Free Character Writing Prompts #76: 
Models and Dancers

These free character writing prompts focus on the lives of models and dancers. While many of us have now been privy to see the lives of models and dancers on shows like "America's Next Top Model" and "So You Think You Can Dance," for me, it is impossible for me to think like characters of this type without referencing the movie Zoolander. Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson portrayed such ridiculous, hilarious male models, that you couldn't help but mock such self-centered, self-conscious individuals. Obviously, not all models and dancers fall into that mold, but it's important to remember the comedic potential of characters that must so meticulously maintain their outward appearances. 

Free Character Writing Prompts #76: Models and Dancers

1. His parents were at the top of their respective fields: psychology and philosophy. They had written books on the subject and they were regarded as far beyond intellectual. When he realized that he was never going to come close to their level of wisdom, he embarked on a quest to find an industry he could be at the top of. He had the height and the build to be photographed and he joined up with a local modeling agency. They told him that if he looked flawless and exercised incessantly, he could be in advertisements from New York to California. He worked incredibly hard and he became an icon in modeling. What are his parents' thoughts about his career choice and how does he reaction to their opinions?

2. He had been one of the chubbiest kids in school, but he was active and doctors told his parents that when he his puberty he would lengthen out to a healthier weight. But his doctors never expected this. As he grew and his features filled it, he became an absolute dream to look at. His classmates quickly forgot the heavy kid they used to poke fun at and began losing themselves in his looks each and every day. On a summer trip with his parents, he earned a modeling contract in California and the entire family moved out there to support him. With his advertisements in magazines and catalogues, now it was more than his classmates that were staring at him. Despite all this, he couldn't help but still think of himself as a chubby kid. How will his less than attractive beginnings affect him as he continues in this line of work?

3. She was one of the top candidates on a modeling reality show and she felt she had exactly what the judges were looking for. She had sex appeal but it wasn't too overt. She was skinny but she wasn't too thin. Plus, she had a way of getting under the other models' skins without them knowing she was the one planting a seed of doubt. She would pretend to love and compliment the others, when in actuality, they were backhanded compliments causing them to feel awful about themselves. Through the weeks of the competition, she had singlehandedly caused about three of the eliminations. When it finally came down to the bottom three, all of her vindictiveness finally came out and the judges questioned if she was honest enough to be a part of the industry. Will she be able to rise above her personality to win the competition?

4. She was living out her dream as a successful model, but she barely had any time to enjoy it. Almost every day involved 16 or more hours of runways, casting calls, hair and makeup sessions and she felt like she never had a chance to breathe, let alone eat during it all. Before she found her success, she was at the gym three hours a day to keep herself in shape. Now, the constant working and the mini-food that she found at each event was causing her to lose weight despite the lack of training. She wondered if she had made the right decision, after all, part of having a career she loved, was about sitting back and appreciating what she'd accomplished, she thought. Will she continue on in modeling or will the tough schedule cause her to burn out?

5. When he got into dancing, he knew what he was getting into. After all, he figured out that he wanted to be a dancer after watching the musical, Billy Elliott, in which a kid gets bullied for dancing. He never kept things secret and immediately told his friends and his family the kind of life he wanted. He wasn't surprised when his dad tried pushing him back in the direction of more masculine sports. He also wasn't surprised when his friends asked if he was gay. He told them that dancing had nothing to do with his sexual preference and it was just something he loved. Through all of this he persevered and put it all in the back of his mind for his first New York audition. What are some of the other hardships he's faced as a young dancer?

6. When other kids had pictures of buxom babes on their wall, he had pictures of sleek dancers who caught his fancy. While others were saving up their money for comic books and movies, he was trying to pay for dance classes in secret. When he tried to convince his parents to let him go away to dance school, he thought they would be completely unsupportive. It turned out, they loved the idea of him following his passion and they encouraged him 100 percent. After all, all he talked about was dancing and famous dancers, they had a sneaking suspicion he wouldn't be going into politics. With one hurdle down, how will he ultimately break into the industry that he knows and loves?

7. As she primped up her hair for her 10-year high school reunion, she laughed when she thought about herself back then. She wasn't ugly, sure, but she was completely average in every way. It freaked her out at first during her first year at college when she began to sprout up. She was a late bloomer and the extra six inches she gained in a single year turned the "Freshman 15" into the "Freshman Fabulous." Her parents barely recognized her when she came home for Christmas that year. And now here she was, a full-fledged model who spent most of her days posing. It sure beat her efforts waiting to get asked out for senior prom, she thought. She would never have any problem with that sort of thing ever again. How has her personality changed since those days of being "average?"

8. She felt like some of her friends assumed because she was dancing in amazing shows that toured the country that she was set for the rest of her life. They had no idea how little pay she had to live off of and they rarely knew how tenuous her hold was on the roles she had. She spent every day thinking about how hard she had to work to stave off the new additions to the company. If she ever had an injury or illness to contend with, it didn't mean she had the day off, it meant she had to work just that much harder. Being a dancer was her life dream, but keeping it was more like a nightmare. Will she be able to keep hold of her profession and why or why not?

9. For most of his life, he'd been naturally gifted with a chiseled physique and the ability to move at a lightning pace. He worked less hard than most of the other dancers in his company because for the most part he didn't need to. When he hit the age of 30, however, everything began to change. His metabolism dropped through the floor and he needed to start dieting and exercising like crazy. His muscles grew weary with fatigue much more quickly than usual and his conditioning needed to be superb to keep up with the others. He was finally getting a taste of what the others had felt for years and he was not happy about it. How will he cope with his newfound hardships?

10. She knew that her parents would never visit her halfway across the country and so she had no problem telling them she had gotten a part with a company. What she didn't tell them was that it was a job dancing exotically for a strip club. All her life she'd wanted to be a ballerina and she worked hard for it. When all of the opportunities dried up, along with her bank account, she decided to use her talents to make enough money to renew the search. When an opportunity came up to dance for money, she took it. She'd been on stage for years and yet, this new job rattled her due to the strange clientele. The money was good and she hoped her parents might understand some day. How has taking this new job affected her psychologically? 

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