A Writer's Dozen - Archive

Twelve ways to get to know your character better
List compiled by Grace First posted January 2006
Knowing your characters is essential if you want to create characters that live, breathe and jump off the page for your readers. Not everything you learn or know about your characters will (or should) find its way into your book, but that knowledge is what makes your characters real. Build a family tree for your characters. There are several Internet sites that have family tree templates and these can help you work up a family history. Family trees can provide all sorts of fodder to develop a character. Characters who have loads of relatives and extended family will behave and react differently than those who have few, if any, relatives. The stigma of an illegitimate birth, even back a couple of generations, can foster trickle down feelings and resentments that shape a character’s outlook. These are the kind of building blocks a family tree can provide as you fill in the details. Interview your character. There are several kinds of interviews you can do with your character. You can ask the kind of questions that someone writing a biography might ask. Or you could do an interview as if you were writing an article for the company newsletter. If the character had done something that might get him or her on Oprah, pretend you are Ms. Winfrey and ask the kind of questions that she might ask. Doing these kind of interviews can help you discover a hidden characteristic that you hadn’t realized was there. Think Tom Cruise jumping on the couch. And no one says you have to do just one of the above interviews. The more you do, the more you will find out about your character. Fill out a job resume for your character. This will help you build an educational and work experience background that just might trigger some ideas that you can use to flesh out the character’s background. Spend a day with your character. This can be done two ways. As you go through your own day think of what your character would be doing at each point in their day. You might get up at 8:00 am, eat breakfast, brush your teeth and take the bus to work, but your character might get up at 5:00 am for a brisk jog in the park before showering and spending the day painting in her garret. At each point in your day think of what your character would be doing at that time of day. Even better, if you have the time or opportunity, set aside a day and actually do what your character would do. Create a police report. A police profile would include a physical description, distinguishing marks, known associates and places the character might hang out. This is especially effective for those writing suspense stories and a good way to get to know a villain. Interview the character’s neighbors and/or co-workers. People who know your characters on fairly superficial basis can often have very differing views on what the character is like. How many times have you heard neighbors interviewed about serial killers talk about how quiet and unassuming the person seemed to be. This kind of at-arms-length viewpoint often provides a very different perspective on your characters. Fill out a medical form for your characters. This is the kind of form you fill out the first time you visit a new doctor. These forms include medications the character might take and a medical history of the character and his immediate family. Generally health issues are not something that is dwelt on in most novels, but knowing this kind of background will sometimes give you a clue to why a character does some of the things she does. Although your characters may not have health issues, even a mild existing condition can affect how a person acts and reacts. A character with a family history of heart attacks might be a fitness fanatic or have a fatalistic viewpoint that will colour who he is. Job shadow your character. If you can find someone with the same occupation you have given your character and who will let you job shadow, you can learn a lot about the kind of language your character might use and the skills she needs to have. If job shadowing isn’t readily available, hang out at places where you can learn about your character’s occupation. If your character is a doctor, spend time at a hospital, or just be observant when you visit your own doctor. If your character is a lawyer, hang around the courthouse. If she is a trucker, visit a few truck stops and roadside diners. Write a diary or journal for the character. Most of the previous items in this list provide external knowledge and although it is hoped that the external facts about your characters will trigger internal characteristics, writing a journal will delve directly into the deeper side of your character. A diary not only gives insights into what your character might be doing, but will also let you know what he or she thinks about what they do and what their life is like. Interview someone who knew your character as a child. This could be the character’s mother, his teacher, or her siblings. Pick a time in the character’s history that was a turning point in his life. Or better yet, choose a time before the character had that life changing experience. The contrast between what a character was like before her life altered and what she is like now can give you the insight you need to understand her motivations. Put your character on a psychiatrist’s couch. This will get your character to tell his deepest and often repressed characteristics. A character may confess innermost fears and insecurities that will give you the whys and wherefores of what he does. Interview one character about other character. Ask the hero what he thinks of, or knows about, the heroine. Or ask the villain what he thinks about the hero. This not only gives an insight to the character who is asked about; it can also give an insight into the character doing the telling.

January 2006