Go beyond backstory to discover the psychological truth of who your characters really are.
Date: Saturday, 26 April
Time: 10:10
Room: Tuke Hall
Filmed: YES
Do you know who your character really is? Not just their backstory or traits, but how they view themselves, their values, and the stories they tell themselves to make sense of their world?
Most writing exercises focus on creating characters from an external, objective perspective. But to craft truly compelling characters that feel authentic on the page, you need to dive into their minds and understand how they see themselves—and their place within the story world you’ve created.
This hands-on workshop explores psychological techniques for developing your character’s subjective experience. You’ll investigate essential questions that reveal their inner landscape: What do they believe about themselves, and why? How do they justify their actions, even their flaws? What values drive their decisions, and where did those values come from? What memories have they selectively emphasized or forgotten?
By answering these questions, you’ll uncover deeper layers of humanity that will elevate your writing beyond surface-level characterization. The session combines practical exercises with illuminating examples from film and television that demonstrate how subjective character development creates memorable, complex protagonists.
Bring an idea for a character you want to develop, and leave with insights that will make them unforgettable. You’ll gain techniques you can immediately apply to your current projects to transform flat characters into living, breathing people whose inner worlds are as rich as their external actions.
Speakers In This Session
Kira Anne Pelican // Character Development Expert & Author
Kira-Anne Pelican blends psychology and screenwriting to help writers create deeper, more compelling characters for film and television.
