Strong characters and how to write them

First things first: I am NOT talking about physical strength. I am talking about characters who are compelling; characters who, if they had the chance to step off the page, would be as real as their creators / writers; characters who your readers will love, hate, feel sorry for, or hope they perish; characters who are unique and have strengths and faults of their own.

Let's start with the basics. In your story, you will have a protagonist, an antagonist, and supporting AKA secondary characters. The most common mistake writers make is portraying their protagonists as flawless heroes, their antagonists as unprincipled (or even chaotic) evil, and their secondary characters as mere shadows that appear out of nowhere when the protagonist needs them and disappear into the ether after the critical situation has been resolved.

No can do. Naturally, you don't have to treat all characters equally — tertiary characters will most likely not have the complex personality of your protagonist — but when it comes to the cast who carries the story, it might be best if you approached each character as though they were someone you know.

1. Think of one trait / quirk that makes them who they are. Physical traits are probably the easiest to come up with: bright red hair, gnarly fingers, wings, horns, you name it. These can certainly be a start, but something deeper — mental or emotional — would be even better. Consider other insightful elements of your character’s appearance, such as their mannerisms, gait, physical tics, and body language. Maybe your character hides their money in their mattress, which could point to the possibility of a troublesome childhood but could also mean they are, in fact, stealing that money. Perhaps they wear baggy clothes because they are insecure or because they're hiding something. The options are pretty much limitless. Just try to stay away from harmful stereotypes.

2. Build your character's identity. There is a lot to consider here. For starters, you need to define your character’s age, gender identity and sexuality, race, religion, ethnic background, and level of education (magical education included). You'll also need to consider your character's family history, as well as all other relationships that might have affected the way they see themselves. Language and clothes also fall into this category — if you're writing a fantasy, just having a made-up language can be tons of work, but also something that can set your character apart.

3. Establish a character’s motivations and goals. The main character’s driving force should be one of the first story elements you figure out, since the subsequent action and conflict will be driven by this motivation. Conflict means little without an emotional context. To encourage readers to invest in your character’s journey, determine why your character wants to achieve their goal. What will push them to act despite obstacles and hardships? To be on the safe side, you also need to ask yourself what will make your character give up, then force them into that exact situation so you can understand how they will act.

4. Determine their wants and needs. At the very beginning of the story, your character might be dissatisfied with their life in some way (or become dissatisfied due to early events in their journey). Consider what your character believes will resolve this discontent. What do they want to have or achieve to lead a more satisfied life? Often, what a character wants isn’t actually what they need to resolve the issues they’re experiencing in their life. If this holds true for your character, then determine what they need to realize or achieve to lead a happier / better life. You might want to ask yourself if there is such a thing as a happy life for them after all and examine all the details that would bring your character true bliss.

5. Give your characters some skills. Ideally, these skills will allow them to function in your setting, whether it's another planet, ocean, or the great beyond. If they don't have the skill now, think of a way and everything they need to do to build it. Is some sort of internal conflict preventing them from achieving the skill? Even better. Dig in and make your character fail time and time again, break them down until they rise like a phoenix.

6. Don't forget the flaws and false beliefs. By giving your character a moral shortcoming, negative character trait, quirk, fear, bias, and/or limitation, you develop a realistic character with whom readers can relate. Doubts, fears, and regrets can all lead characters to formulate false beliefs about themselves and the world that impact nearly every aspect of their characterization.

7. Consider their world-view and their daily experiences. Define their everyday reality. Ask yourself what their life was like before their story begins on those first pages. Establishing this reality is key to laying the foundation for your character’s first appearance. Then connect your setting to the character development. If your character had something they looked forward to before evil showed its ugly face, the odds are they will fight to get back what they lost. But if your character was already miserable and sought a way out, they might see whatever is happening as a blessing in disguise. If you let them give up, though, there's no story, so there has to be something worth their while and effort. Something that makes them tick. It can be as simple as a bird chirping on a window or a beautiful landscape that somehow escaped destruction. Use the world to build the character's inner strength or, if you must, completely wreck it before building it back up again.

8. Take a moment to analyze your character's hobbies and / or obsessions. These speak volumes about personality and can be useful tools as well. If your character loves reading about botany, they might have information about a plant that can save someone's life. Perhaps they spent their time working out and are hence very strong and fast — the best candidate for a task that demands such qualities.

9. Ask yourself what kind of space did your character create for themselves. Perhaps their room is filled with posters that signify their desire to travel or their entire property looks like a copy of an enchanted castle. Now, if your character is on the move, they won't have the luxury of customizing whatever space they're in, whether it's a room or a cave. But perhaps they can carry something of significance wherever they go, an item that reminds them of their loved ones and their home.

10. Analyze your character's relationships. Start with family members and expand to friends and love interests. No relationship is simple and straightforward, even that between a mother and her child. Friendship is even more complicated, and love... Well, don't get me started there. One could be willing to burn down the world to save their loved one, but also to burn their loved one to save the world.

If all the above still yields little to no success in you crafting your character, consider 'lending' them some of your friends' traits. Too uncomfortable? They'll know it's them you wrote about? Fear not, for all you need to do is go out, sit in a nearby coffee shop, and start taking notes of other people. Listen to them talk and watch how they move. Analyze their body language, their facial expressions, even the way they blink. Be discreet, though. If you have a T-shirt that says 'I'm a writer — anything you say or do might be used for my next novel', the odds are the coffee shop will soon end up empty and you'll once again be left without material.

Thankfully, there will always be people you can observe in silence, even when you go grocery shopping or just for a walk. It would take much more than Thanos and his gauntlet to condemn you to not having a single person as an inspiration.