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wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdqop3 | ikdry76 | 1,660,570,841 | 1,660,571,403 | 1 | 3 | A very good thing I use to differentiate people and keep them unique and relatable to a specific audience is HOW they react to different scenarios. Both present and past ones. Some might embrace a specific antagonist or event while others might cowar in fear. People also come from all walks of life, so use their dysfunctional family or their childhood memory of a family being murdered as a form of PTSD. | i like to differentiate my characters by drawing back on their purpose. i don’t think any two characters should serve the exact same purpose in a story, so reminding myself of the selected roles helps develop their character in different directions. i like to develop some core values/beliefs that might change over time for each character (mapping their personal journey alongside plot map), and keep coming back to it. Regarding the last question, I think it can be good to recognize the way in which an event immediately impacts a character might not be the same as the way a character is changed a few days, weeks, months, years out from the event. Time can change things, and I think it also provides fuller characters to think about how an unrelated event might influence how a character is changed by the initial event. For example, Character A develops Quality A after their experience with Event A based on how they perceive Event A. Character A experiences Event B which changes the way they perceive Event A, and therefore might change the way they perceive Quality A within themselves. Whether this leads to the abandonment of Quality A in favor of Quality B would be up to you! This was obviously an oversimplified explanation, because you don’t need to explain all of your characters qualities through events necessarily, and drawing straight parallel lines like Quality A was caused by Event A and Quality B was cause by Event B can come off flat, and like you’re leading the reader by their nose which isn’t fun to read imo. Good luck! | 0 | 562 | 3 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdedf9 | ikdwhtw | 1,660,564,516 | 1,660,573,356 | 1 | 2 | I actually incorporated a character not feeling unique into a character trait. She was a side character who was basically middle of the pack in every way, and I gave her a chapter exploring being the ignored/forgotten one and what an identity crisis it is for her. That was a lot of fun. | I do a lot of planning so any significant character I like to have more details planned about them than will ever make it into any story. I like to have set aside details that are both core and essential to the story (what’s their motivation? What do they think of other main characters? Do they have any secrets? What’s their biggest flaw and what’s the first thing a friend would say about them? etc.) as well as more mundane things about them that make them feel real. Are they an extrovert or an introvert? How do they handle a bad day? What’s their relationship with their parents like? Biggest pet peeve? For the minor details, I assume 90% of them won’t be things that I ever mention of them (or 99% if they’re a more minor character) but it helps me to give someone a genuine voice if I know them a bit better. I can tell some authors who do the same and then look for opportunities to drop these details and end up adding too much stuff that doesn’t add to the story in a distracting way. The other thing is to think of their literal voice. If you were casting a voice narrator or an actor, how would they sound? Accent? Do they talk loudly or quietly, fast or slow? Do they use a lot of slang? If you’re writing in a mostly homogenous location (all the characters are New York attorneys, or live deep in rural Louisiana swamp areas) it may be more tough to distinguish the voices, although age and gender may also impact things. Once you have a feel for the voice, some of that may be stuff you describe (such as a booming voice) and some may be things you use in the dialogue (like using slang, or how verbose they are.) In the Louisiana swamp example, grandma is probably going to talk differently than her tough crawdad fishing grandson. It can be easier for some people to just get a conversation out in neutral language where everyone sounds pretty similar and then go back and edit for voices once you have the beats of a scene, but I know other writers who feel like their characters drive the story at their core. The last thing that I use that I think helps with voice and making characters be unique is to keep in touch with the perspective you’re following. Even if you’re writing in third person, when you introduce a room or scene, you’re likely going to have different levels of importance on different details. Your third person narration may focus more on the details the main character notices in a room. Bella from Twilight, John McClane from Die Hard, and Sheldon from the Big Bang Theory might all perceive a room differently. Following each of their perspectives, they might place higher priority on different things, or may notice different things first. If you’re writing in first person with different perspectives, this can be super important, but even in third person there’s a good chance that your narrator is going to hang close to the main character (or main character of the scene)’s perspective. You may highlight things they don’t notice but the things they overlook may also be telling. Regardless, unique differences in perspective can also drive voice when writing, especially if you’re writing something that follows more than one perspective. It gives you a chance to distinguish who people are without straight up describing someone. | 0 | 8,840 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdiwca | ikdwhtw | 1,660,567,049 | 1,660,573,356 | 1 | 2 | if they were insepperable from within the friend group and while together, but all had major personalities at home or with their family lives which were completely different to each other's . Dress differently, possibly one with an accent.. etc | I do a lot of planning so any significant character I like to have more details planned about them than will ever make it into any story. I like to have set aside details that are both core and essential to the story (what’s their motivation? What do they think of other main characters? Do they have any secrets? What’s their biggest flaw and what’s the first thing a friend would say about them? etc.) as well as more mundane things about them that make them feel real. Are they an extrovert or an introvert? How do they handle a bad day? What’s their relationship with their parents like? Biggest pet peeve? For the minor details, I assume 90% of them won’t be things that I ever mention of them (or 99% if they’re a more minor character) but it helps me to give someone a genuine voice if I know them a bit better. I can tell some authors who do the same and then look for opportunities to drop these details and end up adding too much stuff that doesn’t add to the story in a distracting way. The other thing is to think of their literal voice. If you were casting a voice narrator or an actor, how would they sound? Accent? Do they talk loudly or quietly, fast or slow? Do they use a lot of slang? If you’re writing in a mostly homogenous location (all the characters are New York attorneys, or live deep in rural Louisiana swamp areas) it may be more tough to distinguish the voices, although age and gender may also impact things. Once you have a feel for the voice, some of that may be stuff you describe (such as a booming voice) and some may be things you use in the dialogue (like using slang, or how verbose they are.) In the Louisiana swamp example, grandma is probably going to talk differently than her tough crawdad fishing grandson. It can be easier for some people to just get a conversation out in neutral language where everyone sounds pretty similar and then go back and edit for voices once you have the beats of a scene, but I know other writers who feel like their characters drive the story at their core. The last thing that I use that I think helps with voice and making characters be unique is to keep in touch with the perspective you’re following. Even if you’re writing in third person, when you introduce a room or scene, you’re likely going to have different levels of importance on different details. Your third person narration may focus more on the details the main character notices in a room. Bella from Twilight, John McClane from Die Hard, and Sheldon from the Big Bang Theory might all perceive a room differently. Following each of their perspectives, they might place higher priority on different things, or may notice different things first. If you’re writing in first person with different perspectives, this can be super important, but even in third person there’s a good chance that your narrator is going to hang close to the main character (or main character of the scene)’s perspective. You may highlight things they don’t notice but the things they overlook may also be telling. Regardless, unique differences in perspective can also drive voice when writing, especially if you’re writing something that follows more than one perspective. It gives you a chance to distinguish who people are without straight up describing someone. | 0 | 6,307 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdwhtw | ikdqop3 | 1,660,573,356 | 1,660,570,841 | 2 | 1 | I do a lot of planning so any significant character I like to have more details planned about them than will ever make it into any story. I like to have set aside details that are both core and essential to the story (what’s their motivation? What do they think of other main characters? Do they have any secrets? What’s their biggest flaw and what’s the first thing a friend would say about them? etc.) as well as more mundane things about them that make them feel real. Are they an extrovert or an introvert? How do they handle a bad day? What’s their relationship with their parents like? Biggest pet peeve? For the minor details, I assume 90% of them won’t be things that I ever mention of them (or 99% if they’re a more minor character) but it helps me to give someone a genuine voice if I know them a bit better. I can tell some authors who do the same and then look for opportunities to drop these details and end up adding too much stuff that doesn’t add to the story in a distracting way. The other thing is to think of their literal voice. If you were casting a voice narrator or an actor, how would they sound? Accent? Do they talk loudly or quietly, fast or slow? Do they use a lot of slang? If you’re