The Beginner’s Guide to Props – Using Them to Show Character

You know the phrase, all an actor needs is an empty room and a script? I’ve heard that idea dispelled by an acting coach. Why? Because actors need something to react to, something to work with. A good actor uses the space around him to define his character, personality, and intentions.

In the same way, a good writer puts characters in environments that show their personality, without telling their intentions.

When it comes to fantasy and science fiction, this is especially important. In past centuries writers could get away with long pages of exposition, but in today’s Netflix era, where the next episode is just seconds away, we need readers to want to turn pages faster than Netflix changes episodes.

How to do so? Easter eggs. Easter eggs are a simple way to reference – or show – something deeper within a scene, without ever mentioning it.

Let’s say your character is sitting in the woods. They’re not just any woods, but woods you’ve taken hours to create and build into your fantasy. Your character sits down on a clean, expensive blanket. He or she opens a leather bag and takes a glass bottle full of your world’s equivalent to a specialty drink. They open a fiction novel with a title correlating to something they’d be interested in. In your select sentences of narrative, you mention that it’s morning and there’s a warm breeze.

Based on the above, what do you we know about your character?

• He’s rich, or at least has high quality taste (expensive blanket, specialty drink in a glass bottle).
• He’s interested in _____ type of pleasure reading (based on the title you choose for the book).
• He’s an early riser and appreciates the small pleasures of a morning sunrise on a warm day.

What if we changed the props? How could something as simple as props show the depth of your character? Let’s give it a try.

Your character sits on the ground, ignoring the muddy leaves. He pulls a tattered blanket around his shoulders and a plastic, battered water bottle from a used backpack. Finally, he grabs a book with the title of a difficult school subject, and opens to the first, underlined page.

This time we could deduce:

• He’s not bothered by dirt, or is too concerned with other things to focus on where he sits.
• He doesn’t have much money.
• He’s willing to spend what he does have to further his own study, and either doesn’t worry about the book being new, has used it extensively, or simply can’t afford something nice.

Depending on your specific fantasy setup, you can further play around with these props. Make the drink relate to some aspect of your world, show the bag was made from nearly extinct dragon skin, etc. A few, purposeful props can give countless insights into your character.

What types of props show your character’s motives? Let me know in the comments!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Writer, working with brands to grow their audience reach. She studied Strategic Communications at Cornerstone University and focused on writing during her time there, completing two full-length manuscripts while a full-time student. Currently she trains under best-selling author Jerry Jenkins in his Your Novel Blueprint course and is actively seeking publication for two books.

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