EDITING YOUR PROTAGONIST
1. Watch the film, Adaptation
2. Read the article by Hollywood script reader, Monica Partridge on Your
Protagonist: Likability and the Finish Line"
3. Read Chapter 2 of “Rewrite” by Paul Chitlik.
As you read &write, consider:
• What’s the premise of your story?
• Is premise different than a logline? Is it different than theme?
• Does your protagonist match your premise?
• If writing a game where the player has a choice of what kind of person your
protagonist will become, can you still match your protagonist to your premise?
• What’s your protagonist’s one line of dialogue that sums him or her up?
• Have you given your character a worthy flaw? Or allowed one your player could
exploit?
Exercises:
• Reexamine the character documents you created in your Character Creation and
Development class and compare your character’s physiology, sociology, psychology,
goal and the personality flaw that hinders him or her to your draft. See if you’ve kept
your character consistent.
• Try out Chitlik’s exercises on page 33 and 35, and chart the seven-point
structure of your protagonist’s central emotional relationship, then compare against her
character arc.
If writing a game where the player is in control of some aspect of the character's choices
toward one of multiple possible character arcs, map those out as well and do this
comparison. Are both equally satisfying for the player? Does each possible arc have a
seven-point structure?
2. Read the article by Hollywood script reader, Monica Partridge on Your
Protagonist: Likability and the Finish Line"
3. Read Chapter 2 of “Rewrite” by Paul Chitlik.
As you read &write, consider:
• What’s the premise of your story?
• Is premise different than a logline? Is it different than theme?
• Does your protagonist match your premise?
• If writing a game where the player has a choice of what kind of person your
protagonist will become, can you still match your protagonist to your premise?
• What’s your protagonist’s one line of dialogue that sums him or her up?
• Have you given your character a worthy flaw? Or allowed one your player could
exploit?
Exercises:
• Reexamine the character documents you created in your Character Creation and
Development class and compare your character’s physiology, sociology, psychology,
goal and the personality flaw that hinders him or her to your draft. See if you’ve kept
your character consistent.
• Try out Chitlik’s exercises on page 33 and 35, and chart the seven-point
structure of your protagonist’s central emotional relationship, then compare against her
character arc.
If writing a game where the player is in control of some aspect of the character's choices
toward one of multiple possible character arcs, map those out as well and do this
comparison. Are both equally satisfying for the player? Does each possible arc have a
seven-point structure?
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