writing in a mostly homogenous location (all the characters are New York attorneys, or live deep in rural Louisiana swamp areas) it may be more tough to distinguish the voices, although age and gender may also impact things. Once you have a feel for the voice, some of that may be stuff you describe (such as a booming voice) and some may be things you use in the dialogue (like using slang, or how verbose they are.) In the Louisiana swamp example, grandma is probably going to talk differently than her tough crawdad fishing grandson. It can be easier for some people to just get a conversation out in neutral language where everyone sounds pretty similar and then go back and edit for voices once you have the beats of a scene, but I know other writers who feel like their characters drive the story at their core. The last thing that I use that I think helps with voice and making characters be unique is to keep in touch with the perspective you’re following. Even if you’re writing in third person, when you introduce a room or scene, you’re likely going to have different levels of importance on different details. Your third person narration may focus more on the details the main character notices in a room. Bella from Twilight, John McClane from Die Hard, and Sheldon from the Big Bang Theory might all perceive a room differently. Following each of their perspectives, they might place higher priority on different things, or may notice different things first. If you’re writing in first person with different perspectives, this can be super important, but even in third person there’s a good chance that your narrator is going to hang close to the main character (or main character of the scene)’s perspective. You may highlight things they don’t notice but the things they overlook may also be telling. Regardless, unique differences in perspective can also drive voice when writing, especially if you’re writing something that follows more than one perspective. It gives you a chance to distinguish who people are without straight up describing someone. | A very good thing I use to differentiate people and keep them unique and relatable to a specific audience is HOW they react to different scenarios. Both present and past ones. Some might embrace a specific antagonist or event while others might cowar in fear. People also come from all walks of life, so use their dysfunctional family or their childhood memory of a family being murdered as a form of PTSD. | 1 | 2,515 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdsm07 | ikdwhtw | 1,660,571,691 | 1,660,573,356 | 1 | 2 | Dunno if someone already said this or is complete BS (could be, since I started recently with prose coming from a 4-year of poetry writing background), but my take is: you are a human being and, if you are a decent One, you have empathy. Use it at its fullest. "What would I do/Say if my mind worked this way and was put in this situation?" Is the question I am asking myself more since I started writing | I do a lot of planning so any significant character I like to have more details planned about them than will ever make it into any story. I like to have set aside details that are both core and essential to the story (what’s their motivation? What do they think of other main characters? Do they have any secrets? What’s their biggest flaw and what’s the first thing a friend would say about them? etc.) as well as more mundane things about them that make them feel real. Are they an extrovert or an introvert? How do they handle a bad day? What’s their relationship with their parents like? Biggest pet peeve? For the minor details, I assume 90% of them won’t be things that I ever mention of them (or 99% if they’re a more minor character) but it helps me to give someone a genuine voice if I know them a bit better. I can tell some authors who do the same and then look for opportunities to drop these details and end up adding too much stuff that doesn’t add to the story in a distracting way. The other thing is to think of their literal voice. If you were casting a voice narrator or an actor, how would they sound? Accent? Do they talk loudly or quietly, fast or slow? Do they use a lot of slang? If you’re writing in a mostly homogenous location (all the characters are New York attorneys, or live deep in rural Louisiana swamp areas) it may be more tough to distinguish the voices, although age and gender may also impact things. Once you have a feel for the voice, some of that may be stuff you describe (such as a booming voice) and some may be things you use in the dialogue (like using slang, or how verbose they are.) In the Louisiana swamp example, grandma is probably going to talk differently than her tough crawdad fishing grandson. It can be easier for some people to just get a conversation out in neutral language where everyone sounds pretty similar and then go back and edit for voices once you have the beats of a scene, but I know other writers who feel like their characters drive the story at their core. The last thing that I use that I think helps with voice and making characters be unique is to keep in touch with the perspective you’re following. Even if you’re writing in third person, when you introduce a room or scene, you’re likely going to have different levels of importance on different details. Your third person narration may focus more on the details the main character notices in a room. Bella from Twilight, John McClane from Die Hard, and Sheldon from the Big Bang Theory might all perceive a room differently. Following each of their perspectives, they might place higher priority on different things, or may notice different things first. If you’re writing in first person with different perspectives, this can be super important, but even in third person there’s a good chance that your narrator is going to hang close to the main character (or main character of the scene)’s perspective. You may highlight things they don’t notice but the things they overlook may also be telling. Regardless, unique differences in perspective can also drive voice when writing, especially if you’re writing something that follows more than one perspective. It gives you a chance to distinguish who people are without straight up describing someone. | 0 | 1,665 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdu3ml | ikdwhtw | 1,660,572,337 | 1,660,573,356 | 1 | 2 | The more distinct you make your characters, the easier it is to portray and convey their viewpoint and give them authentic actions and thoughts. They need backstory, motivation, ideology, traits and flaws. So to break down fictional characters that are unique: Aragorn: Backstory: Lives a long time, legacy of an abusive ancestor that created shame he's attempting to overcome by his actions now. Motivation: Bad guys are lurking, he's going to lurk better until it's his time, which might be never, but looks like it's now. Ideology: Nobility and integrity without the trappings of power or authority. Traits: No-nonsense truth without attempting to be charming or persuasive. Flaws: Bad at politics because he insists on honesty and integrity. Obsessed with personal goals to the exclusion of other people's needs. So accustomed to denying his desires he has no way of detecting or honoring it in others. Gollum: Backstory: Happy hobbit until he touches the Great Ring and is corrupted. Motivation: Keep the ring. Ideology: My precious. Traits: Guile and lies due to the influence of the ring. Likes uncooked fish. Still some hobbit innocence under all the corruption that translates into a tortured inner soul that rarely surfaces. Flaws: See re: corruption, a creature that has served addiction for centuries and doesn't want that to change. These two characters are written by the same author in the same story, there's no way they're going to be mistaken for each other. | I do a lot of planning so any significant character I like to have more details planned about them than will ever make it into any story. I like to have set aside details that are both core and essential to the story (what’s their motivation? What do they think of other main characters? Do they have any secrets? What’s their biggest flaw and what’s the first thing a friend would say about them? etc.) as well as more mundane things about them that make them feel real. Are they an extrovert or an introvert? How do they handle a bad day? What’s their relationship with their parents like? Biggest pet peeve? For the minor details, I assume 90% of them won’t be things that I ever mention of them (or 99% if they’re a more minor character) but it helps me to give someone a genuine voice if I know them a bit better. I can tell some authors who do the same and then look for opportunities to drop these details and end up adding too much stuff that doesn’t add to the story in a distracting way. The other thing is to think of their literal voice. If you were casting a voice narrator or an actor, how would they sound? Accent? Do they talk loudly or quietly, fast or slow? Do they use a lot of slang? If you’re writing in a mostly homogenous location (all the characters are New York attorneys, or live deep in rural Louisiana swamp areas) it may be more tough to distinguish the voices, although age and gender may also impact things. Once you have a feel for the voice, some of that may be stuff you describe (such as a booming voice) and some may be things you use in the dialogue (like using slang, or how verbose they are.) In the Louisiana swamp example, grandma is probably going to talk differently than her tough crawdad fishing grandson. It can be easier for some people to just get a conversation out in neutral language where everyone sounds pretty similar and then go back and edit for voices once you have the beats of a scene, but I know other writers who feel like their characters drive the story at their core. The last thing that I use that I think helps with voice and making characters be unique is to keep in touch with the perspective you’re following. Even if you’re writing in third person, when you introduce a room or scene, you’re likely going to have different levels of importance on different details. Your third person narration may focus more on the details the main character notices in a room. Bella from Twilight, John McClane from Die Hard, and Sheldon from the Big Bang Theory might all perceive a room differently. Following each of their perspectives, they might place higher priority on different things, or may notice different things first. If you’re writing in first person with different perspectives, this can be super important, but even in third person there’s a good chance that your narrator is going to hang close to the main character (or main character of the