- What's up my friend, Abby here, and welcome back to
Writer's Life Wednesdays, where we come together to help
you make your story matter and make your author dreams come true. You have the character, their physical appearance,
their personality, their desires and fears,
and maybe their beliefs, but you're not sure why
they are the way they are. Like, why do they believe
what they believe? Why do they want what they want? Just because they need to,
not a good enough reason. See, step one to making
your characters relatable is making them as much like
real people as you possibly can. That means every character in your story is there because they need to be there, because they have goals
and agendas of their own. Not just because the plot
needs them to be there. So why exactly does your character
need to be in this story? Because they have a specific goal they're trying to accomplish? Why, if you don't know the answer to that, chances are it's because you haven't written their backstory. In this video. I'm going to show you my go-to method for developing
character backstory, the questions to ask yourself to explore the most vital
parts of your character's past and uncover the real reason why they believe what they
believe in the present day. This is that extra layer of goodness that will give your character and your whole story
more meaning and depth. In short, it is the secret ingredient that keeps your readers
up way past their bedtime, because they care so much
about your characters, they need to know what happens to them. And the way you make that happen is through compelling character backstory, grab a notebook and let's get started. Why does your story matter? Good question, what if I told you that there's a science
behind every great story. I don't just teach you how to write. I teach you how to change
the world with your story and make your author dreams come true. Okay, before we get into this, the most important thing to remember about character backstory is this, you don't write backstory for the sake of seeing what happened
in your character's past, you write backstory to make sense of who your character is in the present. This is the thing that most writers, especially new writers forget. They think, okay, I have to
write character backstory. Well, my character was born, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Don't start there, don't
go through all that. Please, don't don't put
yourself through all of that. Don't put your reader through all of that. The truth is there are very few things that we actually need to know
about your character's past, to make sense of who they are today. That's what matters, right? We're always asking
yourselves, why does it matter? Why does it matter right now for me to know what happened in the past? Well, I don't have to know everything that happened in the past. I just to know what happened in the past that shaped this person into the character they are today, which means we have to first and foremost, begin with the end in mind, don't just start writing backstory and see where it takes you. That is a recipe for disaster. It will take you in a
million different directions. Let me tell you right now,
because your imagination will start running wild
and you'll get off track because you're not using the compass of who they are today. Make that the goalpost,
who are they today, why? Okay, it's kind of like
having a therapy session with your character, which
I've talked about before, I talked about that in my
character profile video, sitting down with your character virtually in your imagination, and imagine that you're talking to them, giving them a therapy session, trying to figure out and untangle what is it that has shaped you
into the person that you are? now, if you went to a therapy session and a psychologist started asking you about various pivotal
moments in your past, they wouldn't wanna
know every single detail of everything that ever
happened to you, okay? They're trying to unpick the
layers of what are the moments that shaped who you are today. What are the things that
happened in the past that created this current issue? So it matters now. It's not something that mattered then, and then went by and now
it's no longer relevant. It matters today, those are
the things you're looking for. Decisions lead you to where you are. So how has your character's past decisions led them to where they are now? Okay, so by this point, you know, digging into your character's past is really all about solving the mystery of who they are today. So let's say you created a
character who is defensive and standoffish and
mistrusting of everyone. Why are they like that? Perhaps because they grew
up in an unsafe environment and needed to learn how
to survive on their own. Maybe they're an Enneagram eight, now that we're thinking about that. (laughing) Side note, the Enneagram is a great way to like hack internal conflict and come up with really great themes
and messages and aha moments for your characters without
a whole lot of effort and mental struggle. Check out my video on the Enneagram for more information on that. But you can do this with any character, no matter what their misbelief is. Looking at their current misbelief will point you to a clue
really, in their past of where this misbelief came
from, because chances are, it came from some time in their past. However, this does not have to be an event from their childhood. It could really be any point in their life when something significant happened and dramatically changed their worldview. Most of your current beliefs probably originated from
the downloading stage of your youth, the first
seven years of your life. But depending on the
context of your story, some characters may have
misbeliefs from early or midlife events that happened to them. Now I highly recommend
writing the backstory scene that changed everything
for your characters, like actually sitting down and writing it as if it was gonna go in your book. Not only will it help to solidify your character's root misbeliefs and desires and fears in your mind, but you may end up using
actual pieces of it or the whole thing in your
final finished product. Remember, your readers have to see why your character is the way they are so that they can understand
why anything matters to them. If you've been here on
my channel for a while, you've heard me talk
about this all the time, internal conflict, why it matters, constantly asking yourself
why does it matter to my character, and
does the reader see that? Because if the reader doesn't see that, then you have a problem. Backstory is a great way
to show your reader that. So as you set out to write
your character's backstory, ask yourself these questions. What is my character's biggest misbelief? What happened in my character's past to make them believe such a thing? How is my character dissatisfied
with their life today because they believe this lie so firmly? What does my character
think will make them happy or bring them satisfaction
based on their misbelief? I wanna show you an example of this. And I love using story examples because I'm a very visual learner. I think a lot of you are
also visual learners. And I like to show you what
this looks like in action. So today, we're using one of my favorite stories of all time. And I can't believe that I have
