So you’ve tried to develop fictional characters when you write. If they still seem like characters rather than people, you probably haven’t figured out who they really are. Writers who know their characters inside and out often say that those characters not only spring to life, they dictate what happens to them.
To develop fictional characters, you want to focus on detail. I’ve written about how important it is to let your reader experience the people and situations you’re writing about. This kind of story-showing rather than story-telling relies on detail, which most of us have to train ourselves to notice even in our daily lives. You’ll find an exercise to help with describing the people in your book in my The Devil Is In the Writing Details post.
To further help you get to know and develop fictional characters, I designed the worksheet below. Whenever possible, don’t just answer with a single word. Amplify your responses, whether you’re delineating a relationship or describing a setting. Then, as I mentioned in last week’s Writing Detail with a New Kind of Thesaurus post, weave those details into your story rather than just throwing them into stand-alone paragraphs.
Character Worksheet
The Basics
Name:
Age:
Place of birth:
Hometown(s) where grew up:
Residence:
Occupation:
Income level – current:
Income level – past including childhood:
Education:
Family:
Siblings:
Parents:
Grandparents:
Partner or Significant Other:
Children:
Friends:
Relationship(s) with other characters and how that relationship evolves:
Challenges your character will face in the story:
Character arc (how your character changes from the beginning to the end of the novel):
Physical Tells
From body-related traits that stand out to how people hold themselves and move.
Height & weight:
Skin color & race:
Hair color:
Eye color (including whether your character wears glasses or contacts):
Distinguishing facial features:
Distinguishing body features:
Health:
Disabilities:
Mannerisms:
Energy:
Degree and types of physical activity:
Movement characteristics:
Clothing style (including what each character wears & how he/she wears it):
Personality Tells
From emotional intelligence (how well does your character recognize and deal with emotions like sadness or anger) to what motivates or holds back your character:
Self-confidence:
Self-knowledge:
Pride/self-deprecation:
Maturity/responsibility:
Positive/negative outlook:
Happiness:
Character strengths:
Character flaws:
Attitudes:
Seriousness vs. fun loving:
Generosity vs. selfishness:
Moods:
Intelligence:
Stubbornness/lack thereof:
Emotional intelligence:
Life goals/dreams:
Professional/work ambition:
Fears:
Degree of adventurousness vs. caution:
Degree of trust vs. secretiveness:
Degree of impulsiveness/rational reasoning:
Industriousness vs. laziness:
Decisiveness:
Habits (smoking, drinking, etc.):
Neatness:
Hobbies:
Spiritual/religious beliefs & practices:
Formative experiences:
Interactions Tells
From who your character converses with to how he/she interacts with others.
Social adeptness:
Introvert/extrovert:
Emotion/logic:
Speech characteristics & patterns:
Level of generosity/lack thereof:
Acceptance/judgment of others:
Warmth/lack thereof:
Trust/lack thereof:
Sense of humor/lack thereof:
Challenges:
Additional Character Notes:
Sorry, comments are closed for this post.