scene)’s perspective. You may highlight things they don’t notice but the things they overlook may also be telling. Regardless, unique differences in perspective can also drive voice when writing, especially if you’re writing something that follows more than one perspective. It gives you a chance to distinguish who people are without straight up describing someone. | 0 | 1,019 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdwhtw | ikdvktu | 1,660,573,356 | 1,660,572,972 | 2 | 1 | I do a lot of planning so any significant character I like to have more details planned about them than will ever make it into any story. I like to have set aside details that are both core and essential to the story (what’s their motivation? What do they think of other main characters? Do they have any secrets? What’s their biggest flaw and what’s the first thing a friend would say about them? etc.) as well as more mundane things about them that make them feel real. Are they an extrovert or an introvert? How do they handle a bad day? What’s their relationship with their parents like? Biggest pet peeve? For the minor details, I assume 90% of them won’t be things that I ever mention of them (or 99% if they’re a more minor character) but it helps me to give someone a genuine voice if I know them a bit better. I can tell some authors who do the same and then look for opportunities to drop these details and end up adding too much stuff that doesn’t add to the story in a distracting way. The other thing is to think of their literal voice. If you were casting a voice narrator or an actor, how would they sound? Accent? Do they talk loudly or quietly, fast or slow? Do they use a lot of slang? If you’re writing in a mostly homogenous location (all the characters are New York attorneys, or live deep in rural Louisiana swamp areas) it may be more tough to distinguish the voices, although age and gender may also impact things. Once you have a feel for the voice, some of that may be stuff you describe (such as a booming voice) and some may be things you use in the dialogue (like using slang, or how verbose they are.) In the Louisiana swamp example, grandma is probably going to talk differently than her tough crawdad fishing grandson. It can be easier for some people to just get a conversation out in neutral language where everyone sounds pretty similar and then go back and edit for voices once you have the beats of a scene, but I know other writers who feel like their characters drive the story at their core. The last thing that I use that I think helps with voice and making characters be unique is to keep in touch with the perspective you’re following. Even if you’re writing in third person, when you introduce a room or scene, you’re likely going to have different levels of importance on different details. Your third person narration may focus more on the details the main character notices in a room. Bella from Twilight, John McClane from Die Hard, and Sheldon from the Big Bang Theory might all perceive a room differently. Following each of their perspectives, they might place higher priority on different things, or may notice different things first. If you’re writing in first person with different perspectives, this can be super important, but even in third person there’s a good chance that your narrator is going to hang close to the main character (or main character of the scene)’s perspective. You may highlight things they don’t notice but the things they overlook may also be telling. Regardless, unique differences in perspective can also drive voice when writing, especially if you’re writing something that follows more than one perspective. It gives you a chance to distinguish who people are without straight up describing someone. | I start by developing my characters, their backstories and what not. As my story progresses, at some point I make a mental note to let the characters develop and write themselves rather than me force a set path onto them. | 1 | 384 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdedf9 | ikgcljs | 1,660,564,516 | 1,660,608,461 | 1 | 2 | I actually incorporated a character not feeling unique into a character trait. She was a side character who was basically middle of the pack in every way, and I gave her a chapter exploring being the ignored/forgotten one and what an identity crisis it is for her. That was a lot of fun. | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | 0 | 43,945 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgcljs | ikdiwca | 1,660,608,461 | 1,660,567,049 | 2 | 1 | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | if they were insepperable from within the friend group and while together, but all had major personalities at home or with their family lives which were completely different to each other's . Dress differently, possibly one with an accent.. etc | 1 | 41,412 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdqop3 | ikgcljs | 1,660,570,841 | 1,660,608,461 | 1 | 2 | A very good thing I use to differentiate people and keep them unique and relatable to a specific audience is HOW they react to different scenarios. Both present and past ones. Some might embrace a specific antagonist or event while others might cowar in fear. People also come from all walks of life, so use their dysfunctional family or their childhood memory of a family being murdered as a form of PTSD. | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | 0 | 37,620 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdsm07 | ikgcljs | 1,660,571,691 | 1,660,608,461 | 1 | 2 | Dunno if someone already said this or is complete BS (could be, since I started recently with prose coming from a 4-year of poetry writing background), but my take is: you are a human being and, if you are a decent One, you have empathy. Use it at its fullest. "What would I do/Say if my mind worked this way and was put in this situation?" Is the question I am asking myself more since I started writing | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | 0 | 36,770 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgcljs | ikdu3ml | 1,660,608,461 | 1,660,572,337 | 2 | 1 | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | The more distinct you make your characters, the easier it is to portray and convey their viewpoint and give them authentic actions and thoughts. They need backstory, motivation, ideology, traits and flaws. So to break down fictional characters that are unique: Aragorn: Backstory: Lives a long time, legacy of an abusive ancestor that created shame he's attempting to overcome by his actions now. Motivation: Bad guys are lurking, he's going to lurk better until it's his time, which might be never, but looks like it's now. Ideology: Nobility and integrity without the trappings of power or authority. Traits: No-nonsense truth without attempting to be charming or persuasive. Flaws: Bad at politics because he insists on honesty and integrity. Obsessed with personal goals to the exclusion of other people's needs. So accustomed to denying his desires he has no way of detecting or honoring it in others. Gollum: Backstory: Happy hobbit until he touches the Great Ring and is corrupted. Motivation: Keep the ring. Ideology: My precious. Traits: Guile and lies due to the influence of the ring. Likes uncooked fish. Still some hobbit innocence under all the corruption that translates into a tortured inner soul that rarely surfaces. Flaws: See re: corruption, a creature that has served addiction for centuries and doesn't want that to change. These two characters are written by the same author in the same story, there's no way they're going to be mistaken for each other. | 1 | 36,124 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgcljs | ikdvktu | 1,660,608,461 | 1,660,572,972 | 2 | 1 | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | I start by developing my characters, their backstories and what not. As my story progresses, at some point I make a mental note to let the characters develop and write themselves rather than me force a set path onto them. | 1 | 35,489 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdzy9n | ikgcljs | 1,660,574,784 | 1,660,608,461 | 1 | 2 | There's plenty of stuff here about motivation and goals as well as backstory, I would also like to point out physicality. I personally find it very helpful to think carefully about how my characters look, and make them physically very different from each other. From their physical forms, habits and ticks can emerge. Like if a certain character has a pair of glasses that's always falling off their nose. Or a very large character moves very very slowly to avoid accidents. Someone may walk with a limp, someone may lisp due to an overbite, someone may be self-conscious because of premature hair loss. Physicality is no substitute for solid motivation and goal, but it can provide flavoring and give your prose something to latch onto. | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | 0 | 33,677 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgcljs | ike1eny | 1,660,608,461 | 1,660,575,377 | 2 | 1 | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | This is not a unique problem; a lot of new writers struggle with this. | 1 | 33,084 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ike1was | ikgcljs | 1,660,575,582 | 1,660,608,461 | 1 | 2 | Backstory. I have a big cast because I blended universes, so little quirks in personality. Even the identical twins have varying personality traits. I've got a guy with unspeakable anger issues but a protective heart of gold, the girl who loves chaos, the baby of the group (someone's kid brother becomes the collective baby brother) who loves to skate, people older beyond their years, so much trauma. Some have stories that unfold here, and some have others that will unfold down the road. | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | 0 | 32,879 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgcljs | ike355m | 1,660,608,461 | 1,660,576,091 | 2 | 1 | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | My writing class teacher always reminded us to make lists about any special traits or quirks each character has. Things like how they sound when they talk, how they phrase things, their habits and fidgets. You can show a lot of a character's personality through their dialogue and short tidbits of description. Even just keeping these things in mind when writing your characters will help you keep each character unique. | 1 | 32,370 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgcljs | ike4h8l | 1,660,608,461 | 1,660,576,640 | 2 | 1 | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | In simplest terms, every character should "want" something. Whether it's power, revenge, or