Getting to Know Your Characters Series

The way I come up with stories is by asking “What if?” questions. The few times I’ve thought up cool characters, I haven’t been able to milk a story out of them yet. I find it interesting then that the most consistent compliment I get on my writing is that I have solid characters, and I obviously know them very well. Those two things go hand in hand. When you know your characters well, it comes out on the page. They feel like three-dimensional, well-rounded, real people.

I have used several techniques to get to know my characters. The first is just to work with them a lot. Revising isn’t just a plot or craft thing; it helps with characters, too. But there are other devices and ideas to break the ice with your characters.

Over the next few weeks, I will share some of the techniques I have used. I hope they will help you in your writing endeavors to create characters with depth. Perhaps more than that, I hope they will help you to enjoy your characters and to have fun writing!