#16 Max Dubinsky, Ernest Hemingway, and How to Become a Better Person

In this episode, we test Hamody Jasim author of The Terrorist Whisperer and discuss how to take a stand. 

• The Terrorist Whisperer (documentary)
• The Terrorist Whisper (book)
• Hamody Jasim's website

Hamody Jasim grew up in Iraq under the height of Sadam Hussein’s rule. He was arrested and tortured as a young teenager for getting on the wrong side of a corrupt police officer. Then he came of age just as the Iraq War was breaking out, and decided to join the newly formed Iraqi military. He went on to lead a security team that foiled several terrorist attacks on Americans, including catching a mole high up within the Iraq military who was assembling a suicide vest in the Iraq ministry of defense. He now lives in North Carolina with his family.

After our interview, Alice and I will talk about what makes Hamody’s story so powerful.

Character Test Challenge: What do you stand for? What would you die for? I want you to take out a piece of paper and spend ten minutes reflecting and writing down what you stand for. If you were put into a situation where you had to fight or die for something, what would it be.

Character Test is brought to you by The Write Practice Pro, a premium critiquing community for creative writers. You can learn more about The Write Practice Pro and join the community

In this episode, we test Marta Cabrera from Knives Out, talk to state champion high school wrestling coach Gary Skop, and discuss how to win.

Gary Skop is high school football coach and high school wrestling coach, and in 2019, one of his wrestlers won the state wrestling championship in Michigan.

When we’re talking about how to live a good story, sometimes that involves competition. Many good stories are about winning, and knowing how to win and how to think about competing so that you can win can be an important part of living a good story. We also talk about how to lead others to win and, if you’re a parent, how to help your children have a healthy relationship with competition.

• Message Gary by email

After the interview, Alice and I talk more about how to compete effectively, and how to create small challenges to grow in areas that are easy for you right now.

Character Test Challenge: Think of a way to challenge yourself, preferrably an area that you’re comfortable in right now or that’s easy, and then start the challenge. Do it for at least a week. Once you’re done, send us an email letting us know how it went at charactertestshow@gmail.com .

Character Test is brought to you by The Write Practice Pro, a premium critiquing community for creative writers. You can learn more about The Write Practice Pro and join the community

In this episode, we test Noelle Kringle from the film Noelle on Disney+, interview Seth Barnes, author of Kingdom Journeys: Rediscovering Pilgrimage, and talk about how taking risks can change your life.

Seth Barnes, the leader of a large nonprofit and the author of a book about pilgrimage, Kingdom Journeys: Rediscovering the Lost Spiritual Discipline. Seth also happens to be my father-in-law, and in my book Crowdsourcing Paris, he’s the one who challenged me to add more adventure to my book project, which completely transformed the book and my whole trip.

• Seth Barnes' blog
• Kingdom Journeys (book)
• Camino de Santiago
• Liminal space
• Noelle (film)

In this interview we talk about some of Seth’s biggest adventures, including a journey to Cambodia as a young man to work with refugees during the Cambodian genocide and his frequent hikes along the Camino del Santiago pilgrimage trail in Spain and France. At the end of our conversation we talk about the nature of adventure and our need for risk in our lives so that we can live better stories. 

In this episode, we test Anna and Elsa from Frozen 2, interview therapist Lynn Bunting, an expert on personality disorders, and talk about how to avoid drama in your relationships.

Lynn Bunting has been a licensed therapist for over 40 years, specializing in reconciliation in relationships and emotional management. She also happens to be my mom, which is kind of fun. 

Together, we're working on a new book, called Crazy: What to Do With the People in Your Life Who Make You Feel Crazy. If you’ve ever gotten into a conflict with someone, whether with someone at a work, a romantic relationship, or a friend, and you’ve felt like a crazy person, like you don’t know what is happening but it’s not normal and you’ve felt hurt and attacked but most of all, confused, this is for you. 

If you're interested in learning more about the book as we work on it, or if you want to "vote" for us to write the book, Crazy, please sign up for our interest list here: 

• Crazy book project interest list

After the interview, Alice and I talk about how to avoid drama in your life, and the ethics (and benefits) of identifying the people in your life who make you feel crazy.

Character Test is brought to you by The Write Practice Pro, a premium critiquing community for creative writers. You can learn more about The Write Practice Pro and join the community

Jason Redman is a retired NAVY SEAL, a wounded warrior, and a New York Times bestselling author. His book, OVERCOME, comes out in just a few weeks and it’s so good. If you’ve ever had something HARD or traumatic happen to you and frozen or just not known how to get through it and start making progress in your life again, Jason’s message is for you. It’s really powerful and I think more people need to listen to it.

Jason Redman is a retired Navy SEAL and NY Times bestselling author of *The Trident* and the upcoming book *Overcome: Crush Adversity with the Leadership Techniques of America's Toughest Warriors*. In this interview Jason tells his story of surviving being horrifically wounded in Iraq, how he overcame life ambushes, and the biggest piece of advice he gives to wounded warriors and anyone experiencing tough times (which is all of us, at some point).

We also examine Alice Quinn, a character from *The Magicians* and ask whether she is actually a good character.

Also, there's a free prize.

Character Test is brought to you by The Write Practice Pro, a premium critiquing community for creative writers. You can learn more about The Write Practice Pro and join the community here.

In this episode, we test Inspector Jean Guy Beauvoir from the Inspector Gamache series, interview Phil Blattenberger the film maker best known for the Vietnam War movie Point Man, and talk about how to fake it until you make it.

