5writers.com is delighted to formally announce the publication of Crafting The Character Arc: A Practical Guide to Character Creation and Development. This craft book, written by 5writers.com contributor and co-owner Jennie Jarvis, is intended as a practical guide for writers of any format to use as they craft the journey of their protagonist through a narrative.
Who Wrote It: Jennie Jarvis worked in the film and television industry in several major cities around the world. While working in Beverly Hills, she served as a script analyst, producing coverage for producers, investors, actors and writers. She has operated as a freelance script consultant for over fifteen years working with clients around the world, and she wrote and directed a number of short narrative and documentary films. Major credits include The Matrix: Revolutions, Accepted, American Idol and more.
Since returning to her native state of Florida, Jennie has successfully built and coordinated screenwriting contests as well as served as a judge for film, theater and writing competitions. As a prose writer, she co-owns the blog 5writers.com, published a textbook called Crafting The Character Arc, and has an active social media platform. She won awards for screenplays, essays, poetry and short fiction, and her writing appeared in Writer’s Digest Magazine and The Florida Writer.
She is the Faculty Chairperson for the Florida Writer’s Association Annual Conference. She teaches writing at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida. Her novels are represented by Saritza Hernandez, Corvisiero Literary Agency.
How Is This Different From Other Character Books: Many writers believe once they have their basic plot points in place, their stories are destined to succeed. But many narratives fall flat between those plot points and lose their audience before the big finish. Engaging the audience and moving the story forward in every scene is the responsibility of the characters, not the plot. But while many books on the craft of writing state that characters need to be three dimensional and change, a beginning writer isn’t always sure how to turn these rather abstract ideas into concrete craft on the page.
Crafting the Character Arc offers a practical guide to character creation and development by expanding upon the concept of the character arc and creating a step-by-step guide for writers to ensure that their characters are dynamic and engaging. Using narrative examples from multiple platforms, including novels, films and games, this is the essential guide for helping writers create an active and well-defined character arc.
What Specifically Does It Cover: Crafting The Character Arc is structured in three main parts:
Part One covers the more traditional, basic approach to creating character, including personality traits, depth, secrets, goals versus emotional needs, active versus reactive protagonists, and dramatic functions.
Part Two introduces the Major Dramatic Curve, a detailed pictorial representation of a character arc and its major elements: place of rest, inciting incident, rising action, crisis point, climax and falling action/resolution.
Part Three offers practical applications of the Major Dramatic Curve. The writer is given guidance for using the curve to create a dynamic and engaging narrative work. Lastly, some variations in using the Major Dramatic Curve are explored and exceptions to the rules are addressed.
Character Arcs are a critical part of every story making this guide applicable to multiple mediums: novels, short stories, films, TV, games, plays, and Web series.
Where Can I Get It: This book can be ordered from your local bookstore or you can order it online from Barnes and Noble or Amazon.
When Does It Come Out: It’s available now!
To listen to Jennie discussing her new book, feel free to check out her interview on the Words Matter podcast.
Get yours today!
