Making Unsympathetic Characters Compelling

“Everybody loves heroic characters, those avatars of virtue who can do no wrong as they smile through perfect teeth and find solutions to every problem via indomitable spirit and/or iron will,” says instructor Jeff Chon. “But what is it that makes Sherlock Holmes, often seen as insufferably arrogant, compelling? What makes the ‘whiny brat’ Holden Caulfield or the ‘hateful and cruel’ Heathcliff such enduring characters? How do authors turn absolute monsters such as Humbert Humbert or Amy Dunne from Gone Girl into compelling reads?”

The characteristics we see as flaws are quite often what drive a story. It is frequently the people, and not the situations, that create high stakes. In this 3-week course, we will do character building through in-class writing exercises and optional-out-of-class assignments, and explore how those characters behave in scenes: what they hate about themselves, and what others hate in them. Our prompt-driven work and facilitated discussions will help us come to a deeper understanding of the character qualities which deepen conflict and drive drama.

For guidance with our own writing, we will read and discuss short pieces about craft and short stories about seemingly unsympathetic characters. Through close reading, we will learn to find those points where characters reveal who they are, while diagnosing the why’s of who they are. By the end of this course, writers will have the necessary tools to populate their worlds with three-dimensional characters readers may not like, but won’t be able to ignore.

About The Writing Salon's Remote Classes

You will be able to participate in live class meetings via Zoom videoconference. To attend classes, you'll need a phone, tablet or computer and access to the internet. You can participate in the class from wherever you'd like, whether on your living room couch or in your office. Before your class meets, you'll receive an email from The Writing Salon with more information about Zoom and your remote class. If you have any questions about remote learning, please don't hesitate to reach out to us at hello@writingsalons.com.