friendship, they should have a current lack and a need to fill that lack. Give every character a different goal or need, and the path they must take to achieve it will become more clear, especially in context of the other characters. Maybe two friends want opposing outcomes. That creates conflict. Or maybe a villain wants something similar to the hero, giving an opportunity to reluctantly work together. There are many more specific strategies, but the starting point should always be motivation. | 1 | 31,821 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ike7q7d | ikgcljs | 1,660,577,945 | 1,660,608,461 | 1 | 2 | Different development implies that they have different problems and flaws from the start so for your characters to feel different they need to grow in different ways wether that’s maturity, learning a lesson, accepting a truth. Etc. Or another way to make them feel different is to give them different quirks, take Scooby Doo for example. They have very recognizable characters because they all act different throughout the story. Shaggy is scared and cautious, he often eats large amount of food and has a dog best friend. If I asked you to guess which character I was referencing you wouldn’t say Velma or Fred because they act differently. | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | 0 | 30,516 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ike97w0 | ikgcljs | 1,660,578,535 | 1,660,608,461 | 1 | 2 | I would primarily focus on their backstory and their reaction to things. If they have a backstory that sets clear, distnct reasons and motives for goals or how they act, they're likely to be a stand-out in mundane scenes or settings and their reaction makes sense. Character development. Through the character's experiences through out a novel or series, show how they build up as a person, either for the better or worse or whatever. Like Bungo stray dogs, how they show several different people in the same affiliation, and they all develop in different ways yet they're all in the same place under the same person. | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | 0 | 29,926 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgcljs | ike9eiq | 1,660,608,461 | 1,660,578,606 | 2 | 1 | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | The first thing I do is think about their personality by taking elements from people I know that could be a source of conflict, like someone who longs for companionship, but has that social awkwardness. Then I make a looser-based example of the event happening. By taking elements of others' personalities, it makes it more believable and relatable. | 1 | 29,855 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikeapyj | ikgcljs | 1,660,579,126 | 1,660,608,461 | 1 | 2 | Beliefs relative to theme | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | 0 | 29,335 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgcljs | ikei3nh | 1,660,608,461 | 1,660,582,000 | 2 | 1 | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | In a word, flaws. Don’t make characters perfect. Every major character has at least one flaw. Maybe it’s physical like limp or a speech impediment. Maybe it’s emotional like they have depression. Or something like a compulsive shoplifter. | 1 | 26,461 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgcljs | ikejc7z | 1,660,608,461 | 1,660,582,472 | 2 | 1 | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | Don't have too many characters. More characters in the same length of story dilutes things, makes it harder for character to show their complexity. Have each character fulfill multiple 'functions' in the story. A character who is comic relief AND the wise mentor who is powerful in action scenes and dispenses wisdom readers will feel affected by, is going to be a strong and enduring character compared to having all of those functions fulfilled by different characters. Try to make literally everything a character does drip with their own special traits. Not just their big moments but everything from how they greet people, curse, their sense of humor, life philosophy, needs and desires, whether they walk or march or trudge or bound. Let your characters affect each other. A good cast of characters isn't just a bunch of individually interesting characters. They should have chemistry--strong reactions to each other. Often reasons to hate and love each other make for a lot of memorable characters. Then let us see the way they have changed each other--the lessons they've learned, right or wrong. I often find it realistic for my characters to 'learn something' but then they fumble it because it's not their usual approach, so they take a step back to their old ways, run into the same problems from their old ways *again*, then realize a more measured application of the lessons they have been learning combining their own unique experiences is what will actually work when they try it. In real life it often takes way way longer for people to significantly change, but in fiction we often want to see characters learn quickly and then stay that way. Don't try to make all your characters 'cool characters.' Since we all kinda have our own idea of what that is, it will often lead to all your characters being similar. Instead try to just give each of them some cool aspects. Like a character can be conventionally lame in a lot of ways but if they do the right thing when it really matters then they will be memorable. | 1 | 25,989 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgcljs | ikemr3r | 1,660,608,461 | 1,660,583,797 | 2 | 1 | It's true some writers love making every character speak differently and have different accents or quirks or such, but I personally find that to be quite annoying. It just makes it harder to read for no real benefit, and always feels cheap and tacked on. I'd rather have the characters' personalities be differentiated by the content of what they're saying. Everyone has their own motivations and values and I'd go from there. | You could make the main character think only of him self and would accidentally or be forced to help people to get stronger | 1 | 24,664 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdedf9 | ikgodiu | 1,660,564,516 | 1,660,613,618 | 1 | 2 | I actually incorporated a character not feeling unique into a character trait. She was a side character who was basically middle of the pack in every way, and I gave her a chapter exploring being the ignored/forgotten one and what an identity crisis it is for her. That was a lot of fun. | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | 0 | 49,102 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgodiu | ikdiwca | 1,660,613,618 | 1,660,567,049 | 2 | 1 | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | if they were insepperable from within the friend group and while together, but all had major personalities at home or with their family lives which were completely different to each other's . Dress differently, possibly one with an accent.. etc | 1 | 46,569 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdqop3 | ikgodiu | 1,660,570,841 | 1,660,613,618 | 1 | 2 | A very good thing I use to differentiate people and keep them unique and relatable to a specific audience is HOW they react to different scenarios. Both present and past ones. Some might embrace a specific antagonist or event while others might cowar in fear. People also come from all walks of life, so use their dysfunctional family or their childhood memory of a family being murdered as a form of PTSD. | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | 0 | 42,777 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdsm07 | ikgodiu | 1,660,571,691 | 1,660,613,618 | 1 | 2 | Dunno if someone already said this or is complete BS (could be, since I started recently with prose coming from a 4-year of poetry writing background), but my take is: you are a human being and, if you are a decent One, you have empathy. Use it at its fullest. "What would I do/Say if my mind worked this way and was put in this situation?" Is the question I am asking myself more since I started writing | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | 0 | 41,927 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdu3ml | ikgodiu | 1,660,572,337 | 1,660,613,618 | 1 | 2 | The more distinct you make your characters, the easier it is to portray and convey their viewpoint and give them authentic actions and thoughts. They need backstory, motivation, ideology, traits and flaws. So to break down fictional characters that are unique: Aragorn: Backstory: Lives a long time, legacy of an abusive ancestor that created shame he's attempting to overcome by his actions now. Motivation: Bad guys are lurking, he's going to lurk better until it's his time, which might be never, but looks like it's now. Ideology: Nobility and integrity without the trappings of power or authority. Traits: No-nonsense truth without attempting to be charming or persuasive. Flaws: Bad at politics because he insists on honesty and integrity. Obsessed with personal goals to the exclusion of other people's needs. So accustomed to denying his desires he has no way of detecting or honoring it in others. Gollum: Backstory: Happy hobbit until he touches the Great Ring and is corrupted. Motivation: Keep the ring. Ideology: My precious. Traits: Guile and lies due to the influence of the ring. Likes uncooked fish. Still some hobbit innocence under all the corruption that translates into a tortured inner soul that rarely surfaces. Flaws: See re: corruption, a creature that has served addiction for centuries and doesn't want that to change. These two characters are written by the same author in the same story, there's no way they're going to be mistaken for each other. | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | 0 | 41,281 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdvktu | ikgodiu | 1,660,572,972 | 1,660,613,618 | 1 | 2 | I start by developing my characters, their backstories and what not. As my story progresses, at some point I make a mental note to let the characters develop and write themselves rather than me force a set path onto them. | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | 0 | 40,646 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgodiu | ikdzy9n | 1,660,613,618 | 1,660,574,784 | 2 | 1 | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | There's plenty of stuff here about motivation and goals as well as backstory, I would also like to point out physicality. I personally find it very helpful to think carefully about how my characters look, and make them physically very different from each other. From their physical forms, habits and ticks can emerge. Like if a certain character has a pair of