$15

weekly

or $60 for 4 classes

Main Character Energy: How to Create Amazing Characters for Your Stories

New class

Ages 13-16

Live Group Course

In this 4-week course, writers will learn about the literary elements that make up an amazing main character. They'll create unique main characters of their own and explore writing creative pieces featuring their characters.

Jessica Dawkins

Average rating:

5.0

Number of reviews:

(3 reviews)

Live video meetings

1x per week, 4 weeks

3-6 learners per class

40 min

About Learning Overview Teacher Reviews

What's included

4 live meetings

2 hrs 40 mins in-class hours

Homework

1 hour per week. The homework is not tedious, but students may be asked to brainstorm or consider their Main Character outside of class, just to be prepared for next lesson. There may be some additional writing required if it is not completed in class, but this is no more than a few paragraphs.

Projects

Student projects occur in weeks 2-4 and include: Creating Main Character Archetypes, Developing My Main Character, and Creating a Main Character Storyline. I will provide feedback to the students on their mini projects while we are in class.

Certificate of Completion

Students will receive a Certificate of Completion and a few lines to a paragraph of personalized instructor feedback/commentary after completing the 4-week class.

Class Experience

This class is an entry-level creative writing workshop and literary discussion for teens. It is imaginative, conversational, and hands-on, led by a certified Creative Writing workshop instructor from the University of Central Florida. Here, students focus on learning what makes a great Main Character in literary works. This 4-week course is excellent for boosting writing skills or finding the inspiration and skill set to get a fiction story started. 

The Syllabus will guide us through the most important elements of Main Character Energy and creating a solid, exciting character worthy of a fiction story. Students will receive educational lectures, guided writing planning, writing tips, slides and discussions about classic main characters and literary works (e.g., Sherlock Holmes, Alice in Wonderland, Harry Potter, Dracula), and discussion about improving and honing their characters.

Learning Goals

Explore what makes an unforgettable fiction or literary character.

Brainstorm unique main characters using attributes of an excellent fiction character from literary works.

Syllabus

Curriculum

Follows Teacher-Created Curriculum

Standards

Aligned with Common Core State Standards (CCSS)

4 Lessons

over 4 Weeks

Lesson 1:

What Is Main Character Energy (In Literary Terms)?

 We'll discuss what makes a great main character in literature, including some unforgettable examples. Then, we'll talk about how a writer can translate these attributes into brainstorming their own main character for a fiction story.

40 mins online live lesson

Lesson 2:

Creating Your Main Character(s)

 Today is about artistic experimentation. We will reiterate the important literary attributes of a main character, then we'll create 2-4 main character profiles of interest to us. We'll test their "Main Character Energy" before choosing one to develop further.

40 mins online live lesson

Lesson 3:

Developing Your Main Character

 Let's spend this week developing the character we chose from last week. We'll use writing and creative exercises to "flesh out" our character so we can begin planning a story with plenty of Main Character Energy.

40 mins online live lesson

Lesson 4:

Introducing Your Main Character to Their Story

 We'll complete our mini course by planning a storyline for our Main Character. This planning session can be used to create a first draft of a fiction story featuring our Main Character. Additional courses will be available to continue with this Main Character and write a story together.

40 mins online live lesson

Other Details

Supply List

Have something digital or non-digital to write and plan with! Students can bring a notebook, paper, and writing utensils if they would like to brainstorm or take notes on paper. Students can also use their laptops to brainstorm or take notes, if they prefer it.

External Resources

Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.

Meet the teacher

Jessica Dawkins

Joined April, 2024

5.0

3reviews

Profile

Teacher expertise and credentials

Bachelor's Degree in English from University of Central Florida

I am a writing teacher, creative writing workshop instructor, certified Creative Writing workshop instructor by the University of Central Florida, and have a BA in Creative Writing from the University of Central Florida.