Ooooh, I LOVE that idea. I didn’t think of that. I will have to revise this and add. I will give credit, of course *courtier bow* :D. Thanks so much for sharing.

And I think what’s interesting is that you can use these alignments to create even more layers by contrasting what a character thinks they are with what they really are. Imagine a bad guy who thinks they’re Chaotic-Good, but in reality, they’re closer to Chaotic-Neutral or Chaotic-Evil. Or the good guy, who thinks they’re Neutral-Evil because of their shady past, but they’re really closer to Neutral-Good.

Great thoughts!

That being said, this kind of stuff makes me want to bash my head against the wall. I know writers who swear by this kind of profiling technique but it makes me crazy. I tried using enneagrams (sp?) once to type my characters and ended up wanting to kill all of them immediately because they no longer felt “real” to me. This is one aspect of writing that does come naturally and easily for me. I know who they are and what motivates them and how they’re going to react and why. Getting all that onto the page, well, that’s another issue and remains to be seen.

I’m pretty sure I’d get kicked out of WWBC for insubordination or refusing to do homework or something along those lines. 😉 I’ve learned the hard way to take what works and leave the rest alone, while appreciating there will always be someone who can use a method that you can’t. Good for you for presenting us with unique options.

I like how you bring up LOTR. It actually has no Climactic Scene! Sauron never is on stage, and when the final battles happen, he’s no where! I hated that part of the books. I wanted Gandalf (who was sent by the gods to defeat Sauron) and Sauron to actually be on stage at the climax, battling it out for Middle Earth. But alas.

Kristen, you’ve helped me, in the less-than-a-year I’ve known you, create such realistic characters. I think when I am working on new stories in the future, I want to pick your brain as part of my plotting. For characters, story, etc.
And I can’t wait to read your stuff. I bet it will knock my socks off!

Thanks for other examples. Those weren’t my choices, and I had issue with a few myself. Batman, for instance, was tricky, because was this contemporary Batman or Batman of the 1950s? However, I do think the descriptions of each were excellent, and most of you guys are clever enough to insert your own literary counterparts. To avoid further confusion, though, I will go change a couple, ;).