Blog Series: Creating Memorable Characters Part I

Robin Miller begins her characterization process with a 7-section outline, which will be presented in this post, for each main character. After covering the basics in her outline, she goes into depth in her character development. Future posts in this series will cover more of Robin’s process and include characterization tips from other sources, too. You can use whatever wordprocessing, spreadsheet, or desktop publishing program you prefer to design your own character profile worksheet using Robin’s suggestions and adding your own ideas.

As you fill in these blanks, thoughts of how various characteristics can be used in your story may pop into your mind. Jot those ideas down in your writer’s notebook and then keep them together with your character’s profile, once you complete it.

Section 1 consists of the character’s physical description:

birthday/age
height
weight
color/style of hair
eye color;
scars/body markings, etc.

Section 2 delves a bit deeper and is titled “Personal traits & characteristics.” Keep your character profile worksheet handy, as these characteristics can come into play when you begin plotting the story. In this section, she includes:

Sense of humor & type
Basic nature
Ambitions
Philosophy of life
Hobbies (can be used as special skills the character may need in the story)
Music/Reading preferred
Style of dress
Favorite colors
Strongest character trait
Weakest character trait

Section 3 explores the character’s background, kind of a “character resume”:

Educational background
Current occupation
Work experience

Section 4 is where Robin lists her character’s personal possessions:

Description of home
Vehicles
Special belongings

Section 5 digs deeper, looking at plot complications:

Present problem
How it will get worse
Deepest fear
Goal
Motivation
Conflict
How the character will change (often referred to as “character arc”)

Section 6 introduces your character’s relationships:

Parents
Siblings and/or children
Best Friend
Significant Other
Enemies (and why)
Pets

Section 7 gets specific in a few more areas:

Habits
Likes
Dislikes
Annoying traits
Sees self as…
Seen by other as…

Blog Series: Characterization (Introduction)

Many have asked, “Which comes first–the characters or the plot?” When I wrote my first novel (before I had any clue or training in novel-writing), I started with setting. It was a travel journal of sorts and I began by outlining each location the characters would visit along their route. Then I chose some sort of mishap or problem that would occur at each place. Finally, I added some people to my notes and wrote the book. The problem with this approach was, I could have placed anyone in those roles and the story wouldn’t have changed. My characters were plain vanilla, b-flat, run-of-the-mill, ordinary folks. B-O-R-I-N-G.

I took that same story and did some character work, developed them into spring-from-the-page, realistic people with goals, quirks, conflicts, faults, and frustrations. The story took shape, became interesting. And recently, it finaled in a contest. In fact, one judge commented, “If this piece doesn’t win first place, I’ll be surprised.” So, my take (and the belief of many other novelists) is that the answer to the chicken/egg, character/plot question is this: Character IS plot. Fully develop your characters and your plot will be developed, too.

Our local writers’ group, Arkansas Inspy Writers, met recently and were blessed to have Robin Miller, president of American Christian Fiction Writers, conduct a workshop on characterization. She explained that once she’s done with her character work, she doesn’t even have to “write” a synopsis–she simply cuts & pastes from her character worksheets into a new document and viola! her synopsis is done. This shows that plot and characterization are inseparable.

So, the big question is–how does one fully develop characters? Excellent question! And one Fiction Fundamentals intends to answer through this blog series with the help of Robin Miller, who has graciously allowed me to use notes from her workshop and present that information here. Each Monday and Friday (beginning July 23), I’ll post a segment from the characterization workshop until we’ve brought our characters to life. (Sounds Frankensteinish!)

Please be sure to visit Fiction Fundamentals and contribute your comments so we can all learn together. And be sure to tell Robin thanks!

Breaking Bad Habits: Wordiness

Whether in fiction or nonfiction, conversational style contributes to good writing. However, it tends to be wordy. Once we’ve written a piece, our next job is to cut it. Separate the wheat from the chaff–and let the wind carry the chaff away. The first step is…

(read this post at FictionFundamentals.com…)

Avoid Qualifiers

The difference between the almost right word & the right word is really a large matter–it’s the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.

– Mark Twain, in a letter to George Bainton, 10/15/1888

I once read a rough draft manuscript that contained so many adverbs, I called the author “the ‘ly’ lady.” Overuse of vague qualifiers isn’t confined to new writers. The following passage is from a speech delivered by an educator:

(read more at Fiction Fundamentals…)

Breaking Bad Habits: Cutting Cliches

Desperate to pad my ailing word count, I stared at the blinking cursor and typed a sentence. I re-read the newest eight words of my WIP and, like a scene from Secret Window, muttered, “No bad writing.” This frightened my daughter, who remembered how bad writing affected Johnny Depp’s character.

How bad was it? Well…to set up the scene, a 15-year-old girl has just witnessed a flash of light on her neighbor’s property that could rival a nuclear explosion, yet no sound accompanied the flash. She has no idea what could have caused the blast, or if her neighbor, who is also her classmate and friend, has been harmed or killed. Not only is she concerned about her neighbor, but what if it happens again–where she’s standing? I wanted to convey the sheer horror this girl feels, so I typed the following words…

(read more at Fiction Fundamentals.com)

Using Dialogue to Show Character Emotion

For someone who started talking at the age of 15 months and hasn’t stopped yet, I’ve had a lot of difficultly creating speech on the page. In fact, while revising one Work in Progress, I found one page with ELEVEN euphemisms for the word “said.” My characters interjected, deduced, screamed, hissed, muttered, and spat words at each other. The big problem here is that using a word such as hissed “tells” the reader what’s going on instead of “showing” the character in action.

(Read more at Fiction Fundamaentals…)

Setting the Scene

The word “set” simply means “to put (something or someone) in a particular place.” The key word in this definition is “particular.” What if Bram Stoke had set Dracula in a gingerbread cottage?

(read more at Fiction Fundamentals…)

Ready…Set…Action!

There’s been a lively discussion this week on one of the writers’ e-mail loops I receive about the “was” word. Today’s novelists hear “avoid passive voice” repeatedly from critique partners, editors, friends, and probably even strangers on the streets. Is passive voice evil? Is the “was” word a sin?

(Read more at Fiction Fundamentals…)

The Great Backstory Dump

I operate a critique service (HiredQuill), so I see a lot of manuscripts from new novelists. Often, the story starts with a bang–a great passage of dialogue, an action sequence, an intriguing lead that grabs my attention–and I read on.

Unfortunately, paragraph number two almost inevitably contains what I affectionately refer to as “The Great Backstory Dump.” Using the opening paragraph from one of my WIPs (works in progress), I’ll give an example:

(Read More…)

You’re Not Paid to be Nice!

Somewhere between “once upon a time” and “they lived happily ever after,” you’ll find conflict. Conflict keeps the story interesting. If a boy finds a lamp, rubs it, a genie pops out and grants him his heart’s desire, and the boy lives out the rest of his days in splendor and peace, well…it’s a nice story, but it’s BORING! As a fiction writer, you’re not paid to be nice. Remember that. Your job is to…

(read more at Fiction Fundamentals.com)