Exploring what your character wants

[jbknowles]

Hi Teachers!

Welcome to Week 2 of Teachers Write! I hope you enjoyed your first week. It was filled with inspiring lessons! If you're stumbling across this post and don't know what Teachers Write is, Check it out here.Today, let's talk a little about characters and what they want. As you know, the plot of a story is basically all about what the

Comments

What does my character want?

[ext_3722727]

Thank you for the thought provoking prompt this morning, Jo. I think it has actually helped me to solidify some ideas around my main character and the story, overall.

I wish Sarah could find a way to bring peace back to the lake, where all of the family and some friends have spent their summers for generations.

Sarah has never told anyone this, but her daughter, Claire, was molested at 14, and her best friend's son, Claire's boyfriend, Tim, was the one who did it.

If Sarah had the guts to tell Emily that her son is actually the one who molested Claire, I just know that it would devastate her, and it would most certainly kill Tim, because he doesn't even realize that the act was not consensual.

The only one who really understands Sarah's dilemma
is her best friend, Carrie, and that's because she was a victim of date rape in college.

Re: What does my character want?

[jbknowles]

You've got some really powerful stuff here, Susan. I'm so glad the prompt was helpful! It seems to have helped you highlight some of the really big, secret conflicts in the story.

Re: What does my character want?

[ext_3722727]

Thanks, Jo. I'm not quite sure how to proceed with the story, but I am eager to see where it takes me. If you have any suggestions, I would love to hear them.

I have Read Between the Lines in my pile for lake reading this summer. Looking forward to it.

Bailey - What does he want? Who is he?

[ext_4182957]

This is a story about a boy, Bailey, who wants time with his dad making models and building things and to not go to school where people bother him, but underneath that, it's a story about a boy who just wants peace and later hope for a brighter future

Re: Bailey - What does he want? Who is he?

[jbknowles]

This is so strong and I love your writing. This line especially: "sometimes I dream I am watching my own dark and rainy funeral." That word "rainy" makes all the difference. I also want to know who "her" is on the bus. Is it Debra? You've got a lot of rich and emotional material here. Thanks for sharing!

Re: Bailey - What does he want? Who is he?

[ext_4182957]

Wow, thanks for the encouragement. I really appreciate your taking the time to give us all your sweet feedback. (It is Debra.)

[anonymous]

Thank you for the push to think deeper and for the specific questions, Jo.

MC:
I wish I could go back to before it happened. Or watched her every minute at the party instead of helping other little kids with stupid stuff. What if I could have stopped my little sister from being taken? I wish we'd never gone. I wish . . .

The only person who understands me is Haruki and that's because he's lost someone, too. Not that Lola's dead- I refuse to believe that. There's still time. Still hope. But after his father died, Ru's life was never the same. Now that Lola's gone, my former life is a memory. I can't be that girl that I was before. I'm not that girl.

Jen

What does Martha really want?

[anonymous]

I've been working on a PB through several drafts. These exercises have helped me think through what my MC really wants, something that those offering a critique have asked. Thanks!!

I wish Martha could just tell her parents how important music is in her life. But the problem is, she hasn't realized that herself yet. It's not just mastering one instrument, it's the way music, all music, fulfills her need to appreciate and create.

Re: What does Martha really want?

[jbknowles]

What a great discovery!

[jbknowles]

Oh, this is so sad. You get her terror and longing across really well.

What Helena Wants

[ext_3217096]

Hi Jo! Thanks for this awesome activity. I learned some new things about my MC today. She lives in a dystopian society in which women and girls have to wear masks in public. This is in Helena's voice:

I wish I could just take off this stupid mask.

I've never told anyone this, but sometimes I go into the backyard at night when everyone else is asleep, and I take it off so that I can feel the breeze on my face.

If I had the guts to tell Mom that I took Daisy [little sister] out with me one night when she couldn't sleep and let her take her mask off too, I just know that she'd blame me for how Daisy is always fighting the mask now.

The only one that really understands me is my cousin Lolis, and that's because she knows not all rules are meant to be followed.

Re: What Helena Wants

[jbknowles]

Wow, this is so interesting! What a terrifying concept! Definitely makes me want to know more!

Monday Morning Warm-Up

[anonymous]

I wish Lincoln could just acknowledge that he was always in danger and needed protection.______________

Lincoln said I have never told anyone this, but _I am afraid I will not survive the War. _______________

If Lincoln had the guts to tell
the general that he was being fired , I just know that he would have more confidence in the military’s ability to win the War._____________

The only one who really understands Lincoln
is _his wife and that's because __they are much closer than people realized.

Re: Monday Morning Warm-Up

[jbknowles]

Nice work! I think this works really well with fiction and nonfiction :)