I honestly don't understand people who buy signed books like this. Part of the joy of a signed book is the interaction between the author and the reader.
@@joncarroll2040 its also part of the publisher's contract with authors i think that signed books would automatically part of sale since its a signed copy. i forgot the exact term and process.
"Making clear their motivations that will let the reader understand that, so that the character doesn't feel schizophrenic... unless they are, indeed, schizophrenic." - Brandon Sanderson
One of his close friends is Dan Wells, author of Hollow City - a novel in which the protagonist has schizophrenia. So, perhaps a more natural clarification than it would otherwise be.
Severe Schizophrenia is when you can hear, see and smell the devil on the backseat of your car, but you know that it is not real. Most of the time it is just random, usually violent, voices. Multipersonality disorder is something else.
Symptoms of schizophrenia include delusions and confused thinking, which may be continuous or (more frequently) come and go, which lead people suffering from the condition to “act out of character” at seemingly random times. That is what it means when a character “feels schizophrenic”.
@@Emancy3 I love that. It makes characters seem more real to me when they don’t turn out like I expected them to. It’s as if they have a life of their own.
@@Emancy3 I really love filling in some plot holes, too, but I really have to fill it in a right time tho, so that it doesn’t feel forced like some shitty Naruto anime fillers.
It's the same reason there are so many conspiracy theory videos regarding GRRM's characters, it's pretty clear he's given a lot of thought to his characters and their motivations before ever putting them to the page. Love it when authors do that.
The quality still varies a lot. His main characters backstories are usually very good but the second level ones have large holes and are quite more generic.
Four words I live by when writing: *NO MOVE WITHOUT MOTIVE.* Even if it's not obvious, characters certainly must have reason for acting the way they do, which must then stay consistent with their character overall and with the rest of the plot (or explained why when it doesn't) ...
@@ninakrishnamurthy6674 It's something I came up with and decided to go by when working on my own stories, and it's done wonders for helping me keep things more consistent. :) Happy writing!
Anyone else catch how BOSS this video is? We are getting excellent writing information from someone signing HUNDREDS of copies of his book. It's such a subtle flex. I love it.
Over the past year, I've started planning my stories out with a PowerPoint slide show to use as a basic model for the book. When I do characters I pick two fictional characters or real people and find two pictures and place them on the character slide and use a combination of those two to create the personality and things of the character. For example in my current project which is a urban fantasy, the main characters are a father and daughter who are truck drivers. For the father I used Bill Engvall and Aragorn and the daughter I used Hannah Montana and Rhonda Rousey. It's been helping me create how they would see the world and what they would do in certain situations.
While I'm writing, something I've found out is that the best character quirks and plot points, I don't so much make up. I discover them. I'll be thinking of what to do, writing along, and I'll just get a eureka moment. As if it's always been there, but my flashlight has only now focused on it. The same thing happens with names. I'll try so many different names for a character but eventually, I'll find the name which feels like that character has always had, and they can never have any other name.
I absolutely love these videos - they are my bible for writing fiction! I'm finding the new editing a bit jarring sometimes though. I like that similar topics are being put together, but when every natural pause is edited out I find myself gasping because Sanderson doesn't seem to be breathing.
I'm good at having ideas, like, lot of them. And sometimes i can make unconsciously things that work for what i'm working on. Even so, characters are my weakest. I struggled so much trying to make personalities, and then struggled onto the people arround them all being white, and now i have a lot of extra work.
YEEEEEEESSSS!!!!! YES!!!!! THAT. This is the best video on character writing and it's so short! After a lot of disappointing stuff this is a blessing, i LOVED the part of them being different people to different people, how i never thought of that?!
I feel this, me and my partner like to write little stories and we both say what we like and dont, we offer help to each other. I often write my partners side characters and antagonist backstory like it was just part of the story you didn't see and you're getting put into whatever the "start" is. I love to put things that affects thier behavior and things that can be remembered later by association to new events, not planned events just oh hey theyve been in a car crash too when thinking of scenes.
I also love it when it seems like a story is just a description of whats happening in some alternate dimension. Don't like it when it feels like fanfiction, very deliberate and obvious.
