a guide to advanced character creation and development

[elliot]

Hey everyone! This is intended to be a guide for everything you will ever need to know about making, roleplaying, and developing a fantastic character! From roleplaying newbies to ten-year veterans, hopefully everyone who reads this can take a little something away from it! As a side note, this is a guide I originally written for a traditional warriors roleplay site and am now transposing to BoB. It should still be suitable for both animal and human roleplay, as it focuses more so on characters than the world around them.

[elliot]

CREATING A CHARACTER

Creating a character doesn't involve a whole heck of a lot if you want to go the simple route: at its core, all you really need to jump in is a name, gender, appearance, and personality. In fact, some people don't even include the personality aspect! You can generate a random name and take a picture of any ol' cat you find on google images and there you have it, your very own original character! ...But if the simple route isn't for you and you'd like to make a character with a lot of time and thought put into them, a character who seems to live and breathe all on their own, that's what this guide will cover.

This section will be an in-depth look at appearance and personality and how to use those in roleplay. Of course, more than just that goes into a character: name, gender, sexuality, clan, and etc., but those are fairly simple and don't require lengthy explanation. Then there are things like character arcs and history, and while they won't be covered in this section, they will be in another.

APPEARANCE
Appearance can tell a story or it can alter it, especially when looking at the details beyond fur and eye color. Think: how has the character’s past impacted the way they look? Are they battle-scarred and well-muscled or chubby and well-groomed thanks to a life as a kittypet? The narrator also likely has an opinion about how they look - perhaps this bias makes them more confident and more likely to use their large stature to appear imposing. On the other hand, maybe they feel inferior because they are short or weak.

UTILIZING APPEARANCE That all said, when it comes to roleplaying appearance isn’t actually terribly important —  you should never, ever write two paragraphs wholly dedicated to describing your character’s fur or how they walk. Slipping it in now and then as a descriptor is alright ('Fluffypelt shook out his white fur’ or ‘the large tomcat'), especially if you need to remind the reader of what Fluffypelt looks like. The reader isn’t stupid —  simply describing a character when they arrive on the scene is incredibly heavy-handed. Instead, sprinkle them throughout the writing as little clues, but even these should be used sparingly. If the appearance is especially interesting or relevant to the plot or subject matter then yes, dwelling on it is fine! If Fluffypelt lost a leg, you can describe his awkward gait and how it would make them stand out. Maybe someone else says they think orange tabbies are the coolest — you can describe Fluffypelt reflecting on his own appearance and how he’s always hated his boring white fur. What you shouldn’t do, however, is write a lengthy description of appearance just for the purpose of writing a lengthy description of appearance, because it typically does not further the plot or character in any way. This is considered fluff, which will be touched on later.

Though the details can be important, it isn’t always necessary to be specific. Ambiguity is a powerful tool in writing — you usually won't need to include how your character has beautiful, amber-and-green-speckled eyes for them to get a good mental image of them. What is more important is typically the more abstract: using less definite descriptions such as eye color give more voice and personality to a character when just looking at appearance. Instead, focus on the nature of these physical aspects and what expression the character gives them. To demonstrate what I mean by this, here’s an example: "She stared at me with eyes like two brilliant suns, so bright and full of warmth that I was forced to look away." The color of the subject’s eyes are never mentioned, but the tone and figurative language used gives the feeling that they are intense and yet kind.

PERSONALITY
There is no truly right or wrong way to go about making a personality, but to begin you need an idea; a set of traits or perhaps a mental image of how the character will act or interact with others. If you’re really dry on ideas, there’s a generator here and a list of traits here. That said, these alone are not enough to make a personality, or at least not one that is fully fleshed out.

You’ll also want to avoid tropes or one-dimensional personalities, although even tropes can be implemented into good characters if they are expanded upon enough. Such is the process that this guide will largely attempt to cover, but what exactly is a one-dimensional character? Below is a pretty good explanation by Reddit user kamuimaru:

One-dimensional characters are also what you'd call a cardboard cutout. They don't seem like real people, so it's hard to care for them.

Let's give an example. The main character John is suicidal. He's always suicidal. He's always sad and whenever his best friend Mary comes to cheer him up, he himself in his bedroom and weeps until she goes away. He's never been happy, ever. He's never showed a glimmer of light in his gloomy demeanor.

This character is one-dimensional. Why? Sure, his story is tragic, and if I knew John I would definitely try to comfort him. I definitely wouldn't say, "Wow, he's just the sad guy. Why should I care about him? Just let him die." But yet, that's exactly what I would say to the author who wrote John!

See, I only think of him as a cardboard cutout. I don't care if John dies, because he's not a real person! He is an imaginary construct made by another author who is trying to get me to believe in him.

