The character of characters

null0trooper wrote:

Warren: wrote: So I'm asking for questions.  Come on people!

A worksheet template is all well and good, but how do you create a character that feels real (and isn't just the author with a fresh coat of paint)? Everyone says "add flaws" as if that explains itself.

The templating and plotting method leverages all the researched and provided information. In the templates I've posted, in one I referenced Star Wars. Let's take a look at A New Hope.

Luke comes on the scene like a typical late teenager dealing with his parents. Except right off the bat, he's calling them Uncle Ben and Aunt Berru. That's a reference to the template about Luke's backstory. Later when he sees Leia's hologram, he's attracted to her. Eventually when he decides to save her again this ties back to the template. Granted after so many Star Wars movies there's a book of notes in the character templates now. Using a template assist you as the author to write outside of your comfort zone. Say you want a character to be a red neck trailer trash beer drinking jerk. You're not comfortable writing that character. Not that you can't but you're uncomfortable. You might forget something that you initially thought of with the character but would have not written down if you had not used a template. Having that template let's you have a ready reference at hand to help you write the character so they feel real.

The original canon authors had a character and world bible that held all this reference material. Along with anything one of the other authors might have added when they included the character in their own stories

You asked "How do you create a character that feels real? The questionnaire in "An unexpected tool..." points to a lot of it. Again you don't have to fill it all out in one go. Note things as you write. I mean right off you'll have the character name and at least a thumbnail of a background. Birthday might not even come up until you decide to have it happen in the story. Same for place of birth, parents, an siblings. Economic/social status growing up. I'd attempt to note something here since the growing up period affects how we view the world. Hmm Let's break this up a bit better. I started trying to break up the sections to the questionnaire. Sometimes it helps to almost feel like you're interviewing the character yourself as you fill in parts Some you might not be able to fill in until you "interview" some of the supporting characters. Such as "How do other's see me?" That kind of question can result in the dirty old man with a heart of gold. Or the crazy Cat lady who can actually be a bit of a mother hen. Outside perceptions verse internal. Going back to Star Wars. Take a look at Han Solo. Think about how he came across in A New Hope and how he evolved over the next 2 movies. That happened because we got to know him.

You don't need to give an info dump of the character history right at the beginning of the story. Drop bit and pieces at various points to let the reader's develop their on idea of the character. You can create a real character by... for lack of a better wording, "Living as" the character. Especially if you're writing the story in first person in the present. Even if you're writing in a diary style of writing the character is not going to know or see everything. Except if they might be Sherlock Holmes. Even then he's not going to write in his diary about it. Make the character real by treating them as if they were real. If need be imagine you're the film crew on any one of the reality TV shows out there. I'm not talking about the Voice overs that describe each person on Gold Rush at least once every show. In a story that can be thrown out the window. Even if you're writing in 3rd person "GOD Mode" you're not going to stop the story to fill in the character's complete life history.

It's very much a catch-22 situation. You don't see all this research as germane to creating a powerful "real" character. You don't have to do it all before writing the first words to the story. Write one or more scenes if the character has struck a chord with you. Set them in your mind before you go into the questions. Or even write those scenes and set them aside. Come back in a week or so when you've forgotten about the details. Did the scene grab you again like when you wrote it? These are the tells that the character has potential.

There is no magic wand that you can wave and go "TADA I dub thee the next Harry Potter." If you ever watched the movie about JK Rowling and the creation of that world, you'd know that she had books of notes and boxes of assorted notes she had written down over years of time with perhaps the first few scenes with Harry and at Hogwarts before she did anything with it and that was at the urging of her sister to pursue writing. Having all those notes let her simply create situations and the notes help her to write the character's reactions to the situations. Being able to have a character respond realistically for them brings them to life

Name:

Background:
Birthday:
Place of birth:
Parents:
Siblings:

Economic/social status growing up:
Ethnic background:
Places lived:
Education:
Preexisting unique skills he will use to solve plot problems:

Jobs:
Salary:

