So I have finally finished writing this chapter, man was it hard, so freaking hard. I hope you will get something out from this. In this chapter want to talk about realistic characters. Of course, there are other types of characters like purely comedic characters with only purpose to be over the top and funny. But I still I want to concentrate on the realistic characters since everyone is talking about those.

Is your story about your characters?

vs

Are your characters just one part of your story?

Do you first think what kind of people you want to write about or do you think about a story and then add people in it? Doesn't matter really, everyone has their own ways. Yet the result is so strikingly different, sometimes you stumble upon a story when you can't but sigh in awe wondering how the writer could create such awesome characters and some other times you shake your head and laugh. But what makes that difference between a bad and good characterization?

Some stories concentrate more on what’s going on and don’t really describe the characters that much, there is a lot of dialog and the people in the story are usually described in a few words for example “cute and childish” or “mean gangster”. This cute and childish person is nothing but cute and childish literally and the mean gangster skips school and yells at everybody and nothing else, as if these people are incapable of feeling or doing anything else. These are one dimensional characters with no depth and they only exist so that story can go on. Readers find it hard to relate to these characters because they are not real, they don’t come alive and just exist like flat paper dolls.

Then there are stories with nothing but character description when the writer only writes about what the characters go through, mostly main characters, their feelings and thoughts. In these stories you sure will know the characters inside out but it’s boring because nothing really happens except the emotions what these few characters feel. For example someone’s mother dies and whole chapter deals with nothing but the feelings of the main character. I understand this is important but to write whole chapter… While reading these stories it is hard for the reader to imagine the world the characters live in because nothing is really described much, the story is slow and draggy.

It’s emotionally hard to just read about feelings and certainly is annoying to just read about what’s going on and no feelings at all. Balance, that’s the word. We must find the perfect balance.

Avoiding strong stereotypes.

Break the perfection.

Mary Sues, nerds, es, troublemakers, clueless. Just by hearing one of those words you can imagine a character in your head and where does that character belong in a typical story. Mary Sue is a girl with glasses, pretty, shy, clumsy but all guys fall for her. Nerds are ugly people with glasses and troublemakers are loud, rebellious and wear flashy clothes. es are those who bully our main character without feeling bad about it and clueless people are those cute ones who are always happy go lucky, energetic and awfully annoying with their stupid brainless comments.

Is your story full of these? In the end it's not even about having these types in your story but how they are presented to your readers. Because every story has these kind of characters yet some are so freaking good and some so freaking bad. Yes we all use the same templates to create different stories.

Example:

(Plain description)

She was just a typical girl, plain and boring but he found her attractive somehow, interesting, different from other y girls he had learned to know. Someone quiet like that, hardworking and kind, he couldn't but like her even though he didn't want to admit it. He couldn't like her because they were from two different words, he was rich and she was poor yet he couldn't help but wonder how it would be like to date her.

• In this one we don’t learn much about the character. He is a rich guy who is in love with some plain normal girl and thinks they can’t be together because they are from different words. But he still likes her.

vs

(Characterized description)

Why did he like her? That was hard to say, in fact he had no idea. It's not that she was special in any way or similar to the girls he usually went for. Rather she was the shy type, just the one he always tried to avoid. Even if he approached her there would be nothing to talk about. Besides why would he talk to someone who was wearing such cheap looking clothes? What if people paid attention and what if they misunderstood? Now that would be embarrassing.

He sighed and rolled his eyes, shifting in his seat. There she was, sitting in the front, taking notes obediently like the teacher's little angel she was. Always scoring first in every exam and raising up her hand to answer every single question. He bet she wouldn't be able to forget to finish her homework even if she tried to. Feeling irritated he got this urge to toss an eraser at the back of her head. Her brown hair was on a loose messy bun, the worst style he had ever seen and yet it was somehow cute.

He bit his lower lip, his fingers fiddling with the eraser. Would she go out with him if he asked? But how should he ask, when would be the right moment and what if she turned him down? His face turned pale and his heart froze in his chest. For the first time in his life he had to worry about such a thing. No, he would rather die than face that kind of embarrassing situation.

• In this example we can learn that the guy is snobbish (probably rich), he cares about his reputation yet he fell in love with some nerdy girl. He wants to approach her yet he feels embarrassed and even insecure because he doesn’t know how she would react. He doesn’t know how to deal with situations he is not used to. So he will probably resort to some childish way in approaching her like throwing an eraser at the back of her head because then he knows what her reaction would be and how to handle the situation. So if he forces her to date himself it’s only because he doesn’t know how to be romantic or deal with girls who don’t like him at first sight. He is probably someone who has always gotten what he wants. And so on.

