The Body in Character Development

Suzy Prudden and I have written a book called “Body Wisdom” which is about the connection between your body and your life. I used the information we developed in that Body Wisdom book in my book “The Character Book.” Example: The Nose represents how you present yourself in the world. The best story example of the nose is Cyrano – who was so embarrassed by his large nose that he used a surrogate suitor - the very handsome but not very intelligent Christian - to woo the fair Roxanne. Roxanne fell in love with Christian because of his intellect not his looks and both Cyrano and Roxanne were deprived of their great love because of Cyrano’s nose. Quasimodo in “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” had a deformation in his upper back – the area of betrayal. Body parts and what they represent in people’s lives are wonderful character traits and great places to begin character development. Writing “The Character Book” was one of the most delightful exercises I’ve ever done. It made me so aware of the skill other writers bring to their craft. It makes me think when I’m writing about what I should add to my characters in their development. I wish I had had it when I was an actress. I consider it the best bathroom reading available because the information comes in small bits. Much like this blog.