Building the Best Character
It's no easy task to create a character that is realistic, compelling, and drives the plot. Coming up with a name is half the battle--you have to learn to craft a character's personality, values, likes and interests. I hope we can help.
Personality
It's all about personality.
The best characters are very human-like--we can understand how they think. These great characters react to situations like we would expect someone of their personality to react. Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) The MBTI is a personality test which categorizing people based on 4 values, assigning a letter to each value. There are 16 possible combinations (see chart to the right). While not perfect, you can easily assign these personality types to your characters. This can help you craft a character-driven story. For instance, if you character is an INTJ, that means they are logical and goal-driven. If you decide on this personality for them, then that needs to reflect in the situations they come across, i.e. they need to be logical and ready to achieve their goals at whatever cost. Nothing is worse than seeing a character do the opposite of what their personality would make them do, like randomly abandoning logic to chase some pretty girl. |
Everything your character does needs to make sense to their personality--the character needs to be able to justify the action based on his or her own values.
For more information on each type, start here. |
Character Arc
Your character must grow.
A static, boring character who stays the same the whole story ruins your story, no matter how cool the action is.
Learn from an experienced story consultant on how to build a good Character Arc.
A static, boring character who stays the same the whole story ruins your story, no matter how cool the action is.
Learn from an experienced story consultant on how to build a good Character Arc.