"Most people think that an intriguing plot is what makes a story good, but the truth is that exciting plots are made up of original and well-developed characters. Not only are characters with hidden depths and secrets more fun to read about, they're also more fun to write about.
It's a great idea for you, the author, to try and get to know your characters before you begin writing. The NaNoWriMo team asked a team of scientists, mathematicians, and creative writing gurus from around the world: 'What's the easiest way for writers to get to know their characters?' Hands down, the experts all agreed the single best way is to fill out NaNoWriMo's 46-Question Character Questionnaire."
For those who don't know, NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month, which takes places worldwide every November. Writers, professional and amateur, spend every day starting November 1st writing at least 1,000 words per day. There is no editing or revising, just pen to paper or finger to keyboard to get that first draft completed. Usually, by the end of the month, authors will have written about 50,000 words in total, which is the average word count for a novel.
NaNoWriMo has an amazingly supportive community of people who all love doing the same thing: writing! So, they take their annual challenge a step further and publish pieces about writing to help authors get through the steps before and after NaNoWriMo. You should check out their website; it's chock full of knowledge.
I've referenced their character questionnaire for this part of the characterization section. This is something you should definitely be doing before NaNoWriMo begins, and if you're not up to the challenge, that's fine, but you should still be thinking about characterization before you start your first draft. What's great about the writing process is you can always go back to it later on if things change for you.
I will include the link to this questionnaire as the external link so you may easily copy and paste the questionnaire below to begin your character writing process.
One thing to remember is you don't necessarily need to answer every question in this questionnaire. The point of this is to get you thinking more in depth about your characters. Who are they really? What do they want in life? What are their worst fears? Having a thorough understanding of who your characters are as human beings (or not... for fantasy writers) will make writing about them easier. This questionnaire will help you get there.
1. Name:
2. Age:
3. Height:
4. Eye color:
5. Physical appearance:
6. Strange or unique physical attributes:
7. Favorite clothing style/outfit:
8. Where does he or she live? What is it like there?
9. Defining gestures/movements (i.e., curling his or her lip when he or she speaks, always keeping his or her eyes on the ground, etc.):
10. Things about his or her appearance he or she would most like to change:
11. Speaking style (fast, talkative, monotone, etc.):
12. Pet peeves:
13. Fondest memory:
14. Hobbies/interests:
15. Special skills/abilities:
16. Insecurities:
17. Quirks/eccentricities:
18. Temperament (easy going, easily angered, etc.):
19. Negative traits:
20. Things that upset him or her:
21. Things that embarrass him or her:
22. This character is highly opinionated about:
23. Any phobias?
24. Things that make him or her happy:
25. Family (describe):
26. Deepest, darkest secret:
27. Reason he or she kept this secret for so long:
28. Other people's opinions of this character (What do people like about this character? What do they dislike about this character?):
29. Favorite bands/songs/type of music:
30. Favorite movies:
31. Favorite TV shows:
32. Favorite books:
33. Favorite foods:
34. Favorite sports/sports teams:
35. Political views:
36. Religion/philosophy of life:
37. Physical health:
38. Dream vacation:
39. Description of his or her house:
40. Description of his or her bedroom:
41. Any pets?
42. Best thing that has ever happened to this character:
43. Worst thing that has ever happened to this character:
44. Superstitions:
45. Three words to describe this character:
46. If a song played every time this character walked into the room, what song would it be?
Well, that's it! If you plan on tackling this questionnaire, I invite you back afterward to share your thoughts. How did it go? Did you get a better understanding of your characters that you previously didn't beforehand?
The next couple of parts will go into more depth about applying these questions to different characters in your book.
Please remember to vote!