glasses that's always falling off their nose. Or a very large character moves very very slowly to avoid accidents. Someone may walk with a limp, someone may lisp due to an overbite, someone may be self-conscious because of premature hair loss. Physicality is no substitute for solid motivation and goal, but it can provide flavoring and give your prose something to latch onto. | 1 | 38,834 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgodiu | ike1eny | 1,660,613,618 | 1,660,575,377 | 2 | 1 | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | This is not a unique problem; a lot of new writers struggle with this. | 1 | 38,241 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ike1was | ikgodiu | 1,660,575,582 | 1,660,613,618 | 1 | 2 | Backstory. I have a big cast because I blended universes, so little quirks in personality. Even the identical twins have varying personality traits. I've got a guy with unspeakable anger issues but a protective heart of gold, the girl who loves chaos, the baby of the group (someone's kid brother becomes the collective baby brother) who loves to skate, people older beyond their years, so much trauma. Some have stories that unfold here, and some have others that will unfold down the road. | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | 0 | 38,036 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgodiu | ike355m | 1,660,613,618 | 1,660,576,091 | 2 | 1 | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | My writing class teacher always reminded us to make lists about any special traits or quirks each character has. Things like how they sound when they talk, how they phrase things, their habits and fidgets. You can show a lot of a character's personality through their dialogue and short tidbits of description. Even just keeping these things in mind when writing your characters will help you keep each character unique. | 1 | 37,527 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgodiu | ike4h8l | 1,660,613,618 | 1,660,576,640 | 2 | 1 | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | In simplest terms, every character should "want" something. Whether it's power, revenge, or friendship, they should have a current lack and a need to fill that lack. Give every character a different goal or need, and the path they must take to achieve it will become more clear, especially in context of the other characters. Maybe two friends want opposing outcomes. That creates conflict. Or maybe a villain wants something similar to the hero, giving an opportunity to reluctantly work together. There are many more specific strategies, but the starting point should always be motivation. | 1 | 36,978 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ike7q7d | ikgodiu | 1,660,577,945 | 1,660,613,618 | 1 | 2 | Different development implies that they have different problems and flaws from the start so for your characters to feel different they need to grow in different ways wether that’s maturity, learning a lesson, accepting a truth. Etc. Or another way to make them feel different is to give them different quirks, take Scooby Doo for example. They have very recognizable characters because they all act different throughout the story. Shaggy is scared and cautious, he often eats large amount of food and has a dog best friend. If I asked you to guess which character I was referencing you wouldn’t say Velma or Fred because they act differently. | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | 0 | 35,673 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgodiu | ike97w0 | 1,660,613,618 | 1,660,578,535 | 2 | 1 | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | I would primarily focus on their backstory and their reaction to things. If they have a backstory that sets clear, distnct reasons and motives for goals or how they act, they're likely to be a stand-out in mundane scenes or settings and their reaction makes sense. Character development. Through the character's experiences through out a novel or series, show how they build up as a person, either for the better or worse or whatever. Like Bungo stray dogs, how they show several different people in the same affiliation, and they all develop in different ways yet they're all in the same place under the same person. | 1 | 35,083 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgodiu | ike9eiq | 1,660,613,618 | 1,660,578,606 | 2 | 1 | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | The first thing I do is think about their personality by taking elements from people I know that could be a source of conflict, like someone who longs for companionship, but has that social awkwardness. Then I make a looser-based example of the event happening. By taking elements of others' personalities, it makes it more believable and relatable. | 1 | 35,012 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikeapyj | ikgodiu | 1,660,579,126 | 1,660,613,618 | 1 | 2 | Beliefs relative to theme | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | 0 | 34,492 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgodiu | ikei3nh | 1,660,613,618 | 1,660,582,000 | 2 | 1 | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | In a word, flaws. Don’t make characters perfect. Every major character has at least one flaw. Maybe it’s physical like limp or a speech impediment. Maybe it’s emotional like they have depression. Or something like a compulsive shoplifter. | 1 | 31,618 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgodiu | ikejc7z | 1,660,613,618 | 1,660,582,472 | 2 | 1 | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | Don't have too many characters. More characters in the same length of story dilutes things, makes it harder for character to show their complexity. Have each character fulfill multiple 'functions' in the story. A character who is comic relief AND the wise mentor who is powerful in action scenes and dispenses wisdom readers will feel affected by, is going to be a strong and enduring character compared to having all of those functions fulfilled by different characters. Try to make literally everything a character does drip with their own special traits. Not just their big moments but everything from how they greet people, curse, their sense of humor, life philosophy, needs and desires, whether they walk or march or trudge or bound. Let your characters affect each other. A good cast of characters isn't just a bunch of individually interesting characters. They should have chemistry--strong reactions to each other. Often reasons to hate and love each other make for a lot of memorable characters. Then let us see the way they have changed each other--the lessons they've learned, right or wrong. I often find it realistic for my characters to 'learn something' but then they fumble it because it's not their usual approach, so they take a step back to their old ways, run into the same problems from their old ways *again*, then realize a more measured application of the lessons they have been learning combining their own unique experiences is what will actually work when they try it. In real life it often takes way way longer for people to significantly change, but in fiction we often want to see characters learn quickly and then stay that way. Don't try to make all your characters 'cool characters.' Since we all kinda have our own idea of what that is, it will often lead to all your characters being similar. Instead try to just give each of them some cool aspects. Like a character can be conventionally lame in a lot of ways but if they do the right thing when it really matters then they will be memorable. | 1 | 31,146 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikemr3r | ikgodiu | 1,660,583,797 | 1,660,613,618 | 1 | 2 | You could make the main character think only of him self and would accidentally or be forced to help people to get stronger | Backstories and agendas usually drive characters I have one character that’s poor, lives in a dangerous neighborhood and has a shit mother. It makes her into a badass that fights for survival I have twins that lost their parents, but are loved by their aunt and uncle. the backstory with both is that one has learned to fight and the other hasn’t making one defending his brother through violence and the other through dialogue It really changes and there is an infinite number of ways you can make a complex character | 0 | 29,821 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgyc3y | ikdedf9 | 1,660,618,011 | 1,660,564,516 | 2 | 1 | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | I actually incorporated a character not feeling unique into a character trait. She was a side character who was basically middle of the pack in every way, and I gave her a chapter exploring being the ignored/forgotten one and what an identity crisis it is for her. That was a lot of fun. | 1 | 53,495 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdiwca | ikgyc3y | 1,660,567,049 | 1,660,618,011 | 1 | 2 | if they were insepperable from within the friend group and while together, but all had major personalities at home or with their family lives which were completely different to each other's . Dress differently, possibly one with an accent.. etc | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | 0 | 50,962 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdqop3 | ikgyc3y | 1,660,570,841 | 1,660,618,011 | 1 | 2 | A very good thing I use to differentiate people and keep them unique and relatable to a specific audience is HOW they react to different scenarios. Both present and past ones. Some might embrace a specific antagonist or event while others might cowar in fear. People also come from all walks of life, so use their dysfunctional family or their childhood memory of a family being murdered as a form of PTSD. | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | 0 | 47,170 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdsm07 | ikgyc3y | 1,660,571,691 | 1,660,618,011 | 1 | 2 | Dunno if someone already said this or is complete BS (could be, since I started recently with prose coming from a 4-year of poetry writing background), but my take is: you are a human being and, if you are a decent One, you have empathy. Use it at its fullest. "What would I do/Say if my mind worked this way and was put in this situation?" Is the question I am asking myself more since I started writing | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | 0 | 46,320 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdu3ml | ikgyc3y | 1,660,572,337 | 1,660,618,011 | 1 | 2 | The more distinct you make your characters, the easier it is to portray and convey their viewpoint and give them authentic actions and thoughts. They need backstory, motivation, ideology, traits and flaws. So to break