Character motivation

“What’s my motivation, darling?” said the actor to the director. The actor given the part, wants to know the back story; what’s been going on; what their character’s aims, intentions and ambitions are.  What the character motivation is. 

The reason the actor needs to know is so they can portray that character with real depth and meaning. As writers, we are the directors of our stories. And it’s important that we know the motivation behind every single character – whether they have a walk on part, or the starring role.

If you aren’t clear on each character’s motivation, then your reader won’t be either. Without motivation, your characters could be inconsistent in their behaviour and attitude. A clear motivation will make them a stronger, more believable character. They know exactly what they want and are determined to achieve it. When you have two characters strongly motivated, that’s when conflict occurs, and your story becomes character led rather than plot led. Give your character a strong, realistic motivation and your reader will understand them, even if they don’t empathise with them.

What's happening in your characters' lives?

Every character in your story should be feeling motivated in some way. The fact that you have created them and given them a role in your story, means that they have a background, family, friends, dreams. Maybe their motivation is just to get on with their job at this point in your story when they come into contact with your protagonist. Maybe they are reacting to something that’s happened in their lives, and it might impact on your character. Only you can decide.

Your characters’ motivations will reveal a lot about them such as their moral standards, their beliefs, their values, their strengths and weaknesses, as well as their hopes, dreams and fears. Every single character in your story has a reason for doing what they do. Take time to examine their personalities and circumstances – and get them motivated.

Naming your characters

Finding the right name for your characters is important, and you’ll know from your own experience that different names conjure up different images. If you’re one of those writers who can’t continue until they have the right name for their characters, could I suggest you try and put this aside; give them a temporary name rather than let it stop you from progressing.

Remember that names can be lengthened or shortened, which is worth thinking about, as this can show the mood of other characters or reflect the atmosphere of the scene by the way one character addresses another.

Although the popularity of names can indicate the timeline, the era, social class and a lot more, names do come around in circles, but beware of modern names. Be sure the name would have been around when your character was born. The internet will provide you with most popular names for all years and all nationalities if you need help.

Names may also affect the personality of your character. Would you give a weak sounding name to your strongest character? Would you give the best name you’ve thought up to a minor character? Think of surnames too. A character might get called by their surname by one character, and something entirely different by another. Calling someone by their surname can alter the mood of a scene. And don’t forget nicknames – and the reasons behind them.

Avoid making your character’s names sound too similar to each other. Create contrasts to avoid confusion. It’s so distracting to be reading a story and having to revert back to see who Amy and Abby were, or Jake and John and so on.

When thinking of a character’s first and last names, you might want to contrast them too. Perhaps if you have got a flamboyant first name, let the surname be plainer – and vice versa. But on the other hand, two plain names may sit nicely together and instantly conjure up what that character is like or looks like. Similarly, two flamboyant names together may work well. The choice is entirely yours so give plenty of thought to your characters’ names before you christen them.

Today’s Exercise:

• If you were to start a story around one of your characters, what would their main drive be for that day or that moment in time when the story opens? Get writing and see where it leads you. Do the same with an opposing character that you’ve created. You might have the ingredients for a good story. 
• Create a brand-new character, give them a name and a nickname. Next write a scene which indicates the reasons behind the nickname.
• Now write an opening scene where that character is determined to do something – for good reason, then allow something to get in their way and cause them a problem.

Tomorrow:  First impressions – and last impressions.