If he could do anything other than what he does, what would it be:
Travel:
Friends:
How people view this character:
Lives with:
Fights with:
Spends time with:
Wishes to spend time with:
People who depend on him and why:
People he most admires:
Enemies:
Dating, marriage:
Children:

Relationship with God:
Outlook on life:
Opinion of himself:
What, if anything, he would like to change about his life:
Personal demons:
Lying to self about:
Optimistic or pessimistic:
Real or feigned:
Morality level:
Confidence level:
Self-control and self-discipline level:
Typical Day:

Physical appearance:
Physical build:
Posture:
Head shape:
Eyes:
Nose:
Mouth:
Hair
Skin:
Tattoos/piercings/scars:
Voice:
What people notice first:
Clothing:
How he sees himself:
Five words he would use to describe himself:
Five words best friend would use use to describe him:
Identities of this character (mother, lover, soldier, etc.) in order of priority to this person:
Degree of self-awareness:
Greatest joy (thing that’s keeping him alive):
Greatest pain:
Health/disabilities/handicaps:

Characteristics:
Personality type:
Love language:
Strongest/weakest character traits:
Three rules he lives by:
Public identity:
Does that ironically contrast with a hidden interior self?
Default personality trait:
Default argument tactic:
Physical vulnerabilities:
Emotional vulnerabilities:
Things that make him irrationally angry:
Things that make him cry:
Fears:
Talents:
What people like best about him:
Interests and favorites:
Political leaning:
Collections:
Food, drink:
Music:
Books:
Movies:
Sports, recreation:
Color:
Best way to spend a weekend:
Great gift for this person:
Pets:
Vehicles:
Typical expressions:
When happy:
When angry:
When frustrated:
When sad:
When afraid:
Idiosyncrasies:
Laughs or jeers at:
Ways to cheer up this person:
Ways to annoy this person:
Hopes and dreams:
Plan to accomplish these dreams:
Worst thing he’s ever done:
Greatest success:
Biggest trauma:
Greatest embarrassment:
He is the kind of person who:
What you love most about this character:
Why readers will sympathize with this person right away:
Voice on the page:
Core Need:
Corresponding psychological maneuver (delusions, obsessions, compulsions, addictions, denial, hysterical ailments, hypochondria, illnesses, behaviors harming the self, behavior harming others, manias, and phobias):
Anecdote (Defining Moment):

It's annoying but the old statement of "Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance" applies. Having all the information you develop for a character helps you keep things straight. I'm sure when I finally get the story I'm trying to get published to the editing stage that I'll read through it since I've forgotten so much already and realize I've had a character contradict themselves at least 3 times. Then when I pass it off to a professional editor they will probably catch a few more errors beyond simple spelling and punctuation.

I could continue to expound the need for the research to be done for a story, but I will also say that as you write a story you will begin to realize the need for it. Especially in a universe like Whateley or any self created story universe you come up with and want to write more than one story in. If notes aren't taken, the only way to get back up to speed to write in the same universe is to read everything written again. In Whateley you would end up reading possibly for a year before you were up to the universe present. And with all the characters of the stories I guarantee you'd not remember everything. With most of the original canon authors no longer writing in this universe, their original character profiles are basically lost unless you manage to get them to respond to a request for information.

Expanding on my last comment. I know almost everyone is complaining, "I can't answer all these questions before I begin writing the story! I don't know the answers yet." and I can understand that I said that the questions don't have to be filled in off the bat. They can also be there for making notes about your character from what you've written so far. As an example. I got mentally "hit" with a scene that I just HAD to get on paper. It involved the character standing up to a bully with no honor. Once I finished writing the scene I went back to the questionnaire and found questions that the scene answered on how the character would react. I filled those questions in. It hasn't happened again yet but when a scene hits me again I'll do the same thing. And if a situation I'm writing has the character coming to the defense of a victim again, I now have a reference to check back on. These questionnaires also help a good editor. They may actually have it printed out next to the story as they edit it and will reference it and make notes for you if your writing slips from character.