down fictional characters that are unique: Aragorn: Backstory: Lives a long time, legacy of an abusive ancestor that created shame he's attempting to overcome by his actions now. Motivation: Bad guys are lurking, he's going to lurk better until it's his time, which might be never, but looks like it's now. Ideology: Nobility and integrity without the trappings of power or authority. Traits: No-nonsense truth without attempting to be charming or persuasive. Flaws: Bad at politics because he insists on honesty and integrity. Obsessed with personal goals to the exclusion of other people's needs. So accustomed to denying his desires he has no way of detecting or honoring it in others. Gollum: Backstory: Happy hobbit until he touches the Great Ring and is corrupted. Motivation: Keep the ring. Ideology: My precious. Traits: Guile and lies due to the influence of the ring. Likes uncooked fish. Still some hobbit innocence under all the corruption that translates into a tortured inner soul that rarely surfaces. Flaws: See re: corruption, a creature that has served addiction for centuries and doesn't want that to change. These two characters are written by the same author in the same story, there's no way they're going to be mistaken for each other. | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | 0 | 45,674 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgyc3y | ikdvktu | 1,660,618,011 | 1,660,572,972 | 2 | 1 | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | I start by developing my characters, their backstories and what not. As my story progresses, at some point I make a mental note to let the characters develop and write themselves rather than me force a set path onto them. | 1 | 45,039 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikdzy9n | ikgyc3y | 1,660,574,784 | 1,660,618,011 | 1 | 2 | There's plenty of stuff here about motivation and goals as well as backstory, I would also like to point out physicality. I personally find it very helpful to think carefully about how my characters look, and make them physically very different from each other. From their physical forms, habits and ticks can emerge. Like if a certain character has a pair of glasses that's always falling off their nose. Or a very large character moves very very slowly to avoid accidents. Someone may walk with a limp, someone may lisp due to an overbite, someone may be self-conscious because of premature hair loss. Physicality is no substitute for solid motivation and goal, but it can provide flavoring and give your prose something to latch onto. | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | 0 | 43,227 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgyc3y | ike1eny | 1,660,618,011 | 1,660,575,377 | 2 | 1 | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | This is not a unique problem; a lot of new writers struggle with this. | 1 | 42,634 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ike1was | ikgyc3y | 1,660,575,582 | 1,660,618,011 | 1 | 2 | Backstory. I have a big cast because I blended universes, so little quirks in personality. Even the identical twins have varying personality traits. I've got a guy with unspeakable anger issues but a protective heart of gold, the girl who loves chaos, the baby of the group (someone's kid brother becomes the collective baby brother) who loves to skate, people older beyond their years, so much trauma. Some have stories that unfold here, and some have others that will unfold down the road. | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | 0 | 42,429 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ike355m | ikgyc3y | 1,660,576,091 | 1,660,618,011 | 1 | 2 | My writing class teacher always reminded us to make lists about any special traits or quirks each character has. Things like how they sound when they talk, how they phrase things, their habits and fidgets. You can show a lot of a character's personality through their dialogue and short tidbits of description. Even just keeping these things in mind when writing your characters will help you keep each character unique. | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | 0 | 41,920 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ike4h8l | ikgyc3y | 1,660,576,640 | 1,660,618,011 | 1 | 2 | In simplest terms, every character should "want" something. Whether it's power, revenge, or friendship, they should have a current lack and a need to fill that lack. Give every character a different goal or need, and the path they must take to achieve it will become more clear, especially in context of the other characters. Maybe two friends want opposing outcomes. That creates conflict. Or maybe a villain wants something similar to the hero, giving an opportunity to reluctantly work together. There are many more specific strategies, but the starting point should always be motivation. | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | 0 | 41,371 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ike7q7d | ikgyc3y | 1,660,577,945 | 1,660,618,011 | 1 | 2 | Different development implies that they have different problems and flaws from the start so for your characters to feel different they need to grow in different ways wether that’s maturity, learning a lesson, accepting a truth. Etc. Or another way to make them feel different is to give them different quirks, take Scooby Doo for example. They have very recognizable characters because they all act different throughout the story. Shaggy is scared and cautious, he often eats large amount of food and has a dog best friend. If I asked you to guess which character I was referencing you wouldn’t say Velma or Fred because they act differently. | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | 0 | 40,066 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgyc3y | ike97w0 | 1,660,618,011 | 1,660,578,535 | 2 | 1 | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | I would primarily focus on their backstory and their reaction to things. If they have a backstory that sets clear, distnct reasons and motives for goals or how they act, they're likely to be a stand-out in mundane scenes or settings and their reaction makes sense. Character development. Through the character's experiences through out a novel or series, show how they build up as a person, either for the better or worse or whatever. Like Bungo stray dogs, how they show several different people in the same affiliation, and they all develop in different ways yet they're all in the same place under the same person. | 1 | 39,476 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgyc3y | ike9eiq | 1,660,618,011 | 1,660,578,606 | 2 | 1 | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | The first thing I do is think about their personality by taking elements from people I know that could be a source of conflict, like someone who longs for companionship, but has that social awkwardness. Then I make a looser-based example of the event happening. By taking elements of others' personalities, it makes it more believable and relatable. | 1 | 39,405 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikeapyj | ikgyc3y | 1,660,579,126 | 1,660,618,011 | 1 | 2 | Beliefs relative to theme | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | 0 | 38,885 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikei3nh | ikgyc3y | 1,660,582,000 | 1,660,618,011 | 1 | 2 | In a word, flaws. Don’t make characters perfect. Every major character has at least one flaw. Maybe it’s physical like limp or a speech impediment. Maybe it’s emotional like they have depression. Or something like a compulsive shoplifter. | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | 0 | 36,011 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikgyc3y | ikejc7z | 1,660,618,011 | 1,660,582,472 | 2 | 1 | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | Don't have too many characters. More characters in the same length of story dilutes things, makes it harder for character to show their complexity. Have each character fulfill multiple 'functions' in the story. A character who is comic relief AND the wise mentor who is powerful in action scenes and dispenses wisdom readers will feel affected by, is going to be a strong and enduring character compared to having all of those functions fulfilled by different characters. Try to make literally everything a character does drip with their own special traits. Not just their big moments but everything from how they greet people, curse, their sense of humor, life philosophy, needs and desires, whether they walk or march or trudge or bound. Let your characters affect each other. A good cast of characters isn't just a bunch of individually interesting characters. They should have chemistry--strong reactions to each other. Often reasons to hate and love each other make for a lot of memorable characters. Then let us see the way they have changed each other--the lessons they've learned, right or wrong. I often find it realistic for my characters to 'learn something' but then they fumble it because it's not their usual approach, so they take a step back to their old ways, run into the same problems from their old ways *again*, then realize a more measured application of the lessons they have been learning combining their own unique experiences is what will actually work when they try it. In real life it often takes way way longer for people to significantly change, but in fiction we often want to see characters learn quickly and then stay that way. Don't try to make all your characters 'cool characters.' Since we all kinda have our own idea of what that is, it will often lead to all your characters being similar. Instead try to just give each of them some cool aspects. Like a character can be conventionally lame in a lot of ways but if they do the right thing when it really matters then they will be memorable. | 1 | 35,539 | 2 | ||
