Ever wondered how to turn your character’s deepest fears into compelling traits that resonate with your audience? Well, you’re in the right place!
In today’s video, we delve into the psychology of fear—both realistic and perceived—to help you craft characters that are not just believable but also relatable.
Whether it’s the gut-wrenching fear of a physical threat or the subtle dread of a difficult conversation, we explore how these fears can manifest in unique quirks and behaviors.
From talismans that bring courage to rehearsing worst-case scenarios, we’ve got it all covered!
Hello, Jane Cleland here.
How can I convert my character’s deepest fears into unique characteristics that communicate these fears? Interesting question.
Fear has, I want to say, two components. One is realistic, the other is perception. There are things that you’re going to be afraid of. For example, someone coming running after you with a two-by-four in their hands—that’s scary. That’s a different kind of fear than knowing you have to talk to your boss about why Sally got the promotion and not you. You’re afraid that you’re not going to do a good job. You might be afraid you’re going to cry. You might be afraid they’re going to think you’re a whiner or a complainer. That’s all perception, which doesn’t make it less real; it just is less overtly obvious why you would be afraid of a chat with a boss.
In terms of the literal fear—the guy coming at you with a two-by-four, or you’re receiving threatening emails or calls—I need to know how your character handles that kind of thing. Some people melt. Some people would move out of their apartment or house, change cities, change phone numbers. Other people are like, “Bring it on.” So that’s going to be character-dependent on how they handle that sort of thing.
The other kind of fear—the perception fear—that’s where I really think their quirks and characteristics come into play. You know, there are baseball players that are so afraid they’re not going to have a good game that they wear red socks or something. There’s a superstition component to it, a talisman that brings them courage or energy. Some girls twirl their hair when they’re that kind of fearful.
So you could give them a physical manifestation. You could let them write in a journal before they go in. You could have them rehearse. You could have them anticipate the worst possible questions they could get because, if they can answer those, they can answer anything. That’s different from someone who just says, “I am good on my feet; I’m gonna wing it.”
So you see how my answer to you is that it depends on the person.
I know you can do this. I’m very confident.
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