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My POV
Brian A. Wilson
BOOK REVIEW
45 Master Characters: Mythic Models for Creating Original Characters
by Victoria Lynn Schmidt
Now here's a cool book.
Part workbook, part guide book, part narrative book, "45 Master Characters" deconstructs mythic archetypes and explains how to integrate them into your writing.
Think of this as a superb companion book to Chris Vogler's "The Writer's Journey." Vogler explains the journey and names the participants; Schmidt then goes into great detail about the characteristics of each of those archetype participants.
The book covers creating female and male heroes and villains, creating supporting characters, and outlining the journey of all involved. Schmidt gives the attributes of each kind of mythic hero or villain (Hera, the matriarch and the scorned woman; Apollo, the businessman and the traitor, etc.), the explains what their behavior would be in their best and worst incarnations.
Each section is extremely well organized. Use of many bullet points makes finding what you need fast and easy.
For each character, Schmidt provides lucid examples from movies, TV and literature.
I told you it was a cool book.
Whether you read the book cover to cover, or just grab it as a reference to boost a character that's giving you trouble, "45 Characters" is a practical, interesting addition to the screenwriter's book shelf.
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