Playwriting - Part 4E - Character Biographies, Leisure Time Activities

I've been dealing with the external world when it comes to using character biographies. One last part that I want to mention is leisure time activities. I know that it seems that this would be part of the internal world of the character, but it doesn't take long to realize that leisure time activities are part of the external world.

It is true that a person may stay to himself or herself if they like to read or do crossword puzzles. However, these are also things they can do when they areamong others. Leisure time activities can also be things like going to the movies, acting in local theatre, bowling, or playing basketball. There are probably people you know mainly by the leisure time activities in which they participate.

Giving your characters leisure time activities makes them more rounded. A character may be a lawyer, but unless that is the only thing that is important to the play for that character, there is probably more. While some of the other details that you have written can help make the character more rounded, but it is likely that the character would not be definied by anything of these things. Instead, that lawyer may want to be known asw the person who likes to roller blade. Maybe that lawyer roller blades down his street every day and his neighbors know him as the roller blader and that's who he want sto be known. Maybe he wasnts to be known in many ways.

Make your characters like real people. All of us wear many hats. Just a few of the ways that I can be known is somebody who likes to do crosswords, somebody that likes logic puzzles, a dramaturg, a playwright, a sister, and a "church girl." If you can't think of leisure time activities for your character, make a list of your leisure time activities and make a list of leisure time activities of your friends and other people that you know. See which ones fit your character.