Novel Kicks Writing Room: 10 Week Character Challenge – Meet You Character
Welcome back to the Novel Kicks Writing Room.
Following on from the plot challenge we did, today is the beginning of a 10 week character challenge. If you’d like to take a look at the plot challenge, click here.
Over the next ten weeks, we’ll take a character from a simple idea and gradually develop them into someone with a personality, history, relationships, flaws, fears and a meaningful character arc.
You don’t need to be writing a novel to take part. Your character can be created specifically for these exercises, or you can use a character from a story you’re already working on.
WEEK 1 — Meet Your Character
The task this week is to create a character who wants something very badly.
First, answer these questions:
- What’s their name?
- How old are they?
- What do they do?
- What do they look like?
- What do they love?
- What annoys them?
- What do they want more than anything?
- What are they afraid of?
- What’s their biggest flaw?
- What secret are they keeping?
by 
Novel Kicks Fiction Friday: The Familiar Stranger
Welcome to Fiction Friday, our weekly flash fiction challenge.
Here’s how it works:
Set a timer for five minutes and start writing
Keep going for as long as you can once the timer goes off
No editing allowed—raw writing only
When you’re finished, feel free to share in the comments (but there’s no pressure.)
Today’s prompt – The Familiar Stranger.
Your character is at a crowded coffee shop, grocery store, or public place when someone stops and talks to them like they have known them for years.
by Novel Kicks Writing Room: The Sensory Snapshot
Hello and welcome back to the Novel Kicks Writing Room.
Today’s exercise is called The Sensory Snapshot.
This exercise will hopefully help you create vivid, immersive descriptions without complex plotting.
First, choose your moment –
Pick a simple, everyday moment you remember well. Keep it as small and ordinary as you can. It doesn’t have to be interesting, just write whatever comes to mind. For example,
- Sitting in a café
- Walking into your bedroom
- Standing at a bus stop
- Eating your favourite snack
- Waiting in a doctor’s office
- Playing with a pet
Now, before writing anything else, think about the following questions (you don’t have to answer all of them, just what you remember) –
- What did you see? (colours, what was happening)
- What sounds did you hear?
- What did it smell like?
- How did things feel? (hot, cold, soft, scratchy)
- Was there anything you tasted?
by Novel Kicks Fiction Friday: The Door Under The Sea
Welcome to Fiction Friday, our weekly flash fiction challenge.
Here’s how it works:
Set a timer for five minutes and start writing
Keep going for as long as you can once the timer goes off
No editing allowed—raw writing only
When you’re finished, feel free to share in the comments (but there’s no pressure.)
Today’s prompt: The Door Under The Sea –
by Novel Kicks Writing Room: Ideas and Plot Planning
Welcome back to the Novel Kicks Writing Room.
Today, the exercise will be about generating ideas and then creating a small plot plan.
We will be preparing a character, a scenario and a situation.
First – characters –
Write down three characters. Don’t let yourself overthink it. Just write the first three things that come to mind. For example:
- A retired pickpocket who never learned to read.
- A therapist that lies to protect feelings.
- A teenager who can hear plants screaming.
Next, let’s look at the situations (compelling situations or inciting incidents) and write down three. For example –
- Due to a technical glitch, someone manages to claim a winning lottery ticket that’s already been claimed.
- Finds a door in their flat that wasn’t there yesterday.
- Is accused of a crime they technically did commit, but not in the way anyone thinks”
Finally, what is at stake? This is the thing that the character could lose or gain that really matters. Again, write down three.
- Their only family member’s trust.
- A chance to escape their hometown.
- The truth about who they really are.
by Book Club
