Hello, Guidesters! Here is post number four (I think) for the Writing Tips series! 

   I, a lowly Guideling known to the world as SEA, received a request not too long ago to write the post for this month. I am going to be covering (to the best of my abilities) how to make authentic characters.

   True to MY character, I sort of procrastinated on getting around to writing this so I’m sure I missed a few things. Feel free to check out the links for my sources at the end of this…article? Blog? Public service announcement? Whatever it is. Check out the links. They have more extensive information on the subjects I was only able to summarize.

   Okay, on to writing advice!

   Do you ever feel like your characters are falling flat? Two-dimensional? Giving off cardboard cutout vibes? I sure have. But, don’t worry, there is hope for you and me!! Here are the basic guidelines for creating 3-dimensional, deep, layered, relatable, and living characters:

Step one: Craft a backstory.

   No character is complete without a good, juicy backstory. Every action has an equal opposite reaction, and if you tell your story without a hint of why your character is behaving the way they do, people won’t relate. Everyone has reasons for what they do, and while they’re not always GOOD reasons, understanding those reasons and making sure your readers understand those reasons is crucial to good character development.

   Say you walked into a room and saw someone slap another person. You’d automatically assume the person doing the slapping was in the wrong, right? It’s bad to slap people. And you’d be right, it is not considered socially or morally acceptable to slap another human being.

   But you didn’t see what happened before the slapper slapped the slapee. Maybe the slapee insulted the slapper’s mother, or stole their money, or maybe the slappee slapped the slapper before the slapper slapped the slappee! This, of course, does not excuse the slapper, but it gives them a legitimate excuse. You assumed that the slapper was in the wrong because you didn’t see the backstory.

   Anyway, my point is people have reasons for everything they do. It’s basic Cause and Effect. Your character’s actions are an Effect. Backstory is figuring out what Caused them.

   Think of your own backstory. Why do you believe the things you believe? Why do you react that way when a specific event occurs? Now think of your character. What environment did they grow up in? What kind of people are they exposed to? What major events in their life have shaped them into who they are today? Once you’ve crafted a suitable backstory for your character, you can tie them into Motivation, Flaws, and Personality Traits.

Note: Your backstory doesn’t have to be set in stone right away! You can make changes, just keep in mind the farther you are into developing your plot, the more will have to be altered.

Step two: Figure out your character’s motivations.

   First, what is motivation? The Oxford Dictionary defines it as “The mental processes that arouse, sustain, and direct human behavior.” Basically, what catches your interest, keeps your interest, and makes you want to work towards a goal.

   Here are two things to consider when figuring out character motivations.

   Wants vs. Needs:

   Normally, we are motivated by a mix of wants and needs. We NEED to eat, so our body sends us hunger signals until we get up off our butts and make ourselves a sandwich. We WANT to learn about character development, so we read random posts on obscure websites such as Guide. 😁

   Your character’s needs will generally be more urgent and intense; people don’t tend to live long if they don’t have food, water, and a place to stay. A character’s wants are more complex, and usually originate in the backstory. These are the goals and desires of the character. Are their eyes set on some glorious achievement? Are they trying to exact revenge? To avoid a traumatic memory? Wants have a vast impact on the character’s journey. Everything we do, we do because we want something. (Or don’t want something.)

Internal vs. External:

   Internal motivations come from emotions, morals, beliefs, desires. External motivations are the lure, the outside influences. Expectations, circumstances, rewards — all are examples of external motivations.

   Think about your own motivations. What drives you? Why do you want this one thing so much? How has your past contributed to your goals and desires today?

   Motivations are important to depth of character because they make your character relatable and real. Everyone has a mountain to climb, and when you make your character have a complex mix of wants and needs, internal and external motivations, it makes your story resonate with people who have similar (and even vastly different) challenges. Whether your character reaches the summit honorably, or goes to the dark side, or even fails — motivation is the reason they’re climbing in the first place.

Step three: Personality traits.

   We all have different personalities. According to the Meyer-Briggs Type Indicator, I am a Mediator, or INFP. That means I tend to be introverted, idealistic, creative, feeling-oriented, and perceiving. But does that mean I’m always that way, without fail? Of course not! I do so many random things that contradict my “Mediator” label. And, so should your characters. 

   I’m not saying that your character should go from super shy and quiet to extroverted and loud overnight. Technically, you could write them that way, but the only way for it to be realistic and relatable is to give your character a reason, which would tie back to the Motivation section and the Backstory section…

    Your character should have a unique personality. Think about it: What kind of oddities do they have? Do they bite their nails? Do they move their lips when they are thinking? Do they only walk on the tips of their feet? 

