How to Create CHARACTER CHEMISTRY in Stories (Writing Advice)

get ready cuz today we're going to talk about how to build a strong and engaging cast of characters by the way my name is Brandon MCN I'm the author of bad parts also the author of Entry wounds and welcome to my writing channel one of my subscribers requested a video on character chemistry So today we're going to take a look at it we'll Define what character chemistry is we'll talk about how to build a cast and I'll give you some tips for getting the most out of your character interactions and before we go any further here's your spoiler warning the ones listed in red have the heav spoilers but let's start off by answering the question what is character chemistry and it's the relationship dynamic between two or more characters in a story it's the energy that exists between characters when they interact with each other and it engages the audience because it's typically a good source of conflict Intrigue character growth and fun and one last thing I'll throw out there character chemistry can involve many types of relationships it can involve romantic partners buddies enemies siblings parent child relationships Mentor Protege relationships and so on all right so we got that out of the way now let's talk about building your stories cast and the first thing you need to do here is select your story genre and your character roles and genre is very important here for instance a romantic comedy requires a certain cast of characters while an epic fantasy story requires a completely different cast be aware of your story genre expectations and decide which roles your characters have to play every story needs a protagonist but you may or may not need a villain a romantic interest a mentor a sidekick a comic relief character Etc next thing you want to do is choose your main character their story goal and their personality and obviously your main character is your most important character and you need to know who they are what they want and what motivates them and once you figured these things out then you choose their personality are they quiet and reserved or are they loud and outspoken are they warm and compassionate or cold and calculating do they crave structure and consistency or do they prefer variety and unpredictability do they have a sense of morality do they have a sense of humor there are plenty of possibilities to consider When developing a character's traits and temperament but your main character should have a well-defined personality once you've got that settled you want to create supporting characters who differ from your protagonist typically you want supporting characters who are easily distinguished from your main character if you have a main character who's book smart pair him with a character who's street smart if your main character is brave and adventurous create a supporting character who's timid and bookish if your main character is idealistic and naive create supporting characters who are cynical wise or battle tested and don't forget about villains if you have a tough silent hero like Batman you might want to consider a theatrical and humorous Villain Like The Joker but whatever Direction you go in try to to create characters who have different personalities backgrounds and beliefs so that they can challenge each other and balance each other out and then the last thing to remember when you're building your cast is to have characters represent different values beliefs and viewpoints typically the characters in your story will each represent one or more values and when characters interact those values will come into conflict and not only does this make for good drama but it contributes to the overall theme and it adds layers of meaning meaning to your story for example Batman versus The Joker Is about more than just two men in costumes punching each other it's about the battle between order represented by Batman and Chaos represented by the Joker then you have Batman versus scarecrow where both sides represent fear but Batman uses fear to intimidate criminals whereas scarecrow uses fear to control and Destroy Society all right now I want to give you five tips for creating engaging character chemistry and the first one is to establish opposites we are already talked about this but it's critical that you establish your characters and their opposing personalities traits and values for example in Breaking Bad Walt is established as book smart reserved and rational whereas Jesse is Street Smart impulsive and emotional in Groundhog Day Phil Connors is a miserable cynical weatherman while his producer Rita is warm open-minded and idealistic in Seinfeld Jerry is a neat freak a successful comedian and he's often the voice of reason on the show his best friend George is a stingy jealous loser who frequently gets fired from his jobs then you have Elaine who's serious about her career and her self-image and she often loses her temper and then Kramer he doesn't have a job he's very laid-back and he's a complete Wild Card who is sometimes a total idiot and other times a source of wisdom tip number two find the glue that unites your cast and since your characters will be opposites it's important to give them a legitimate reason to stick together reasons might include a common goal daily obligations like work and school might include personal history and even the location where they're at for instance in Breaking Bad Walt and Jesse both want money respect and success despite their differences they cook and sell meth together in order to achieve their common goals in Star Wars the characters are