Freudian Script: 4 Ways to Show Your Characters Need to Grow

By RosieNo Comments
For the next installment of Freudian Script, we will examine the unconscious reactions that characters give when they're under greater stress or lack emotional maturity. These are the immature defence mechanisms. As the name suggests, these are normal for teenagers - YA writers, take note - and are fairly common in adults. The following examples represent some of those defences, alongside some explanation and illustration from two of my favourite shows: 1) Regression I have a writing deadline and murders to solve...or I could play laser tag Wasn't life so much easier when you were a child? No responsibility, all that free time, and a part-time job on Saturday to buy more sweets. So, when reality comes knocking and you need to act like a grown-up, why not do something fun and childish instead? State Dinner to organise? Build a fire! Captaining a starship on a five-year-mission? Pretend you're the captain of a Royal Navy vessel (or just sing about it). This is the staple of...
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Freudian Script: 5 Mature Defence Mechanisms of Well-Adjusted Characters

By Rosie1 Comment
To start my series on psychology for writers, I thought I'd take a meaty topic that will have practical uses for all your characters, irrespective of genre or medium. What are defence mechanisms? You're wandering along in your own little world. Life is good. You're happy, content, satisfied. WHAM! Suddenly, everything gets turned on its head - you have been hit by An Inciting Incident. How do you react? Something has threatened your state of wellbeing, provoking something inside you, and you need to get rid of this ugly feeling. So, our unconscious mind defends you - and not always in healthy ways. Psychoanalysts (the school of psychology founded by Freud) have formed a list of common defence mechanisms and divided them up. The most common divisions are mature, immature, neurotic and pathological. (NOTE: while this topic is based in psychoanalysis and psychodynamic psychological principles, I'm going to skip over the theories behind the development of these reactions and concentrate on their possible manifestations and...
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