Writing Blog Number 2

20240214 Notes On Character

Characters - An Overview

Just some notes on characters.


1. Realistic Characters

I started my writing like many others, basing characters almost completely on people I knew. Made it easy because they were real people. But, for a writer, I feel we should probably go beyond that.

To write a realistic character, still think about real life, but all the people you know. What makes you despise certain people and adore others? Ask other people what they like/dislike about a person. You will be surprised how things are so different. What you like, they might hate; what you can’t stand they might find endearing. What I am trying to say is that there is no universal “like/dislike”. I think the character of Juliet is over-dramatic and a real prima donna, while Romeo is a guy under the thrall of his friends and his ego and won’t admit it. I have a former partner who thinks Juliet is in the throes of deep love and Romeo is trying to be her hero – she loves both characters. We read the same play and got different things out of it. (FWIW, in the play, Mercutio is my favourite character because he sees how stupid the situation is and calls them out before dying.)

In this case, actions really help a writer. Bad guys are a tough call to get right without going into cartoon villainy. They don’t have to be as overt as drowning kittens, but a dislikeable character might talk down to a shop staffer, roll their eyes at some-one’s idea, shake their head when they see what some-one else is reading – being judgemental or superior or condescending works well. On the other hand, in the case of a hero, make some-one too sweet and wanting to be liked can have the opposite effect and the reader gets sick of them. Little actions help – they might hold a door for a stranger, they might listen to the shop-keeper’s story of the last customer and laugh at the right place, they might simply ask some-one who can do them no favour how they are going.

But you also need to add reality. A nasty character might still ring their mum every Sunday; a good character might still roll their eyes when they see some-one reading Twilight. It’s a fine line. Shades of grey actually work well in making characters realistic. Not completely evil or completely good, but with layers. Also, remember that nearly every bad guy does not think they are doing the wrong thing; they can usually justify all of their behaviours.

Something else important to note – we seem to have reached a point where the gender of the protagonist does not matter. What matters is if they are relatable, realistic, and do what fits with the character... and that the story they are in is engaging.

As an addendum, writing a character into a horror scenario, it is best to make them as ordinary as possible, because if the main character is an ‘everyman’ type, then it becomes all the more horrific because the reader gets the feeling it might be them in that situation.


2. Writing Characters

Sometimes we find characters easy to write. These are the ones who are generally like us. But that is a very small percentage of the world. We need to include others in our stories. Sure, we can do it superficially, and if that is what you want, that is fine. But if we want some more realism, then maybe we need to ask.

I used to have the issue of writing female characters who were actual people, not two-dimensional cut-outs. What I did was deliberately write a few all-female stories, gave then to a number of female readers (like, maybe, 5 or so), and sit down with each of them over coffee and cake while they told me what I’d got wrong. If more than 2 of them told me the same thing, then I knew I’d really messed up. In fact, there were an unfortunately large number of things that all of them told me I was lousy at.

By the time we got to the fourth or fifth story (and we are talking maybe eighteen months or so later) there were a lot less things they were picking on me for. Now I feel so much more comfortable writing a female character, and I have even had female-led stories published. I have done the same thing more recently with gay characters, both male and female, and male Indigenous Australian characters.

This comes back to something I mentioned before – ask. Not just occupations, but based on other aspects of their belief system, their race, their sexuality, their gender, their religion. And you would be surprised how much we all have in common as well, which makes it easier to write these characters sympathetically. If people know you are a writer, they are even more likely to talk to you, in my experience.

Again, if you want to have stereotypes in your stories, then that is fine. It might be a hard sell, but it is your story. Even some big-sellers rely on them (J.K. Rowling, E.L. James, etc.), so do not feel you have to get everything perfect. It is, again, your story to tell the way you want to tell it.

However, avoid the Mary Sue/Marty Stu (Gary Stu) character. Never, ever a good option. Most common in fan-fic, but still there in other forms of writing.


3. Secondary Characters

I’ll just list what helps make secondary characters work in a story:

I) Put the same care into a secondary character as a main character. Base them on people you know, make them realistic, whatever works for you.

II) Secondary characters are often written as a walking personality trait. That is the uninspired way of doing it (and appears often in animated films). They need to be more than “emo boy” or “perky girl” or whatever. Make them three-dimensional, not just two-dimensional things.

III) Secondary characters should not just be mirrors of the main characters. If a main character reacts a certain way, there is no reason secondary characters would do the same thing. They need to be treated as individuals.

IV) Likewise, secondary characters should not just be there to play devil’s advocate either. They need to behave the way a friend, or companion, or peer, or sibling, or whatever the relationship is, would in real life.

V) Description can help make secondary characters come to life. As the ancient Greeks used to say, "Clothes make the man." Clothing can be really helpful in showing (as opposed to telling) who a person is/wants to be – trendy, jock, etc – especially when it comes to teenagers and young adults. For older characters, it could also give an idea of what they do for a living. But going for exactitudes – “Tom was six foot one, weight 214 pounds and could bench press 250 pounds” – is nearly always not important. In fact, it generally isn't even needed in main characters.

Having said all that, some stories have bland secondary characters to focus the reader more on the main characters. Most Robert E. Howard and H.P. Lovecraft tales fall into this category.


4. Character Construction

Some people use templates of character sheets to help them flesh out their characters. This stems from Role Playing Games where character sheets are vital for keeping tabs of everything. When I write fantasy, I use them all the time, and I do know other people who have developed their own versions. And even though by the end of a story, they can end up a mess as extra details are added, it does help keep things consistent.

But to really bring a character to life, there needs to be inner thoughts. Their actions should reflect who they are. Further, their motivations should make sense. This last one is often neglected unfortunately. And characters do need to be consistent in their actions.

Characters need to exhibit emotional responses (unless the characters are sociopaths or robots or aliens). If a character does not respond emotionally to any situation, then you are leaving out a huge chunk of motivation and what drives a character forward (or otherwise). A character is wounded – revenge or fear has to come from it. They are dumped by the girlfriend – they might stoically go on but inside they are broken. Their mum dies – they are sad. If you ignore the emotions, then you are ignoring your character.

If using non-humans (this can include gods, animals, demi-humans, aliens, etc.) as secondary characters, remember they are not human and should not act as humans in a different skin. Otherwise, why put them in your story at all? Why not just have more humans? This is a problem in a lot of fantasy and science fiction. Looking different and actually being different seems to be lost in a lot of works.

Characters need to do things that are realistic. For example, a common one is an untrained person running for a few dozen miles to escape something. That adrenalin rush does not last that long, and if you don't tear a muscle, your lungs will scream at you and make you stop anyway. Their responses also need to be realistic. Seeing a dead body for the first time does not make some-one come up with a quick witticism – it is disgusting and horrible and your first instinct is to back away or throw up. And they stink. Moving a body is really awkward – they are a complete dead weight (excuse the pun) and flop around and are just unpleasant to even touch, or if rigor has set in, they are even harder. And, yes, that is personal experience talking.

Finally, and this is the most important thing – characters, especially the main characters, need to grow during the course of the story, not just be the same after it's all over. Or else what has happened has meant very little.


That is brief (no, really, it is), and very generalised, but I hope it does help someone.