Ever wondered if creating a great character is a hit-or-miss?
I’m here to tell you that it’s NOT!
Writers sometimes struggle to develop their characters in ways that are meaningful to the story and interesting to the readers. But, you don’t have to worry.
Every story is made up of characters. Characters play different roles in the story and you need them to carry the story forward.
The protagonist, antagonist, and sidekick are some characters in every story.
The protagonist is the hero of the story. Every story needs a hero who undergoes a transformation in the story. Such a hero must be believable, real, and flawed in a way that only this story can bring about a change in him.
The antagonist is the anti-hero or the villain. He also plays a crucial role in the story by personifying the troubles in the hero’s journey.
You need to flesh out all your main characters, while you may pay less attention to some of the supporting cast.
What you need is to develop your main characters and make them memorable.
The secret to a strong character is a character who excites and fascinates a reader and makes the reader interested in the story.
Nobody cares for boring characters who want nothing or are so two-dimensional and cookie-cutter that they become uninteresting to the reader.
But, how do I make a character memorable? you ask.
Do you want to know how to create characters that your readers will love?
Here are 5 tips to write a great character and strengthen character development.
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1. Provide a strong visual image for your character
A visual representation of your character along with a few personality traits will bring forth a well-rounded, 3D character, instead of a flat, cardboard character who doesn’t feel human. What we want is a character who is memorable, unique, unusual, and also different enough from the rest of the characters in your story.
Start by giving him a personality or a general disposition. Eg, friendly, impulsive, introverted.
Add some quirks or unusual traits in his speech, appearance, or mannerisms. Eg, a nervous tic or a stutter or blue eyes. For example, In my novel, Strictly At Work, Simi knocks over things when she’s nervous.
Add one or two admirable strengths that your character possesses. For example, is courageous, is trustworthy, has an uncanny sense of intuition, is sharp and observant.
Every reader likes a character he can admire, who’s different and yet relatable.
Putting these together with name, gender, age, marital status, etc, gives you a well-shaped character who can offer a great starting point for your story.
2. Find out what your character lacks
Your character must have flaws or problems. Find out what they are.
A character who has no flaws or weaknesses is boring. If he can get whatever he wants, if he already has what he wants and his life is perfect, then nobody would be interested in his story.
To make a character believable, real, and interesting, craft someone who has some problems or flaws.
Give him a backstory that shows what his problems or weaknesses are. That backstory fuels the conflict, making something stand in the way of what he wants.
It’s something that has happened in the past which influences his present and prevents him from getting what he wants.
It goes without saying that the more difficult it is for the character to get what he wants, the more interesting the story becomes.
What’s missing in the character’s life? What does he long for? What is creating problems in his life? Such questions will help you determine what is wrong with the character’s present life. What are his fears and frustrations? What’s his backstory?
For example, in Strictly At Work, Ranvir’s career choice clashes with his personal relationship and creates problems in his love life.
In my novel, The Wedding Tamasha, Shweta is in an abusive marriage. She’s married to the wrong man. She doesn’t have the guts to tell her parents about it and break off the marriage.
In Me Before You by Jojo Moyes, Louisa has never known independence. She still lives with her parents and has an unsuited boyfriend.
3. Make your character want something
When your character has a problem, he’ll want something that will make him happy again. The character wants to fix the problem or thinks that fixing the problem will make him happy.
A character can have one want throughout the story or his wants can change as the story progresses. The want, whether it remains the same or changes, drives the story forward. It’s what makes the character take action. A character who wants nothing and does nothing makes for a very boring character. So, in every story, figure out what your character wants.
Pro tip: making your character want something that’s impossible, unattainable, disastrous or forbidden, piques the reader’s interest even further.
When you have a character who’s courageous enough to try to achieve something that could change his life, it makes for a really interesting character and a terrific story.
Remember, the character may or may not get what he wants by the end of the story. He may end up with something totally different but it’s still important to start out with a want that becomes the main driving force of the story.
What kind of goal can you give your character that will make him interesting to the reader?
In The Wedding Tamasha, Shweta wants to escape her husband and return to her parents in India. Once she reaches India, she wants to break off her marriage, but of course, it isn’t easy because she knows that her parents won’t accept it.
In Me Before You, Louisa desperately wants a job to support her family. Once she finds a job taking care of quadriplegic Will, she wants to make him happy and save his life.
4. Find out what your character needs
What your character really needs (not what he wants or thinks he wants) is something that will take away his weaknesses and flaws and make him whole again. As long as he has those weaknesses, he may go after things that he thinks will solve his problem, but a hole remains that he needs to fill with what he really needs.
The thing is, the character doesn’t usually know what he needs. He thinks he needs to go after an external goal, but that is really only a want.
He thinks a car or a dream job will make him happy. He thinks marrying the girl his parents want will make everyone, including him, happy. But, what he needs is perhaps, true love.
What he needs is buried deep within. It’s that thing that can liberate him and make him a truly happy being.
And it’s only when you look deeply at his flaws/weaknesses will you be able to get to what he really needs. Try to find what he really needs and you’ve determined what the story is really about.
Your main character’s need gives him something to learn over the course of the story and change in some way.
Some common needs are love, acceptance, trust, redemption, etc.
In The Wedding Tamasha, Shweta needs to find the courage to make her own choices.
In Strictly At Work, Ranvir needs unconditional love and an accepting partner.
5. Use the character’s role effectively to aid character development
The protagonist, antagonist, sidekick, and all other minor characters have roles to play.
Determine what role a character is playing.
For example, a love interest is a role played by the male and female lead characters in a romance.
Now, you may cast the character in a role that conforms to a stereotype, or not, bringing a certain familiarity or unfamiliarity to the character description.
For example, A male love interest is usually tall, dark, and handsome. This provides familiar characterization.
If, on the contrary, you decide that the male lead should be ugly and awkward, you’ve cast the lead character against a stereotype. That can make for an unfamiliar but interesting lead character.
Matching a role to familiar or unfamiliar role models is a way to deepen your characterization.
For example, in Strictly At Work, Simi’s father is not overbearing or forceful towards his daughter about her marriage, as a stereotypical father. By being the opposite, he offers an interesting yet strong opposition to Simi’s desires.
In Me Before You, Will is a suffering quadriplegic, making him the opposite of a stereotypical love interest.
To sum up, a character in your story is just a stick figure until you flesh him out to make him seem real. You build a character slowly by using the steps outlined above to make him spring to life. Hope you found these tips useful!
You can reach me at sudha@sudhanair.com
