Method Writing

Have you ever heard of actors being “method” actors? It means that when they have a role, they become that character in real life. They start “acting” all the time. Well, I’ve heard about writers doing the same thing, but, you know, as writers not actors. I’ve not previously done any “method” writing, mostly because my characters tend to be similar to me. I don’t go out of my way in my daily life to think about what they would be doing.

Until this past weekend.

I went to the St. Louis City Museum. For those who don’t know about it or haven’t been there, it is a treasure trove of amazement and fun. It’s like a McDonald’s Playhouse but for all ages. There’s all sorts of crawl-spaces and tunnels and slides; it’s a madhouse of a maze. It’s awesome. If you ever pass through the St. Louis area, stop there to check it out. It’s well worth it. And, it’s pretty on the inside.

Anyway, one of these tunnel/crawl spaces went up and over and into what looked like a mini-maze of a ventilation system. It led up to this another crawl space with a clear floor that looked down into the room below. Now, I’m not “afraid” of heights, but I am very nervous of falling from heights. So, I let my companion go first, and then I asked if it was worth the trip – if it ended up being a dead end, I didn’t know if I could muster the courage to crawl back of the clear floor again.

I knew that I would feel good about it if I made it over. I would have conquered a fear – but I hesitated. Then, I said to myself, Malone wouldn’t have hesitated. Then, I crawled over this clear floor. Morgan would have been freaking out, but Malone wouldn’t have blinked twice. I mean, she jumps across rooftops dozens of stories in the air.

That’s my first experience with method writing, although it was more to help me not be a nervous wreck while we’re walking across this mesh-metal floor four stories in the air. Malone would have been afraid. She would have walked across it like solid ground, so I did, too. I channeled my inner Malone!

It’s a fun experience, and I thought I’d share.