How to Describe a Character

We all need to create memorable characters. Here are some pointers. Use real people too.

When you think about creating a character there are a few things which immediately come to mind. Age, height, weight, gender, background…

In fact, there is lots to consider. The list starts to get longer, and you start to get bogged down in the details. Not to say that you don’t need lots of detail, but if you concentrate all your efforts on the characters, the story flounders. (I know, I’ve been there).

There is no point creating the character without the story. The story is what defines the character. By the character(s) interacting in the plot of the story, their actions will define their character.

Have a good strong story first. Then create your character.

Ok, so now you have come up with the plot. You have outlined it all, worked out the highs and lows (peaks and troughs), flow of the story. You have a strong beginning, middle and ending. Only now do you think about characters.

There are a lot of things to consider when we think about what makes up a character, but, in order to make them believable, we have to treat them like real people.

As real people ourselves (I hope), we all have many different facets and traits, which make up our diverse personalities. So many, in fact, that if we were to create a character who displayed all their sides throughout the story, we would have an overly detailed, word-heavy and possibly boring story, or an epic novel of War and Peace proportions.

The point I am trying to make here is that characters are defined by our perceptions of them. In real life and in stories. We all have many acquaintances who we label and categorise in our heads to keep track of them.

Related posts:

Global and diverse user bases are a key element of thriving open-source communities. With over 150,000 Qiskit users around the globe, and ever-increasing non-English speakers with interest in quantum…

Like some other business, the proprietors of medical marijuana dispensaries face numerous difficulties getting their organizations going. In contrast to more conventional foundations, these business…