wovdir | writing_train | 0.94 | New here and in writing !! Potentially a strange question- how do you keep your characters feel unique in their own way ? I'm aware that the characters in our stories can be as different as people irl, however how do you keep their "development" seperate without having multiple characters feel like they're one and the same ? My biggest fear is having a character that acts obviously the same as any other with some noticeably different approaches, just for the sake of him not blending to the background. Meanwhile, throughout the progress of the story- do I just keep the characters hold their current beliefs and ideals until an event arrives that affects them in some way ? I apologize for multiple questions, hope that's fine and I appreciate anyone taking their time to write any advice ! | ikemr3r | ikgyc3y | 1,660,583,797 | 1,660,618,011 | 1 | 2 | You could make the main character think only of him self and would accidentally or be forced to help people to get stronger | A lot of good advice here about keeping your characters separate. But sometimes, not always just sometimes, you want to do the opposite. If two characters are pretty similar and feel redundant maybe they can be combined into a single character. | 0 | 34,214 | 2 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | iho04l1 | iho2hxn | 1,658,803,833 | 1,658,804,967 | 7 | 9 | If you explain why the character has that flaw, people will identify with him and will like him. For example, he tries to avoid speaking to people, not because he’s unfriendly but because he thinks people will find out that he’s not witty enough. | You're going about this the wrong way. You don't insert flaws just to make a Mary Sue more interesting. Your character has flaws, and you need to write it in a way that makes the story interesting. Read George RR Martin. He has an amazing way of making you simultaneously hate a character and still root for them. Or love a character and kind of want them knocked off. Or both - at different points in the story. Jaime Lannister pushes a boy out the window because the kid witnessed him having sex with his sister. By the second book, you're hoping he takes over the world. That is an incredibly memorable character arc. And that's what you have to do with your character. Think about all of your friends... there are times you love them and times you hate them. They all have flaws. No one is immune to it. But readers are very attached to characters that go about trying to redeem their own flaws. | 0 | 1,134 | 1.285714 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | ihnz2hi | iho2hxn | 1,658,803,336 | 1,658,804,967 | 3 | 9 | It's OK to write a character someone hates. An amazing book I read where I despised the main character was Karen Miller's Empress. I have never been so angry at a book and yet I loved it. I loved her shift, her attitude, her growth as a person and yet her lack of growth. It was such a compelling read. So what if no one likes every character. They aren't meant to. Ppl are flawed and it's by exploring those flaws you find your stories. | You're going about this the wrong way. You don't insert flaws just to make a Mary Sue more interesting. Your character has flaws, and you need to write it in a way that makes the story interesting. Read George RR Martin. He has an amazing way of making you simultaneously hate a character and still root for them. Or love a character and kind of want them knocked off. Or both - at different points in the story. Jaime Lannister pushes a boy out the window because the kid witnessed him having sex with his sister. By the second book, you're hoping he takes over the world. That is an incredibly memorable character arc. And that's what you have to do with your character. Think about all of your friends... there are times you love them and times you hate them. They all have flaws. No one is immune to it. But readers are very attached to characters that go about trying to redeem their own flaws. | 0 | 1,631 | 3 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | iho1ddq | iho2hxn | 1,658,804,422 | 1,658,804,967 | 1 | 9 | I also struggle with this, and what I've landed on is trying to give my characters both a positive *and* a negative aspect to their flaws. A flaw isn't always fatal, after all, a lot of people's flaws come from a place of good intention or simply a different understanding of the world around them. A know-it-all could be genuinely excited when something they're passionate about comes up in conversation, and not realize that they're demeaning people by correcting them. An overly aggressive character could be trying to protect someone they care about, and only know how to do that based on behaviors they learned from a rough childhood. A character obsessed with vanity could be trans and just not know it yet, and think that if they don't like their face then no one else must, so they have to convince them otherwise. I always try to ask myself: \- Where does the flaw come from? Why do they think/act the way that they do? \- Is this flaw something that conflicts with another character's worldview or principles? If so, is it something that they can reconcile or is it a dealbreaker for their relationship? \- Do I want them to overcome this flaw? Do I want this flaw to be important to the plot? All this aside, at the end of the day, not everyone is going to like all of your characters, because not everyone likes everyone else in the world. If you write what makes them interesting to *you*, then people will inevitably find them interesting because you thought they were important enough to write about! I personally love it when an author says "this character is just like this, god knows why" or when it seems like they really enjoyed writing a certain character, regardless of how flawed or not they are. I hope this helps! | You're going about this the wrong way. You don't insert flaws just to make a Mary Sue more interesting. Your character has flaws, and you need to write it in a way that makes the story interesting. Read George RR Martin. He has an amazing way of making you simultaneously hate a character and still root for them. Or love a character and kind of want them knocked off. Or both - at different points in the story. Jaime Lannister pushes a boy out the window because the kid witnessed him having sex with his sister. By the second book, you're hoping he takes over the world. That is an incredibly memorable character arc. And that's what you have to do with your character. Think about all of your friends... there are times you love them and times you hate them. They all have flaws. No one is immune to it. But readers are very attached to characters that go about trying to redeem their own flaws. | 0 | 545 | 9 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | iho04l1 | ihnz2hi | 1,658,803,833 | 1,658,803,336 | 7 | 3 | If you explain why the character has that flaw, people will identify with him and will like him. For example, he tries to avoid speaking to people, not because he’s unfriendly but because he thinks people will find out that he’s not witty enough. | It's OK to write a character someone hates. An amazing book I read where I despised the main character was Karen Miller's Empress. I have never been so angry at a book and yet I loved it. I loved her shift, her attitude, her growth as a person and yet her lack of growth. It was such a compelling read. So what if no one likes every character. They aren't meant to. Ppl are flawed and it's by exploring those flaws you find your stories. | 1 | 497 | 2.333333 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | ihnz2hi | iho5548 | 1,658,803,336 | 1,658,806,285 | 3 | 7 | It's OK to write a character someone hates. An amazing book I read where I despised the main character was Karen Miller's Empress. I have never been so angry at a book and yet I loved it. I loved her shift, her attitude, her growth as a person and yet her lack of growth. It was such a compelling read. So what if no one likes every character. They aren't meant to. Ppl are flawed and it's by exploring those flaws you find your stories. | Literally every human being has flaws. Some are also likeable. You want your characters to have depth. | 0 | 2,949 | 2.333333 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | iho1ddq | iho5548 | 1,658,804,422 | 1,658,806,285 | 1 | 7 | I also struggle with this, and what I've landed on is trying to give my characters both a positive *and* a negative aspect to their flaws. A flaw isn't always fatal, after all, a lot of people's flaws come from a place of good intention or simply a different understanding of the world around them. A know-it-all could be genuinely excited when something they're passionate about comes up in conversation, and not realize that they're demeaning people by correcting them. An overly aggressive character could be trying to protect someone they care about, and only know how to do that based on behaviors they learned from a rough childhood. A character obsessed with vanity could be trans and just not know it yet, and think that if they don't like their face then no one else must, so they have to convince them otherwise. I always try to ask myself: \- Where does the flaw come from? Why do they think/act the way that they do? \- Is this flaw something that conflicts with another character's worldview or principles? If so, is it something that they can reconcile or is it a dealbreaker for their relationship? \- Do I want them to overcome this flaw? Do I want this flaw to be important to the plot? All this aside, at the end of the day, not everyone is going to like all of your characters, because not everyone likes everyone else in the world. If you write what makes them interesting to *you*, then people will inevitably find them interesting because you thought they were important enough to write about! I personally love it when an author says "this character is just like this, god knows why" or when it seems like they really enjoyed writing a certain character, regardless of how flawed or not they are. I hope this helps! | Literally every human being has flaws. Some are also likeable. You want your characters to have depth. | 0 | 1,863 | 7 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | iho2tuj | iho5548 | 1,658,805,131 | 1,658,806,285 | 1 | 7 | Flaws don't need to involve anyone feeling bad for your characters. A flaw is merely a character trait that causes your character to act in a way that may hinder their goal. A flaw could be being a coward, being overconfident, being insecure, being too cheery, being an alcoholic, being a doting mother, etc. Any of those things can be flaws as long as the character must work to overcome them and as long as the character isn't aware its a flaw immediately. | Literally every human being has flaws. Some are also likeable. You want your characters to have depth. | 0 | 1,154 | 7 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | iho5548 | iho4tbv | 1,658,806,285 | 1,658,806,119 | 7 | 1 | Literally every human being has flaws. Some are also likeable. You want your characters to have depth. | You ask a great question, because it gets at the humanity of your characters. Human beings, your friends and family are all flawed, and you still love them, right? The reader won't dislike a character just because they are flawed - in fact, the "flaws" are what *does* make us love them. A character may be completely nice but get a little TOO excited about certain things, that may be a flaw - it may cause awkwardness or even larger issues in certain situations, but it shouldn't make you