Podcast: A Discussion with Sitong Che

We’re joined this episode by the wonderful Sitong Che, and the conversation goes to some really interesting places. We talk about what it means to truly get to know your main characters, the difference between stories told through performance versus stories told on the page, and this idea I find fascinating — that at some point, if you’ve done your job well enough, your fictional characters start making their own decisions. You just have to let them.

Topics Covered

• Getting to know your main characters deeply enough to let them lead
• Putting characters in conflict and seeing what happens
• The difference between performance and page storytelling
• The collaborative process of creating stories
• Giving fictional characters “free will” and trusting them with it

Shout Outs

• Sitong Che — our guest and a truly thoughtful creative mind
• The Secret Lives of Dentists — a film worth tracking down
• Jane Smiley — whose work informed part of the conversation
• How I Met Your Mother — yes, it came up, and yes, it was relevant

Listen

• Apple Podcasts
• Spotify
• iHeart Radio