November 2014
Professor and former New York Times editor Frank Flaherty shares methods to reveal character
A character reveals himself with his own words. Frank discusses the technique of capturing a character’s words and shares examples from journalistic interviews and speeches. 31.5 minutes.
Frank shares techniques to paint vivid, realistic characters. 33.5 minutes.
A list of resources mentioned by Frank in the lecture and an exercise for practice.
Try these exercises after viewing the lecture on characters’ motivations.
Francis Flaherty worked for 19 years at The New York Times, serving as a columnist, editor, and deputy editor. Today, he is on the adjunct faculty at NYU and Columbia. He is the author of "The Elements of Story: Field Notes on Nonfiction Writing" (HarperCollins) and has written for the Atlantic, Harper's and others.