Writers take us to many places from far
off lands, to city streets, to other dimensions to outter space. And it’s
interesting and entertaining and fun.
They also take us other places with
their development of character. The inner world can be as entertaining,
chilling, exciting and gripping as the outer world.
Whether we writers realize it or not, we
have to cultivate a basic understanding of what it is people really want and
need. There’s a sort of a basic five.
Human beings are a predictable lot and
it makes sense that we are. We need things in life to keep things running smoothly, things like:
Safety and security- ever had your house
broken into? Yeah, like that. It’s a basic need that we feel secure and safe in
our lives, that those around us we love like friends, family, even pets are in
that same safe space.
We’re always looking for love – sometimes
in the wrong places, right? We need love from spouses, family, close friends
and even, again, those pets we take into our homes. People need to feel they
belong somewhere to someone or something. Thus, families, organizations,
churches, whatever.
People also need to secure basic
biological needs. We need to eat. And that ties into safety and love. We need
to not be in pain, to be physically mobile, all the things we barely give a
thought to throughout our day if we’re basically sound and healthy.
Folks crave recognition from the simplest
pat on the head from an employer to the full blown power mad dictator. I’d classify that as a need. Along with that
comes the need to reach our potential and strive for and reach some sort of
personal fulfillment.
But sometimes, as authors, a drastic
shift in morality is exactly what we want for our characters. This kind of
change doesn’t occur easily, but it can happen under the right circumstances.
This is where basic needs come into play.
Take any one of the above things away
from a person or hold it just out of reach and there’s going to be created a
seismic shift in the personality of a
character to get that need back.
Just staying alive is the most crucial
need – Life in danger, loved ones in danger always strikes a chord.
But it goes deeper. What if the main
character is a moral stand-up kind of guy trying to protect his (or her)
family? What if there’s no cooperation from authorities and suddenly that
person has to consider and do things that normally wouldn’t be considered? What
changes happen? What if a city slicker is thrown into a wilderness survival
situation – and there’s a person intent on murder hot on his heels? You’re removing
his safety and security and just staying alive doesn’t seem so simple any more.
We writers are constantly throwing
curves at our characters. It’s our job. It’s through adversity of some kind
that the inner workings of our characters are revealed.
So know what the needs of your
characters are. Know their moral compasses. Then pick one or more of the above
needs, take them away or jeopardize them and play with your characters heads.
How many times have we all thought, “I would do….” Whatever in that
circumstance? Put your characters to the test and take your readers along for
the nail-biting ride. You can chortle heh, heh, heh if you like while your
characters flounder for their new equilibrium.
Think about it and give us a few
examples of need removal you’ve experimented with.
Writers take us to many places from far
off lands, to city streets, to other dimensions to out space. And it’s
interesting and entertaining and fun.
They also take us other places with
their development of character. The inner world can be as entertaining,
chilling, exciting and gripping as the outer world.
Whether we writers realize it or not, we
have to cultivate a basic understanding of what it is people really want and
need. There’s a sort of a basic five.
Human beings are a predictable lot and
it makes sense that we are. We need things in life to keep things running smoothly, things like:
Safety and security- ever had your house
broken into? Yeah, like that. It’s a basic need that we feel secure and safe in
our lives, that those around us we love like friends, family, even pets are in
that same safe space.
We’re always looking for love – sometimes
in the wrong places, right? We need love from spouses, family, close friends
and even, again, those pets we take into our homes. People need to feel they
belong somewhere to someone or something. Thus, families, organizations,
churches, whatever.
People also need to secure basic
biological needs. We need to eat. And that ties into safety and love. We need
to not be in pain, to be physically mobile, all the things we barely give a
thought to throughout our day if we’re basically sound and healthy.
Folks crave recognition from the simplest
pat on the head from an employer to the full blown power mad dictator. I’d classify that as a need. Along with that
comes the need to reach our potential and strive for and reach some sort of
personal fulfillment.
But sometimes, as authors, a drastic
shift in morality is exactly what we want for our characters. This kind of
change doesn’t occur easily, but it can happen under the right circumstances.
This is where basic needs come into play.
Take any one of the above things away
from a person or hold it just out of reach and there’s going to be created a
seismic shift in the personality of a
character to get that need back.
Just staying alive is the most crucial
need – Life in danger, loved ones in danger always strikes a chord.
But it goes deeper. What if the main
character is a moral stand-up kind of guy trying to protect his (or her)
family? What if there’s no cooperation from authorities and suddenly that
person has to consider and do things that normally wouldn’t be considered? What
changes happen? What if a city slicker is thrown into a wilderness survival
situation – and there’s a person intent on murder hot on his heels? You’re removing
his safety and security and just staying alive doesn’t seem so simple any more.
We writers are constantly throwing
curves at our characters. It’s our job. It’s through adversity of some kind
that the inner workings of our characters are revealed.
So know what the needs of your
characters are. Know their moral compasses. Then pick one or more of the above
needs, take them away or jeopardize them and play with your characters heads.
How many times have we all thought, “I would do….” Whatever in that
circumstance? Put your characters to the test and take your readers along for
the nail-biting ride. You can chortle heh, heh, heh if you like while your
characters flounder for their new equilibrium.
Think about it and give us a few
examples of need removal you’ve experimented with.
