When I read stories or
watch movies and TV shows of any genre, my attention is immediately drawn to
the characters. I want to relate to them in some way. From my perspective,
characters can make or break the story. Many articles and opinions exist on
what makes great characters and how to build them for stories.
Some common themes are
that characters must be believable, have conflict, flaws, and quirks, and must
grab and hold the audience’s attention throughout the story. This can be
through understanding their goals, conflicts, and needs, or they may have
traits the audience sees in people they know or wish they had. They desire to feel
connected to the characters.
One of my favorite novel
series is
The Women’s Murder Club by James Patterson (and his team of
co-authors). The novels feature an ensemble of lead women characters who are
best friends and work in professions that bring them together to solve crimes
they face. Lindsey Boxer is a detective, Cindy Thomas is a reporter, Claire
Washburn is a medical examiner, and Yuki Castellano is a district attorney.
Each woman has conflicts in her life, which she works through as she solves cases. They are all engaging, fun, intelligent, strong women with flaws and
quirks.
Readers who have enjoyed
my stories often tell me they love my characters and how they interact with one
another. More than a few times I have been asked how I came up with my
characters. I use various methods depending on the story or my level of
motivation at the time. Sometimes, I think about my current and past
relationships with family and friends. For example, if siblings in my story have
healthy, strong bonds, I reflect on my relationship with my siblings and use
some traits from our interactions. I draw from the love we have for each other.
We are supportive and encouraging of each other’s goals and ambitions.
Other times, I use traits,
personalities, and conflicts of people I have met or seen. I once met a man and
his dog at one of my first book signings. The man shared his story of
traveling cross country after he sold everything he owned, which I think
about often. Through this brief encounter, I saw traits in him and his dog that
would make beautiful characters in a future story!
At times, I just start
writing. As I write, I develop characters as the story progresses. I do end up
jotting notes of the traits and struggles the character may need to possess to
add color and dynamics to the story. I then break the lists into what works or
does not work for the storyline. I then build the character from there.
I also generate pictures
of what I envision my characters look like and make an outline of their
personalities, flaws, conflicts, quirks, and struggles. This provides a visual
to refer to as I write. It is easier to show and build the characters
throughout the story. Several AI programs are now available to create
characters (for a fee). You only need to type a few descriptive traits you want
your character to have, or you can even upload a photo. I have not utilized these
yet, but they seem interesting and fun.
I find creating characters
to be one of the enjoyable steps in writing stories because you can use your
imagination and draw from people you may know, hear of, or even see in passing.
Whatever method I use for stories, I always enjoy creating, getting to know,
and understanding my characters!
What are some of your
favorite characters in stories? What makes characters memorable for you?
Creating Characters
Links:
https://www.bbcmaestro.com/blog/how-to-create-story-characters
https://prowritingaid.com/art/2363/character-development.aspx
https://writingcooperative.com/creatingvividcharacters-44ef5690e266
James Patterson Women’s Murder
Club Link:
https://www.fantasticfiction.com/p/james-patterson/womens-murder-club/
AI Character Generator Links:
https://perchance.org/ai-character-generator
https://www.canva.com/ai-character-generator/
https://app.artflow.ai/
https://www.quora.com/What-are-some-good-AI-character-generators
