Article written by Ashleigh Lowry.
Writing realistic characters is hard. Believe me I know. So, to help everyone that may be struggling I have complied a list of tips and tricks through suggestions from writer friends, my own research and experience to help and inquire some true realistic and relatable characters.
1. Characters that make sense
This is a big one that can really show an amateur writer to a seasoned one. In the context of your book you need to have characters that would make sense in both who they are as a character and within the setting and story of the book. This includes things like beliefs, backstory and so forth. There is no point having this incredible character that has no place in a novel (robots have no place in medieval Europe, no matter how many times my mate pitches this novel idea to me). One major way this happens is from an abundance of positive traits. They exemplify perfection and everything good about the word they are in. No… just no... don’t do that. Those types of characters are called Mary-Sue’s, and are very much disliked in the literature world as they are unrealistic and just downright annoying (No matter what the internet says no one on earth is that lucky, talented and perfect all at the same time.) This causes a disconnect with readers making the characters unlikable or annoying. People don’t like reading about characters that are perfect, they like reading about characters that are just as flawed as them. When forming characters for your story take a moment to really have a deep think about them and say to yourself Do they really make sense?
2. Use the backstory to shape personality
No one’s personality is a result of just one day. Neither are characters. So, having a personality that completely conflicts how that character may have been raised or where they would have come from creates a disconnect with the readers. This goes hand in hand with the need to do extensive research so you can effectively write about the background to create the personality. Writing is a multi-step process, you need to complete the pervious steps to have a chance of completing current and future steps to the best of your ability. Back on topic, the backstory and more importantly, specific events within the backstory, would be used to shape the character’s personality, likes, dislikes and so on. Good and bad events from the past can be beliefs, quirks and conflict, if used well. When the backstory conflicts with the character’s personality then there is no substance to the character; they feel two dimensional and flat. When writing for a character’s personality consider how their history and backstory might have shaped their reactions and conversation patterns. Remember that deep thinking from tip 1? Yeah let’s add to it. When writing the character think about the background and say How would their background effect their reaction?
3. Present characters as flawed creatures.
One of the best things you can do as a writer is exploit the weaknesses of the character. Allow them to fail and grow from that. Hitting rock bottom means there is nowhere else to go but up. So, allow the characters to be caught in lies, trip up and fail. This way they seem like you and me. People as a whole are flawed, we can be selfish and unnecessarily mean because we don’t like something. Use these. Please, use these flaws. Present these character’s flaws maybe as plot point but also as character progression. These pitfalls help characters grow and make the novel that much more enjoyable for readers. Flawed characters are the ones people relate to because we too are flawed, but we live with them. So, when writing for this play to the flaws, have flaws conflict with other character flaws. It makes the novel interesting and the character more enjoyable. Remember to include and use the flaws of your character to give them more realistic elements.
4. Minor characters are just as important as main characters
This one is another major aspect as minor characters are that they can show the main characters as a real person. Friends, family and co-workers on the street need to be fully realised and have more personality than a trope that fills a space for a chapter or two. My advice, give the minor characters a slightly watered-down creation prosses as the main character. Make them character profiles, list likes, dislikes & flaws and give them families and friends outside of the main character. This way these characters make the world livelier and gives the writer opportunities to show realistic relationships and conflicts. Without this, these characters just become taking cardboard cut-outs with nothing to show except a pretty character description. Please for the love of god, give the minor characters some love. More time than you think, these are the characters that sell your book. People love the main character and their conflict but the minor characters like the best friend or the co-worker/lunch buddy are what make them keep coming back and telling friends. But if you are going to use a trope for your minor character for the love of any good writer, please at least twist the trope a little and give the character a bit of individuality.
5. The basics… less is more and show, don’t tell
These two are spouted at almost any writing workshop or degree, so you really don’t need to hear them explained in detail here. Just please keep them in mind when you write. They make your characters seem like people with a stream of consciousness then just actors in a play.
I said in the beginning that writing realistic characters is hard. It takes patience and a lot of time. However, once it’s done there is such a wonderful sense of interaction and connection that readers feel that could be the difference between them loving or hating a book.
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