Writing Coach In A Box: Card 1

At the time of writing this, I have just finished the first full day of my vacation in Orlando. I spent the early afternoon hanging out in a Comic/Coffee shop with my friend Pathos! The shop was called Blackbird Comics and Coffee, and it’s a queer friendly… well, you can probably guess what wares it sells.

The store had a delightful selection in both categories, as well as some Funko Pops, mangas, and board games you can rent AND play in the store. And in this shop, I found this little box of writing related cards and prompts to help writers with their craft.

It’s called Writing Coach in a Box. Writing Coach Alan Anderson has sixty cards worth of tips and tricks that the box say will “take your writing to a new level” and a supporting booklet that also has some good tips. When I saw this box, I had two thoughts. One, was that this could be blog content. I am kind of dried out in this area. This could help me get more thoughts and writing things out onto the internet. Two, I need to get more content out for my Campfire Slasher. You guys remember Charlie, right? I remember Charlie.

This first card is titled: Is your protagonist ready to roll?

A protagonist is arguably the most important character in any story, and this being the first card makes a lot of sense.

This card has thirteen questions, all meant to clearly define the protagonist in question. In this case, I will be answering for Charlie. Giving a cursory glance at these questions, they’re a bit tough and I may miss the mark on them. But I will do my best here.

1. Do they have a clear world view or a set of beliefs that will be challenged by the events of the story?
   
   Charlie is definitely not looking for love at the start. He’s fresh from a break-up, and in a new environment for the summer. He’s just looking to make new friends and teach kids how to do art. While this story is a slasher, it is also kind of a romance. He’s not there to get swept off his feet again. He’s looking to stay out of the dating field for a while.So that view of “looking to get over a break-up” and “Not looking for anything right now” will definitely be challenged.
   
2. Do they have a backstory that has fixed these beliefs in their mind?
   
   Of course. Charlie’s story at the beginning is that he is fresh from a break-up and is struggling to get over it all. He’s going into this new job at the camp with the mindset that he needs to get over this.
   
3. What’s their fatal flaw?
   
   I think, since their character is a breed of canine, there’s a trusting nature that I can use as a possible fatal flaw. Like a willingness to trust everyone until they give him a reason not to. It’s just as much a whodunnit horror story as it is a romance. There is going to be someone amongst them that Charlie may put his trust in that he shouldn’t.
   
4. What’s their hidden strength?
   
   I feel like “He knows who he is and is solid” in his identity may be a bit of a copout here. Sure, he’s a confident trans man. But that’s not really hidden. I feel like his strongest quality is that he works well under pressure. Quick thinking is his strongsuit. This is a guy who came up with seven different art projects to teach campers the week before they’d even shown up. He’s the type of person who, under pressure, thinks the best. Unless it’s self-inflected.
   
5. How will they respond when you test them?
   
   Charlie is a complicated case because of the two storylines that he’ll kind of be in the middle of. He’s going to respond to the romance plot-line by kind of fighting his romantic feelings for the love interest. He’s going to think he’s not ready to go into another relationship so soon, which is a realistic thing to feel. He’ll try to keep things friendly even though he really does start to fall in love.
   
6. What is their status in relation to other characters?
   
   The other important players that have been created for this story kind of revolve around Charlie a little. His twin sister Shannon is the one who got Charlie hired at the camp, and has taken interest in helping him get over his ex. His ex, Kyle, while not currently featured in the story as a character, is super present as a looming idea. Kyler is supposed to be this comedic stereotypical hot-shot romantic interest. However, he will not be the only one. To the other characters, he’s a new face that everyone will slowly get to know in varying degrees.
   
7. How do they want to change their status?
   
   This has been the most difficult question so far. Because obviously, he just wants to get over Kyle and have a fun, non-complicated summer. But that doesn’t really affect his status with the other characters. What do you all think? Am I interpreting this correctly?
   
8. What is their greatest fear?
   
   A question that isn’t going to end up being related to Charlie’s ex! Wow! Thank goodness. So, Charlie is afraid of being alone. No. Not like the being single type of alone. I mean being physically alone. The feeling that no one is around you at all can be really suffocating. And in a horror story, this fear can be amplified by the introduction of an unknown person. And Charlie is very easy to scare when he is all alone.
   
9. What is their greatest desire?
   
   His core desire is to successfully work in a field he really enjoys and is passionate about, just like any other person. He’s an art major and this job actually makes him really happy.
   
10. What do they want, but not need?
    
    He wants a smooth transition from his broken relationship to being completely okay. He wants to be hold on to the positive things from his relationship with Kyle.
    
11. What do they need, but don’t want — yet?
    
    He needs looooove. No, I am just kidding. He needs to find a relationship where every part of him is valued and cherished. He needs to work through his emotions and his feelings even though he doesn’t want to. He needs to learn to let other people help him. He also needs to learn to do archery correctly.
    
12. Who is their mentor?
    
    Interesting question. I could say any character here, but I think the best one is probably either his roommate Adam or his sister Shannon. Both are people that Charlie is able to confide in and rely on for support.
    
13. Who is their antagonist?
    
    Charlie’s antagonist is whatever drives forward the horror element. Some kind of killer is amongst them in the camp. They’re in the woods, watching. Waiting.

That was all of the questions. Hopefully I answered in the best way I could. If anyone has any follow up questions, or questions that can help me expand on or better understand the answers I gave, let me know!