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Improved Your Fiction Writing — fast
Whilst the physical aspects of a character are, of course, important, it is vital to recognize that ‘character’ is about much more than physical aspects. While a ‘limp’ or a ‘blink’, a ‘posh’ or a ‘rough’ accent, might help ‘identify’ a character, such things do not make that character seem any more real than a pantomime dame. It is the mental aspect of a person that makes them what they are: how they think, rationalize, prioritize and behave. It is the internal, rather than the external, that breaths life into fictional characters; without this element they are simply members of a ‘cast-list’: a motley collection of ‘cardboard characters’ better suited to nursery rhymes. Readers just won’t care about them – or your novel! It takes most authors many years to achieve an inherent ability to get into their characters’ heads – to ‘internalize’ on their behalf – and this is the author’s ‘growing time’. Fortunately, this no longer need be the case. The ‘quick-fix’ is to use the Synergise P4 Personality Mapping tool, a breakthrough method which enables any novelist – experienced or not – to quickly home-in on detailed and consistent psychological character behaviours for all their principal characters.
There are countless books on characterisation, and at least some of these come up with a collection of stereotyped personalities to give authors a start. Most do not cover all human types yet, even then, the bulk of data that results is hard to get to grips with and random access is clearly error-prone. Hurried decisions about character traits that are inconsistently combined with respect to real life can lead to characters lacking realism or having completely wrong traits to realistically live up to their plot roles. ‘P4’, on the other hand, is a creative writing resource that utilizes a breakthrough new method and a protected graphical interface that enables high-level behavioural traits to be quickly and intuitively refined into detailed and psychologically-consistent character profiles ideally tailored to every plot need. The process of character definition starts from a ‘map’ of the entire human psyche that pictorially represents a few basic fundamental character traits. These are smoothly and logically refined into 16 ‘normal’ and 16 ‘disorder’ types that stem from a detailed analysis and simplification of the 'Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders' handbook produced for mental health professionals by the American Psychiatric Foundation. But don’t be worried if this sounds deep: P4 presents the personality types in straightforward, non-technical language that is easy to understand. It even includes the internalized and warped thought-patterns of disorder conditions. Because the foundation of the P4 character profiles is a bedrock of accepted psychology for normal and disorder conditions, the character traits given by P4 are sound and consistent. The tool allows you to cherry-pick traits while ensuring they are complementary for your chosen psychological type. This is what guarantees your characters will always be realistic. And because the psychological types used are accepted to describe all of humanity, you can regard this as a definitive collection of all humankind. If you create realistic characters then you create memorable characters. Create memorable characters and you become an unforgettable author!
Imagine the difference it would make to the quality of your fiction writing if you knew your characters in depth, right from the start of writing your novel. Most writers gradually get to know their characters and build-in their characteristics and traits as they are called upon by the developing plot. In real people, however, certain traits go together, behaviour patterns are linked, and randomly bunching these together as plot develops is likely to create characters that don't ring true. P4 gets over this problem because it gives you the low-down on all natural character profiles. From the P4 novelist's tutorial you will learn:
The heart of P4 is a browser-based tool you can use online or offline. After learning how to use the tool by reading the tutorial, you will be able to quickly get from basic character needs, as befitting your plot, to detailed character profiles which can be finely-tuned to create psychologically sound characters you quickly get to know. Principal features of the tool are:
P4 is a unique, powerful, sophisticated, yet easy-to-use tool that will enhance the skills of any novelist for a lifetime of writing. It is easy and intuitive to use, and a novelists’ tutorial with worked examples profiling well-known personalities will help you to harness its powers within a few hours. You can use it online, or you can download a copy to use offline, wherever your laptop takes you. Why isn’t it covered by a book? Quite simply, because it is the power of hypertext – the ability to ‘drill-down’ to deeper level of information – that is the key to the ease of use of this product. A book could explain the method, but only an interactive process could make P4 an invaluable ‘tool’ you will find a pleasure to use and which you will always want available on your computer to use for all your fiction projects. Operation is rather like navigating a fast and informative website. It’s also great fun! One of the greatest causes of rejection by publishers and agents is lack of realism in a novel’s characters. Use P4 to ensure characterization problems never again hold you back in your career as a novelist. If you want to be a successful novelist, or already are but still struggle over characterization, then don’t waste any more time pondering on the subject or waiting for your subconscious to bring you the answers. Instead, get them under your conscious control. Raise the bar. Get right inside your characters’ heads from Chapter 1 and make them all LIVE. Buy the definitive characterization tool NOW… and lift your fiction to a higher level – right away! P4 gets you from plot requirements to ideally-suited character profiles — fast!
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Want
to improve your fiction writing skills so your novels will impress agents,
publishers and readers alike? If you do, the best possible way is to
aim for master-class characterisation. It is the hidden secret of most
successful novelists. As Henry James – master of both character
and plot – once put it: "character IS plot."
If you KNOW your characters then they LIVE; and if
they live, they practically create plot sequences on their own. The
result is 'organic' writing and convincing realism. Read on to discover
how you can achieve that elusive quality of realism in your own novels
– by creating really memorable ‘characters’ based
upon real psychological models.
"The
major value of P4 for me lies in defining or redefining characters
in my books. It will enable them to change as they should from
the beginning of a novel to the end. Like anything, the more one
uses a tool, the easier it becomes. It didn't take long to be
well on the way to fully utilizing P4. 
"P4 is an exciting and innovative method of assessing personality
types through a unique character mapping diagram. This excellent
resource and tool can be used to understand the many and varied
behaviour traits that make up our human race. In support, the
Tutor provides a set of user-friendly, easy-to-follow tutorials
with quick reference links that allow easy access between each
lesson. This approach to character evaluation, sometimes using
well-known, world stage figures as examples, is both enlightening
and fun, leaving students eager to put P4 methods into practice.