When Shallan faced Re-Shepir in Oathbringer I instantly though that this enemy was especifically created to be shallans dark counterpart, but this didnt take my out of the story, I loved it! Sometimes it isnt wrong to make something obvious if it helps the characters and the story. If shallan faced off against another enemy I wouldnt have felt this deepter conection between the two of them.
also characters aren't just there to fulfill a role. they more or less might ask themselves "why do i live on this planet and who am i?" like a real person does.
Thanks for the pointers, thoroughly appreciated, but with each signature I lost track of part of your message; easier to follow if I look away and listen. Stop signing the damn books and connect with your audience! 😂😂😂
Awesome! Yes, this is useful! Contextually describe chars as opposed to generating their backstories w/ info dumps 😃 Took plenty of notes, thank you, Brandon! 🧩
When I watch these videos it always ends up being an examination of if so do what he's talking about well. Most of the time the answer is no, but I feel like I have this one down pretty well.
Petition for advice from everyone: My main character Irian is in a fantasy world where humans and merfolk are at war. Irian's belongs to a poor farming family, and after a bad season limits a harvest, and his sister takes to a prolonged bad illness, Irian decides to move down to the coast, and find work. Specifically, he goes to work at a scale farm, where captured merfolk have their colorful scales harvested to make jewelry and other luxury items. Does anyone have suggestions on what I can do to add to or improve his backstory?
Try building more on the relationship between him and his sister. His character could completely changed based on if he hates his sister and she treats him terribly or if they have an amazing relationship. You could make him driven by the fear of losing his sister, or driven by his parents perhaps, and thereby be bitter about having to leave home. That story sounds amazing!
@Seth Kok Yeah, that's one of the big ones - he's not crazy rabid against them, but he doesn't like them - his uncle was killed when merfolk took out the ship he was on, living his new wife a widow.
The only backstory I see in your character is that he is from a poor family and he has a job descaling merfolk. The war is world-building and his sister's sickness is her story/world building. If her sickness affected him directly, like, he needs to this job to pay for medicine (very generic btw) then her story becomes his. And if this merfolk war affected him directly, other than giving him a job, then that would add to his backstory. For example, his village is poor because of over taxation.
@@genevievem.619 Thanks! It'll be on scribblehub soon. Yeah, that's the angle I'm going for. Irian really cares about his sister, but medicine for her condition is prohibitively expensive. His work on the scale farm pays well, but he soon finds himself living in excess, at least from his point of view, and taking more share of the money he makes than he thinks he should. A problem I have though is what I term logistics in the story. Irian's sister is a driving part of his character, but his family is far away from what's going on.
What a low-key flex to sign stacks of books while talking about writing.
He's said it's to make the constant signing less boring
@@Fidgottio Indeed, he found a way to help himself and an aspiring writer at the same time.
@@andrewdressler6173 i find it entertaining lol
I honestly don't understand people who buy signed books like this. Part of the joy of a signed book is the interaction between the author and the reader.
@@joncarroll2040 its also part of the publisher's contract with authors i think that signed books would automatically part of sale since its a signed copy. i forgot the exact term and process.
"Making clear their motivations that will let the reader understand that, so that the character doesn't feel schizophrenic... unless they are, indeed, schizophrenic." - Brandon Sanderson
One of his close friends is Dan Wells, author of Hollow City - a novel in which the protagonist has schizophrenia. So, perhaps a more natural clarification than it would otherwise be.
Except that schizophrenia doesn't involve multiple personalities, despite that common misconception.
@@MrPesht You brought that one to the table all on your own, sir.
Severe Schizophrenia is when you can hear, see and smell the devil on the backseat of your car, but you know that it is not real.
Most of the time it is just random, usually violent, voices.
Multipersonality disorder is something else.
Symptoms of schizophrenia include delusions and confused thinking, which may be continuous or (more frequently) come and go, which lead people suffering from the condition to “act out of character” at seemingly random times.
That is what it means when a character “feels schizophrenic”.
I'm good at unintentionally making things look unintentional
Lmao same. Sometimes my characters make a decision that actually would fill up a plot hole I didn't knew existed 😂😂
@@Emancy3 I love that. It makes characters seem more real to me when they don’t turn out like I expected them to. It’s as if they have a life of their own.
@@Emancy3 I really love filling in some plot holes, too, but I really have to fill it in a right time tho, so that it doesn’t feel forced like some shitty Naruto anime fillers.
