Therapy for Characters

Sometimes it takes a shrink to work out what really makes a person tick – even if that person is a fictional character in the mind of a writer.

Psychologist Pierre Brouard thinks he is probably the first of his profession to be involved in running a writing course. He is co-convenor of a regular one-day course in character development with Richard and me.

The next Character Course, will be held in Johannesburg on February 27.

Pierre thinks that psychologists and writers are similar in one important respect: “We are fascinated by human nature, and the attempt to understand what makes us who we are.”

As a psychologist in his middle years, he has worked with people across the spectrum. “I have also lived a varied life, all of which has exposed me to human frailty. That, and my AIDS work, has left me with an empathy and a deep interest in what is essential about us; in our essense.

“These are the same questions that plague writers.”

Richard thinks that characters are “the key to all fiction”. We remember books by their characters, he says, even when we praise their plots.

“There is no formula for creating a good character. The most important thing a writer can do is to begin to develop a sense of the forces that make us the people we are.”

As a writer, I’ve always been fascinated by the different ways people respond to the influences in their lives. In what ways are we all similar, and how is each of us unique?

The Character Course blends psychology and writing to create a one-day immersion in the process of creating memorable and larger-than-life characters. It looks at the skills needed to make these characters leap off the page.

Our aim is to help writers and would-be writers to create characters who will become as real – and in some cases perhaps more real – than our next-door neighbours,

For more information, contact Trish on . Information on the different courses run by allaboutwriting can be found on http://www.allaboutwritingcourses.com.

You can also see our unique service to writers in the column Characters on the Couch on http://www.allaboutlove.net. It allows writers to ask a psychologist questions about motivation and human nature, to make their characters more real.