Date: 22 Jul 2014 22:19
Topic: Character Creation
Modified: 23 Aug 2015 22:49

__From: [http://www.wikihow.com/Develop-a-Character-for-a-Story](http://www.wikihow.com/Develop-a-Character-for-a-Story)
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__1.__ Begin by creating the character's personality. Once that's done, it's much easier to imagine the character and what they look like physically. Take a blank sheet of paper and fold it in half. On one side, write all of the qualities you find good in people. On the other side, write all of the qualities you find bad in people. Use this as a reference for creating both antagonists and protagonists. A protagonist is the hero of your story, and an antagonist is the person who opposes, or is against the main character.

* Keep a notebook close, and write down little details about real people. Does your friend have a strange way of twisting her hair when she's excited? Do you notice how your brother has a comeback for everything? These little details make up the character.

* Do not make your protagonist perfect. That makes it harder for the reader to relate to them, along with making your story less believable and harder to engage the reader in. Instead, use a mix of qualities from both columns to make a more rounded character. However, make the character 60% good, and 40% bad.

* Just as you don't want to make your protagonist the perfect being, you should avoid making your "villain" of the story all bad. Use the same method of rounding the character as described before, but instead make your antagonist 60% bad and 40% good.
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__	•	Create character personalities that are ranging from 90% good and 10% bad to 50/50. The closer the character is to the protagonist, the more rounded they should be. Instead of making the protagonists friends 90/10, try making them 60/40 or 50/50. Once again, they are easier to relate to this way. Repeat to create the antagonists' peers and associates, except making them 90% evil and 10% good, and so on.__

2. __Create the appearance of your characters. What are the physical features of some people you admire? How about those of whom you don't like too much? Get out another sheet of paper and make another list. Again, use a mix of qualities from both columns to create your protagonist. The protagonist does Not have to be perfect. You could take a fashion magazine and flip through it, noting down facial and bodily features that catch your eye.
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3. __Think of creative names. In your notebook, keep a record of names you might like to use one day. These include your friends' names, your relatives' names, and names you spot one day while you're reading or surfing the net. Names like Katie and Joel are common and easy to remember, but you should record names like Arista and Montague, which you don't see very often.
* Names should be relevant to the setting of the story. A post-modern Japanese woman would be named Sakura and a teenage boy in Harlem would have a common name, like Tom. Fancy and syllable-heavy names should be saved for Fantasy and Science Fiction Stories, and should be used sparingly.__
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__4.__ Flesh out your character. If you are developing one very important character, have fun with it! Give your character an entire profile! What is his/her name? Where were they born, and when? Do they wear striped socks or solid ones? Is their hair blue or flame-red? Write down a bunch of these details, even if they may not be necessary for the story. If you are writing a character's personality off of someone you know,keep in mind that the reader doesn't know who you're writing about. Make it so that the reader has a clear picture, and don't leave any important information out! You can't assume that the reader knows the character as well as you do.

__5.__ Be prepared to let your characters and their responses surprise you; that's when you know you're really getting somewhere. Even imaginary people are resistant to living in a completely determined world.