Example 2:

“He was a man with deep sad eyes, so dark and dim it was impossible to see a shade of soul in them. His painful past haunted him day and night, his heart growing callous and loveless as time passed, turning him into ice.”

vs

“A lot has happened in his life so he became cold and distant.”

An easy way to actually develop your writing skills is to invest into dialogue. In a lot of fics people say unbelievable things, the discussions make no sense. Your characters can’t just go around swearing in loud voices, that’s not cool it’s weird. How often do you hear people going around and yelling curses out of the blue? I dare to say that in most of the fics the author’s don’t plan the dialogues well enough.

“Yah, you ! How dare you bump into me? off ugly !”

How often would a rude guy say something like that in real life? If he is someone coldhearted and rude he’d probably just glare at the clumsy girl and maybe mumble something like “Watch it” or “How annoying” or maybe just laugh at the girl.

Animate your characters. Describe their facial expressions, not all the time but once in a while, especially during conversations or when they are especially affected by something. Make their eyes reflect their feelings. Don't make them robotic, that happens when writers hardly describe their characters emotions but just write what they do and express emotions only in the discussion like.

"You bastard!" She yelled and stormed away.

vs.

She glared at him, cringing her face from disgust. Her brows furrowed when she spat following words from : "You bastard!" Yet that insult was far from enough to describe how disappointed she was feelings at the moment.

Bad is good and good is bad

In general every person has many dimensions and shades, there are so many feelings we are capable of feeling. Bad people are not simply bad and good not simply good, nothing is perfect. Of course, in fiction many things can be absolutely perfect but... that is boring, isn't it? If you have to name the most boring superhero surprisingly many people name Super Man, they say he is super boring because he doesn't really have any weaknesses (except one). Where is the drama? Nowhere.

You sympathize with those who have flaws, they seem more real. Why do we support our loved ones? Because we know they have flaws. How do we know we love someone? We are willing to accept their faults as well as good qualities. No one is perfect and that’s what makes us so special.

But we admire “perfect” people, we want to be them. Want to have great grades, be successful, write good stories, be cute, beautiful, lovable. But can you sympathize with a person who you think is perfect? So often people tend to hate those whom they view as perfect, try to find faults and talk bad behind their backs. Every single little mistake will be noticed. Why? Because of jealousy. But it doesn't mean that those who are jealous are bad people, I am sometimes jealous of others, I know you are too. Every single of us has disliked someone for no particular reason but we are not es just because of that, that’s just human. Maybe not everyone has bullied others but at least talked behind people's backs. But you know, bullies are bad only in the eyes of the bullied ones, they can be nice to their families and friends. What am I trying to get at? 

There is always a reason for everything.

You know those Mary Sues people around AFF like to complain about. A nerdy ugly girl who is actually pretty, always nice no matter what, never gets angry, is always positive and hardworking in other words perfect. Guys fall in love with her at the first sight, in other words someone who doesn't exist but someone we all would like to be.

But you know… “She is pretty but wants to be ugly so no one would see how pretty she is”. Seriously. Which sane person would do that? There are people who can be pretty but are too lazy to put on make-up or people who want to be accepted as they are and refuse to change their hairstyles, those who have perfect figures but choose to wear loose comfortable clothes for comfort reasons. Then there are those who don’t really care much about their looks, usually those who are surrounded by people like themselves and they accept themselves as they are. And then there are those who are just plain ugly and can’t do anything about it but they still try to be prettier. Everyone has their own history, the past which made them the way they are. This shouldn't be forgotten.

I doubt anyone wants to be ugly just for the heck of it. Anyway, who cares what I think? Right, but I am just saying that any character must have its reasons, good believable reasons. Otherwise they are just stupid characters the author didn’t bother to plan ahead of the story. In this case ‘someone being ugly’ is the only thing what matters and ‘the reasons of someone being ugly’ doesn’t. But the whole story is about this person becoming pretty, in this case there has to be a reason why this person is ugly in the first place because ‘ugliness’ is something related to ‘insecurity’. What makes cool and good looking people so good looking? They radiate confidence, they smile, they are happy so they shine. It’s not only make-up. There must be a certain depth within every character, that’s what makes them so special and different from others yet they are the same trouble makes. We can’t escape clichés, we must embrace them because life in itself is one big ty cliché.

