In Praise of `The Science of Writing Characters' (Pelican 2020)
In Praise of
The Science of Writing Characters: Using Psychology to Create Compelling Fictional Characters
(Pelican 2020)
Pelican (2020)
A super-brief & super-glowing book review
by JTV
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Finally got to read this great book by my friend Kira-Anne.
In short: ATB.
A Terrific Book!
...& more of `The Scientific Turn' in screenwriting/drama/narrative/storytelling! Yay!!
It should be a textbook in all screenwriting / novel-writing / short-story writing / videogame narrative design (etc!) courses!
Loved all the helpful (script) examples, the exercises at the back, and all the fascinating models of character that can be used as tools - for clueless folks like me, who can't write character.
(Well, unless I can, but: that's a matter of opinion. I tend to hate everything I write.)
Love how comprehensively Kira-Anne has drawn on:
`...theories and research from personality psychology, evolutionary psychology, neuroscience, narrative psychology, media psychology and developmental psychology.' (Pelican 2020, p. 6)
(Not much left out there! :)
Bravo & encore.
And, the diagram on p 75!!! (omg, genius - I never thought about it that way before!!! Brilliant stuff.)
& the great charts from The Bestseller Code, etc... And all the cool little Tables of character Analysis.
...So, I could rave on and on, but no spoilers here - I simply suggest: buy and read, this great book! Not just because, Kira-Anne is awesome. Her Ph.D was awesome too.
So: very highly recommended -
The Science of Writing Characters: Using Psychology to Create Compelling Fictional Characters
(Pelican 2020)
Pelican (2020)
You can even take a Big 5 (OCEAN) test free online here, and find out: all about yourself.
(Careful though, you might not like what you find. Yikes.)
& a Random Observation: A few of my old screenwriting mentors/teachers/editors went on to become Life Coaches. Because: it's all the same thing / the skills are transferable. ...Interesting, no? (Well; unless it isn't.)
& Thanks for reading, if you did.
THE END
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& now...
THE
EXTENDED DIRECTOR'S CUT
of the
END CREDITS
Well, it seems that's about all we have time for, folks.
You have been reading / viewing / listening to an audio-described
blog-post
by:
Dr J T Velikovsky Ph.D
(aka: Velikovsky of Newcastle)
& Evolutionary Culturologist & AI Researcher & Enthusiast & Information Scientist & Systems Scientist & Filmmaker & Writer & Artist & Actor & Muso & Random Guy & Rugged Frontiersman (and, also The StoryAlity Guy) aka Humanimal (or, The Artist formally known as Dr J T Velikovsky)
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Still More Stuff. Seriously.
This `sign-off' never ends.
Transmedia Blog: On Writering
IMDb (Movies, Videogames):
Music: Texas Radio & Zen Stupidity
YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/joeteevee (over 100 videos, some are even: good)
Academia page: https://newcastle-au.academia.edu/JTVelikovsky
ResearchGate page: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jt_Velikovsky
My ouvre... etc etc.
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6741-066X
Forthcoming book (early 2022): https://www.igi-global.com/book/principles-protocols-practices-evolutionary-culturology/267379
HOLON/partons
Ok, I'm pretty sure that's it.
But still;
It goes to show you never can tell,
(as the late great philosopher, Charles E A Berry once wrote.)
P.S. - Also, I reckon Characters are HOLON/partons, too...
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Hey, you read all the way to the end..!
(Holy wow!)
Thx for reading!------
