Newsletter “3 in 1” by Albán Brothers
"Tell powerful and commercially successful stories with practical insights."
Character Development
April 9, 2024
Writing Concept
What is it about?
It refers to the transformation or growth of a hero throughout a story and depicts changes in the character's personality, beliefs, motivations, spirituality, physicality, or behaviors as a response to the interactions with other characters, events, and the challenges the protagonist must face.
What is it for?
Character development serves several purposes:
It adds depth (three-dimensionality) and complexity to the characters, making them more believable and engaging for the audience.
It drives the plot forward by influencing the character's decisions and actions.
It allows the audience to connect deeper with the characters and empathize with their journey.
It reinforces the themes and messages of the story by showing how characters grapple with internal conflicts or moral dilemmas.
Exercise & Practical Example
The following exercise will help you develop your ability to recognize and create changes and development for your characters.
Pick a story - whether it is a movie, series, book, or any other form of storytelling.
Pick a character.
Pay attention - to events, interactions with other characters, and challenges that cause changes to the character you chose.
Describe how and why - the character shifts in personality, beliefs, motivations, or behavior and how these changes impact their journey in the plot.
Here's an example of the exercise done by us:
Breaking Bad by Vince Gilligan
Analysis by Albán Brothers
In the series "Breaking Bad," we see the protagonist, Walter White, initially portrayed as a shy and vulnerable teacher struggling with a terminal cancer diagnosis. His motivation is to care for and protect his family, so he decides to take the easy path of selling drugs.
As he realizes that he is not just good but the best in this dangerous environment, his motivation evolves, becoming increasingly power-hungry and driven by a desire for control and dominance, contrasting with who he was initially or in his "real" surroundings.
His actions also become morally ambiguous. Some clues that show his undergoing change are when he sees himself forced to kidnap a drug dealer, who cuts the crusts off his sandwich, and after being forced to kill him to tie up loose ends, we see Walter continuing to cut the crusts off his sandwiches as he learned from his victim. He's not only changing but now becoming a victim of his own decisions.
Initially, Walter dressed modestly in plaid green shirts, reflecting his role as a teacher in society. However, as his character evolved, he adopted a darker aesthetic with a black coat, a hat, and sunglasses. Walter's speech and dialogue turned from humility and humor to a more assertive and calculated tone, often scary and dangerous.
Movie Recommendation.
"Matrix" 1999: When a beautiful stranger leads computer hacker Neo to a forbidding underworld, he discovers the shocking truth--the life he knows is the elaborate deception of an evil cyber-intelligence.
If you enjoyed this newsletter, don't forget to subscribe and recommend us on your social media by copying and pasting the following link:
Until next week,
Albán Brothers
Authors of ORDER.
Share this newsletter 👇👇