WRITERS TRICKS OF THE TRADE - USING CHARACTERS' PROFESSIONS IN UNUSUAL WAYS

Selecting professions for your characters, and deciding how they would act under a given set of circumstances, is one of the most important decisions a fiction writer can make. 

• Will they respond in a way normally expected of someone trained to do what they do? 
• Will they go “over-the-top” or perform in a scared or devious manner? 

Each reaction might become the basis for an entirely different story. However, once the theme choice is made, even if they act strangely, unexpectedly or inappropriately, the character still operates under the umbrella of their profession, whether it is positive or negative.

Morgan, Denny and Eric explore what happens with the same set of circumstances when the character reacts in a way that is not typical to their profession. The story changes and one scenario can be played out many ways. Ninja hairdresser, anyone?