Image Credits: Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay images. Screenshots were taken by me, Allison Symes.
Now I’m fond of a good quiz (Pointless, Mastermind, University Challenge etc) and I always count it as a good day if I get the book/author related questions right. I do feel like I’m a numpty if I don’t!
But I also use quizzing techniques when it comes to creating stories. One way I do this is to quiz potential characters. I want to find out just what it is about them which means I should write their story up. I see it almost like interviewing a potential actor for a role. I must get my cast right. If they don’t fascinate me, they’re unlikely to work their charms on potential readers.
Outlining the Characters
I know some veer away from the thought of any outlining before writing but what I do is outline my characters. Once I know who they are, I have a better idea of the kind of trouble they will get into (as I do love dropping my characters right in the proverbial mire. The worthy ones will somehow find a way out again. They’ve got to meet the challenges I set them).
I also don’t outline every single thing about my characters. What I am after are what I consider the basics – who they are and what drives them. There will be reasons behind the latter, of course, and that, I think, is where cracking ideas for stories can emerge.
Also leaving gaps means I am giving my imagination room to work and I often find as I start drafting my story, other ideas will occur. As I will know enough about my character, I can figure out whether these new ideas are better than my original or would be useful additions to those original thoughts.
The Need to Create Characters – and Lots of Them
I write a lot of flash fiction and short stories so I need to create plenty of characters. Yes, I sometimes reuse characters but most of the time I don’t. (I will be reusing some characters in Seeing The Other Side in due course, fun to do and I wanted to write some “linked flash” as it is known).
Generally, I do love the challenge of coming up with fresh creations and seeing what I can do with them. (For linked flash, the challenge was to reuse the characters successfully so each story they are in works on its own merits. It’s an interesting challenge).
I need then to find ways into being able to create characters and to keep on doing so. I’ve found the following helpful:-
Templates
Create a simple template with questions to help me to get to know my characters. I use Scrivener and its story template has templates for characters and, separately, for setting. I’ve used both of these as they are supplied but have also adapted them to my own needs as and when I need that. I like the idea of having a setting template as setting can act like a character in its own right. Think of the moors on Wuthering Heights and London in so many of Dickens’ novels. I also invent my own template. I deliberately mix things up here. It makes me think differently if I mix up the templates I use (and the questions I set on them) and that can spark a lot of creativity.
Traits
Use traits as a way into creating a character. If I go with the trait of irritability, say, I have got to examine what is behind that. Is my character struggling with illness which would explain this or are other characters driving this character crazy? In answering that, I will come up with story ideas. The first part of this indicates a character getting help to manage or overcome that illness so this could be a hopeful story. The second half of that question could lead to a humorous or tragic story about why the other characters are behaving the way they are and what my lead does to escape this. But there are possibilities there already.
Random Generators Etc
I sometimes use random generators, books of prompts (I’ve contributed to some over the years), story dice and many things of this nature because they will come up with things which can be “left field” and I find that useful.
Random generators in themselves come in different formats and I like using different ones. If I use a random phrase or question one, for example, whatever the phrase or question generated is will indicate to me some idea of the character for whom it can apply. If I use a random number one, I will think of a way to use the number in a story such as it being part of an address and then I begin to think about who could live there. Or an idea will occur for using that number in another way such as a countdown and I would then work out who that countdown is for and why.
Useful Questions to Think About When Creating Characters
There are three simple questions which could make a great outline for any length of story. These are:-
Who is the lead character?
What do they want?
What gets in their way?
There is no story if everything goes the character’s way right from the beginning. There is literally no drama or tension. Readers expect characters to overcome something (which can include overcoming their own weaknesses) and the need to do so derives directly from what they want and why they want it. To quote the old luvvie question, “what is my motivation for this scene, darling?”, that is a good question to ask your characters. They should be driven, even if you think they’re going the wrong way up a one way street.
Using Our Knowledge of Human Nature
Fiction is based on what we know and that is also true for science fiction, fantasy, and horror, even though those worlds can literally be alien. What readers will follow is why the characters are the way they are. So if a character is motivated by a need to ensure their own security, we will understand that. What will make us read on is to find out what it is they do to ensure they get this, whether or not we approve of their actions.
So your character can be a seven headed monster but if it is driven by a need to find a home, we will understand that. I do think the basic rule for character creation is to know where they’re coming from. Our own life experiences, those we’ve read about, and our own love of fiction will inspire us with that.
Conclusion
No one writer will go about their creations in exactly the same way, which is one reason why I find author interviews fascinating to read/listen to/conduct for Chandler’s Ford Today.
But for fiction writers characters are such a key component of our work, I think it pays for each author to work out how they will come up with these and, if writing short fiction where you will write more tales more often, how to keep on doing that. The good news is there is more than one way of doing this and it is fun for you, or so I find, to mix up the methods you do use. You’ll end up with tried and tested favourites doing this.
It is the characters the readers want to find out more about and what happens to them when all is said and done.
Happy writing!
Related Posts:-
Read interviews with Chandler’s Ford writer Allison Symes: Part 1 and Part 2.
Read blog posts by Allison Symes published on Chandler’s Ford Today.
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