As a new writer, I read a lot of articles about how to create characters yet none of them proved helpful to me. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get through the numerous questions on character sheets or figure out what my character had on their bedside table and what it said about their character. (Especially the bedside table one. I don’t know about you, but I throw whatever’s in my hand on to my bedside table. What does it say about me that I have plastic wrapping and a bottle of cream I’ll never use on my table?)
So it got me to thinking. How do I create characters?
The answer: It’s a lot like building a friendship.
Some of you probably can’t remember the beginning of your friendships; or if you do, it just felt natural. I’m a little more aware of the process because I moved houses, and changed schools, quite frequently during my childhood. Even when I stayed at the same school, each year I met a whole bunch of kids I didn’t know and would set about making new friends anyway.
As I thought about both friendships and character creation, I came up with three basic stages. These stages can bleed into one another, or repeat themselves throughout the process. Hopefully you will recognize them.
Stage 1: Something about the person catches your attention.
It doesn’t have to be a big “something.” It could simply be that the person sits next to you on the train, or that the person was late and missed important information, or that they’re wearing your hockey team’s jersey. Whatever the case, you notice the person, and something makes you want to talk to them.
With character creation, you will know at least one thing about your character, even if that thing is directly tied to the plot.
- You need someone good-hearted to pull the sword out of the stone (plot).
- You need someone who is anti-love for your romance (plot).
- Your character is Vietnamese (not plot).
- Or you just know that your kid detective likes collecting seashells (not plot)
With almost every character, you have a kernel to work with.
Stage 2: Going over to say hi.
Or they come and say hi to you. (You can catch people’s attention too! You’re interesting!)
In my experience, there are two types of “hi”s: I call them the “generic hi” and the “specific hi.”
The Generic Hi
Hi. Let’s get to know each other.
How are you? What’s your name? How far did you have to travel to get here? What do you like to do? What are planning on doing after this?
The generic hi is where you can fill out the traditional character sheet questions (appearance, likes, dislikes, family, etc.) I mentioned earlier that I don’t like character sheets, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t useful.
Character sheets will help you get a fuller view of who your character is. If you are a visual person, they will help you pin down physical description. They are also a quick way to fill out the rest of your cast of characters as you think about family members, coworkers and friends. Just remember that you don’t have to answer every question if the answer isn’t coming to you. (That’s where I frequently get stuck. If I can’t fill everything out in one sitting, I get the strong urge to just delete all the work I did.)
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The Specific Hi
“Hi, I like your shirt.”
“Oh cool. You like Marvel too?”
“Absolutely. Loved it since the first Avenger movie came out. Who’s your favorite superhero?”
The specific hi is where you question your character based on the thing you noticed about them.
Did she catch your attention because she has anger issues? Well, now you can sit and watch her react to her cousin doing something “stupid.” You can ask who/what pisses her off the most? Has she ever tried controlling it? Why is she so angry?
As you explore this one thing, you will discover other bits and pieces to incorporate into the overall character.
The specific hi helps you create a cohesive character. Each detail flows from another and the character’s subsequent actions in the story make sense. The danger, however, is that your character can get stuck in a single role or identity when the story needs more from them.
It may be helpful to try both strategies at one point or another during the character creation process.
Stage 3: Keep meeting up.
You can learn a whole bunch of information from your new friend on your first meeting, but you won’t truly know them until you spend time together. As you spend together, you start developing a specific flavor of relationship. A friendship. A friend who’s good for one thing but not anything else. An animosity. Someone you just put up with. Someone you respect but your personalities just aren’t compatible.
Similarly, the more you write about your character, or think about them, the more unique they become. Did your last novel also feature a kind, helpful character? Now is your opportunity to make your current character unique.
This stage of the process can take any form that works for you. I like to use mind movies: where I close my eyes and watch a scene play out. I often watch the same scene several times, the details shifting each time until it solidifies into something I like. (Over the years, I’ve developed the faith that the right version will come out of my fingers, whether on the first draft or fifth.) Other things you might try include more character questionnaires, mini scenes from the character’s history, or an exploration of character arc.
What do you think of characters becoming your friends? Did anything I talk about resonate with you? How do you go about crafting characters? I’d love to hear about it in the comments.