: Re: Having Trouble Writing An Opening Scene With A Shy Character I'm having a bit of trouble coming up with the opening scene for a fantasy story I'm writing, about a mousy but passionate girl

She is likely to have considerable internal dialogue, perhaps between her doubts and her beliefs. She might be sitting in a corner while the social world swirls around her, immersed in her thoughts.

I have a character who, while not shy, periodically becomes very introspective and withdraws from those around him to focus on the issue at hand.

Your character could be trying to get her courage to take the stage, recalling her recent triumphs, but reminded that history need not repeat itself and this could be a disaster.

You could have her thoughts skitter in several directions, doing battle with her fears. Perhaps she will have the courage to perform, perhaps not - but she always does.

Put her in situations that make her uncomfortable and go from there. How would she react if an impresario offered her a place in their troupe?

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: Does this scene fail the Bechdel test? My novel has approximately a dozen women in it, but they donâ€™t tend to talk to each other. Most of them are separated geographically or philosophically

@Sue2132873

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: You do it by limiting the narrator's gaze. You can describe things from the point of view of one or more characters, who haven't yet figured out the secret identities of the celebrity characters.

@Sue2132873

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: What is meant by "purposeful, habitual, and gratuitous" actions? In his "Characters" essay, Samuel R. Delany purports there are three types of actions to characters: "purposeful, habitual, and gratuitous."

@Sue2132873

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: Effectively conveying an unreliable narrator I have been working on a post-apocalyptic novel for about a year. My female narrator/protagonist, named Eris, was isolated for almost all of her life

: Re: Having Trouble Writing An Opening Scene With A Shy Character I'm having a bit of trouble coming up with the opening scene for a fantasy story I'm writing, about a mousy but passionate girl

More posts by @Sue2132873

: Does this scene fail the Bechdel test? My novel has approximately a dozen women in it, but they donâ€™t tend to talk to each other. Most of them are separated geographically or philosophically

: You do it by limiting the narrator's gaze. You can describe things from the point of view of one or more characters, who haven't yet figured out the secret identities of the celebrity characters.

: What is meant by "purposeful, habitual, and gratuitous" actions? In his "Characters" essay, Samuel R. Delany purports there are three types of actions to characters: "purposeful, habitual, and gratuitous."

: Effectively conveying an unreliable narrator I have been working on a post-apocalyptic novel for about a year. My female narrator/protagonist, named Eris, was isolated for almost all of her life

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