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The Psychology Workbook for Writers: Tools for Creating Realistic Characters and Conflict in Fiction Paperback – August 17, 2015

by Darian Smith (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 722 ratings
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Writers know that their characters and stories should be multi-layered and believable. Now here’s a simple workbook that uses the same knowledge that gives therapists insight into human behaviour to create fiction that hits the mark. Each chapter outlines an aspect of psychological theory as it can be used for writing and provides two worksheets to translate it into action – one to develop characters, one to develop the story.Darian Smith is a prize winning fiction writer with a degree in psychology, a Diploma of Counselling, and is a member of the New Zealand Association of Counsellors. He combines these two sides of his background to provide simple, easy to follow tools that make use of established psychological theory to help writers develop fully rounded, interesting, realistic characters and inject conflict into their stories.Give your writing the benefit of over a decade of training and experience and discover how to have readers wanting more.
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  1. Print length
    90 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    August 17, 2015
  4. Dimensions
    5 x 0.23 x 8 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    0473334461
  6. ISBN-13
    978-0473334468
  7. See all details
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Get to know this book

Previous page

  1. What's it about?

    A workbook that uses psychological theory to help writers develop believable characters and conflict in their stories.

  2. Popular highlight

    Injunctions are the “Don’t” messages. On a subconscious level, they tell your character that they’re not an okay person because they’re not allowed to do or be these particular things.
    357 Kindle readers highlighted this

  3. Popular highlight

    Drivers, on the other hand, are more positive messages and often given intentionally. They are the messages that drive us to achieve and tell us we are okay as long as we follow their advice.
    339 Kindle readers highlighted this

  4. Popular highlight

    Part of your character’s journey could be to challenge their script beliefs – thus creating internal conflict and generating an interesting personal dilemma for the character.
    317 Kindle readers highlighted this
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Darian Smith lives in Auckland, New Zealand with his wife (who also writes) and their Siamese cat (who doesn't). He has a degree in psychology and English, a Diploma of Counselling, and is a member of the New Zealand Association of Counsellors. Darian set up a free counselling service near his home, ran a private counselling practice for several years, and currently works with people living with neuromuscular conditions such as muscular dystrophy. He has won prizes for short stories and a novel and been a finalist for the Sir Julius Vogel Award three times. For more information about Darian and his upcoming work, please check out his website at www.darian-smith.com.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Wooden Tiger Press (August 17, 2015)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 90 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0473334461
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0473334468
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 3.84 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5 x 0.23 x 8 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 722 ratings

About the author

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Darian Smith

Darian Smith

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Darian Smith writes mainly speculative fiction (fantasy) and lives in Auckland, New Zealand with his wife (who also writes) and their two black cats (who don't).

He holds two Koru Awards, is the winner of the SpecFicNZ/Steam Press manuscript competition, and a Sir Julius Vogel Award.

By day, he works with people who have neuromuscular conditions such as muscular dystrophy or charcot marie tooth disease. He is also a qualified counsellor/family therapist and can be seen - by those very swift with the pause button - on television shows such as Legend of the Seeker and Spartacus.

For more information about Darian and his upcoming work, please check out his website at www.darian-smith.com.

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
722 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find the workbook interesting and a great writing tool. They also say it's great for character building in novels. However, opinions are mixed on the length, with some finding it short and sweet, while others say it’s quite short and the worksheets aren’t really helpful.

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ContentReadabilityCharacter developmentReading experienceLength
35 customers mention "Content"31 positive4 negative

Customers find the book's content interesting, useful, and readable. They also say it has exactly the amount of knowledge necessary for writers, with building story lines worksheets and explanations of how to.

"...It is FULL of helpful insights into human nature, and includes workshop questions that can immediately be applied when creating characters for a..." Read more

"...Give this one a shot, it's a neat book." Read more

"...Thoughtful reading suggestions help you to dive deeper into character personalities." Read more

"Book is a must have for writersWith its building story lines worksheets and explanations of how to actually write characters - this book has a..." Read more

11 customers mention "Readability"11 positive0 negative

Customers find the book easy to read and remember. They say it's a great writing tool and good for mystery writers.

