Writing a character description checklist

The characters in our stories, songs, poems, and essays embody our writing. They are our words made flesh. Sometimes they even speak for us, carrying much of the burden of plot, theme, mood, idea, and emotion.

Do you teach elementary school writing or struggling middle school writers? If so, be sure to check out Pattern Based Writing: The writer uses action purposefully to enhance the story.

The action does not overwhelm the story or the character development.

The writer uses description effectively and with purpose. The writer blends the description with action and character.

The writer avoids large chunks of purple prose. The hero may be an ordinary person in extraordinary circumstances. The hero may have a flaw that illustrates and highlights what the hero needs to learn. The writer creates a strong problem and strong motivations for the hero.

Story Writing and Fiction Teaching Resources and Printables KS1 - SparkleBox	Tweet One of the most important elements in a novel or short story is characterization:
Navigate Guide	January 14, Author: However, on revisiting it, I realized that I specified quite a few descriptive cliches that make for weak descriptions but somehow neglected to discuss what writers can do to get descriptions right.

The hero has a need, a want, and a goal. And the stakes are high! The writer creates likable characters. They are all interesting people, and they all have redeeming qualities.

The best and the worst of them all have qualities that we admire in people: Even the villain takes great joy in being amazingly villainous. Even the villain believes that he or she is right and can give reasons for his or her position and actions.

Checklist for Revising a Novel | Be the Story

The writer limits the number of characters in order to develop each character more fully. The characters have a personality and a physical appearance. The writer develops the characters by using the three main character-development strategies: The writer creates vivid, detailed characters.

The reader feels as if they know the characters or have met people just like them.

For this reason, the reader cares about the characters. Readers care about characters that they can picture in their mind. The writer constantly reveals new aspects parts of the characters by what they say, by what they do, and by what others say about them.

The writer creates interesting and complex people! In fact, they are like real human beings! The writer creates a story that takes place in a real place and time, even if it is an imaginary place and time.

The setting feels real because the writer creates vivid details and because real people characters are living real life in that space. The characters see the space, use the space, fight against the space—they live in the space.

The setting contributes to what is taking place.

Editing Checklist - Fiction Writer's Mentor

At times, the setting acts or feels like a reflection of a character in the story: At times, the setting acts like or feels like a reflection of the dramatic situation or the main problem. Scary stories take place in haunted houses late at night just as a storm is gathering strength, not at the park on hot and sunny summer days.

On the other hand, if your scary story does take place at the park on a hot and sunny summer day, it will be a very different kind of scary story—and that may be a good thing! Where the story takes place reflects or contributes to what actually does take place. The writer creates vivid, detailed, sensory descriptions that helps the reader imagine being there.

The setting helps the reader escape into the narrative. The writer skillfully uses a variety of LFR to create a compelling and stylistic artistic expression that adds to and heightens the story experience.

The writer skillfully balances live action with exposition and description. This balance brings the reader into the story but also keeps the story racing forward.

The Story is About Two Things: The writer creates a story that is about two things: The story is about what happened.Character profiles are especially helpful for novels which involve several main characters and for stories which use multiple points of view.

Character profiles are useful when writing in any genre. Depending on the genre in which you write, you will create additional sections on the Character Profile Worksheet.

10a–b Writing a character 11 Writing a character 12a–b Writing a character using checklist Build-up – establishing setting Shared reading: analyse and annotate two examples/create checklist Dilemma Shared writing Narrative Writing Unit. used with a year 2 class to help them peer assess their writing of settings and characters!

Character description checklist.

Checklist for Revising a Novel. Posted by Tim King. December 21, All dialogue, narrative, and description ping-pongs (is written in MRU’s). All sentences are clear and unambiguous. Every word and phrase adds meaning. Remove all excess words and phrases. editing, writing checklist, novel, revision. About Tim King. Apr 30,  · The Ultimate Character Checklist. When developing a character, it’s essential to know “who” that person is, what they represent, and their current journey. but it only fits that description if you modify to suit your own needs. Have at it and make it fun–writing should be enjoyable, after all. See you on the next page. Does my persuasive writing rely on documented, credible, current evidence to support its claims, thereby reflecting my good character as a writer? Do the experts cited in my writing have credentials, awards, and/or degrees that relate to the topic?

Display and posters. doc, 27 KB. setting description checklist. Display and posters. Description success criteria/5(21). Story Characters Checklist (6 member reviews) Free.

Save for Later. To help children self asses their character description. meetagoswami, Sep 18th Character developement. rodgomez, Jun 22nd 6» English» Writing» Fiction» Story Writing» Character Creation;4/4(6).

Read the following character description. Yarwait was a disagreeable old man who loathed everyone around him. He scavenged in bins for his daily food and rolled cigarettes made from shreds of tobacco from stubs which he collected from the gutters and rolled into strips of paper.

Description: The writer uses description effectively and with purpose. The writer blends the description with action and character. The writer blends the description with action and character.

The writer avoids large chunks of purple prose.