Step Two - Characters

If you are writing a novel then it really is worth spending time getting to know your characters before you start writing; if you don’t you may find yourself making your characters do something that they really wouldn’t do – and your readers will notice. If this happens you will have to do a major rewrite. Now this isn’t to say that your characters shouldn’t do things that surprise or is out of character, however when they do surprise it will remain believable because the reader will understand why even if they didn’t see it coming (which is usually a good thing).

Start by creating character profiles for all of your characters, for minor characters these can be brief however for your major characters you need to know everything about them even if you don’t use all of the information in your novel. This knowledge will help you understand how they speak and how they are likely to react to any situation you write them into.

At this stage you do not need to name them – you can refer to them as main male character, the CEO etc.

Start by writing a brief description of them – their looks, age, race, dress, job etc. This will give you the details such as hair colour, height and a brief overview of them that enables you, and your readers, to create a mental image. This will also help you visualise your character as you ask them questions.

Next interrogate them, ask a series of questions that will tell you everything you need to know – imagine you are interviewing them with a view to writing their life story or making a film. You could use a voice recorder and type up your answers later.

Your questions might include:

• What were your parents like?
• What is most important in your life right now?
• What are your dreams and goals?
• What makes you sad?
• What has been the highlight of your life so far?
• What about the biggest tragedy?
• And finally – what is your name?

Once you have this information you can establish their agenda and motivation within your novel.

Build up a set of character profiles and interviews and you can ensure that the plot you develop enables your characters to behave in a way that is consistent with their characteristics, background and experiences. If you do find that you plot a scene where you need a character to act out of character, ask yourself “what would make this character behave in this way?” Once you have the answer you can go back through your plot and write this into your story at an earlier stage (it may need weaving in rather than a one off back-story experience).

Start creating your character profiles today.

Happy writing.