This weekend I worked on an outline for a new series. Originally, it was just going to be a short, but the story has grown into more than just one book. So now, in order for me to write the short, I need to plan out the series. Yeah. It's a bit of a project. Not one I was planning, but I'm very excited about it.
Which is why I need to do it right. I may only be writing a short for now, but if I want this to be the beginning of a series, then I have to know everything about my characters. What are their secrets? What are their habits; good and bad. What is their history? What is their motivation? I already know what the characters look like, how they interact with each other. But, in order for my story, and ultimately my series to be consistent, I need to know what makes each of them tick.
So I took a personality test as my FMC and MMC, separately, to find out their personality types. The results were consistent with what I had imagined for each character, but none the less, fascinating. It's too early to go into too much detail about the story or series, but I will reveal the results of the personality tests.
My heroine came back with a INTJ, also known as The Architect or The Mastermind. According to http://www.16personalities.com/intj-personality, "People with the INTJ personality type are imaginative yet decisive, ambitious yet private, amazingly curious, but they do not squander their energy." According to http://www.truity.com/personality-type/intj, "Although INTJs aren’t usually warm or particularly gregarious, they tend to have a self-assured manner with people based on their own security in their intelligence. They relate their ideas with confidence, and once they have arrived at a conclusion they fully expect others to see the wisdom in their perceptions. They are typically perfectionists and appreciate an environment of intellectual challenge." Yep, that is her.
My hero came back with ENTP, also known as The Visionary or The Debater. According to http://www.16personalities.com/entp-personality, "Taking a certain pleasure in being the underdog, ENTPs enjoy the mental exercise found in questioning the prevailing mode of thought, making them irreplaceable in reworking existing systems or shaking things up and pushing them in clever new directions." According to http://www.truity.com/personality-type/ENTP, "ENTPs are typically friendly and often charming. They usually want to be seen as clever and may try to impress others with their quick wit and incisive humor. They are curious about the world around them, and want to know how things work. However, for the ENTP, the rules of the universe are made to be broken." I can't wait to write him.
I love it. These tests tell me what I know, but also what I haven't even thought of yet. They give me a chance to round out the characters. This is the first time I have taken a personality test as one of my characters, but it won't be the last.
This project is where my love of history and researching locations will come in to play. It will also test my organizational skills. But that's a different blog post.
Have you ever taken a personality test for yourself? Have you ever used one to assist in your character development? Did the results surprise you?
Come find me online at www.jennifersenhajiauthor.com
No comments:
Post a Comment