Retreat Day 2: Making Your Character Sympathetic
First a shot of my sunset cruise tonight off the coast of Waikiki beach. Now onto work. Since I can't possibly cover everything Bill taught today and get my homework done, I'm going to focus on his lecture about making your character sympathetic. This is not to be confused with empathetic. Bill describes sympathetic character traits as something about the character being likable. He describes empathetic as the character having something about them the reader can relate to. Here are William Bernhardt's seven ways to make your character sympathetic (please note, Bill does not recommend having all seven in one character, he says two or three is plenty. His words are in quotes, my embellishments follow unquoted.): #1. 'Have them be very good at what they do.' Who doesn't love an expert right? #2. 'Give them a sense of humor.' This doesn't have to be typical, it can be quirky or dark. #3. 'Have them treat others well.' What garners sympathy better...