Writing Tips 101

Who is your character?

Do you know who your character is? One of the biggest problems with new writers is that they don’t fully flesh out their characters. And fully fleshing out your character does not only mean that your character’s name is Demetrius Kajan, and he’s very handsome. [Don’t laugh, this has actually happened] What’s his worst nightmare? What’s his most beautiful dream? If he does get into a relationship with the other MC, what about his past made him averse to romantic entanglements that you might want to explore? I know some writers think that because they are “pantsers,” [They write by the seat of their pants] they don’t need to think about these questions, because they’ll figure it out later. But to write a consistent character readers are capable of falling in love with or severely hating, you need to figure out who they really are. Otherwise, you risk just creating a flat character your readers will be indifferent to.

What are your character’s quirks? Strange habits?

What does your character do, as a nervous habit, or old muscle memory, that is a bit strange, or different? In Keeper of the Lost Cities, Sophie tugs at her eyelashes whenever she gets nervous. It was notable when she slowly regained her confidence and stopped tugging her eyelashes because readers noticed. It doesn’t need to be anything as noticeable, but perhaps your character taps their foot when they’re excited or starts curling their hair when they get scared? Your character needs to have something that makes them unique, and character quirks and strange habits are fun ways to break out of your character’s flatness and make them 3-D.

What challenges does your character face internally?

Every powerful character is facing an internal battle or war, big or small is the only debate. Rhysand, from the Court of Thorns and Roses series, faces an internal battle in A Court of Mist and Fury because he believes Feyre might never heal, or grow past what happened to her. In Finale, Scarlett Dragna is fighting an internal battle as she contemplates whether or not to forgive Julian of his lies or destroy their past together for her fear. What is your character internally fighting himself/herself about? Do they secretly hate themselves? Do they fear ever caring about someone again because of a tragic event years before? [this might be cliche, but it’s always a fun trope!]

Character Cliches. Good, or Bad?

A lot of people wonder whether or not using cliches in your characters is a good idea or not. I personally think cliches can be a wonderful addition to your story, done right of course. Some famous examples.

Men

The Sulky Steve– How many of you writers have read books with a broody MC who’s always growling and snarling at people, then retreating back into his shell? Not to say the Sulky Steve isn’t a fun character to read about, because personally, I love the grumpy grizzly who turns out to be an adorable teddy bear! But your MC doesn’t always need to turn into a soft teddy to make readers love reading about him. He can be a Sulky Steve, but he needs to have something that makes him special. Say, he’s rude to everyone except his learning-impaired baby sister. Maybe he has a pet cat he reads stories to every night before sleeping. Something that plays on the cliche without forcing your character into the stereotype.

The James Bond– We all know this cliche! This character is basically perfect, the guy who knows how to con and trick and fight his way out of every situation, preferably with a blonde on one arm and a brunette on the other. This character is one of the most necessary to explain, the most necessary to create a back story and motive for. One famous James Bond would be Kaz Brekker, from Six of Crows. Kaz is a brilliant 17-year-old from the Dregs, and already one of the most feared men in the Barrel. Dirtyhands will always get the job done. However, instead of making Kaz a boring perfect James Bond, or a Sulky Steve, Leigh Bardugo masterfully manipulated both cliches. Kaz has a disability in his leg that ruined his ability to walk without his cane, and he has trust issues since the betrayal that lost him his brother. She played on cliches by making him so similar and so different at the same time.

The buffoon– This character has to be my least favorite cliche, but sadly essential for many novels. He exists simply to be the comedic relief in the face of the Sulky Steve and often serves very little greater purpose. But did I not just write that they are essential in many novels? That’s because they can become very interesting characters when developed correctly, and even some people’s favorite. The most well-known example is most likely Leo Valdez from The Lost Hero. Leo is meant to be the funny guy in comparison to Jason’s seriousness and often is the guy who can make them smile, even when they are eating tacos in a sewer. He brought a humourous tint to the darker outskirts of the story and became one of the most beloved characters in the series. So when you write about a buffoon, just remember that playing on these stereotypes of cliches is often the best way to capture a reader’s attention.

Women

The Blonde– We all know the dumb blonde stereotype, right? Well, writers took it to a new level. The number of blonde villainesses that flooded the media in the 2010s was ridiculous on completely different levels, from blonde school bullies to the blonde who ruined your family. Now, while media has taken a different turn since then, dumb blonde is still a stereotype writers love messing with. Rick Riordan’s adaptation of the dumb blonde created Annabeth Chase, one of the most admired heroes in the Percy Jackson universe. By making the cleverest character blonde, Rick made her work twice as hard as the brunettes to prove she was just as smart, effectively breaking the preconceived notion all blondes must be stupid until proven otherwise.