not used this as an example, like, as I was writing out my notes, I'm like, I've never done that before. Crazy, ridiculous, okay, let's
talk about it, Mr. Selfridge. Honestly, just a freaking
masterclass in storytelling. I love this show so much
and I highly recommend it. Especially the first two seasons. The first season I think is even the best, but I love season two as well. And season three is pretty
good too, but you know, the first two seasons of any
show are always the best. Okay, let's case study the protagonist of the story, Harry Selfridge. What is my character's biggest misbelief? Harry's biggest misbelief
is that he will not be happy until he achieves his
definition of success, which to him looks like
being the best in the world at well, everything. The best father, the best husband, the owner of the best and biggest department store in the world. - Mr Selfridge, you are
the talk of the town. - That's what I aim for. - [Narrator] If he doesn't
achieve this idea of success, he will feel like a failure, a loser. He can't stand the thought
of letting his family down or failing to accomplish his lofty dreams. In other words, he bases his
entire sense of self-worth on how successful he is. Now, there's nothing wrong with wanting to accomplish big dreams and make your family happy,
those are admirable goals, but in Harry's case,
this belief is fear-based and that's why it trips
him up again and again. What in the character's past to make them believe such a thing? Like most people, Harry's misbelief developed in his childhood. It started when he
realized that his father was not actually a war hero who died in the service of his country, but an abusive and neglectful father, who left Harry's mother for another woman. - [Boy] Who's that lady Pa, why aren't you at home with Ma and me? - Your Ma's high tone
bullshit did it for me, that's why I never came home. But I'm your blood and your mind whether you like it or not. - [Narrator] We don't actually see much of his backstory in the show, but the one flashback
sequence is perfectly timed and perfectly adequate to show us how Harry's past has shaped him
into the person he is today. We see how much anger and resentment he still holds for his
father and anyone like him. He's so afraid of ending up
like his contemptible father. And that fear drives his motive to be the best at everything. - If your father could see
you now, he'd be so proud. - No, just don't talk to me about him. - [Narrator] How is the character dissatisfied with their life today because they believe this lie so firmly? Harry's dissatisfaction is complex because it lies below the surface. On the outside, he appears
to have everything, he's wealthy, popular and respected. He has a beautiful wife
and children who love him, but still, his fear and misbelief haunt him and make him weak. He's so fixated on not
being like his father, that he ends up turning into
the very thing that he hates. He fails himself again and again as he enthusiastically cheats on his wife and emotionally neglects his own family. He's not malicious, but he is
controlled by his misbelief. It's the root cause of
his real dissatisfaction, which creates a rather tragic character. Harry's life is a vicious
cycle of indulging his fear-based weaknesses and then resenting
himself for his mistakes. - Do you think that I want to be this way? Do you think that it makes me happy? - I'm meant to feel sorry for you. Is that right, well,
maybe I will tomorrow, but tonight you can go to hell! - [Narrator] What does the character think will make them happy or bring them satisfaction
based on their misbelief? Because Harry's internal conflict is essentially be the best, so you don't become a
failure like your father, his external conflict is always changing. As he sets the bar higher
and tries to outdo himself, achieving more and seeking
a sense of satisfaction and freedom from his past. Ironically, he seems
more emotionally invested in his employees than his own family. Not because he doesn't
care about his family, but because he places so much
value on public appearances and measures his self-worth on how much he's able to achieve. What he doesn't realize
is that he will never be able to find happiness
in money, fame and success. Not until he has an aha moment that is. - Here's to making history, how's it feel? - Feels good Frank, feels great. No, that's a lie. Now that it's done, it
feels like, what was that? - You guys just all need
to go watch this show. It's so good, it's just a
masterclass in storytelling. Like I said, all the
characters are so well-written and you'll love it. Okay, so how do you show the reader all of this in your story? I'll show you how first
you got to take the prompts that I gave you, write
down your answers to them, and then check this out. Your answer to question number one should appear in the
first 10% of your story and become clear to the reader as your character's misbelief is what makes us understand
and relate to them. Your answer to question
number two is an important and pivotal moment in
your character's past that shaped who they are today. If you don't want to insert
the whole scene into your story via a flashback or prologue, find another way to
creatively show your reader, why your character is
the way they are today. Your answer to question number three is the crux of the story. The challenge your character
will be forced to overcome or be destroyed by. The events of your story's plot should force them into the ring with their fear and misbelief. Your answer to question
number four will be the goal your protagonist is actively pursuing, at least throughout the
first half of your story, before the game changing
midpoint disrupts their plan. For a complete and detailed guide on how to take your beautifully flawed and conflicted character and take them on a transformative journey, check out my three X
story structure series. Also, if you want to see more examples of character backstory, check out the videos I linked
in the description box below. Okay, now it's time for you to talk to me, come and below this video and tell me, what is your favorite character
backstory of all time? Analyze that, figure out what is it about your favorite character
that you love so much? What have you learned
about their backstory that has made you care about them, then go about doing that
for your own character. Smash that like button
if you liked this video and be sure to subscribe to this channel if you haven't already,
because I post writing videos and publishing videos
every single Wednesday, and I would love to have
you here in the community. Also be sure to check out my Patreon because that's where we go beyond videos and take storytelling to the next level. the Patreon community's
not only the best way to support what I'm doing here on YouTube, but it's also the only way
to connect one-on-one with me and get better guidance
and advice on your story. So go to patreon.com/abbyemmons
and check out all the awesome, exclusive content I have over there for you. Until ext week my friend, rock on. But you're not sure why
they are the way they are and why am I losing voice so soon? The first two seasons of any
show are always the best. I don't know why that is, actually I do, but we won't go into it now, okay. Maybe someday I'll make a video that's like why the first two
seasons are always the best.
