5 ways to make your audience empathise with your character
Everyone wants to read about a character they can empathize with. Here’s a few tips written by Sal Taybrim from Starbase 118 from the article Compelling Characterization (read it in full here).
- Write out the character’s thoughts or let the audience know what they are thinking. Especially if their actions are complex or contradictory, putting their thoughts into words can be very revealing for your audience.
- Show the character suffering – OR – helping someone who is suffering cope with what has happened. Being the shoulder to cry on is more difficult and oftentimes more rewarding.
- Include a flashback to your character’s childhood or formative years
- Put a roadblock between your character and their goals and write about how they struggle to overcome this.
- Show your character coming up against opposition or misunderstanding by other characters.
Starbase 118 have many articles with tips for writing in their Writers Workshop section.