@@whitesenpai7688 I know you're not talking about the curry of life tho.
"Every character is their own protagonist in their own story"
That's why I feel like I would enjoy the backstory of every character Brandon writes
It's the same reason there are so many conspiracy theory videos regarding GRRM's characters, it's pretty clear he's given a lot of thought to his characters and their motivations before ever putting them to the page. Love it when authors do that.
@@TunezCottage when he’s actually writing.
I would love one for Dockson.
The quality still varies a lot. His main characters backstories are usually very good but the second level ones have large holes and are quite more generic.
Four words I live by when writing:
*NO MOVE WITHOUT MOTIVE.*
Even if it's not obvious, characters certainly must have reason for acting the way they do, which must then stay consistent with their character overall and with the rest of the plot (or explained why when it doesn't) ...
That is a very good piece of advice. Did you come up with that yourself, or did you hear it from someone else? Either way, very good advice
@@ninakrishnamurthy6674 It's something I came up with and decided to go by when working on my own stories, and it's done wonders for helping me keep things more consistent. :) Happy writing!
*M O* T I *V E*
Great video, definitely wasn't distracted by the Among Us characters on the white board!
I wanted to see if anyone else noticed that.
I guess he's an Amogus fan
same lol
NOOOOOO HAHAHA
Brandon is the impostor
A certain person has also been known to write entire unpublished novellas to determine a character’s between book activities... XD
Who
@@popshop9197 Brandon Sanderson likely. Seeing as he wrote a novella and decided to turn it into a series
@@popshop9197
SPOILER FOR END OF WORDS OF RADIANCE
He apparently has a lot written down for what Jasnah did during WoR
... such as stealing pancakes
@@godminnette2 not to mention Dragonsteel. An entire Hoid/Yolen story, which I'm guessing we will get at some point.
Anyone else catch how BOSS this video is? We are getting excellent writing information from someone signing HUNDREDS of copies of his book. It's such a subtle flex. I love it.
Literally HOW does he ALWAYS KNOW??
I was thinking about my characters' backstories and then immediately got a notification for this video 😂
Me, too. I have been working on fixing the backstory of one of the two POV characters in my current project.
Love how you’re multitasking🤣 not only getting signings done but also a couple of youtube videos. It saves a lot of time.
Over the past year, I've started planning my stories out with a PowerPoint slide show to use as a basic model for the book. When I do characters I pick two fictional characters or real people and find two pictures and place them on the character slide and use a combination of those two to create the personality and things of the character. For example in my current project which is a urban fantasy, the main characters are a father and daughter who are truck drivers. For the father I used Bill Engvall and Aragorn and the daughter I used Hannah Montana and Rhonda Rousey. It's been helping me create how they would see the world and what they would do in certain situations.
That's a really interesting approach, actually. Thank you.
Abradolph Lincler
@@cernunnos8344 bro ...
interesting, sounds like you'd like screenwriting
How did it pan out? I'm very curious about the Montana-Rousey character.
i would pay to see Brandon review One piece xD
Yesssss
YES HOLY SHIT... As a Sanderson fan that loves One piece to death, I'm so curious what he would think of this masterpiece...
@@andyzhang7890 That Haki sucks
2:38 Took this one a bit literally when you were writing Wayne, didn't you?
Just opened comments to write this, lol😂
I truly love this man for what he's doing
brandon packs in more useful advice in 5 minutes than most authortubers do for their whole channel.
While I'm writing, something I've found out is that the best character quirks and plot points, I don't so much make up. I discover them. I'll be thinking of what to do, writing along, and I'll just get a eureka moment. As if it's always been there, but my flashlight has only now focused on it.
The same thing happens with names. I'll try so many different names for a character but eventually, I'll find the name which feels like that character has always had, and they can never have any other name.
I'm always waiting for these kinds of videos, they help me with my novel Thank you Brandon!
Idk if you know or not, but I recently discovered that he has a pod cast called writing excuses that’s full of this kind of stuff.
Can you imagine a world where Brandon Sanderson could follow his own writing advice?
I absolutely love these videos - they are my bible for writing fiction!
I'm finding the new editing a bit jarring sometimes though. I like that similar topics are being put together, but when every natural pause is edited out I find myself gasping because Sanderson doesn't seem to be breathing.
