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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/46744
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/46744
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

## I've heard of Method Acting.   
But never Method Writing.

There are two approaches to portraying a character on film or stage.

[Method Acting](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Method_acting), where the actor gets into character by living like the character, duplicating emotions of the character, or otherwise emotionally identifying with the character. There are multiple approaches and techniques here and you can do this method without extreme measures (though some do take extreme measures).

[Classical Acting](http://lionhearttheatre.org/the-difference-between-method-acting-and-classical-acting/), which some refer to as "the Shakespearean Style" or "Surface Acting."

> More focused on control and precision in performance, classical actors are action-oriented, rather than emotion-oriented, the latter being the goal of method actors...a key difference between method acting and classical acting is that classical actors bring to life their character by combining their own interpretation with a meticulously crafted script. Where method acting can allow for quite a bit of improvisation, classical acting demands a degree of exactness, which is why they always memorize all of their lines. In other words, you are much less likely to want to deviate from the script when classical acting is called for.

As you get into your characters in order to write them, you might take one of these approaches, or a combination. There is a difference between _feeling_ what your character is feeling and _understanding_ what your character is feeling.

I'm the latter. I do not feel my character's emotions for the most part, but I have empathy. Imagine a close friend or family member who tells you about her/his life. You might feel sad or angry about something she says, but you don't feel like she feels. You might care deeply about him but you don't respond to his story by trying to duplicate it in your own experience, or responding like he does to it.

Regardless of your technique, you want your reader to be carried away by the story. Some will indeed identify with certain characters, to the point of feeling what they're feeling. Others will cosplay or write fan fiction. But most will respond emotionally to the material, not as if they were a character exactly. All of those responses are fine and good.

The question for you is, what do _you_ need to achieve these effects? If you need to do "Method Writing" then do it. I think most writers do not use that technique but that doesn't mean it's not right for you. Please don't feel you have to do it though. It's never a requirement for good writing. See what your output is and, if it's not what you're going for, try a different method and see what happens.

Original score: 2