    Try to avoid cliches, and/or defining your character by one single trait. Make them touchable and layered, with different preferences, quirks, and weaknesses. Try to avoid old archetypes, such as The Hero (who can do no wrong and who’s instincts are always spot-on) The Sage (generally an old guy with lots of wisdom and advice for every occasion) or The Rebel (who fights the current in every situation and is filled with righteous indignation), create your own mix of qualities! You have a lot to choose from. It’s not necessarily wrong to use these archetypes, you just need to understand that most readers have seen them many, many times before and can guess their plot arc after five seconds. If you desperately need an archetype for inspiration, add a twist to their character that readers won’t immediately be able to predict.

   If you’re having trouble with this, there’s no better place to look than your own life for inspiration. Try observing the people around you, and try to get inside their heads and make a guess at what their inner voice sounds like. Analyze their actions and habits, their likes and dislikes. If you see something that interests you, write it in! (Take traits from multiple people; don’t caricature anyone unless you want to get sued!) Mix and match physical features with characteristics and don’t be afraid to experiment. Remember, (to paraphrase Anne Lamott in Bird by Bird) no one will see that crappy first draft. Get crazy and pull it all together later.

   Here are some questions to answer about personality traits:
  What does your character look like?

   What do they like to do in their free time?
  Are they allergic to anything?

   What do they absolutely despise?
  What is their one true love?

   What kind of people do they hang around with?

   Do they have any weird habits? If so, what are they?

   There are certainly more questions you can ask yourself, but I’ll leave it at this for now.

Step four: Flaws and Weaknesses

   I’ll be honest — this one is kind of a mishmash between a Personality Trait and something to build a Motivation around. It doesn’t fit into either category perfectly, so I made it a separate section.

   We are all snowflakes. You’re probably thinking “Yeah, yeah, yeah, all completely different, none exactly alike, we get it, blah blah blah.”—  but no. We are all snowflakes because we each have imperfections. A snowflake is formed around a mote of dust or pollen in the sky.

   So don’t try to make your character perfect. You’ll make us feel bad. No one wants to read about a perfect character, because they don’t have anything to overcome. They’ve got it all. They aren’t human. 

   Your character doesn’t need to have huge issues or a sob story to be relatable. Maybe they just can’t stand the sound of people chewing loud, or flip out when someone turns a food processor on. Maybe their weakness is being interrupted, or they get really peeved when someone insults a family member.

   Again, the best place to look for inspiration is the world around you. Look inside yourself. What minor things do you get aggravated at? Why? What temptations are you more likely to succumb to? If you include your own flaws and weaknesses, the readers will sense the honesty and relate to your character, even if they don’t share those particular flaws.

Other things to consider:

   Create true-to-life dialogue: Think about how different people in your life converse. I’m sure you know some very chatty people, who gesticulate wildly as they yap, and leave miniscule gaps between words that a credit card couldn’t fit through. Think about how you would write  conversations with a character like that, as opposed to with a slow, quiet, thinker type with soft, gentle mannerisms? The country or region they hail from is an important factor as well.

   Torture your character: No story is complete without some conflict! And everyone relates to a character having obstacles or roadblocks in their life. Turn up the heat on your character, test them mercilessly and see if they hold true to their values.

   Use real life as inspiration: I cannot emphasize this enough! They say to write what you know. Describe in minute detail the day-today happenings in your life — interactions with other humans especially. You’ll eventually get a good read on what people are thinking and feeling in particular situations. This is useful for character development and learning empathy too!

   Know their inner voice: The way a character thinks may be vastly different from the way they act. An extroverted firecracker of a girl might have a shy, hyper-judgemental, sensitive thought-process.

   Show, don’t tell: I know BookwormJo already did a post on this, so you should know what it is already! Just in case, here’s the link: Show, Don’t Tell! Writing Tips Series – Guide Magazine

Here’s a quick recap: Don’t tell your readers what’s going on, show them! Don’t tell your readers that “Georgiana was a rather short individual.” Show them by saying something like “Georgiana took two steps for every one of mine,” or “Georgiana still couldn’t ride anything but the kiddie rides at amusement parks,” or “Georgiana was shorter standing than she was sitting down.”

A personal tip on developing characters:

   I like to write out little sketches or scenes in which my character, who I may or may not know very well yet, is involved. Writing these helps me grasp their emotions and personalities, and may bring to light things I didn’t notice when heartlessly banging out the plot in my head. It’s also a fun break to just write floaty, airy, stupidly emotional stuff. Sometimes solutions to plot holes pop up, or a whole new story just materializes in my head when I’m doing this.

   
  Okay, y’all, I’m done yapping your poor little ears off. I am not considered an oracle of writing wisdom, but I hope that was satisfactory and comprehensible. Check out the links below for more advice about making authentic characters!!

Understanding a Character’s Motivation. – Vered Neta

The Importance of Writing Flawed Characters

Crafting Authentic Characters: A Guide for Self-Published Authors

Other sources include: dabble.com, LinkedIn, Quora, and, of course, Artificial Intelligence (For search results!! I wrote this, y’all 😅)