Creating characters is one of the most exciting parts of novel writing. Getting to know your heroes, your villains, your story’s main players is a lot of fun. You’ll learn more about them as you write, at that exploration is the best way to understand them completely. But before you start writing, there are five things you need to know about them. Take a look:
Names
Starting simply, it’s very helpful to have character names before you start. I can’t pretend I’ve not written ‘NAME HERE’ for minor characters in early drafts, but with your key players it’s easier to have the names early on. Baby name books/websites are great for this, as you have unlimited options and they tend to include origins and name meanings too.
Physical traits
For your characters to come alive in the imagination of your readers, you’ll need a great sense of their physical traits. This covers basic traits, such as hair/eye colour, height and build. But it also means their sense of style, the way they move, nervous habits and body language. You’ll also consider unique distinctions, such as birth marks, scars or tattoos. Stock photo websites can help with this, and you can build mood boards to capture a sense of your characters too.
Positive and negative traits
Physical traits are one thing, but personalities are built around a character’s positive and negative traits. These traits will define them, and impact they way they react to conflict. Remember, nobody is perfect and even your protagonists will need negative traits in order for them to be convincing and relatable.
Motives
Nothing happens without motive. In every scene, your characters need to want something, as this is what will drive the plot forward and keep readers interested. There’s a number of possible motives such as love, revenge, survival, fear and power, amongst others. Knowing your characters’ motives ahead of writing your first draft will help ensure good pacing as well a deeper understanding of their desires.
Hobbies and interests
Perhaps not the most important thing, but it adds depth to know your characters’ hobbies and interests. These interests can be used as plot devices and they can also encourage character relationships.
These are just five things to consider when creating characters. Am I missing anything? Please share your thoughts in the comments below!
Until then,
keep writing,
M
x
Find me on Twitter and Instagram
Uninspired Writers 
I think you definitely covered it with these points, Meelie. I also had early drafts with no name characters until I came up with a name that felt right 😅.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Haha, good old ‘NAME HERE’. I do love those early drafts! xx
LikeLiked by 2 people
Sometimes I throw in a good old “Blah Blah” for something different 😅.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Michelle, I feel for those authors who have many characters and write a series. Making sure they don’t make a character do something against the character’s history must be hard. Of course, it is a nice to problem to have since people are reading your books. Keith
LikeLiked by 1 person
Reblogged this on Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Those five are a great beginning! I think it’s crucial to know what their growing up years were like, family relationships then and now, as well as romances, the way they speak, habits, pets, employment…. The list goes on! You won’t need all of this for minor characters, of course, but if you want to bring your MC’s to life, you need to decide what that life is/was, including all the details. Deciding what all of that is AHEAD of time gives you a road map to follow once the writing begins. Some things can be changed as you go, as long as they are consistent with everything else. Imagining them as real people also helps bring them to life on the page.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for sharing, Alexander! You are absolutely right! Fleshing out their background and upbringing can teach you a lot. Definitely one for the list!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I actually agree that these are good to know before you start… but I admit that I have always invented my characters as I go along 🙂 Maybe the next new protag will get the proper pre-writing development—because I now understand (as I didn’t with the first 2 series) why that’s important.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you Rebecca! I so agree the true depth of a character is learnt as you write them! ❤ x
LikeLiked by 1 person
So important to start with these already mapped out, as it makes all the difference!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank for reading! ❤ xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
Fantastic post! I should definitely explore character hobbies and interests more. They’re usually the last thing I think of. 💜 Xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
Good article, and good points. I agree. I do think however that physical attributes matter less than motivations, lol and even hobbies. Ask two different people about a character they love and they will come up with two very different looking characters, each built around a personal concept based on sketchy ideas.
Motivations from whatever source are more important. Thank you for the great article..
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Ray!
LikeLike