The ultimate reason he is a one-dimensional character is because we've only ever seen one side of him. Ever. He's ALWAYS the sad antisocial guy. If your characters are ALWAYS happy, or ALWAYS bossy, then it's a lot harder for people to believe in them, and that's what makes them a cardboard cutout. Real people in life aren't always one thing or another.

So we know what to avoid now — so how do we go about making a multi-dimensional character? It’s best to start off with a list of traits, but try to make sure they are balanced. A character should be neither made of entirely positive or negative traits, for it is a mix of the two that makes them human. People are complex, not one-sided, and traits can conflict with one another — in fact, a paradox may often make a character more interesting (e.g. an arrogant coward, a shy attention-seeker). Traits themselves are neither entirely positive or negative, as some are simply neutral and others can occasionally manifest themselves in ways that may be the opposite of their expected connotation (optimism being naive, or pessimism being rational).

Now look at these traits both individually and as a whole and ask yourself a few questions. Why do they possess these traits/how has their past shaped them? How do these traits manifest themselves and affect how the character acts? Are there exceptions to these traits? It’s also likely that they do not display the same side of their personality to everyone — their interactions with friends, family, enemies, acquaintances, and significant others will likely all be different. What attributes are highlighted depending on who they are with?

POINT OF VIEW: Another aspect to consider is how the character thinks of theirself/what traits they think they have. How do these compare to the traits they really do have? What do others think of them? Do they think they’re snobby because they never talk, when they’re really just shy? Point of view is a powerful tool, and the character’s view of theirself should often be considered during roleplay. If they think they’re incredibly clever when they’re truly oblivious and gullible, take it into account when writing!

Equally important is how the character thinks of the world around them in general. Worldview is how a character views the world around them as well as their role in that world. This is a big deal, because worldview is essentially their perception of everything around them, and thus impacts everything they do as well. Someone who sees the world as a playground full of opportunity will react differently to situations than someone who sees it as a battle ground to prove themself. Click here to read more about different types of worldviews characters can have.

Of course, traits aren’t the only thing that matter! Character motivation is a big deal — it’s the driving force behind most of what the character does. What do they want in life: to be loved, to be respected, to be leader? What are they driven by: fear, jealousy, loyalty? In theory, everything they do should be because of this and then influenced by their personality. At the very least their motivation should be to stay alive, or else they… well, wouldn’t be. Having multiple motivations (especially conflicting ones) can be a fantastic source of internal conflict — try looking here for ideas! Fear in itself, while not always the primary motivation (depending on the character), should be a driving force. No matter how big and brave or cold and uncaring, even Superman has his Kryptonite. So what’s their biggest fear? I’m not talking about spiders or the dark (although both are very spooky!), but something a little bit deeper that may very well go hand-in-hand with their primary motivation. Do they fear being evil, unloved, incompetent, insignificant, controlled, or something else?

Everyone also has their own unique moral code, even big baddies. What values do they believe in? What things will they never ever do? Why? What might they consider going in order to reach their goal? And would they break their code if pushed far enough? Moral codes can be influenced or twisted as well — maybe a character who kills does it because they think they're freeing people from a hellish existence on earth due to their own painful past. From the standpoint someone with different morals like my own this character would be considered evil for sure, but to they likely consider themself to be a hero — it's all about point of view. Some of the best characters are neither good nor evil, hero nor villain, but possess traits of both. These are often called gray morals, and a great guide on them can be found here.

PERSONALITY WORKSHEET: I've created a little character worksheet with prompts about important personality aspects, including many of those talked above. Most are intended to be answered with at least a paragraph — in the interest of making an incredibly in-depth character, it's recommended that you answer with as much detail as possible! The point is not length, but covering all of the topics thoroughly should require a good bit of writing. As always, consider their history and how things that have happened to them in their past, their upbringing, and etc affect each.

Spoiler:

TRAITS What kind of characteristics define how this character behaves, both internally and externally? Try not to think in terms of positive or negative and instead consider how each trait interacts with and impacts others to create a whole personality.

MOTIVE What is the character's overarching goal? Why do they do what they do? What is the driving force behind their actions?

RELATIONSHIPS How to they act towards those from enemy clans? People they don't like? Acquaintances? Friends? Best friends? Family members? Lovers? These should all be different.  What are the limitations for their loyalty for all of the above as well (i.e. how far they could go for them)? At the same time, what does it take for the character to consider someone a friend, best friend, family member, etc? How easily do they develop relationships, and which ones do they value the most?

