Comments on: How to Create Fictional Characters

By: Vanessa

Vanessa — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 10:13:21 +0000

Hello everyone,

Would be grateful for ideas on a good book as a full, rounded source of information on psychology for writers. Have found plenty for sale on the web, but no idea which is really going to hit the spot without buying them all! Any suggestions please. Many thanks.

By: Get Ready for 10 Days of Character Building | Writer's Resource Center

Get Ready for 10 Days of Character Building | Writer's Resource Center — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 21:13:30 +0000

[...] Creating Memorable Characters [...]

By: Don

Don — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 15:39:53 +0000

John, this is a really fine article. Don’t worry about all the criticism. It helped me a lot and, if it helps some people, I would think you’ve achieved your purpose.

Of course, there are many ways to conjure up and create characters. Whatever floats your boat, as they say. I don’t understand how some people can criticize a fellow writer for trying to help.

I’ve written my first novel and now have 23 rejections to show for it. Most of the criticism centers around the fact that, although it’s a mystery, there are something like 5,000 other mysteries floating around agents’ office and many of them are more unusual, better conceived, or whatever than mine. This will not stop me, but it does give me pause. I’ve read a lot of books on the matter and have decided a big problem with my mss is the main character. He needs a little more dimension.

Since I love the writing process I’ll continue to read, study and revise until I feel I have it right. Your article will help.

Thanks again. Onward and upward.

Don

By: Mohammed Safwan

Mohammed Safwan — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 18:37:31 +0000

Thnak Hewitt it was so nice reading an article like this. It has given me to a great extent enormos help in writing my story. Please forgive me if i sound a bit greedy but, I want ur help. I am writing about a character who is a person living in depression and doesnot like the way the life is going around him. And here this character meets another character who is pious and a religious person and has great super natural powers with him. Now the problem is i want to develop a plot and relationship between them so that the later one transform some of his power to the former. I am greatly confused here as I dont want this part to be like “give and take suitation”. I want the character to have a strong reason and well mannered plot behind giving the powers to the other.

By: John Hewitt

John Hewitt — Mon, 23 Apr 2007 18:17:06 +0000

Vincent, the method I outlined is a way of discovering character motivations. I do not claim that it works for everyone. Different people need different processes. I'm sorry this does not work for you. It sounds as if you would be more interested in my article: Building Characters Through Adversity.

By: VINCENT

VINCENT — Mon, 23 Apr 2007 17:43:38 +0000

I read the article on creating characters and I can’t say that I agree. What exactly does that really help any writer. In order to know fictional people I feel the best way to bring characters to life is to give them a main goal, motivation and conflict, resolution and change. This is really enough to know our characters. I’ve tried for years to create characters like the article suggests, but unfortunately it didn’t help much in knowing my characters. I didn’t really feel I knew them and something always seemed wrong. The characters won’t come alive without the main ingredients of characterization. If a main character doesn’t have a goal, motivation, and conflict, and a resolution as well as change, it’s not a worthy exercise. Practically every article I’ve read keeps giving us bad advice about creating characters and none of these articles ever mention the internal and external goals and motivation and conflict. Every character must have their own goals, their own motivations, and their own conflicts in order for them to be real and alive. When I mention these ingredients of good characterization, writers get angry. Well, too bad. The fact is without a goal, motivation and conflict the characters will never be sympathetic and real.

By: Laura

Laura — Sun, 22 Apr 2007 18:43:26 +0000

Mr Hewitt.
I just wanted to say, this is some pretty top notch advice. It has really helped me develop my characters in a novel I am currently starting. I am only 15 and I have been searching around for tips and stuff to help me with my writing and I have to say, this is the best advice and such yet. I have a plot and everything but my characters were rather dull it has to be said. With this I can now try and make my two main characters a little better.

Thank you so much.

By: Stacey

Stacey — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 01:49:15 +0000

Mr. Hewitt
I’ve wanted to say thank you for the awesome tips. I’m in the middle of writing a fiction novel, my main characters are well defined I was having problems with sub- characters how would you define their feelings and thoughts without taking away from the main characters. My biggest problem is that the sub-characters are needed to help shed light/define the main characters, their moods, their hopes and fears, ect… any suggestions would be great….
thanks
p.s. you handle the above problem quite nicely.

By: Blair

Blair — Tue, 10 Oct 2006 12:39:36 +0000

Hi Beth,
In my eyes, there are two ways to approach the problem you are facing. One is to research organised crime in general, not just the Mafia. Particularly focussing on human trafficking syndicates if at all possible. The idea is to convince the reader that your character knows more about the current criminal underworld than the average Joe (and/or Police in your storys case).

The second approach would be to plead ignorance. Put yourself in the position of one of these young women. You may think you are travelling to a better life, with job opporunities and a chance to get away from whatever country you are trying to flee, only to be thrown into a world of hardship and humiliation. Your character may not know the full story, and so that is the angle you take towards writing her.

By: Beth

Beth — Fri, 08 Sep 2006 12:17:30 +0000

Hi,
I am writing a suspense/mystery story. The protagonist is a single mom who works as a visiting nurse in the bowels of a crime infested territory. Her patients are brutally murdered one at a time and she becomes the prime suspect. The mafia controls the territory and the crimes involve transporting young teenage females for prostitution. I just don’t know much about how the operation of the mob works. Any help with this would be appreciated. Thanks a million, Beth