Creating Compelling Characters
Last year, I made the switch from GoodReads to StoryGraph to track my books. I won’t go into all the details as to why I switched, but I will never stop telling people about the data that is tracked in StoryGraph – genre, pace, page number/audiobook length, fiction vs non-fiction, format, and more. For a few years now, I do a year-end summary of my reading journey and having this data on hand without me having to pretend I’m good at Excel is chef’s kiss.
Another thing I love about StoryGraph (and the reason I’m mentioning it in a blog about creating compelling characters), is the questions it asks when I log a completed book:
Is it plot- or character-driven?
Is there strong character development?
Are there loveable characters?
Is there a diverse cast of characters?
Are the flaw(s) of the character a main focus?
Of course, reviews are subjective, so one person’s strong character development will be another person’s “it’s complicated” (an answer you can give on StoryGraph). Some genre fiction is more about a strong plot versus strong character development, and that’s mostly okay. A story that’s more plot-driven still needs compelling characters, otherwise readers will (probably rightfully) assume they exist merely as a plot device. Even in a plot-driven book, characters need to have a reason for the plot happening to them beyond the writer telling themselves well, it’s got to happen to someone.
The big question is, how does one create compelling characters? There are a lot of different ways to develop character so it’s ultimately a matter of finding a process that works best for you. Because of my theatre background, I’m partial to using the same techniques. Of course, it’s not going to be exactly the same, but using the lessons from Sanford Meisner and Uta Hagen have done me well so far.
Big Lessons from Meisner
When I was in college and received a script to memorize for scene class, we had a specific way in which to memorize. I wrote out my character’s lines (by hand!), and give a slash (/) between them. That means I didn’t memorize the cues at all. I also did not indicate any emotional directions either. What was the purpose in doing that, besides cramping my hand?
Writing things out did help cement those lines in my head. Did I still need to work on constantly repeating? You bet. But when a teacher tried to trip me up and gave me a scene first thing in the morning via our cubby system that I almost didn’t check only to have my partner and I be the first team called up that afternoon for class, my lines were memorized. Trip avoided.
More importantly, it meant I had to be in the moment. For Meisner, acting was reacting. My scene partner’s pinch was my ouch. It meant that any emotion I felt didn’t come from the script, it didn’t come because I had to, but it came because that’s what I/my character was honestly feeling right then and there.
How to Bring that to the Page
I love giving my characters free rein because for me, it allows them to be pinched and ouched, to react honestly, and not necessarily how I want them to. Sometimes, I do have to rein them in so they don’t go off on tangents, but it gives them more of a life. Just because they technically only live on the page doesn’t mean they can’t be truly alive.
Big Lessons from Hagen
Uta Hagen developed six questions – which then developed to nine that an actor should ask themselves when developing their character. It really gets down into the nitty gritty and the actor is asking questions that the audience might not even be aware of. It’s still important, because while the audience might only see a snapshot of a character’s life on stage, it’s the role of the actor (no pun intended) to ensure the audience knows the character lived before the lights went up and will continue to live, albeit changed when the lights dim.
How to Bring that to the Page
Every single day we make choices - large or small, and the consequences, positive or negative, come from that. Why does your protagonist make the choices they do that starts off their important course of action that is the crux of your manuscript? What happened in their past (before the very first word) that lends to their decision making? How do their relationships with people impact their decisions? What obstacles are in their way, and what do they think of those obstacles? Do they try to “cheat”? Do they give up? (I’m guessing they don’t fully give up because that would be a very short and potentially boring story!). All of these questions you’ve answered about your character not only adds to the richness of the story, but makes it easier for the reader to imagine those characters as real-life people, and not just two-dimensional paper beings that exist at the end of a writer’s strings.
How Can I Help
One of my favourite courses while getting my degree was scene analysis – and I bring that into my developmental editing. It’s important to ask the why. But before we get to the why, character work needs to be completed. That’s why I have a FREE template that authors can use to help in that work. It’s a fillable PDF, and can be used for all your characters, or just a few. Just click on the button, and provide your email address to get the template. Don’t worry, your email will not be shared or sold.
If you have any questions as you work through the template, please don’t hesitate to reach out!
