In any given situation, each individual involved in that situation will perceive the exact same things happening in different—sometimes shockingly different—ways. That’s why crime scene witness testimony is often contradictory.
The same concept should be true in every scene we write in our stories. No two characters will experience the events within a scene in the exact same way. Are you taking advantage of these differences?
Say your character is a young man. If he walks into a bar, what will he notice first? Now turn him into a young woman. What does she notice first? Now picture an old man and old woman—how do the things they notice differ from their younger counterparts’ observations?
Gender and age aren’t the only differentiators, of course. Socio-economic, cultural, professional, power dynamic, and educational factors can change what each character observes, how they feel, how they interpret what’s happening, and how they react to it.
For example, consider how a boss, a star employee, and an about-to-be-fired employee might all react during the same company picnic.
The boss might notice what looks like an excess of expensive food, the inappropriate shenanigans of the Accounting department manager, or the way the employees avoid sitting with her at the picnic table. The star employee might feel gratitude, a genuine warmth towards their coworkers, and the thrill of team spirit during the sack race. The about-to-be-fired employee might find the boss’s rah-rah speech patronizing, the noticeable porta-potty aromas hilarious, and the smiles of their coworkers fake and ridiculous.
Thinking about how each of your characters would enter a scene and what they would notice, hear, sense, feel, interpret, or react to can help your scene in several ways, such as:
- Determining the most interesting POV character for that scene, so you can write the scene from that character’s perspective.
- Deepening each character’s personality traits.
- Highlighting your protagonist’s internal conflicts, fears, and desires.
- Keeping tension high by having characters notice different details or react to the same situation in wildly contrasting or unexpected ways because of the backgrounds or social perspectives each brings to the scene.
Sometimes we get so close to our characters, we make them experience and respond to events the same way we ourselves would in that situation. But would they, really? And if each of your characters act and think like you do, where’s the conflict, tension, and excitement in that?
Here’s a fun exercise: Find a friend or two (bonus points if they’re also writers) who are dissimilar to you in a significant way—maybe they’re of a different gender, race, sexual orientation, or profession (an engineer versus a kindergarten teacher, for example). Then walk into a new place together, like a coffee shop or a thrift store.
Immediately jot down at least fifteen things you each notice. Focus on the five physical senses (sights, sounds, smells, tastes, textures), but don’t forget the emotional sense—how did the place make you each feel? Did it bring up memories, worries, or questions? Did you feel uncomfortable, cozy, anxious, bored, or excited?
Finally, compare your lists for any items in common as well as differences. Can any of the differences be attributed to your backgrounds, personalities, jobs, etc.?
There are no right or wrong answers, of course—just variations in what each of you noticed, some of which may be because of your diverse backgrounds.
As you write the scenes in your current work-in-progress, consider each player on your story’s stage. Can their individual perspectives of the scene increase tension? Can you elevate the scene by choosing to tell it from another character’s POV? Or might you be making your characters act in this scene the way you would instead of in a way that’s more aligned with their own background and personality?
These questions can give you a better—ahem—perspective on your characters’ actions, reactions, dialogue, thoughts, and emotions in your scenes. Each of your characters’ points of view are unique and powerful. It’s likely your scenes will be stronger when you make good use of that.
[Photo by Daria Shatova on Unsplash]
