Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs has been used for quite a while (since 1947, anyway), to help people figure out how to prioritise their needs. While I’ve not been using it for quite so long, I find it incredibly helpful for both my writing life and my character development, too.

Let’s dig in:

Using it for character development:

So, how can Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs teach us about and help us develop our characters? It’s all about their motivation. Motivation is the thing that drives your character and story forward.

As you can see from the pyramid, we begin at the bottom with physiological needs. So, what physiological needs could be driving your character forward?

In my novel The Birth of Ida, my main character finds herself in an inhospitable land that she has never dealt with. That means that a lot of her development takes place at the bottom rung on this pyramid. She is cold, hungry, and a little desperate. Therefore, she learns to hunt, build fires in snow, and become an all-round badass outdoorswoman. This is a part of her character development.

The next level is safety needs. Let’s look at Ida again. If I consider her motivation in this section, she is driven to protect herself and reclaim her property. That is another level of her motivation. Remember that characters, like people, are complex. They won’t just have one level of motivation because all of us have these levels. Usually, we need to satiate hunger before we can move up a level, for example.

The next level is love and belonging. Ida is a bit of a lone wolf in this category, but she does have her horse, who fulfils her need for belonging. It might be that you are writing a romance, and so your character’s motivation in this section is more substantial than Ida’s. That’s down to each character and person.

Now we’re onto esteem. This level is about respect and freedom. Ida’s motivation at this level is strong – she is striving to be respected as a woman in a patriarchal world, and after being locked up for many years, she values freedom above all else. That goes some way to explaining why her belongingness category is not so important to her – her values are different.

The highest level is self-actualisation. This level is all about achieving your highest potential – it’s the highest goal. Of course, this is most likely your main character’s most easily spotted motivation, because the big goal is what we usually consider. But remember that a character or person cannot reach this level unless the other levels have been considered. After all, one needs a full belly, some support, and at least a little respect to slay a dragon.

A well-rounded character will include all of these things, so try this with your main character and see how they develop according to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.

Using it in your writing life:

For your writing life, Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs can help you figure out when to rest and when to work. When you’re feeling like you don’t want to write, you’re struggling to prioritise your day, or even if, like me, you have ADHD, and so everything that comes across your desk feels like an urgent issue, looking at the pyramid can help.

If my physiological needs, my safety needs, and my belongingness (doesn’t sound like a real world but apparently it is) needs are met, but I still don’t want to write, or I’m struggling to do so, I check in with the next level. The esteem needs are an interesting one, because writing is actually a real mix of craft work and mindset work. If that’s where I’m falling down, I know that I’ve got some mindset work to do. If I’m struggling with imposter syndrome, for example, I’ll write down five things that I am proud of achieving. Once I’m feeling more accomplished, I often feel in a better position to create and move up a level.

However, if an alert in my diary tells me to write and I find I am struggling to because I am hungry, the answer is not writing, but flexibility. That helps me understand that, actually, not all times are correct for writing, whatever the diary says.

Any questions about this? Get in touch and ask.

If you need a hand with your writing craft, I can help. As a lecturer in Creative Writing for over six years, and with a PhD, MA and BA in the subject, I am well poised to answer any writing issues you have been facing.