Strength Doesnt Come From What You Can Do. It Comes From Overcoming The Things You Once Thought You Couldnt.

Strength doesn’t come from what you can do. It comes from overcoming the things you once thought you couldn’t.

I find the best way to develop and create believable characters is this process I was introduced to during a "Save the Cat writing conference.

I find it fleshes characters out well with minimal overthinking and it tends to produce primary and secondary plot points.

Character Profile

- Write five sentences that cover a distinct aspect of that character, such as education, work, social position, love life, or whatever else.

- Write three sentences for each main sentence that expands on the point.

- For each of those five paragraphs, write an additional sentence that contrasts with the ideas presented in the paragraph.

- Finally write three sentences each to expand on each counter sentence

-Now you have five three-sentence paragraphs detailing five different aspects of your first character, each accompanied by a three sentence paragraphs that stand in opposition.

What can I do to understand and psychoanalyze a character better and profoundly?

Supposing you have already developed a well-rounded character (perhaps used a checklist like this), I would say, you can then look deeper into your character by dissecting them in 3 levels:

1. Their individual characteristics, traits, moods, idiosyncrasies etc. You may go through these attributes one by one. Who is your character? What defines them? What are their goals/motivations? How are these goals treated by your character?

2. Who they are within a given context. Who are they when they are alone? How do they behave when they are with X or with Y? When they are at A, do they do things the same as when they find themselves at B? How differently do they behave—if at all? When faced with XYZ situation, what do they do? How do they think and feel in these different contexts and scenarios?

3. Their backstory. What was your character's upbringing like? What significant events transpired? How do these past experiences shape your character now, and moving forward?

Perhaps if you peel back these layers one at a time, you may understand them better and even discover something new. But, ultimately, this is your character. You know them better than anyone else. You hold their future in your hands. All you need to do now is allow the ink to run free.

More: On Psychology More: On Character-Building

Intellectual, imaginative, romantic, emotional. This is what gives sex its surprising textures, its subtle transformations, its aphrodisiac elements. Sex loses all its power and magic when it becomes explicit, mechanical, overdone, when it becomes a mechanistic obsession. It becomes a bore. You are shrinking your world of sensations. You are withering it, starving it, draining its blood. If you nourished your sexual life with all the excitements and adventures which love injects into sensuality, you would be the most potent human being in the world. The source of sexual power is curiosity, passion. You are watching its little flame die of asphyxiation. Sex does not thrive on monotony. Sex must be mixed with tears, laughter, words, promises, scenes, jealousy, envy, all of the spices of fear, foreign travel, new faces, novels, stories, dreams, fantasies, music, dancing, opium, wine.

Anaïs Nin - 'The Diary Of Anaïs Nin, Volume 3; 1939-1944'

"Being rude is easy. It does not take any effort and is a sign of weakness and insecurity. Kindness shows great self-discipline and strong self-esteem. Being kind is not always easy when dealing with rude people. Kindness is a sign of a person who has done a lot of personal work and has come to a great self-understanding and wisdom. Choose to be kind over being right, and you’ll be right every time because kindness is a sign of strength." U.N. Owen.

You want to slip into my pants...find me in a book and take me in my fantasies.