It’s so funny that almost every time I see a video of Brandon talking, he’s simultaneously signing books.
...The kind of grind you have to go through to sign as many books as that... Holy crap.
Praise the sun! 🙌🏻 ☀️
@Brandon Sanderson, I have no idea how you knew this was exactly the video I needed but somehow you did and I am very thankful for it!
this man is signing books 24/7
I'm good at having ideas, like, lot of them. And sometimes i can make unconsciously things that work for what i'm working on.
Even so, characters are my weakest. I struggled so much trying to make personalities, and then struggled onto the people arround them all being white, and now i have a lot of extra work.
Love the Solaire of Astora shirt!!
The pulling back the curtain moment is so relatable for me. I made a whole TH-cam episode one it.
YEEEEEEESSSS!!!!! YES!!!!! THAT. This is the best video on character writing and it's so short! After a lot of disappointing stuff this is a blessing, i LOVED the part of them being different people to different people, how i never thought of that?!
Yes! The learning-to-appreciate-the-meta took me so long. Dickens used to be a slog, but now I enjoy dissecting his stories.
I love the amongus on the whiteboard
I feel this, me and my partner like to write little stories and we both say what we like and dont, we offer help to each other.
I often write my partners side characters and antagonist backstory like it was just part of the story you didn't see and you're getting put into whatever the "start" is.
I love to put things that affects thier behavior and things that can be remembered later by association to new events, not planned events just oh hey theyve been in a car crash too when thinking of scenes.
I also love it when it seems like a story is just a description of whats happening in some alternate dimension. Don't like it when it feels like fanfiction, very deliberate and obvious.
I like how he answers the question while signing his books. He wastes no time
I definitely like these little digestible videos. Reminds me to keep thinking about my stories.
It's funny how many videos have Brandon signing books while explaining stuff. His signed books must be very easy to come by.
I love your books.
These videos keep coming up at the perfect time - Thank you!
gotta love the solaire shirt
This is what productivity looks like
The writing on the whiteboard is so neat
When Shallan faced Re-Shepir in Oathbringer I instantly though that this enemy was especifically created to be shallans dark counterpart, but this didnt take my out of the story, I loved it! Sometimes it isnt wrong to make something obvious if it helps the characters and the story. If shallan faced off against another enemy I wouldnt have felt this deepter conection between the two of them.
Very nice insights. Thanks
Wow, I was just pondering this topic the other day. Thanks Brando Sando!
i just finish stromlight 3, te amo sanderson
also characters aren't just there to fulfill a role. they more or less might ask themselves "why do i live on this planet and who am i?" like a real person does.
brandon sanderson talking about creating believable backstories for characters
the amogus on the whiteboard in the background:
I like the different, more edited style of this video. Thanks for putting these together, Adam!
blew my mind
great great answer
I feel like Brandon is my long-lost brother because I see a lot of similarities in my approach and his. Especially the take on character profiles
Thanks for the pointers, thoroughly appreciated, but with each signature I lost track of part of your message; easier to follow if I look away and listen. Stop signing the damn books and connect with your audience! 😂😂😂
This is something good to do while signing
My ADHD kept making me pay attention to the movement of books being signed and not to the subject I really wanted to care about :')
The way you’re seriously doing your job😂😂😂😂😂
Can’t focus with him constantly autographing and moving so much! Oy!
The board is an epic gaming moment.
3:30 I wonder what kaladin's favourite movie would be 😂😂
@@ProperlyParanoid could well be!!
Something about the "unless they are schizophrenic" being cut off is making me crack up lmao
Bro had a logo made from his signature 😂 that's awesome
Always useful thank you.
Praise the sun! \o/
What a mind on this boy.
Awesome! Yes, this is useful! Contextually describe chars as opposed to generating their backstories w/ info dumps 😃 Took plenty of notes, thank you, Brandon! 🧩
One piece is the GOAT at flashbacks
what fundamental driving forces for a characters?
Clever of Brandon to get in some weightlifting practice while talking to us.
When I watch these videos it always ends up being an examination of if so do what he's talking about well. Most of the time the answer is no, but I feel like I have this one down pretty well.