MORALS What is their moral code and how does it impact their worldview? What things do they consider the worst offenses possible — what sort of things would they never even consider doing to reach their goals? What things do they think they would never do, but just might with the right push? Would they ever break their moral code? What things would lead them to this?

WEAKNESSES In the emotional sense, of course. What is their greatest fear? How does this impact them? What sort of things make them vulnerable emotionally? What do they do in that sort of situation: who do they lean on, how does it affect them, how do they move past it, and etc. Roleplaying this out can be incredibly revealing for a character's personality.

SELF-VIEW How do they view themself? What do they view as their best and worst traits, their strengths and weaknesses, their relationships with others, and how does this depart from actuality? Where do they place themself in their relationship hierarchy? Are they top priority or do they care more for certain others (in more extreme situations, everyone)? Who/what do they consider below/above them? How do they compare themself to others? Exercise: write a traditional biography from the character's point of view. How do they describe their appearance and personality? What things do they leave out, downplay, exaggerate, or even make up?

WORLDVIEW This is their perception of everything — the lens the character always peers through. A character’s world view is how the character believes the world works, his or her perceived role in the world, the character’s philosophy of life and love and a definition of what constitutes a personal goal worth pursuing. One might see the world as a ladder to climb where another may see it as a canvas to leave their mark or a playground full of opportunities. What do they consider their role and how do they believe the world words? Religion plays a big role in this. What do they think of (the meaning of) life, death, afterlife, a greater purpose, and etc?

UTILIZING PERSONALITY This is entirely different from appearance because everything that is written should be done so with personality in mind. It doesn't matter how absolutely wonderful your character's personality is on paper if it never translates into the writing itself. The number one thing to remember for this, as well as writing in general, is to show and not tell. Spot the issue with the following: The white tomcat padded over to the group and seated himself. "Hello, I'm Fluffypelt, but you guys can call me Fluff," said Fluffypelt shyly. He has a tendency to get nervous around more than one person. The problem should be obvious; it simply tells the reader that he said it 'shyly', but nothing else gives off any sense of personality. We know that Fluffypelt is supposed to be a shy tom, and yet nothing in the passage suggests this despite the author claiming that he is. This character, regardless of whatever the author may have written out about his multi-faceted personality in his bio, comes off as flat.

Unlike appearance, personality is not something you can simply state; rather, it must be conveyed.  The phrase show, don’t tell is frequently thrown around in reference to writing in general, and it’s readily applicable to writing personality by extension.  In this case, the showing part is extended to everything the character does, and this means dialogue, thoughts/feelings, and actions.

For one, consider speech patterns.  Do they hesitate when they speak?  Do they second-guess their words, do they cut themself off?  Do they often trail off?  Do they use speech stabilizers such as 'um' or 'uh'?  Conversely, do they speak definitively and with confidence?  How much do they say?  These questions often come naturally to us when writing, but they’re important considerations regardless of how conscious we are of them.  How your character expresses themself outwardly is directly related to their personality, and in dialogue this can be revealed in how they talk and what they say.  This aspect is the how, and it can convey their thoughts and feelings based on their tone.  Punctuation and the way in which words are organized are just a couple of the ways that this can be communicated to the reader.

In this same vein, now consider the what.  How much do they say, and how much are they willing to reveal?  How does this change between interactions with different characters, or when speaking to a group versus one-on-one?  When do they speak at all?  These all read into their relationships and how they communicate in general.  The sorts of things that they talk about (or don't talk about; what do they avoid?) can also say a great deal about their motivations or worldview.  Additionally, are they delicate and gentle in what they say, or are they blunt and speak their mind?

Even style and tone can convey an enormous deal about a character’s personality or emotional state — these are the things that are only implied, but leave a strong effect on the reader.  Short, choppy sentences often add drama or a sense of finality (be it positive or negative).  Long, stream-of-consciousness sentences could suggest jumbled thoughts or daydreaming/aimlessness.  Repetition of words or sentence/phrase structures can add emphasis.  Sometimes intentionally breaking grammar rules can add a great deal of individuality to writing.  All of these different techniques can be used to convey varying emotions, but you should be able to see that there is a very clear connection between particular stylistic choices and what they can get across about a personality.  And, since most write from a character’s perspective, this is very poignant. 

When you write characters in this way, nearly any situation can be utilized to become insightful and revealing.  Though I've attempted to describe the thought process and considerations that should come into play when writing personality, it's the responsibility of the writer to base the answers to the questions posed based on the situation.  Even joining threads and meet-and-greets are an opportunity to display how a character's response can be incredibly unique if you don't fall into the trap that is routine.

This section is still a work in progress!

[elliot]

one more just in case because i talk a lot

[elliot]

just kidding another one