CHARACTER MOTIVATION THESAURUS

GIVING UP A CHILD



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HELPFUL TIP:

To understand why your character is driven toward a certain goal, get to know their positive and negative traits, as well as any significant emotional wounds that might be motivating them. Then you can explore the various kinds of conflict that could block them as they move toward their goal.
FORMS THIS MIGHT TAKE:
Going through with an adoption
Following through with a surrogacy contract
Surrendering a child one is unable to properly care for
Giving up a child as one's environment is unhealthy or unsafe for the child (drug use, violence, hoarding, etc.)
Turning a child over to authorities for foster care
Giving up custody because its the right thing to do in the circumstance
Choosing to go through with an abortion (perhaps because of a rape, health risks, or other personal circumstances)
Giving a child up to one's parents to raise
Placing a child at an orphanage (temporarily or permanently) due to a lack of resources to care for them
Giving up a child because of concerns over personal safety or the safety of other family members
Returning a child to a birth parent (in the case of a hospital mix-up or unsanctioned adoption)
Placing a severely handicapped child in a special care home
Giving up custody rights to the other parent
Surrendering an adopted child because one feels incapable of meeting their unique needs
Giving up a child as one has broken the law and must turn oneself in to police to face the consequences

HUMAN NEED DRIVING THE GOAL (INNER MOTIVATION):
There are five basic human needs that, when missing from a character's life, could motivate them to pursue this goal. The following needs are all possibilities, but only one of them should be the primary driver for any given character. For more information on the relationship between human needs and outer motivations, please see​ this ​Character Motivation tutorial.

Love and Belonging: If the character knows that they are unable to properly care for their child, they may find the courage to do the hardest thing possible: surrender that child to others to raise.  
Safety and Security: Protecting their child is one of the strongest instincts a parent or guardian has so if the child were in danger, a parent or guardian would do the hardest thing possible and give that child to another to protect so their safety was secured.
Physiological Needs: A character unable to meet their own physiological needs would by default be unable to meet the needs of their child. In this case the parent would surrender the child to another so their offspring had a better chance at survival.

HOW THE CHARACTER MAY PREPARE FOR THIS GOAL:
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POSSIBLE SACRIFICES OR COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS GOAL:
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ROADBLOCKS WHICH COULD PREVENT THIS GOAL FROM BEING ACHIEVED:
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TALENTS & SKILLS THAT WILL HELP THE CHARACTER ACHIEVE THIS GOAL:
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WHAT'S AT STAKE IF THIS GOAL ISN'T MET?
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