2:53 "so the character doesn't feel schizophrenic, well unless they _are_ schizophrenic" 😂
Nice one again! Thanks!
praise the sun.
❤️ The Jungle reference
Dark Souls shirt. Nice ❤️👌
Nunca entiendo una palabra de lo que dices pero solo por que no hablo Inglés igualmente me encantan mucho tus libros :3
Praise the sun!
Can you talk about tone and what types of things writers can do to make sure they convey the right tone?
2:52
brandon: "so that the character doesn't feel schizophrenic"
my character being schizophrenic: "uh.. yes sir"
Hi Brandon, How do you write natural dialogues
Make it fit with your characters personality
Really helps to read it out to yourself out loud
He doesn't.
Brandon is my favorite author but it had to be said...
PRAISE THE SUN
Bruh the among us characters on the white board
Petition for advice from everyone:
My main character Irian is in a fantasy world where humans and merfolk are at war. Irian's belongs to a poor farming family, and after a bad season limits a harvest, and his sister takes to a prolonged bad illness, Irian decides to move down to the coast, and find work.
Specifically, he goes to work at a scale farm, where captured merfolk have their colorful scales harvested to make jewelry and other luxury items.
Does anyone have suggestions on what I can do to add to or improve his backstory?
Try building more on the relationship between him and his sister. His character could completely changed based on if he hates his sister and she treats him terribly or if they have an amazing relationship. You could make him driven by the fear of losing his sister, or driven by his parents perhaps, and thereby be bitter about having to leave home.
That story sounds amazing!
@Seth Kok Yeah, that's one of the big ones - he's not crazy rabid against them, but he doesn't like them - his uncle was killed when merfolk took out the ship he was on, living his new wife a widow.
The only backstory I see in your character is that he is from a poor family and he has a job descaling merfolk. The war is world-building and his sister's sickness is her story/world building. If her sickness affected him directly, like, he needs to this job to pay for medicine (very generic btw) then her story becomes his. And if this merfolk war affected him directly, other than giving him a job, then that would add to his backstory. For example, his village is poor because of over taxation.
@@genevievem.619 Thanks! It'll be on scribblehub soon.
Yeah, that's the angle I'm going for. Irian really cares about his sister, but medicine for her condition is prohibitively expensive. His work on the scale farm pays well, but he soon finds himself living in excess, at least from his point of view, and taking more share of the money he makes than he thinks he should.
A problem I have though is what I term logistics in the story. Irian's sister is a driving part of his character, but his family is far away from what's going on.
Make the main character a female otherwise and it be a younger brother otherwise you'll be accused of misogyny by fridging.
Wow Brandon, signing a billion books while teaching about writing, what a flex...(jk. love the video!)
ok sanderson, what is Kal's favorite movie?
Mulan, and yes he sang "I'll make a man out of you" when training bridge four
@@cernunnos8344 i like that answer
@@cernunnos8344 I literallt imagined this while reading
Thumbs up for the sun bro shirt ☀️
Read the Way of Kigns -- Was my first book from you. So good. Literally, I mean. You're great
I’m like 85% through and the plot is still really slow. Please tell me the pay off is worth it
@@jaimelannister1797 Bruh straight fire, just keep reading. I really loved it tbh
@@jaredjohannson7354 yeah I finished it and it really did pay off. Though I feel like the book didn’t need to be as long as it was.
not going to lie I didn't hear a word you said bc I was so distracted by the signing
Dope shirt
It's harder for me to read books and watch movies because I see all the things that are being done and forget about the story.
5:08 Is that the signature he's writing in the books?
yes its his signature. if you look closely you can see him write it in the video.
I literally could not pay any attention once I noticed the among us characters on the whiteboard behind him
what a guy
I'm also interested why I can see Among Us characters in the background. 😂😂😂
This video is psychedelic indeed
These are fun👍👍
I would love Brandon to review some anime
That whiteboard is sus
He signs his name so fast lol
The writers for Horizon Forbidden West should have watched this before writing Aloy's character.
does nobody saw the among us drawings in the board?
Did anybody see the Among us on the board in the back?
Finally, I am not alone.
Having ADHD makes me hyperfocus on his signing skills and drip every word he said
How do I stop myself from giving all the characters the same accent, while not accidentally giving characters the same accent when writing.