Thread: people watching

Originally Posted by Jon M

I could think of a lot of better ways to spend my time, really. I notice the strange and mean things people do enough in day-to-day living anyway.

that might be the point to "people watching", though. maybe it's an attempt to find redemption for the average contempt and apathy experienced
in daily life.

Or perhaps it's a hobby. You know, like bird watching. If you get story fodder out of it, great. If not, you at least saw something that caught your interest.

Originally Posted by dale

that might be the point to "people watching", though. maybe it's an attempt to find redemption for the average contempt and apathy experienced
in daily life.

Day-to-day, I just don’t see that much contempt and apathy, and manage to come across quite a few decent folks. Maybe it has to do with outlook, or what you expect from people.

Originally Posted by JosephB

Day-to-day, I just don’t see that much contempt and apathy, and manage to come across quite a few decent folks. Maybe it has to do with outlook, or what you expect from people.

Probably does have something to do with outlook. I try to stay positive, mostly because I know what stress can do to a body, but sometimes I am knocked over by how inconsiderate people are.

But I did do some of my own people watching today. My neighbor, a quiet, sneaky woman, has a habit of throwing the gravel from her crumbling driveway over the fence and onto my lawn. So I must be on the lookout now whenever I hear her puttering around outside.

Sounds minor, and sure -- it is -- but it's this kind of stuff that makes my head hurt. As if there would ever be a time when I'd be okay with crumbled cement on my lawn.

Other than that, I get my people watching done at the supermarket. Milk, eggs, and a little bit of crazy, all in the same place. My human interaction quota is filled by the time I leave checkout.

Sure, people can be jerks. I’m just saying the majority of people I encounter aren’t jerks -- they're either fairly nice or the interaction is neutral. So by default, I assume that people aren’t jerks, unless they do or say something to change my mind. In other words, I tend to give people the benefit of the doubt.

Plus, it’s a two way street. To a degree, people can detect your attitude, so they’re going to react better if you go into any interaction with a positive outlook.

Sounds like a good idea, I'm going to try it. I get bored writing at home. Nice sneaky picture too! Funny if the flash or shutter sound went off!

LOL. No, I made sure to turn off the flash and turn down the sound.

Haha, I am very observant and have a good memory so I just prefer to not be a creeper with a camera or a notebook and people watching

Besides, being a male I would get kicked out of Barnes and Noble for doing such a thing since they hate my kind there!

I was contemplating bringing a camera with me to my local state fair tomorrow if I decide to go.

Hey! Creepers are people too, ya know And I'm male and always left alone at B & N. Could be due to my size, which always seems to be a deterrent for confrontation. A camera and the state fair. . . I love it

Originally Posted by JosephB

People watching is fun. I love it, and do it all the time. But can’t see how it’s of much benefit in developing characters. For me, that comes from really knowing people and understanding what makes them tick. I think that comes from a lifetime (doesn’t have to be a long lifetime) of experience and interaction. Some people are just natural students of human behavior who pick up on things up by osmosis -- I don’t think it comes from any kind of forced study. Besides, in most people watching situations, you can’t really hear what they’re saying -- and you can’t read their minds -- so you’re mostly going to get surface stuff. That might provide inspiration for a character or some fodder for description -- but probably not much more.

I enjoy people-watching. it's one of my favourite past-times. Especially on a long bus journey, when the bus stops at a busy stop for some time. I look at people; walking by, getting on the bus, or getting off and ponder what they might be thinking or feeling, personally I find this great in helping my characters development.
The other day I saw this a Goth type lad (dressed in black, long leather coat etc.,) getting off the bus. This young man rocked as he walked and had a fixed stare on the woman in front, his mother I guessed. My writing persona took over and I postulated that he was thinking of ways to kill her; strangling her as she watched TV, poisoning her cup of tea, and wondering to himself would he get away with it.
Of course I do hope this was only my avid imagination running riot and not his true thoughts - that would be horrific.

I've always enjoyed people watching. I remember watching the garbagemen with my little brother years ago when the trash cans in the alleys were 55-gallon containers. We always wondered if they were superstrong and noticed that they cleverly used leverage and momentum (in addition to strength) to lift and empty the barrels. Much can be learned when just sitting around watching folk.

Until this past April, I hadn't taken a flight for several years and was amazed at the culture change at the airport. I seem to remember people sipping beverages and looking around at the people as they came and went. Some would be reading magazines, sure, but many would be simply sitting around watching other people. Women with babies or small children would catch each others' eyes, smile, and strike up conversations … things like that. But the onset of personal tech devices has changed all that. I was amazed to see practically everyone in his or her own little world while peering at their cell phones, iPads, and laptops. They were all so quiet … and spooky. There was only one old guy who was reading a newspaper. I felt like a martian! I don't have a smart phone and still carry books and magazines around with me. I can see how a young person nowadays would see people watching as something odd and creepy—I guess it's just not as commonplace as it once was.

I once saw two women passionately kiss by the light of the Eiffel Tower in the middle of the night.


I once saw a man the size of a bus holding a ninety-pound prostitute to his side.


I once saw a teenage girl, openly bleeding amidst a group of her friends, holding a bag of ice to the wound and otherwise just trying to go about her day.


I once saw two snipers protecting a parade. They would take shifts with one another, using their breaks to refill cups of coffee for their partner.


I once saw an American lady look at a painting of a young martyr lying dead in a river, titled "La Jeune Martyre," to which the woman laughed heartily and said, "this French is easy! It's called 'Beautiful Girl!'"


I once saw a woman and a man underneath some mall stairs. They had spent the night, and the woman was crying. The man looked like he'd been holding back tears for hours just so she would have someone strong to hold.


I once twice three times saw a young girl, sixteen seventeen eighteen somewhere around that age, carrying both a backpack and a baby carriage on her way home.


I people-watch a lot.

Tomorrow, when I take my cat to the vet, I think I am going to observe other Kitty Mommies in the waiting room. & when I get my wedding ring cleaned tomorrow, I think I'm going to stalk in the food court, and observe.

& I can agree that it won't do much with character development, necessarily but don't we want our characters to be as realistic as possible? Part of that is body language. Observing and receiving a visual example will give a better understanding of quirks and habits of humans, the way we move, the way we walk, and the way each person performs these characteristics differently. Some women walk with a sway in their hips, naturally. Other women have hardly any sway at all.

I think this will be an interesting exercise.