"...his most recent writing group was a big hit and sparked great conversations and concepts for writing." Read more

"It was really well written and explained, though the examples for a few of the explanations could have been better...." Read more

"This book is good for mystery writers to explore the psych of characters." Read more

"...This is not a text book on psychology, but a reference text aimed specifically at writers, with suggested exercises in each section for working..." Read more

10 customers mention "Character development"10 positive0 negative

Customers find the book great for character building in novels.

"...charts in this book is that there are both character development charts and plot development charts to consider...." Read more

"Excellent framework for creating believable characters, going beyond the general physical descriptions...." Read more

"...With its building story lines worksheets and explanations of how to actually write characters - this book has a to of great material to assist..." Read more

"...has about ten to fifteen pages of worksheets that will help with character development and creating conflicts to make for a more interesting story." Read more

4 customers mention "Reading experience"4 positive0 negative

Customers find the book a quick read that provides solid takeaway value.

"A quick read that provides solid takeaway value...." Read more

"Quick Read, But Deep. Very Helpful..." Read more

"Great read!..." Read more

"Great book, reader, user flaw..." Read more

8 customers mention "Length"3 positive5 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the length of the book. Some find it short and sweet, while others say it's very small and simplistic.

"This book is quite short, and the worksheets aren't really helpful. I also noticed at least one proof error...." Read more

"...Short but effective, easy to read and very important, easy to understand and to apply to your characterisation...." Read more

"...It was also a little short, but that could be a plus for some people. Overall I really enjoyed this book, I found the insights very helpful." Read more

"Short and awesome..." Read more

Thank you
5 out of 5 stars
Thank you
The book was helpful. I made me understand a ton of things I’ve seen in life, tv shows, and movies that I didn’t know could affect real life outcomes and literary conflicts. It’s not a self-help book but it did change my perception of how I should start seeing the world and it also will continue to guide me through my book writing. This book has about ten to fifteen pages of worksheets that will help with character development and creating conflicts to make for a more interesting story.
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Top reviews from the United States

Beth
5.0 out of 5 stars You need this book!
Reviewed in the United States on June 24, 2024
Verified Purchase
I use this book for my Creative Writing class. It is FULL of helpful insights into human nature, and includes workshop questions that can immediately be applied when creating characters for a story. Read through this book with your class - you won't regret it!
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Sunday Moore
5.0 out of 5 stars good gift for writers
Reviewed in the United States on February 23, 2024
Verified Purchase
My son has recently began creative writing and is part of a writing guild. He said that sharing this book at his most recent writing group was a big hit and sparked great conversations and concepts for writing.
3 people found this helpful
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D.
4.0 out of 5 stars Useful Character Charts
Reviewed in the United States on February 14, 2019
Verified Purchase
I don't think I expected much from this resource, but it delivered. The theory was a little wild, but the charts are going to lend some interesting dimension to any character they are applied to. What I like about the charts in this book is that there are both character development charts and plot development charts to consider. Also, there's at least half a dozen ways you can apply his theories, so you can mix and match them. I think if you tried to use them all, it wouldn't work. Give this one a shot, it's a neat book.
42 people found this helpful
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Ken
5.0 out of 5 stars Quick Read, But Deep. Very Helpful
Reviewed in the United States on January 26, 2024
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Excellent framework for creating believable characters, going beyond the general physical descriptions. Thoughtful reading suggestions help you to dive deeper into character personalities.
5 people found this helpful
Helpful
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T. Townsend
5.0 out of 5 stars Great for character building in novels
Reviewed in the United States on March 5, 2023
Verified Purchase
Book is a must have for writers
With its building story lines worksheets and explanations of how to actually write characters - this book has a to of great material to assist writers.
9 people found this helpful
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Joy N.
3.0 out of 5 stars Short and sweet
Reviewed in the United States on January 11, 2023
Verified Purchase
This book is quite short, and the worksheets aren't really helpful. I also noticed at least one proof error.

