Just as a compass provides direction for an explorer, so does motivation provide direction for characters in fiction. The "compass" of character motivation is composed of four Lack, Yearning, Resistance, and Desire. In The Compass of Character you'll learn to deeply consider the key question "What does my character want?" and learn techniques to answer that question by writing realistic and empathetic characters without falling into formulaic, unsatisfying results that only diminish the character. Bestselling author and acclaimed writing instructor David Corbett provides writers with the essentials for building characters with motivations that range from clear to complex by exploring topics such • human yearning • pathological maneuvers • the pain of life vs. the promise of life • backstory and behavior • mechanics of growth and transformation • dramatizing mistaken desire and misbegotten yearnings • moral arguments The key to fascinating characters is rendering subtle inner states in straightforward external circumstances, which requires a fundamental understanding of the simple building blocks of complex motivation as they manifest themselves in behavior, where complexity of purpose collides with the messy, indifferent world. The Compass of Character is the one book that can guide writers to that end with both instruction and inspiration.
Author
David Corbett is the author of seven novels: The Devil’s Redhead (nominated for the Anthony and Barry Awards for Best First Novel) Done for a Dime (a New York Times Notable Book and nominated for the Macavity Award for Best Novel), Blood of Paradise (nominated for numerous awards, including the Edgar), Do They Know I’m Running (Spinetingler Award, Best Novel—Rising Star Category 2011), The Mercy of the Night, The Long-Lost Love Letters of Doc Holliday (nominated for the Lefty Award for Best Historical Mystery), and The Truth Against the World (June, 2023). David’s short fiction and poetry have appeared in numerous magazines and anthologies, with two stories selected for Best American Mystery Stories. In 2012, Mysterious Press/Open Road Media re-issued his four novels plus a story collection, Thirteen Confessions, in ebook format. In January 2013 Penguin published his textbook on the craft of characterization, The Art of Character (“A writer’s bible that will lead to your character’s soul.” —Elizabeth Brundage). he followed this up with The Compass of Character (Writers Digest Books). He has taught creative writing at the UCLA Extension Writers’ Project, Chuck Pahalniuk’s Litreactor, 826 Valencia, The Grotto in San Francisco, Book Passage, and at writing conference across the country. He is also a monthly contributor to Writer Unboxed, an award-winning blog dedicated to the craft and business of fiction. Before becoming a novelist, David spent fifteen years as an investigator for the San Francisco private detective agency Palladino & Sutherland, working on such high-profile civil and criminal litigations as The DeLorean Case, the Peoples Temple Trial, the Lincoln Savings & Loan Scandal, the Cotton Club Murder Case, the Michael Jackson child molestation investigation and a RICO action brought by the Teamsters against members of organized crime.
