Characters drive most scenes in a narrative. If they don’t execute at the top of their game, the scene suffers… possibly even falls apart.
Luckily, no matter what genre you’re writing. No matter what character you’re writing…
Professional wrestling is always there to help them.
We’ve talked about Action, Character, Subtext and Emotion many times before individually, in fact, Emotion is the first panel essential (as explained in the Comic Writer’s Guide to Comics and Graphic Novels).
But I wanted to take a moment and bring all four of these narrative elements together as a quick-reference, reminder.
Any time a character makes their way onto the page, these four narrative strongmen are right there, waiting behind the ropes to be tapped in.
Bringing any one of them into the scene with the character, anchors the character in effectiveness.
Action of course, refers to what the character physically does. A nervous character might bite their nails. A depressed character might climb up on the bridge railing, or even take the step and jump off. A character in love, might lunge forward trying to land a kiss. Action does the heavy lifting, after all, actions do speak louder than words.
Character, refers to Characterization. It is the mannerisms and dialogue unique to the character. In the car racing mini-series I wrote, one of the characters constantly addresses his best friend as “G.” Characterization is critical in developing that necessary unique voice for every main character of your story. It’s also, the wrestler hopped on caffeine ALWAYS ready to go; if you can’t tap in any other wrestlers, tap in Characterization and he’ll save your character’s ass every time.
Subtext, is Dialogue… but specifically, the things not directly said in the character’s dialogue. The growling, frizzy-haired, tiger pants wrestler lives in the invisible ink, the innuendo, the veiled implications. This wrestler doesn’t look as intimidating as some of the others, but truth is, this guy is a master grappler. When he gets into the ring, the reader has no choice but to submit!
Last but not least, Emotion. Emotion is the thing that grabs us and binds us to the moment. Our logic can be convinced, without the rest of us not truly sold, not truly attached or invested. Emotion lets the reader lose themselves in the reality of the characters. Emotion bridges the gap, bringing the reader as close as possible to the material. It’s no accident “Emotion” finds itself written across a metal chair, one good hit and POW! the reader is floored, that’s the power of emotional content. Without emotion, narrative can still be effective, but it never will be AS effective.
With all the things we consider at any given moment writing, it’s easy to forget or get side tracked with some other element. Always remember these four wrestlers are standing there, waiting to jump in!
Some characters have a favorite wrestler
While every character needs the help of each wrestler from time-to-time, it’s OK if a character has a special relationship with just one, relying on them, tapping them into the ring, scene after scene. This is fine.
In fact, the wrestler they use most often, can actually become a part of who that character is… part of their innate charm as a character, but realize, no matter how many scenes a reader reads, no matter how many times a character appears in the narrative, one truth always remains…
Let’s
Get
Ready
to
Ruuuummmmbllleee!!
Battles Royale Reign Supreme
To reach maximum potential of any given scene, characters need to tap in all 4 wrestlers; executing with action, character, subtext AND emotion, simultaneously.
In its perfect form, this is not the chaos of Wrestlemania II, it’s well orchestrated, perfectly scripted, machine level engineering. One the reader never tires of. And when tapped repeatedly, one that will elevate your scripts to the highest possible level. ▪
About the Author —
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Nick Macari is a full-time freelance story consultant, developmental editor and writer, working primarily in the independent gaming and comic markets. His first published comic appeared on shelves via Diamond in the late 90’s. Today you can find his comic work on comixology, Amazon, and in select stores around the U.S.