Getwrit - An Archive

Tips and Ideas for Writing Characters

The plot of your story can be fantastic and original but if the characters are stereotypical, unoriginal characters who are both annoying and out of place with the story. Hopefully this will give you some ideas on how to prevent that.

Flaws - Everyone has flaws, most of these flaws will out way the positive traits. The most common ones are stubbornness, thoughtlessness and selfishness. These should put your character in awkward or bad situations because we need our flaws to learn about the world and gain experiences. Very rarely should a flaw help or be convenient for character and most people are not aware of them. Examples of realistic characters with flaws: Harry Potter, Karkat Vantas and Tyrion Lannister.

Good=Bad Traits - Sometimes however, we can ignore the above idea if it is applied in the right way. Sometimes being stubborn can help us get things done, sometimes being giving can make people take advantage of you, being quiet and modest can be a seen as rudeness and weakness. Everything changes from person to person. A good flaw to one person can be a bad flaw to another and visa versa.

Subtly - We are a lot more subtle than we like to make out in media. Sometimes we hid our feelings and thoughts in little ways, such as hiding the truth under a realistic lie or hiding shame under good actions. Sometimes the most subtle way to tell something in a story is shown from an action, such as hesitation to do something or talk to someone. It’s the subtle things that define our characters and make them interesting. Try making a list of 10 things your readers will never know about your characters to make them develop more.

Interests - Do not, for the love of God, give your characters stereotyped interests. Not everyone hates maths and likes art. People can have contrasting interests. Such as liking poetry and sports, maths and design. A lot of people go into jobs in the heavier subject but do the lighter subject as a hobby to balance themselves our. Google interests and speak to people about how they feel their interests have made them grow, remember that interests are not always the easy ones.

Reactions - No one in their right mind sees magic for the first time in their life and goes “OMG so cool!” - you’d run and scream and question your sanity until you forgot about it. Sometimes the realistic reactions are the best one, because it can make your character interesting but also can add some humour to them as well.

Out in the Real World - Now this one can vary a bit, is there anyone you know that gets everything they want in the real world by just demanding it but you (in place of the MC)? Is there anyone who is hated by absolutely everyone for no reason? No? Correct answer. Sometimes the things some characters get away with in stories is horrendous. No. Create conflict or situations because someone cannot get out of a situation by some far flung way. Think the failed Indiana Jones gun to a sword fight.

Social Life - People who are popular are not always bad/nice. People who have very few friends are unhappy/outsiders. Realistically, people are a mixture between the two. Sometimes people have something about their personality that draws others to them. Sometimes people are happy with their small click. It does not define their personality. Most people are on a reasonable bases with the majority of people, with several friends and several people they cannot get along with for whatever reason (usually a personality clash/similarity). Examples: Ron Weasley, Kanaya Maryam, Edward Elric, Steven Universe.

By ArchetypeWriting.com

Describing a Person: Adding Details

Face Shape

Square 

Oval 

Round 

Triangular 

Heart-shaped

Skin/Face/Complexion (Complexion is the natural appearance and color of the skin, especially of the face; e.g. Mary has a soft, creamy complexion.

Freckled: sprinkled or covered with light brown spots 

Rosy: pink-cheeked; fair complexion that glows with a hint of pink 

Ruddy: skin that has a healthy reddish tint; may have the appearance of sunburn 

Tanned: skin with a healthy golden-brown tint 

Wrinkled: full of or covered with lines or loose folds of skin; often associated with age 

Other skin-related adjectives: pale, spotless, silky, smooth, creamy, baby-soft, glowing, paper-thin or translucent (as with a very old person); rough, callused, dry

Eyes

General

Brown-eyed mother, bright-eyed sister, wide-eyed child

Eye expressions:

Adj. eyes: piercing, mesmerizing, sad, sorrowful, tear-filled, gentle, sympathetic, warm, compassionate, expressive, twinkling, lively, dancing, laughing

Eye Shape and Size

Large, small, almond-shaped, round, slanted, squinty, crinkly

Mouth/Lips

Thin lips, full lips, pouting lips, pursed lips (puckered up, like when someone is concentrating)

Laugh, smile, beam, grin, frown, grimace, scowl

Hair

Texture/Appearance

wavy, curly, straight, spiky, stiff, buzzed, shaved, parted, neatly-combed, tamed, long, short, cropped