With that being said, it does contain some useful information that could be useful for writers who are looking to give more depth to their characters.
8 people found this helpful
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Mouse
5.0 out of 5 stars Nice
Reviewed in the United States on April 2, 2024
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Interesting read 📚
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Tiago
5.0 out of 5 stars Fast and fabulous
Reviewed in Brazil on August 15, 2022
Verified Purchase
This book offers a great starting point for writers aiming to benefit from several decades of research in psychology in a laguage that is friendly to fiction writers that know nothing about it. However condensed, the book offers lots of insights that can really be applied to a story to make it better while offering sources for further reading in case the reader wishes to dig deeper. For that, I would go as far as to say that this is an indispensable read for writers in formation.
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Melly
5.0 out of 5 stars Tiny, but so helpful
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 24, 2023
Verified Purchase
Highly recommend it - very practical and compelling.
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Arpita Bhawal
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book for writers!
Reviewed in India on April 11, 2019
Verified Purchase
I carry this book along whenever I am writing, wherever I am writing. The reason is that is simplifies the way characters can be written. The insights are fun and revealing. Great reference book for a writer.
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Quinn
5.0 out of 5 stars La guía definitiva para padawans de la caracterización
Reviewed in Spain on April 13, 2017
Verified Purchase
Esta guía, elaborada por Darian Smith, es una herramienta muy útil para todo escritor o escritora que desee crear personajes realistas. A pesar de ser un libro bastante breve (apenas 80 páginas de contenido real), se divide en distintas secciones en las cuales Darian explica conceptos psicológicos que determinan la personalidad a largo plazo, y cómo incorporar estas ideas en nuestros propios personajes y a través de la trama, sirviéndose también de ejemplos del mundo cinematográfico para mostrar aplicaciones reales.

Lo recomiendo a cualquier escritor, ya que te aporta una perspectiva muy interesante y, sea cual sea el género con el que trabajes, te permite ver otros posibles conflictos que van más allá del argumento y se adentran en el espectro psicológico y emocional. Darian ha hecho un gran trabajo escogiendo los términos y teorías que pueden resultar interesantes en la creación de dichos conflictos, y es muy directo y claro en sus explicaciones.

Volvería a comprarlo e intuyo que lo utilizaré a menudo como herramienta.
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Quinn
5.0 out of 5 stars La guía definitiva para padawans de la caracterización
Reviewed in Spain on April 13, 2017
Esta guía, elaborada por Darian Smith, es una herramienta muy útil para todo escritor o escritora que desee crear personajes realistas. A pesar de ser un libro bastante breve (apenas 80 páginas de contenido real), se divide en distintas secciones en las cuales Darian explica conceptos psicológicos que determinan la personalidad a largo plazo, y cómo incorporar estas ideas en nuestros propios personajes y a través de la trama, sirviéndose también de ejemplos del mundo cinematográfico para mostrar aplicaciones reales.

Lo recomiendo a cualquier escritor, ya que te aporta una perspectiva muy interesante y, sea cual sea el género con el que trabajes, te permite ver otros posibles conflictos que van más allá del argumento y se adentran en el espectro psicológico y emocional. Darian ha hecho un gran trabajo escogiendo los términos y teorías que pueden resultar interesantes en la creación de dichos conflictos, y es muy directo y claro en sus explicaciones.

Volvería a comprarlo e intuyo que lo utilizaré a menudo como herramienta.
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LisaV84
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book if you're planning to write a book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 31, 2022
Verified Purchase
This book made me think more about what my work in progress is missing and has help me to bring characters to live, definitely buy if you need a little inspiration.
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