The “Independent, Strong” Girl– This one is understandably annoying. How often is it that when we read about a male character who is strong, cold, emotionless, and an all-around jerk, but he’s handsome, our first immediate thought is “God, no?” Because those kinds of male characters are boring and rude, and make us want to throw things. So why is it that some authors choose to make their female characters just like this? A famous example of such a toxic FMC was Captain Marvel from the 2019 film “Captain Marvel.” Carol Danvers’s journey throughout the movie was supposed to be her acceptance of emotions and failure, but by the end, her character had not developed at all, and she was just as cold and annoying as the beginning. The best way to avoid this kind of cliche? For most newbies, my advice would be to stay away from this particular cliche until you feel you’ve mastered the other cliches because while the others done wrong can be funny, this cliche done wrong is often viewed as insulting and demeaning, or just incredibly antagonizing.

The gossiper- This one is probably the most obvious, mostly because all of us have seen at least a few when we were in school. The gossip girls, the ones who stood straight in the middle of the high school hallways and would not stop talking, forced everyone to not only maneuver around them but also hear the latest earful of, “Did you hear what Sheila did last weekend?” Unfortunately, I did not hear what Sheila did, nor did I care. And I doubt your reader will either if you choose to write your gossiper as one dimensional as that. The best way to execute this cliche would be to narrate it through this character’s point of view and allow them to grow and show why they feel the need to consistently poke their noses in everyone else’s business. Did her parents never tell her important things when she was young, not divulging the reasons for their arguments till “the table talk,” where she hears they’re getting divorced? Or did her best friend tell everyone her deepest secret in third grade and now she tells everyone everything just as a way of trying to redeem herself in her own eyes? While this character isn’t always the best idea for all plots, done well, they can be wonderful additions to your cast!

Mean Girls 2.0- We all had to hear the read-aloud in elementary and middle school where the character is bullied by a mean girl, right? The mean girl, usually a mix of “The Blonde,” and “Mean Girls 2.0” often has no reason to bully this other kid, and never has any back story to it. But some writers still say to me, “But this actually happened to me!” Okay, so this happened to you, but reality isn’t always so great at being realistic. The point of a novel, for fiction, is to transport you to another world, whether it be the Wisconsin countryside in 1950 to a futuristic planet set in the year 3672 A.D. Just like dialogue, characters don’t always have to be realistic, otherwise, they won’t feel realistic. While this might seem confusing, it’s a very important concept in writing fiction. Being realistic often means ignoring reality.

The Ms. Havisham- This character is especially entertaining! Ms. Havisham, from Charles Dickinson’s famous novel, was an old woman who has lived in her wedding dress since she was jilted at the altar by her fiance. These are the cliches that are always pining after a man, whether it be their husbands, lovers, or boyfriends that dumped them. They would usually do anything for their infatuation’s attention, and live for their praise. While the Ms. Havisham done right can be especially entertaining, done wrong, she can be a character your readers quickly grow bored of. And if your readers are bored with your characters, chances are, they won’t want to read your book. Done right, the Ms. Havisham can be a comedic relief, a woman whose obsession went so far, that it’s hilarious to readers who think it’s so vastly overdone, it’s ridiculous. or, she can be the chill factor, making your readers feel real terror when she steps out of the shadows, gun in hand and a psychotic glint in her eye as she snarls at the MC, “Get away from my husband.”

Character Inspiration.

What inspires you to write certain parts of a character’s personality? Some writers think there is a magical solution to getting inspiration, but while there is no miracle cure-all to getting inspiration, there are some tried and true methods.

• Observing people: I found some amazing character ideas can come from just seeing how people interact with each other. I was shopping at Costco when I heard two college girls talking about how one of them couldn’t afford to go to college, and one of them asked why she couldn’t just apply for student loans. The ensuing conversation was so interesting, it inspired my story, “Now Why Would I Do That….” People are so unique themselves, they can inspire characters and stories in the oddest of ways!
• Music: Music is a fun, carefree way of inspiring your characters, from Taylor Swift to Imagine Dragons, your character can be vengeful, cheerful, and psychotic, and your well will never dry up!
• Books!: This is my favorite method of getting inspiration. Books give me ideas on all different sorts of characters, like how Legend from Caraval helped inspire my idea of using illusions as a form of dark, forbidden magic. Even if you don’t feel like reading inspires you, then reading is still essential to writing. Reading shows us the best examples of the genres we are trying to write and can show us some common pitfalls and some major ideas and themes that are necessary for each genre. [i.e. romance needs to have some sort of conflict to drive the MCs apart before they can resolve it and live happily ever after]

Resources

Quintessential Pen 47 Questions for your characters – The Quintessential Pen – 47 Questions

150+ Character Quirks and Cliches to Avoid – Reedsy: Character Quirks

Masterclass Writing Character Development – Masterclass – 45 Questions

Dramatics 99 Questions – Dramatics – 99 Questions

Barley Hare Books 40 Questions – Barely Hare Books – 40 Questions

Conclusion

I hope this article helps you with your writing! Best of luck with each of your characters, and please like and subscribe!