
Weight/Height
Eyes/Hair (color, style)
Preferred Clothing
Scars/Tattoos/Piercings, etc.
Race (black, white, Asian, Latino etc.)
Ethnicity (Ethnic Identity: Saudi Arabian, Sámi, Cherokee, Filipino, etc.)
Nationality (Place of citizenship: American, British, Chinese)
Education
Occupation
Income
Prior Jobs
Place of Birth
Place of Childhood (if different)
Current Residence
Areas of Expertise
Hobbies
Activities
Languages Spoken
Spouse
Children
Siblings
Known Associates (coworkers, friends, other family)
Pets
Religion
Political Ideology
Favorite Food
Favorite Book, Movie, Band, Music
Special Abilities/Powers (applies to Sci-Fi/Fantasy only)
Other Beliefs (Philosophical?)
Other Quirks/Important Information


© 2008 Ylanne Sorrows Please, reproduce and transmit as much as you want about the exercises, especially for educational purposes. But do not plagiarize or in any other manner reproduce my work for these exercises. You may use the blank bio sheet and the information from the beginning, but nothing else without my explicit permission.

~~ I am a FUGITIVE for the CRIME of reasoning and free thinking. I am a FUGITIVE for the CRIME of questioning what my pastor/parents/teachers/spouse/children/media/celebrities/government told me to dumbly and blindly accept as truth. I am a FUGITIVE for the CRIME of seeking out Truth and God. I am a FUGITIVE for the CRIME of celebrating, loving, and respecting others. I am a FUGITIVE for the CRIME of refusing to conform to society.~~