Crafting Dynamic Characters


Crafting Dynamic Characters

Learn how to write unforgettable characters in this online character development course

If there’s one secret to crafting dynamic characters who readers will remember it’s this:

Connection.


The job of a fiction writer is not just to create interesting, compelling, and unique characters, but to weave those characters into the prose in a way that engages readers and connects them to the story.

Because you can have the most interesting, compelling, unique characters in the world but if you can’t effectively reveal those characters to your readers in a way that inspires them to keep reading, what’s the point?

Welcome to Writing Mastery: Crafting Dynamic Characters.

In this course, taught by character guru, literary agent and freelance editor, Mary Kole, you’ll learn how to not only create fully fleshed-out, dynamic characters, but also how to reveal them–and all of their wonderful nuances–in a way that grabs the reader’s attention, inspires their imagination, and captures their heart.

Mary Kole has been working with writers as a publishing assistant, literary agent, editor and writing teacher for more than a decade. She’s helped thousands of authors take flat, underdeveloped characters and turn them into dynamic ones that leap off the page.

In this course, Mary teaches her “secret sauce” for character success, centering around the concept of Interiority (the character’s inner life). Mary will break down, step by step the process of building and nurturing that invaluable reader/character relationship and provide you with 7 vital tools for weaving characters into your prose in an engaging way. Additionally, she’ll break down the Four Foundations of a Dynamic Character and walk you through the process of brainstorming and developing your own.

And throughout the course, she’ll give you tons of examples, actionable tips, and exercises to help you apply what you’ve learned and put your new skills to work.

By the end of this course, you’ll have:

  • A solid understanding of why readers fall in love with characters and what makes for an interactive reading experience (an essential component of any successful story)
  • 7 tools for effectively revealing characters to your readers in a way that engages them and makes them an active part of your story
  • A firm grasp of the 4 foundations that make up a dynamic character
  • At least one fully fleshed-out character that you can use to elevate a current work in progress or start a new story

Plus, along the way, in order to help solidify the skills taught in this course, instructors Jessica Brody and Mary Kole will take on each of the exercises in the course and share their results in fun, critique-group style “Instructor Jam” sessions. Seeing how professional writers approach the exercises will provide even more insight and context into how dynamic characters are crafted and revealed on the page.

This Course Includes:

  • Tons of fun, inspiring writing prompts designed to break you out of old patterns, get you thinking about character in a new way, and help you apply all the skills taught in the course
  • Examples from popular works of fiction to provide context and enhance your understanding of the material
  • Tips and advice from a true publishing-industry insider on how to make fresh choices, brainstorm with confidence, and elevate your fiction writing and character development skills 

Whether you’re a seasoned writer or just starting out, whether you have an idea for a story, are revising an existing project, or just looking for inspiration, this course is sure to take your character development skills to the next level.

48 Video
Lectures

5 Hours
of Content

7 Tools to Elevate Your Writing

16 Exercises
& Handouts

What You'll Learn

Meet Your Instructors

Former literary agent Mary Kole provides consulting and developmental editing services to writers of all categories and genres, working on children’s book projects from picture book to young adult, and all kinds of trade market literature, including fantasy, sci-fi, romance, and memoir.

She holds an MFA in Creative Writing and has worked at Chronicle Books, the Andrea Brown Literary Agency, and Movable Type Management. She has been blogging at Kidlit.com since 2009. Her book, Writing Irresistible Kidlit, a writing reference guide for writers of middle grade and young adult fiction, is available from Writer’s Digest Books.

 

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Jessica Brody is the author of more than 20 novels as well as the #1 bestselling plotting guide, Save the Cat! Writes a Novel. Her books have been translated and published in over 23 countries and several have been optioned for film and television.

She’s also repeatedly hired by Disney Press to develop and write novels based on popular Disney properties like the Lego Disney Princess and the Disney Descendants franchises.

After creating several popular courses for writers, she’s excited to team up with character guru Mary Kole for this course on crafting dynamic characters!

Who is this Course For?

What Students are Saying

5/5

"It's amazing! So in depth, so broken down into easily digestible, yummy little tid-bits of crafty goodness. I love it!"

-Kat L.

"As always, Jessica delivers an insider's knowledge and the tools to move forward in the process, now!"

-Sue M.

"This is ‘just in time’ knowledge for my first novel!"

-Johnny P.

"Great tools presented in a logical order from a passionate writer."

-Jürgen R.

"Jessica provides much more than a boatload...try a cruise ship FULL of tips, tricks, resources, and actionable steps."

-Tracy U.