Besides, what is ugly? Someone might seem ugly at the first sight but if that person turns out to be actually really nice and fun to be around suddenly he/she becomes prettier in our eyes. ‘Becoming prettier’ is all about acceptance of others and ourselves.

Original characters

Of course, your character needs to be some type of person but don't just take one quality and stick with it, NO! Take a male or female and give them usual qualities but avoid plain stereotypes, what I mean is don't go to the edge but stay in the middle. A troublemaker doesn't have to be a crazy person, it can be someone smart who gets good grades but for some reason causes troubles, a gangster guy can be clumsy, and shy girl next door super strong. Mix stereotypes that is what makes your characters special.

Others ask: “Why don’t people write about normal people? Why does there always have to be someone with a trauma or someone with problems?” But I ask: “Why would anyone read about just normal people? Wouldn’t that be boring? Who the hell cares about someone who is just normal and nothing happens?”

It’s not about using stereotypes since we all use them, it’s about making stereotypes our own. Take a troublemaker and make him special, take a Mary Sue and add a quality no one else has ever added. Your character can be even just a normal person but there has to be a catch. The most important catch is to make your character ‘alive’.

There is the face we show to everyone and there is the inside we show only to some people. One dimensional is fake. Just like in almost every American movie there are bad people who are purely bad and good people who are purely good, I thought it was normal but then I started watching Asian movies. Suddenly bad had something good in it and good is also bad and the line between them became transparent. Now that’s fascinating. Every writer is a psychologist, a philosopher. You gotta bring depth into your characters.

Now then, let's take a Mary Sue and make her more interesting shall we. How? You can introduce her as a perfect human being but at the same time you gotta show that it's all just a facade she is holding for a heavy reason. You can show her fake smiles but at the same time you must show the darkness within. No one is just a happy go lucky ball of energy, no one. There is nothing wrong with having a perfect, nice, lovable, cute girl as your main character but those types are actually pretty boring unless they have an interesting past.

Since most reviewers and guide writers around here detest Mary Sues and tell you to have a more original character let's think about it. What is a more original character? Are they talking about troublemakers, crazy bit.ches, drug addicts? People who have dyed their hair pink, wear leather jackets and go around causing trouble? I'm not sure because when I read stories I am satisfied with your usual girl next door type, probably many agree. Troublemakers are all clichés too, they are all the same: traumatized people who act cold but are softies inside. They are pretending to be oh so strong but are actually oh so weak. How is this original?

Not original but interesting

Create a special character. I don't mean you have to come up with super unique crazy character, it can be a troublemaker or a Mary Sue for all I care but there has to be a trait or two what makes your character different from all those million other Mary Sues or troublemakers.

One of the secrets of interesting characters is not to vomit them on the paper. Don't just describe and describe but make the description as a part of the story (how your character reacts in certain types of situations, how she/he talks, dresses, what they think of certain situations/people etc). And don't give everything away at once, let the reader get accustomed to your character little by little. Don't go for perfection but faults, quirks, obsessions, habits, likes and dislikes, all of these are hooks. Hook your readers, give them something to look forward to, something to expect, make your readers remember your character. How? Well, how do you remember characters of your favorite stories? Why do you remember them?

Let your readers know your characters like you know your friends. Sometimes they don't need to say anything and you still know how they feel, you can tell from the look in their eyes, from the words they choose to say, from their little habits, from the shade of their voices. Give your readers that instead of always describing flatly. "She was sad" or "He was nervous". In this way your characters will be lively, explain their facial expressions during conversations. Don't always write "He listened with straight face" but sometimes: "He listened quietly but it was hard to say what he was thinking about, once in a while he'd lower his gaze and rub his neck." In general make your characters do things, make them think, wish, wonder etc.

Character profiles

Making a character profile is a good way to create a character but why put it in the foreword for everyone to see? I mean are those people lazy or something? If I read a character description I will know most of the things about the character so why should I even read the story? Usually you read a story and find out about the character's quirks, habits and such. But it becomes boring if I already know the person.

Random examples:

-Lee Jaejin.People calls her ‘L’. She got that nickname from her bias, ‘L’ or his real name is Kim Myungsoo from INFINITE. She’s 17 years old.Looks badass and cold outside but caring from the inside. Like to hide secrets, so she’s rarely talk a lot.She’s the heiress of Lee company. The richest company in asia. 

*

Huang ZiTao:

Loves Studying
Lonely
Stubborn
Cold
Doesn't like to show his emotions

*

The bookworm. Loves to read books especially mystery book. Only go to the city library because of 2 reason:

1. she likes to see Chen, the weird but cute librarian that works there
2. she loves the books in the library.

