Creating Compelling Characters with Loghan Paylor

A class on how to make compelling, believable fictional characters. Participants will explore how to create psychologically real characters, and how other elements of writing such as conflict and plot can develop organically from character creation. Incorporating elements from fiction and playwriting, this class includes one collaborative and two solo writing exercises.

This class is generously funded by the Canadian Poetry Fund, a local donor-advised fund which fosters accessible public educational outreach for poetry and other forms of creative writing through the services of the Vancouver Public Library.

Loghan Paylor is a queer, trans writer whose first novel The Cure for Drowning (Randomhouse Canada 2024) won Canada Reads 2026, was long-listed for the 2024 Giller Prize, named a Globe and Mail Best Book, and a finalist for the Jim Deva Prize for Writing That Provokes. Their work has also appeared in Room, Prairiefire, CBC Arts and on the long-list for the CBC Nonfiction Prize. A graduate of The Writer’s Studio at Simon Fraser University, they have an MFA in creative writing from the University of British Columbia and divide their time between teaching, writing, and co-owning a game company.

Accessibility: VPL is committed to making our programs accessible for all. If you have an access need that we have not addressed here, please email us at [email protected].

• Elevator access to the Alice MacKay Room is available in the concourse near the bank machine. • There will be designated spaces for wheelchairs and patrons with mobility devices. • Quiet Tables are available for patrons who would prefer to enjoy the class without talking to others.

For more information on physical access, view the Accessibility information on the Central Library page.