"I finally believe I can make money on what I love to do most: write."

-John K.

"Well-organized, well-produced and dense with valuable content."

-Beth K.

"Just one word ....inspiring!"

-Ron G.

Get This Course
Plus Access to our Entire Library!

This course is part of our Writing Mastery Academy membership.
Get unlimited access to our entire course library for only $15/month. That’s 100+ hours of content to help you break through challenges and achieve your writing goals.

Our course library includes:

Save the Cat! Novel Writing Course

OFFICIAL SAVE THE CAT! COURSE
Discover the secret storytelling code behind all great novels and use it to outline, write or revise your own

Novel Fast Drafting Course

Learn the fastest, most efficient way to write novels (and finish them every single time)

The Complete Novel Revision Course

Learn a time-tested, step-by-step revision process for taking your novel from first draft to final draft

Crafting Dynamic Characters

Crafting Dynamic Characters

Learn to create fully fleshed-out, dynamic characters and how to reveal them to the reader in a way that grabs their attention and captures their heart

Foundations of Fiction


Master the foundations of compelling fiction and use them to craft killer novels, memoirs, or short stories

Productivity Hacks for Writers

Learn to "hack" your brain, space, and devices to stay focused, be more productive, and get the most out of every writing day

Conquering Writer's Block

Proven strategies, techniques, and tools to overcome writer's block (for good!), and become a Prolific Writer

Develop Blockbuster Ideas that Sell

Unleash your creativity and brainstorm "high-concept" book and movie ideas that sell

Sell Your Novel to a Major Publisher

A comprehensive, step-by-step insider's guide to selling your book and becoming a paid, published author

Secrets to Self-Publishing Success

A comprehensive, step-by-step guide to successfully self-publishing and marketing your novel, with bestselling author Bethany Atazadeh

Live Webinars

Monthly webinars (with Jessica Brody and special guests) where we deep dive into a variety of writing topics and answer your questions. Join live or watch the recording

All Future Courses

Members of Writing Mastery Academy always get first-look access to all future courses before they're released anywhere else!

What’s included in your membership

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Welcome to the Writing Mastery Academy with
bestselling author, Jessica Brody

Writing Mastery Academy
Membership

Get the Crafting Dynamic Characters Course… PLUS access to the entire
Writing Mastery course library for just $15/month

Choose the plan that works best for you

Monthly

$ 15 per Month
  • Unlimited access to ALL courses
  • First-look access to future courses
  • Live Webinars with Jessica Brody
  • Access to the Writing Mastery Community
  • Surprise Bonus Content
  • 30-day money back guarantee
  • Cancel any time with just one click

Annual

$ 160 per Year
  • Unlimited access to ALL courses
  • First-look access to future courses
  • Live Webinars with Jessica Brody
  • Access to the Writing Mastery Community
  • Surprise Bonus Content
  • 30-day money back guarantee
  • Cancel any time with just one click
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30-day money-back guarantee

30 Day 100% Risk Free Guarantee

No-questions asked, 30 Day Money Back Guarantee

Our Promise: We think you’ll love our courses, but if for any reason you don’t, our membership and each of our courses are backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Frequently Asked Questions

Instantly! As soon as you enroll as a member, you’ll get access to all Writing Mastery Academy courses, video lectures, and exercises.

Absolutely! The video lectures inside all of our courses are pre-recorded so that you can start the course and work through the lectures at your own pace. There is no need to show up at a specific time, you’ll be able to login and start watching at whatever time suits you best. You can also take each course as many times as you want!

You will need an internet connection to stream the video lectures. You can access the courses on any device: desktop computer, laptop, tablet or mobile. Some of the exercises will ask you to write (these are writing courses after all!) so, you’ll want either a computer or pen and paper close by!

Hopefully this won’t be the case, but if the content isn’t what you expected you can request a refund within the 30 day money back guarantee window.

Inside some of the courses, you may see the instructor recommend products or services to help you get results faster. However, these extra purchases are never required and you will still get all the benefits of the course without these extra tools.

You can always contact support for technical-related questions. For questions about the course content, you can post in the Writing Mastery Online Community to get feedback from our teaching assistants and other students or submit your questions to the Live Webinar Events.

Jessica Brody is unable to answer questions about course content outside of the Live Webinar Events.

The Live Webinar events with Jessica Brody and/or special guests are scheduled regularly (normally once per month). The webinar schedule is included in the monthly member newsletter and is always available in the Webinars course. Members can also sign up for email reminders for each event.

Start your journey toward Writing Mastery Today!

Enroll now and get unlimited access to
our entire course library (and more)!