Writing Exercise: The Why Behind the Want

Writing Exercise: The Why Behind the Want

Key Techniques Highlighted by the Quotation

1. Deep Motivation Layering – The character’s goal is not enough. Writers must dig beneath intention to uncover the psychological or emotional engine driving the action.

2. Causal Alignment of Action and Desire – Each character choice must arise logically from their deeper need, even when irrational or morally questionable.

3. Avoidance of Flat Characterization – Characters who simply act without revealed personal stakes or contradictions become plot devices, not people.

Writing Prompt (500 words)

Write a scene in which a character is caught in a moment of apparent contradiction: they are doing something that on the surface seems to oppose their stated goal. Choose one of the following goals:

• To protect a loved one

• To prove they are not like their father

• To finally be seen

Now show the character taking an action that seems to undermine this goal. Reveal the deeper motivation (“the why”) behind their choice—not through explanation, but through behavior, subtext, or interaction. The scene should unfold in real time, limited to one location and no more than two characters.

Example: A woman claims she wants to protect her younger brother, but she rats him out to the police. We must understand—through the way she speaks, what she withholds, what flashes across her face—that she believes prison may be the only thing that will keep him alive.

Evaluation Criteria

• The character’s goal, intention, and motivation are all present and distinct

• The deeper “why” is felt, not told, through subtext and action

• Contradiction sharpens the character rather than confusing them

• Dialogue, setting, and pacing reinforce internal tension

• The scene resolves with impact, ambiguity, or insight—not with exposition

Strong vs. Weak Response

Strong: A father burns a letter his daughter wrote to her estranged mother. He claims it’s to protect her from disappointment, but we see his shaking hands, his reluctance, and a single unspoken memory that bleeds through: his own mother left and never came back. The moment is tight, conflicted, human.

Weak: A man wants to be seen as different from his abusive father, so he yells at his wife in the same way. Then he explains in dialogue that it’s because he’s scared of being weak. No nuance. No layering. Motivation is stated, not dramatized.

Follow-Up Questions for Workshop/Revision

• Is the “why” evident through the character’s behavior and choices?

• Does the contradiction deepen our understanding or flatten it?

• Are the stakes personal, specific, and urgent?

• Is the goal too generic or too vague to anchor intention?

• What internal conflict could be sharpened?

Recommended Reading

Excerpt from The Secret History by Donna Tartt (early chapters)

Watch how Richard Papen narrates his desire to belong while participating in choices that contradict that surface intention. Tartt slowly peels back the “why” behind his actions, revealing a craving for identity, beauty, and escape.

AI Disclosure Statement:

This writing prompt was created in collaboration with ChatGPT, an AI model by OpenAI, to support creative practice. ChatGPT assisted with idea generation and drafting; the final text was edited by the author. The illustration was created using Google Gemini.