General Discussion

Well, for character development, I suggest starting out with what setting you're putting your characters in. It has to be something that you are passionate about, as other people's Ideas may not fit to your liking. There is tons of different ideas, but you must narrow them down to get great character development. Don't try to rush the development, as the characters may start to feel unlikable and perhaps the character is just a mess of so many things. ((IDK if this will truly help, but what the hecc))

1. What are they doing in the story?
2. In what context are they doing it?
3. Why are they like this? Is this “normal” behavior for them?
4. Are there specific events that made them that way? What brought them there? Rinse and repeat.

That’s it, that’s my “process” in four steps :D It’s basically an endless cycle of “why this?” until characteristics start to stick, and with enough diligence the character will write themselves. Don’t be afraid of changing “core” traits if you’re just not feelin’ them! You’d be surprised how much can change from early development to what ends up on the page.

Personally, I only find questionnaires useful for the earliest bare bones concepts, and (later) filling out the interview-style ones to nail a character’s voice. Otherwise I think lots of them spend too much space on minutiae like height measurements (your character’s height in the context of their environment is more important than statistics, unless the exact number is somehow notable) and bullet-point flaw lists than the real “meat” of development. But that’s just me, and different things work for different writers!

Oh, and seconding MistLeaf’s point about traits!! For every “flaw” there’s a “good” equivalent and vice versa. It’s about balance, and different contexts can bring out the best and worst sides of one trait—for example, a character who’s extremely patient might do well as a teacher, but less well if it means they give unscrupulous peers more time than it’s worth.

I’ll stop there but I’m very passionate about this, lol; feel free to ping me if you want any Deep Questions and I’m happy to provide >:3c

EDIT: If nothing else, THIS. (@ the original post, idk what the comments are doing but they’re great.) Lovely coincidence, that thread!

[quote name="PythonVibes" date="2020-10-23 06:55:28" ] @Archaeoraptor i would love some deep questions!! even just to save them later, for when i get that far in development and have an answer :0 [/quote] [i]-cracks knuckles-[/i] (also hope you don’t mind this being bumped 2 days later, whoops) [list][*]Do your character’s strengths and weaknesses match up with what they [i]think[/i] their strengths and weaknesses are? [*]Consider how your character usually interacts with people, in any context in the broadest sense. (Even someone who’s shy in, say, school, might be more sociable when hanging out with friends; maybe they’re polite/considerate in both cases?) Now, what would make them act [i]counter to[/i] that? (Following the “polite” example: “I’m really nice until you annoy me” sure seems to be a common trait.) [*]If you don’t have one (or more) already, what would your character’s foil be like? [*]How do they cope with stress (if at all), short- [i]and[/i] long-term? big and little stressors? If they have go-to methods (meditation? junk food?) where did they pick those up? [*]Personality tests like the MBTI can be fun. Once you get a result, in what ways (if any) does your character [i]not[/i] fit the archetypal result? [*]How have your character’s relationships changed over time? Are there any that are drastically different now than when they met? [*]Similar to the above, was there a point in your character’s life where they’d never believe they are who/where they are today, and vice versa? [*]What would your character’s ideal living space be like? Are they trying to get there, if they’ve thought about it at all? [*]How would your character react to suddenly becoming known for something they like? or [i]don’t[/i] like? (Think going viral, or an equivalent in your setting; maybe they were showing off, maybe they were doing something stupid on a dare.) [*]If their first impression of someone was a trait they don’t like about themselves, how would they react? [*]Your character is asked for a slightly strenuous and/or inconvenient favor, like having to hold a stranger’s luggage. How would they reply to a calm request? a hasty one? What if the stranger hardly asks and just acts like they’re supposed to do it (ex. a gruff demand, otherwise treating them like it’s their job)? [*]What’s their biggest regret? (It doesn’t have to be dramatic; “one time I forgot to wish my friend a happy birthday” can totally count. The surface significance is less important than how much they [i]personally[/i] wish it hadn’t happened; this can tell you a lot about their values!)[/list] Man, I could keep going, but that’s probably a good haul for now C:< You don’t have to answer them all for each character, of course; I tried to make them applicable regardless of setting, but feel free to modify as you see fit. (Also, I honestly wouldn’t be able to answer them all myself off the top of my head; sometimes it’s fun to think of some random question/scenario and run through how your whole lineup would answer/respond.) Oh, and for a bonus round: after going through this or other questionnaires in an objective third-person bio format (or however you default to answering), do a few in [i]your character’s[/i] voice, as if they were being interviewed. If their own answers don’t line up with the truth, why? And can you leverage these discrepancies in the story? Have fun!