Although writing and creating characters is extremely difficult, it’s ultimately unimaginably rewarding. In this guide, we’re going to go over the basics of creating/developing a character, some tips on creating one, and some questions and prompts to help flesh your characters out!
First, let’s talk about some relevant terms when discussing characters:
- Archetype: think character types that appear throughout cultures and time periods
- The hero, the villain, the damsel in distress, the underdog, the mentor
- Fatal Flaw: the fatal flaw, emerging from ancient Greece, describes the character trait that ultimately leads to a character’s downfall
- Icarus’s fatal flaw: hubris (excessive pride)
- Victor Frankenstein’s fatal flaw: thirst for knowledge and selfishness
- Merida from Brave: impulsiveness and stubbornness
- Characterization: this refers to the process in which authors reveal their character’s personalities and feelings
- This can come in the form of physical description, dialogue, interactions, and more
- There is direct characterization, which refers to what the author explicitly illustrates about the character, and indirect characterization, which refers to what the audience has to infer through a character’s dialogue, actions, or feelings
- Character Arc: character arcs refer to a character’s trajectory or journey to growth and fulfillment
- Some examples of the character arc are villains who become heroes, or heroes who become villains
- Think Snape (villain/evil teacher → misunderstood character) in Harry Potter
- Think Katniss Everdeen (focused on survival → motivated to rebellion) in The Hunger Games
Here is a basic, 6 step process to creating a character:
- Prescribe an archetype to your character. You may think that this will make your story “cliche” or “predictable,” but trust us, archetypes are timeless for a reason. If you’d like, you could also name and visualize your character at this point (however, this is always subject to change until you actually start writing!).
- For example, if I was following this process, I would choose that my character will have the archetype of the villain. As I create my character, I will know that they will be directly opposing or fighting the hero and will have darker motivations.
- Figure out your character’s backstory. Map out their childhood, their teenage life, and possibly, their adulthood. What role did they play in their family? Did they have any siblings? Were they naturally gifted or did they have trouble keeping up in school? This will help you understand them and aid you in the next part of this process!
- I will understand that my villain was born as the last child to a family of five, meaning that they never truly got enough attention. They fell behind in school and no one really paid them any mind. Ultimately, when my character entered high school, they began to self isolate and pursue their own interests.
- Establish your character’s strengths and weaknesses. Figure out what their fatal flaw will be. This fatal flaw doesn’t necessarily need to lead to their death or demise, but it will help you understand how your character will react in certain situations
- Now, I will establish that my villain excels in planning––they are meticulous and methodical. They will also possess remarkable technological skills and knowledge, something that they developed in their high school years.
- When I begin assigning my villain weaknesses, I will state that they can not work in a team, due to them always staying alone in their childhood.
- The fatal flaw of my villain will be their need for control. This will make my character continually fail in destroying the hero.
- Give your character a motive and a reason to be in the story. Your character should always have a reason for what they are doing, and while the readers don’t always need to know it, you do. So, make sure you know that your character is motivated by their desire to please his parents or that they are motivated by their desire to prove that they are capable by themselves.
- My villain will be motivated by a desire to prove himself and create a world where they can finally be accepted. My villain will believe that this can only happen once he destroys the hero and receives revenge.
- Give your character some quirks and fun traits! Everyone has weird traits, whether it’s only drinking your Starbucks drinks through a straw or refusing to use public bathrooms. It’s what makes us human!
- Even villains have quirks! My character will have an obsession with orange cats, a secret affinity for knitting, and a fear of the dark.
- While your audience doesn’t have to know all of your character’s quirks, the more you know about your character, the easier it will be to write your story.
- Discover how your character fits with the other characters in your story. Who do they get along well with? Who does their personality clash with? Are they a foil to any characters in your story? This will help you later on when you actually start writing, and will allow you to begin getting familiar with your character’s unique voice and personality.
- My villain will have his own group of friends he leads. While they get along with them, they have trouble getting along with the social butterfly in their team due to their unconscious jealousy. On the other hand, they surprisingly get along perfectly with the young girl that has recently been taken in by their group due to the similarities they see between her and their younger self.
These are some tips to help flesh out your character!
- Create a Pinterest board for your character
- Creating a Pinterest board for your characters is one of the best ways to constantly think about your characters and differentiate them. Often, as you end up saving more pins to a character’s board, you can begin recognizing their distinct aesthetic and style.
- Create a playlist for your character
- This one is a bit mainstream, but making a playlist for your characters can really help you get in their head! Especially for your main characters.
- Personally, I make a playlist for my three main characters and listen to them when I’m writing a scene that heavily focuses on one or when I am trying to “think” or “feel” like them.
- Attach a face to your character
- Some people never have to attach a face to their character because they can just visualize them in their head, for others, attaching a face to your character can help really bring them to life.
- Attaching a face to your character can help when you have to physically describe them in your story and can also help flesh out their strengths or weaknesses.
Here are some questions to ask or situations to place your characters in that will help you understand them better! They are especially helpful for novellas or novels.
Questions about your Character |
- What is their full name?
- Do they have any siblings?
- What is their favorite thing to do in their freetime?
- Who was their childhood best friend? What dynamic did they have with them?
- What is a habit that they can’t break?
- Have they been in any previous relationships? What were they like?
- What is their worst memory? What is their best?
- What are they insecure about?
- What is their birthday?
- Do they have a favorite book? Movie? TV show?
- Where were they born?
- What does their voice sound like?
- Do they have any criminal activity?
- What do they love?
- Do they have any pets? Have they had any pets before?
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Situation 1 | Situation 2 |
Your character has just been arrested. They have the option of going to prison for life, or ratting out their partner––who is also their best friend––and getting out of it without any jail time. What do they do? Do they turn their friends in? Do they take the blame? Or, do they discover something else entirely? | Your character has just killed someone. Now, it’s your job to set the scene.
Who did they kill? How did this happen? How will they get out of it––or will they get out of it? |
Situation 3 | Situation 4 |
Your character wakes up and slowly realizes that no one recognizes them. Their family, friends, and pets all have lost all recollection of them. However, one person does recognize them. Who is this person? How does your character respond? What happens? | Your character is transported back in time to their worst memory. They now have a chance to change how they responded in that situation. What is this memory?What do they choose to do? Do they change how they respond or do they remain exactly the same thing? |