Writing

A Writer’s Guide to Getting to Know Their Character

January 19, 2022

Okay, say you have a story idea, but have no clue who your character is aside from a couple of loosely strewn details.

Today, I’m giving you four ways that may help you to better understand such elusive people.

1. Visualize them

The first way to get a better idea of who your character may be is to put together something visual.

You could do this by making a Pinterest board for the character. Don’t limit yourself to pins showing what they look like or what their theme colors are, but try searching for quotes that resonate with who you think they are. By quotes, I mean song lyrics, poems, text messages, or any other short phrases or sentences. The pretty pretty pictures are excellent for inspiration, but I personally believe the quotes are what help you get into the character’s mindset and personality.

An alternate way to visualize the character is to actually draw them (if you are artistically inclined). While I generally go the Pinterest board way for many of my book characters, I had to draw some concept art of my DND character in order to get to know her. Think about how the character’s fashion choices shape how they prefer to express themself, or what expressions they tend to have on (happy, nervous, displeased, etc.). These may help you understand who your character is as a person.

2. Make a playlist

Another way to get to know a character is to make a playlist for them. Try picking out songs with lyrics and/or vibes that suit the character. I think song lyrics can really help in understanding a character, and sometimes, after you’ve made the playlist, you’ll find that there may be repeating words, ideas, or motifs. For example, my character Jules has themes of recklessness and/or getting carried away spread across the songs I associate with her.

I often try to create an arc with my playlists, usually following my character’s internal journey. One of my playlists begins with the character sounding lonely and isolated, but ends with the idea of finding a home for herself.

The other nice part about playlists is that you can put them on while you’re writing your book, screenplay, etc. (at least, if you write with music).

3. Write something short

A different way to get into a character’s mindset is to write something about them. Try writing a short scene from their point of view. What do they focus on? What do they care about, or what do they fear? What is the goal they are trying to accomplish in this particular scene?

And honestly, if thinking about all of the above questions is overwhelming, just write. Let the scene go wherever it wants to go — it doesn’t even have to make it into the final draft. You’re trying to get a feel for the character’s voice; it’s okay to play around.

Alternatively, you could write from an outsider’s perspective. This could be someone encountering your character, or perhaps having a discussion with them. What are the main things that stand out about the character in this conversation? For example: are they aloof, or open to chatting?

Essentially, what you’re doing here is exploring the character. These scenes can quickly become character studies, where you try to dig down to their core beliefs, desires, and/or fears. There may also be lines you write that unintentionally hint at something in their past: a betrayal, an influence, an open wound.

The more you write in your character’s point of view, or the more you write about them in general, the more you’ll get to know who they really are.

4. Keep thinking about them

My final point to understand your character is to keep them on your mind! Sometimes, ideas and characteristics will come to you as you go about your day. As you play with ideas that come and go, you’re also gradually developing them in your head. Sometimes it’s a piece of backstory, a minor detail that helps to further develop the character, or anything else that makes your mind click. It occasionally takes a while to put together a picture of the character you’re writing about, but that’s okay. Just note down ideas you like and keep going.