Great books can have ordinary characters plunged into extraordinary situations - but they can also have extraordinary characters who create their own extraordinary situations! Who are these characters? What are they like, and how can we, as writers create them? These characters have what Harry Bingham in his book "How to Write" calls - characters with edge. ...

It's what your character does, rather than what you say about them, that defines them for the reader. In this episode Andrew talks about how action defines character and gives examples for both heros and villains ...

Continuing our series on characterisation, in this episode we look at character motivation and why the motivation for the characters in our writing must be: evident to the reader, reasonable and understandable, and must drive the plot. ...

What are the personal qualities you need, not only keep you writing but to help you improve in your craft? Andrew shares his views on why perseverance, humility, and imagination are the fundamental character traits you need to develop as a writer. ...

In the last episode we looked at character integrity and how this is founded on 1.Believability/plausibility and 2. The character as an individual. In this episode I'm going to start to look at how a character can become an individual, focusing on descriptive markers and character weaknesses. ...

This episode introduces the core requirements for good character development: character integrity and individuality. We will look at individuality next time, but in this episode we look at how making a character believable, and keeping them consistent are the keys to successful characterisation. ...