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Sunday Fun: Attitude in Our Characters

There is power in a character with an attitude, especially when the character is the narrator with the first person POV. Attitude will also work with the third person POV, if we manage our word choices cleverly.

The oxford dictionary defines attitude as: “A settled way of thinking or feeling about something.” The attitude in a fictional character, however, works better when it is not a subtle but a passionate one, even edging on being quarrelsome or having a scowling disposition or temperament, a determined posture, or even a pose of being cocky. Think of Hermione in Harry Potter. As nice as she is, Hermione is her own person with her own disposition and posture in life.

To bring out the attitude in a character, after we write up his or her chart, we’ll need to figure out which of his characteristics or beliefs are the most settled and pronounced ones. Then, with those characteristics in mind, it is a good idea to ask questions to which they answer with an attitude and even come up with different answers with the same attitude. It is a good idea to pick their best answers and add them to their charts.

The nice thing about this practice is: When we find the character’s attitude, we also find his voice.