Could any of you please give tips on how to learn the "language" of certain job types for particular characters that someone might want to create?
Like for eg if I wanted to create a nuclear physicist for a movie, how would I know what language do they speak, the technical terminologies that make them a believable nuclear physicist (or anything else for that matter)?
Please don't give advice on going outside to meet actual people. Although, I know that that's the best way and maybe the quickest to learn about their daily habits and routines, but since I'm quarantined, is there a second best way to go about this?
Your comments are much appreciated. Thanks :)
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I've found that the 'Writer's Guide to Character Traits' by Linda Edelstein to be somewhat helpful.
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Vanshdeep, I just Google the profession in question...mainly to get a handle on what it's like to work in this or that job occupation.
I try to read as many online articles as possible about a day in the life of, say, a government employee...or a ballet dancer...or a nuclear physicist. And, sooner or later, I'll get some sort of a feel for how they talk on the job.
For me, it's the next best thing to hanging out with an actual member of this or that field I'm trying to write about.
All the VERY BEST to you, Vanshdeep! Glad you're here on Stage 32!
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If you're unable to go out and speak with the professionals, I would reach out online. Put a call out across Reddit, or read up on any of the articles or research papers in a specific field's bibliography (The footnotes on Wikipedia).
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join clubhouse.
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Even here. You would be surprised the jobs people have had. I can let your know about Government and the Intelligence industry, my wife was a federal agent there are a few ex-cops etc. This is always a good place to ask “does anyone know about ...”
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I'm sure there have to be YT video(s) with professors/lecturers doing just that. Look up research papers. On Quora, Reddit, elsewhere you can ask questions like this, and people from that field can answer/help.
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Interviews, Clubhouse, or even reaching out to folks in that profession to set up a Zoom meeting! You'd be surprised about how excited people get to talk about their work - be sure to ask if you can record the meeting because this will be a great way to go back to capture their jargon later on.
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Use search engines (earn bing.com, good search.com and search.pch.com) and library resources. Will help you build high concept, credible and A-B List character profiles.
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Goodness yeah, it is a wonderful time to learn. Paul Mccartney recalled having to travel to another town after hearing someone knew how to work a specific chord on the guitar. DM and JW's advice on clubhouse may be the quickest way to spoken physics. CH is new though, an easier and more available entry point if you don't have iOS, may be discord. Google "physics on discord" to find communities. Kids call them 'servers.' : )
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To add to my previous comment. I think as long as you stick with what people believe to be true is okay.
I saw a cop show that said the “intel was A1”. Which is a reference to the admirality scale. A-E is how much you trust the source, 1-5 is how much you trust the information. They then went on to describe a vengeful prostitute that has hearsay, which would be C4 at best.
Did it matter. I knew it was wrong. But no one else probably.
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Thank You so much everyone. I've never heard about Clubhouse. I'll try all of your recommendations and figure out what works best. Again Thanks A Lot. Take Care :)
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Finding ways to speak with people from the professions is always best but blogs and biographies are good places to look as well.
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Post an ad defining the character type and ask them to define and describe their story. Last night I saw a movie where the female lead was a female version of Rambo due to her parents being killed in front of her. She wanted to be a professional assassin. All I could think of is revenge is always a bad way. The teachable moment she could use her skill set to be a professional spy or sniper who works for government agencies. That is the same model I used for my book A Hackers Guide to A Purpose Driven Life where I teach hackers how to get legitimate jobs. The movie from last night was named ‘Columbiana.’
Clubhouse only works on iPhone. Not on Android.
One place to start is an online glossary, such as: https://www2.lbl.gov/abc/wallchart/glossary/glossary.html
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for researching characters I start in google.. nuclear physics.. then click videos. Which begins the trail hunt for a stock pile of most helpful videos. When you click on one, youtube gives you a thread of suggestions to also review. Then you could search documentaries. Or educators...
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Find a great novel that was recently written. Get someone who knows the life on the phone, hopefully someone who will agree to read it for you. I once did a polish on a military film script. It was set around an at-sea incident and involved submarine warfare. I took the gig because the original script was written by a retired, male Naval officer and it was a female driven project. Turned out he was ex U.S. Coast Guard. I spent a lot of time doing research and chatting online with ex-submarine officers. It didn't suck because it was so interesting. But it was way more work than the pittance I was paid to fix the inaccuracies.
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Thank You so much guys. I really appreciate it :)