Characters. They’re one of the biggest parts of a story. Your book might have the most original and best plot that a publisher has ever heard, but if all your characters are John and Jane Does, then they’re not going to take it. Unfortunately, interesting characters are not only super important, but also very difficult to create. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been halfway through a story when I realize that my main character is about as interesting as a potato. However, time has made me wiser, and that’s why I’m here to share a couple of tried-and-true tips and tricks.
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Names
Bob. Sara. McKenzie. Adrian. What do all these words have in common? They’re all names – and when you hear them, you get different visual images of the characters in your head. I don’t know about you, but when I hear the name “Seprant”, I don’t imagine a cute pudgy toddler. For that reason, you don’t want to name your antagonist “Mr. Bubbly Wubbly” (unless, of course, it’s supposed to be ironic or something) or your protagonist “Maleficent”. Some great ways to find names for your characters are to flip through the pages of your local phone book or to skim over one of the many “Name Your Baby!” articles all over the internet. Names can make or break a story – can you imagine Percy as a “T.J.” or Katniss as a “Maddie”?
Personalities
I think that we can all agree that writers want their characters to act as close to real people as possible. (Unless their characters are cats or something, which, in that case, they would act like… cats? I don’t know.) And, real people have flaws. This is another important aspect of your story. No one can connect to a character who has a gorgeous face and body, a great personality, all A’s, and a wonderful boyfriend/girlfriend. Your characters cannot -- I repeat -- cannot be flawless. Make them fat, pimply, mean, absent-minded, an introvert – as human as possible, basically. If all else fails, take a look at yourself and use some of your own imperfections.
And, don’t forget to add multiple layers to their personalities as well. People aren’t just “nice” in real life; they are “nice, but irritated easily” or “too nice for their own good” or “nice, but insecure”. As I have heard in many writing workshops: Multi-layered characters are interesting characters.
Quirks
I’m sure that all of you have that one friend who says weird things or who plays with her hair when he or she is nervous, right? (Or maybe that’s just me?) These quirks are the things that really make your characters unique. Maybe you have that one character that looks perfectly calm and pulled-together on the outside, but is like a whirling tornado of hormones and emotions on the inside. A good tic for them would be nail-biting. (Actually, don’t take that one because it’s MINE. Ha.) Or perhaps one of your protagonists has the strange quirk of always correcting other people’s grammatical errors? These little habits don’t always have to be seen in their actions either! Many characters have their own way of talking and their own little sayings. As you can see, the possibilities are endless.
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Wow. Making good characters is definitely not something you can just finish in five minutes. It’s an ongoing process – one that you need to continue throughout all stages of writing your book.
Over and Out,
Stephanie
By the way, you have to chant the title to see it in its full awesomeness.
~~~~~~~~~~
Names
Bob. Sara. McKenzie. Adrian. What do all these words have in common? They’re all names – and when you hear them, you get different visual images of the characters in your head. I don’t know about you, but when I hear the name “Seprant”, I don’t imagine a cute pudgy toddler. For that reason, you don’t want to name your antagonist “Mr. Bubbly Wubbly” (unless, of course, it’s supposed to be ironic or something) or your protagonist “Maleficent”. Some great ways to find names for your characters are to flip through the pages of your local phone book or to skim over one of the many “Name Your Baby!” articles all over the internet. Names can make or break a story – can you imagine Percy as a “T.J.” or Katniss as a “Maddie”?
Personalities
I think that we can all agree that writers want their characters to act as close to real people as possible. (Unless their characters are cats or something, which, in that case, they would act like… cats? I don’t know.) And, real people have flaws. This is another important aspect of your story. No one can connect to a character who has a gorgeous face and body, a great personality, all A’s, and a wonderful boyfriend/girlfriend. Your characters cannot -- I repeat -- cannot be flawless. Make them fat, pimply, mean, absent-minded, an introvert – as human as possible, basically. If all else fails, take a look at yourself and use some of your own imperfections.
And, don’t forget to add multiple layers to their personalities as well. People aren’t just “nice” in real life; they are “nice, but irritated easily” or “too nice for their own good” or “nice, but insecure”. As I have heard in many writing workshops: Multi-layered characters are interesting characters.
Quirks
I’m sure that all of you have that one friend who says weird things or who plays with her hair when he or she is nervous, right? (Or maybe that’s just me?) These quirks are the things that really make your characters unique. Maybe you have that one character that looks perfectly calm and pulled-together on the outside, but is like a whirling tornado of hormones and emotions on the inside. A good tic for them would be nail-biting. (Actually, don’t take that one because it’s MINE. Ha.) Or perhaps one of your protagonists has the strange quirk of always correcting other people’s grammatical errors? These little habits don’t always have to be seen in their actions either! Many characters have their own way of talking and their own little sayings. As you can see, the possibilities are endless.
~~~~~~~~~~
Wow. Making good characters is definitely not something you can just finish in five minutes. It’s an ongoing process – one that you need to continue throughout all stages of writing your book.
Over and Out,
Stephanie
By the way, you have to chant the title to see it in its full awesomeness.