How to develop characters

Characters are what readers remember. Plot gets the story moving, but character makes a reader care. A strong character wants something, gets in their own way, and changes by the end.

What a character needs

A want. Something specific they want, and want badly. A desire drives the story. Without a want, there is no reason to keep reading.

A flaw. Something wrong about them — pride, fear, stubbornness, a false belief. The flaw is what gets in the way of the want and creates conflict.

A stake. What they lose if they fail. The higher the stake, the more the reader cares.

A voice. The way they speak and think. Dialogue and inner thought should sound like them, not like the author.

How to build one

Start with the want and the flaw. Ask: what do they want, and what is wrong with them? The conflict between the two is the engine of the story.

Give them details that matter. A backstory, a habit, a fear — but only the ones that reveal character or drive the story. Do not exposit a biography.

Show, don't tell. Instead of "she was nervous," show it: she fiddled with the edge of the page, her voice caught. Let the reader infer.

Make them make choices. A character is defined by the choices they make under pressure, not by a list of traits.

Let them change. A character who exits exactly as they entered did not have a story. The change at the end is the point — even if it is small or negative.

Give the bad ones a reason. A villain or an antagonist who believes they are right is more compelling than a cartoon villain.

How to learn more about a character

Write their backstory (even if it never appears), their wants and fears, and a page of their dialogue in a low-stakes moment. This is working-out material; you do not have to use it. It helps you know them well enough to write them consistently.

Common mistakes

Telling the reader who the character is instead of showing. A character with a want but no flaw, or a flaw but no want. Backstory dumped up front. Characters who all sound the same. A character who does not change.

Practical tips

• Give the main character one clear want and one clear flaw.
• Put a choice or a pressure point in each scene.
• Read a favourite story and notice how the character changes.

Checklist

• My character has a clear want.
• My character has a flaw that creates conflict.
• The stakes are clear.
• I show character through action and detail.
• My characters have distinct voices.
• My character changes by the end.