Hair Styles

braids, ponytail, pigtails, bun, twist, bob, ringlets, flip, bangs, buzz

layered, feathered, chopped, gelled, spiked, slicked down

Lots of hair

thick, full, lustrous, bushy, coarse, wiry (stiff)

Little hair

thin, scraggly, fine, baby-fine, wispy, limp, flat, balding, bald, bald spot, receding hairline (gradual loss of hair at the front of the head)

Treated hair

permed, dyed, bleached, highlighted, weaved

Hair colors

black, brunette, brown, chestnut-brown, honey-blond, blond, golden-blond, ash-blond, auburn, red, strawberry-blond, gray, silver, white, salt-and-pepper

Facial Hair

Beard, goatee, mustache, sideburns

Five o’clock shadow: new beard growth, shadowy in appearance, that can be seen late in the day on the jaw, chin, or cheek area (also known as stubble)

Adjectives: bearded, unshaven, clean-shaven, trimmed, neatly-trimmed

Clothing

Fabric: denim, twill, wool, cotton, tweed, polyester, corduroy, fleece, spandex, leather 

Bottoms: jeans, cargo pants, flat-front pants, pleated pants, slacks, trousers, overalls, sweatpants, crop pants, capris, skirt, culottes, shorts, board shorts 

Tops: sport shirt, dress shirt, polo shirt, button-down shirt, tank top, blouse, long-sleeve, short-sleeve, sleeveless, collared, T-shirt, sweatshirt, hoodie, pullover, sweater, cardigan 

Other clothing: dress, uniform, costume, pajamas, bathrobe, robe, vest, jacket, blazer, coat, socks, stockings, gloves, hat, cap, shoes, boots, slippers, sandals, flip-flops, heels, pumps

Sentence Starters Describing Clothes

Smartly dressed in (name of garment), she…

Casually attired in (name of garment), Jolene… 

Simply clad in (name of garment), Mark…  

Dennis sports a (name of garment)…

Kim Kautzer and Debbie Oldar

airport-related aus tho:

i fell asleep on your shoulder and you were too polite to move or wake me up au

we have the same luggage and didn’t check the tags before we left so i’m calling you to exchange suitcases (and you also had some interesting things in your bag so i’m excited to meet you) au

author of book gets seated next to someone reading their book and making entertaining faces at each scene au 

bonding solely via eye contact over that annoying person on our plane that we’re both slowly becoming more and more exasperated about au

you fell asleep and i started making funny faces at your kid to keep them amused and the steward mistook us for a couple au

actually, any mistaken for a couple au

i’m afraid of flying and you were incredibly helpful and tolerant and sweet about it au

i made a horrible first impression at the gate or in line for airport food but now we’re sitting next to each other au

because we always need more AU ideas:

“constantly trying to one-up each other at our favorite coffee-shop’s every-other-weekly poetry slam” AU

“met while helping a small lost child find their parents at ComiCon because we were dressed as their favorite characters and they trusted us” AU

“our mutual friend is in the film directing program at art school/our uni’s art department and they suckered us into being in their shitty low-budget overly pretentious horror flick” AU

“playing Beatrice and Benedick together in this community theatre production of Much Ado About Nothing, which is hilarious considering our offstage relationship” AU

“we’re the newest members of an edutainment performance group that goes to schools to teach kids about drugs or smoking or whatever” AU

“this blind date was going so well until it turned out that you were actually one of the cruel popular kids from my high school” AU

“sorry for rifling through your trash at two in the morning, but I’m an avant garde artist and I needed material for a new installation piece” AU

“we’re the newest members of the local Rocky Horror Picture Show shadowcast and get told we have to play Brad and Janet this week/month at the last possible minute” AU

“I’m an art student and you’re not just my friend, you’re my favorite model for my pieces, and we’re both waiting for nude modeling to be on the table but I’m not sure if I’m allowed to ask” AU

“we used to be rivals in kiddie beauty pageants and talent shows, but then you kinda disappeared, we just found each other again by accident and goddamn, get a look at you now” AU

“both of our flights home for Christmas got snowed in by a freaking blizzard, there’s only one room left at the airport Hilton and we can’t get out of here for like, three days” AU

“accidentally started doing the ‘prepare for trouble’ ‘make it double’ Team Rocket motto together while waiting in a long line for something or other” AU

“I’m sorry for accidentally creeping you out, one of my professors made me go people watching at the park/mall/etc. so I can write an ethnography and I swear I wasn’t following you on purpose” AU