• Point Man (Amazon streaming)
• Instagram
• Facebook

Phil Blattenberger is best known for the film Point Man, a film about four men separated from their platoon during the Vietnam war. Three of the soldiers are African American, and they have to fight back to safety while navigating the racism in their unit. The film highlights the racial tension occurring during the civil rights movement which was happening in the U.S. that carried over to the Vietnam war. Point Man was picked up for distribution by Sony pictures, which is unheard of for a debut indie film.

Phil first conceived of the film while in South East Asia during his extensive travels.

In this interview, we talk about how travel can expand your world view, the vast amount of work it takes to accomplish your dream, how to write a screenplay, and how to get your tooth fixed in Thailand.

In the last part of our show, Alice and I discuss how to fake it until you make it.

Plus, as always, there's a free prize related to this episode, which you can get here.

Character Test is brought to you by The Write Practice Pro, a premium critiquing community for creative writers. You can learn more about The Write Practice Pro and join the community

My new book, Crowdsourcing Paris, a real life adventure story set in Paris, is out now. You can order the book here.

In this episode, we test Kya from Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens, talk to Eric Hanson host of the TV Show Epic Trails, and discuss how to overcome shame.

Eric Hanson is best known as the host for the TV show Epic Trails on Outside TV and Fox Sports. He’s also a writer, outdoor adventure photographer, and outdoor filmmaker whose work has been featured on the Discovery Channel, NBC Universal, and the Weather Channel. You can follow Eric's work here:

• Eric Hanson's Website
• Instagram
• Epic Trails on Backpacking TV

This conversation is about how adventure (outdoor adventure or adventures, say, in Paris) can lead to personal growth and self-discovery, but also the habits and strategies you  need to make it in incredibly competitive careers like television and writing. Those strategies by the way, will work in every career too. 

Eric is someone I respect for doing the hard, grinding work mostly behind the scenes, who is finally starting to make a name for himself, and now, he’s at a point where he’s really starting to take off. In a few years, he could be a household name. In this interview, we talk about the hard, very risky work it took to get there.

At the end of our episode, Alice and I discuss how to overcome shame and be open, despite the hard parts of your story.

Plus, as always, there's a free prize related to this episode, which you can get here.

Character Test is brought to you by The Write Practice Pro, a premium critiquing community for creative writers. You can learn more about The Write Practice Pro and join the community

In this episode, we test Joe Bunting, me, from my new book Crowdsourcing Paris, read a chapter from the book, and talk about how to grow.

You can order the book here:

• Crowdsourcing Paris
• Amazon
• Barnes & Noble
• IndieBound

My new book,Crowdsourcing Paris, is about a real life adventure story set in Paris. To raise the last $600 I needed to make the trip happen, I asked my audience to give me adventures to accomplish in Paris. I got hundreds of ideas, including finding dead authors in Pere Lachaise cemetery and performing a song and dance under Arc de Triomphe. But the biggest adventure was to explore the 100 miles of illegal catacombs 60 feet below Paris. But when I got lost in the tunnel and was abandoned by my guide, I thought I was going to die.

This is an episode about adventure, the cost and the reward.

In our last segment, we talk about how to grow.

Plus, as always, there's a free prize related to this episode, which you can get here.

Character Test is brought to you by The Write Practice Pro, a premium critiquing community for creative writers. You can learn more about The Write Practice Pro and join the community

In this episode, we test our first real life character, Ernest Hemingway from his memoir A Moveable Feast, have a conversation with writer Max Dubinsky about travel and adventure, and talk about how to be a better person.

Our guest today is Max Dubinksy. Max is a writer, best known for his short fiction. He’s the author of the graphic novel Dislocated, and his short fiction has been published in Longleaf Review, Outlook Springs, and McSweeney’s. You can find his work here:

• maxandrewdubinsky.com
• Instagram | Twitter
• Books

In addition to being a brilliant writer, Max is in my new book, Crowdsourcing Paris, and even speaks the very first line in the first chapter when he completely ruins my plans for Paris (you'll have to read the book to find out how).

In our conversation, we talk about how Max left everything to travel around the country for a year, how he abandoned his plans to go see about a girl in Ohio, and how he eventually married that girl six months later on a mountain in Colorado.

We talk about adventure, the importance of getting out of your comfort zone, and share a lot of great stories. This is a fun conversation that I know you’re going to enjoy.

In the last part of our show, we talk about how to become a better person.

Plus, as always, there's a free prize related to this episode, which you can get here.

My new book, Crowdsourcing Paris, a real life adventure story set in Paris, comes out soon. You can pre-oder the book on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and IndieBound.

Character Test is brought to you by The Write Practice Pro, a premium critiquing community for creative writers. You can learn more about The Write Practice Pro and join the community

In this episode, we test Napoleon from Animal Farm by George Orwell, interview James Victore designer and author of Feck Perfuction, and talk about how to find your voice.

James Victore is a designer whose work has been featured in the Museum of Modern Art, MOMA, in New York City. He is also the author of Feck Perfuction, in which he talks about creativity, courage, strength, and resilience. You can find James' work here:

• Feck Perfuction (Amazon)
• jamesvictore.com
• Instagram

Earlier this year, James was in a motorcycle accident in which he broke several ribs and punctured his lung, beginning a long period of recovery that left him in constant pain for the larger part of a year. In this interview we talk about how he regained his confidence after that experience and how creatives can learn resilience.

In the last part of our show, we talk about how to find your voice.

As always, there's a free prize, which you can get by clicking here.

My new book, Crowdsourcing Paris, a real life adventure story set in Paris, comes out soon. You can pre-oder the book on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and IndieBound.

Character Test is brought to you by The Write Practice Pro, a premium critiquing community for creative writers. You can learn more about The Write Practice Pro and join the community