glued together by a common goal of stopping the Empire and keep in mind that although their goal is the same their motivations differ Luke is trying to Define who he is Han and chewy need money Obi-Wan feels obligated to help Leia and Leia herself is a rebel leader who must oppose the empire in Alien the characters are glued together by job related obligations they work as crew members on a commercial spaceship and then in Seinfeld the glue involves character history and location with character history you have Jerry and George they've been best friends since high school you also have Jerry and Elaine who have been close friends ever since their breakup and then with location you have Jerry and Kramer they live across the hall from each other you also have Newman invol involved Newman is Jerry's Nemesis but he's glued into the situation because he lives in the same apartment building tip number three have your characters influence each other and going through shared experiences will allow your characters to come into conflict they'll disagree on what to prioritize and how to solve their problems and as characters continue to interact they tend to rub off on one another which allows them to change and grow for instance in Breaking Bad Walt is initially reluctant to embrace his dark side but as he and Jess he continue to cook meth Walt grows accustomed to the life of a criminal and he learns to enjoy his Newfound sense of self-respect meanwhile over time Jesse recognizes the impact of his actions as a drug dealer and he experiences a moral Awakening and he yearns to move on from Life as a criminal in Star Wars Han toughens up Luke and he challenges Leia to shed her Pride meanwhile both Luke and Leia challenge Han to fight for a cause greater than himself tip number four remember that though your characters may change they are are still individuals in order for them to seem realistic some core traits and values need to remain the same for example in Breaking Bad Walt remains strategic intelligent and ambitious throughout the series Jesse meanwhile remains emotional needy and loyal to those he cares about in Star Wars Luke stays idealistic Obi-Wan stays devoted to the ways of the force Leia stays devoted to the rebellion and Han stays daring charismatic and resourceful and in the movie Training Day rookie narcotics officer Jake Hoy learns to grow teeth and stand up to his corrupt partner and though Jake grows stronger he still maintains his moral code from start to finish and then tip number five use dialogue arguments to highlight clashing values remember when we talked about how characters represent different values and how those values will come into conflict well usually your character's actions will showcase those values but you can also use arguments to engage your audience further audiences love to see characters challenge each other's viewpoints and Def defend their own for example in Star Wars there's a scene where Luke Han and Obi-Wan debate the power of the force Han dismisses it while Obi-Wan defends it and Luke meanwhile is caught in the middle trying to decide what he believes Pokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good Blaster at your s you don't believe in the force do you it's all a lot of simple tricks and nonsense I suggest you try it again Luke stretch out with your feelings you see you can do it I call it luck in my experience there's no such thing as luck in Training Day Jake and his corrupt partner Alonzo often debate how crime should be handled in a messy corrupt world what more you want I want the Justice right is that not Justice that's Street Justice what's wrong with Street Justice oh just let the animals wipe themselves out God willing and in Seinfeld there's an iconic episode where Jerry decides he wants to get married in order to make his life meaningful and later Kramer shuts that idea down I mean what are you thinking about Jerry marriage family well the prisons man-made prisons you're doing time it's sad Jerry it's a sad State of Affairs I'm glad we had this T oh you have no idea and one last thing I want to throw out here is non-verbal communication sometimes a single look or a single gesture can signal what a character values and it can build strong chemistry within a cast so I hope this helps question of the day in your opinion which cast of character has the best chemistry let us know in the comments section below thank you for watching if you want to support the Channel please pick up a copy of either one of my books and be sure to leave reviews on Amazon bad parts is great if you like small town horror it's about people trading away their sick and injured body parts in order to get healthy again and then entry wounds is great if you like Thrillers it's about a guy who picks up a Haunted Gun and he can't put it down till he kills six people with it also be sure to check out my other videos like share and subscribe and as always remember to keep keep on writing

Channel: Writer Brandon McNulty

Views: 36,277

Keywords: Writing, Writing advice, Writing Tips, Fiction, Creative Writing, How to write a book, How to write a novel, novel, book, storytelling, story, Breaking Bad, Star Wars, Alien, romcom, rom com, chemistry, character chemistry, cast, Seinfeld, how to create likable characters, characters, character, dialogue, relationships, romance, hero, protagonist, villain, conflict, friendships, character arcs, character growth, personality, personalities, dynamic, characterization, Training Day, Groundhog Day, heroes, main

Id: vS9sMNLqFjw

Length: 10min 0sec (600 seconds)

Published: Thu Nov 02 2023