All of these readers don't need to know in advance and I dare to suggest that most of them don't even care. I bet over half of them don't give a . These qualities don't tell anything alone yetthey give out the plot of the story. Don't ruin first impressions like this, perhaps one of the most important moments in your story is when your character appears, the first meeting between that person and the reader it won't feel so special if they are spoiled ahead of time. Anyway, these descriptions are good for yourself, it's good to make one before you start writing. I used to do this before but now it’s different.

My brain works somehow like this:

- I want this person to be cold.

- But there gotta be a reason why he is cold.

- To say a woman broke his heart in the past would be kind of boring and predictable…

- what else could have made him cold?

- a friend's betrayal perhaps?

- or a death of a close relative?

- he grew up alone, his parents were never home or his siblings stole the limelight?

- or perhaps he was born like that, was really shy and quiet child.

- perhaps he is just shy but everyone thinks he is arrogant because he doesn't speak much.

- he doesn't really hate everyone but he rarely smiles so people misunderstand.

- but strangely enough his favorite color is pink and he loves to eat ice cream.

- he loves cats.

Or:

- I want him to be a player.

- but how did he become a player?

- He is just outgoing, energetic and smiles a lot, people mistake it for flirting

- he likes girls so when they come at him he doesn't really refuse but he gets bored easily.

- girls are clingy but he likes his freedom.

- he goes out with them but doesn't promise anything, girls know it but still go after him thinking they could change him.

- he doesn't hate girls and many of the ones he dated were nice but somehow it didn't work.

Things like:

- he has slept with every girl in the school. 

are going to the edge. How many people like these you know? How many schools have people like these? Sure there are rumors of all sort but doesn't that make your character a man who probably has a ually transmitted disease? He might have slept with many girls but to say all, how many girls does that school have? If it's in Seoul maybe 1000? or 2000? One night stands are not something what people plan in advance, some do but that's often nearly (you know when they go girl hunting, buy a lot of drinks and make their dates drunk). Sure these type of male characters are fun to write about because the dream of nearly every girl is to change a bad boy into a good boyfriend. But there is no need to go to the edge and exaggerate his "baddness". Dating a lot of girls is okay, one night stands are okay but things like “changes girls like socks, seen every day with different girl”, that makes me think this character has some serious mental problems.

Anyway, anyway, anyway

I could write about million tips on how to create a good character but what are those good for? In the end you are just going to be bored and probably disagree with some points. In fact writing this chapter was hella hard. After all no writer knows their characters perfectly before they start the story, characters change and evolve. The most important thing is that your characters learn from their mistakes and develop as people, that every dramatic episode they go through affects them somehow.

There ought to be many stories you downright hated and absolutely loved. Write down the reasons why you thought some stories were bad, why those characters or why some stories captured your heart, what was good about the characters? Learn from other people’s mistakes or success. In the end this is the best advice I can give you because everyone comes up with their characters in their own way.

So first you must define to yourself what is bad and what is good. If you ask readers there will be as many definitions as people but you must ask yourself, you must put the bar up, you must demand quality from yourself. Because you know, you know perfectly what is good and what is bad. “This is my first story so it might ” is a lame excuse, it means you have put the bar low, lower than you deserve. No, you must be proud of what you have created, you must think that your story is going to be great. You must write about characters you are not embarrassed to present to the world.

Summary

Find balance between ‘describing your character’s feelings all the time’ and ‘never describing any feelings’

Avoid strong stereotypes, mix them, don’t make your characters just bad or just good, you get depth to your characters by making them bad and good at the same time. Let the reader decide.

Break perfection, nothing is perfect and imperfections make us interesting.

Describe your characters with emotions, bring their qualities, quirks, insecurities, confidence into the story so the reader gets more out from reading. Don’t just flatly describe, try to find a depth to your writing.

There is always a reason to everything, don’t make your characters just do stuff but explain why they do what they do. Why do they force someone to date them or why do they hate someone.

Concentrate on interesting and compelling instead of original.

Keep character profiles to yourself and introduce your character as the story advances.

Make your characters learn from their mistakes and develop, change, grow up, become more mature.

Lastly, ask yourself why do you like some stories and what makes those characters so good or what makes ridiculous characters so ridiculous. Learn from other people’s mistakes and success.

Homework

Creating an Original Character

How to Create Good Personalities for Your Characters

How to Create a Memorable Villain or Antagonist for Your Story

Creating Three-Dimensional Characters