dislike the person. And I'll even admit to rooting for some absolute villains when their motivations are fully realized and, ultimately, humane. | 1 | 166 | 7 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | ihou0cz | ihoaw9o | 1,658,822,749 | 1,658,809,395 | 2 | 1 | One thing to keep in mind is that people love competency. If you ever watch a show where it follows a morally ambiguous—or morally bad—character, it’s pretty much guaranteed that they’re hyper competent in something that makes the viewers want to root for them. I remember watching House of Cards—before all of the stuff with Kevin Spacey—and despite how horrible Frank was, it was both happy and terrified when he won. This works for morally good characters as well who are just simply flawed people. | u/Kichiwas-Hargan Characters don't need to be likeable, they need to be interesting enough that the reader wants to follow them through to the end of the story. Trump is an unlikeable, hateful, spiteful, idiot. But he would make a fascinating character (if only that). If your characters are interesting, they will be memorable. Also, the difference between someone following a recipe and a chef is that the person following the recipe doesn't know enough about cooking to tweak and adjust as they go. You're still following recipes. Relax and just write. | 1 | 13,354 | 2 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | iho1ddq | ihou0cz | 1,658,804,422 | 1,658,822,749 | 1 | 2 | I also struggle with this, and what I've landed on is trying to give my characters both a positive *and* a negative aspect to their flaws. A flaw isn't always fatal, after all, a lot of people's flaws come from a place of good intention or simply a different understanding of the world around them. A know-it-all could be genuinely excited when something they're passionate about comes up in conversation, and not realize that they're demeaning people by correcting them. An overly aggressive character could be trying to protect someone they care about, and only know how to do that based on behaviors they learned from a rough childhood. A character obsessed with vanity could be trans and just not know it yet, and think that if they don't like their face then no one else must, so they have to convince them otherwise. I always try to ask myself: \- Where does the flaw come from? Why do they think/act the way that they do? \- Is this flaw something that conflicts with another character's worldview or principles? If so, is it something that they can reconcile or is it a dealbreaker for their relationship? \- Do I want them to overcome this flaw? Do I want this flaw to be important to the plot? All this aside, at the end of the day, not everyone is going to like all of your characters, because not everyone likes everyone else in the world. If you write what makes them interesting to *you*, then people will inevitably find them interesting because you thought they were important enough to write about! I personally love it when an author says "this character is just like this, god knows why" or when it seems like they really enjoyed writing a certain character, regardless of how flawed or not they are. I hope this helps! | One thing to keep in mind is that people love competency. If you ever watch a show where it follows a morally ambiguous—or morally bad—character, it’s pretty much guaranteed that they’re hyper competent in something that makes the viewers want to root for them. I remember watching House of Cards—before all of the stuff with Kevin Spacey—and despite how horrible Frank was, it was both happy and terrified when he won. This works for morally good characters as well who are just simply flawed people. | 0 | 18,327 | 2 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | iho2tuj | ihou0cz | 1,658,805,131 | 1,658,822,749 | 1 | 2 | Flaws don't need to involve anyone feeling bad for your characters. A flaw is merely a character trait that causes your character to act in a way that may hinder their goal. A flaw could be being a coward, being overconfident, being insecure, being too cheery, being an alcoholic, being a doting mother, etc. Any of those things can be flaws as long as the character must work to overcome them and as long as the character isn't aware its a flaw immediately. | One thing to keep in mind is that people love competency. If you ever watch a show where it follows a morally ambiguous—or morally bad—character, it’s pretty much guaranteed that they’re hyper competent in something that makes the viewers want to root for them. I remember watching House of Cards—before all of the stuff with Kevin Spacey—and despite how horrible Frank was, it was both happy and terrified when he won. This works for morally good characters as well who are just simply flawed people. | 0 | 17,618 | 2 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | ihou0cz | iho4tbv | 1,658,822,749 | 1,658,806,119 | 2 | 1 | One thing to keep in mind is that people love competency. If you ever watch a show where it follows a morally ambiguous—or morally bad—character, it’s pretty much guaranteed that they’re hyper competent in something that makes the viewers want to root for them. I remember watching House of Cards—before all of the stuff with Kevin Spacey—and despite how horrible Frank was, it was both happy and terrified when he won. This works for morally good characters as well who are just simply flawed people. | You ask a great question, because it gets at the humanity of your characters. Human beings, your friends and family are all flawed, and you still love them, right? The reader won't dislike a character just because they are flawed - in fact, the "flaws" are what *does* make us love them. A character may be completely nice but get a little TOO excited about certain things, that may be a flaw - it may cause awkwardness or even larger issues in certain situations, but it shouldn't make you dislike the person. And I'll even admit to rooting for some absolute villains when their motivations are fully realized and, ultimately, humane. | 1 | 16,630 | 2 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | ihou0cz | ihoewf6 | 1,658,822,749 | 1,658,811,788 | 2 | 1 | One thing to keep in mind is that people love competency. If you ever watch a show where it follows a morally ambiguous—or morally bad—character, it’s pretty much guaranteed that they’re hyper competent in something that makes the viewers want to root for them. I remember watching House of Cards—before all of the stuff with Kevin Spacey—and despite how horrible Frank was, it was both happy and terrified when he won. This works for morally good characters as well who are just simply flawed people. | For me, you could make them a completely nice person with no flaws at the beginning, but have the people around them gnaw at them, slowly eating them out and making a broken character, while having the story slowly develop them as a person. Seeing how their "good actions" have destroyed lives, how their "kindness" gave birth to evil within people, and how their power/influence was abused by those around them. As many people say, you don't have to make them likeable (which is very hypocritical of me, since I'm asking how to make my characters interesting and likeable HAHAHA) but rather, make them into characters that readers would root for. TLDR; make their "kindness" their flaw, being naïve and kind hearted makes them blind to what is happening around them. | 1 | 10,961 | 2 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | ihouaiv | ihoaw9o | 1,658,822,975 | 1,658,809,395 | 2 | 1 | You have to make every flaw natural and that's it. You don't need anything else and definitely not the sympathy of the reader. What you need to gain from your reader is their intrest. People won't see those flaws as flaws if those flaws don't affect the story. Make those flaws have lasting effect on the reasoning of your character and people will acknowledge it. My favorite character have a internal monologue that I would like you to read. >Who could understand the heart of this transmigrator plus reincarnator Fang Yuan? The road he walked on was destined to be filled with endless darkness, he was destined to be lonely forever. The direction he walked was towards the light in his heart — immortality — a possibility so slim that it was almost impossible. In this world, nobody understood him. But he… Does not need anyone’s understanding. | u/Kichiwas-Hargan Characters don't need to be likeable, they need to be interesting enough that the reader wants to follow them through to the end of the story. Trump is an unlikeable, hateful, spiteful, idiot. But he would make a fascinating character (if only that). If your characters are interesting, they will be memorable. Also, the difference between someone following a recipe and a chef is that the person following the recipe doesn't know enough about cooking to tweak and adjust as they go. You're still following recipes. Relax and just write. | 1 | 13,580 | 2 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | ihouaiv | iho1ddq | 1,658,822,975 | 1,658,804,422 | 2 | 1 | You have to make every flaw natural and that's it. You don't need anything else and definitely not the sympathy of the reader. What you need to gain from your reader is their intrest. People won't see those flaws as flaws if those flaws don't affect the story. Make those flaws have lasting effect on the reasoning of your character and people will acknowledge it. My favorite character have a internal monologue that I would like you to read. >Who could understand the heart of this transmigrator plus reincarnator Fang Yuan? The road he walked on was destined to be filled with endless darkness, he was destined to be lonely forever. The direction he walked was towards the light in his heart — immortality — a possibility so slim that it was almost impossible. In this world, nobody understood him. But he… Does not need anyone’s understanding. | I also struggle with this, and what I've landed on is trying to give my characters both a positive *and* a negative aspect to their flaws. A flaw isn't always fatal, after all, a lot of people's flaws come from a place of good intention or simply a different understanding of the world around them. A know-it-all could be genuinely excited when something they're passionate about comes up in conversation, and not realize that they're demeaning people by correcting them. An overly aggressive character could be trying to protect someone they care about, and only know how to do that based on behaviors they learned from a rough childhood. A character obsessed with vanity could be trans and just not know it yet, and think that if they don't like their face then no one else must, so they have to convince them otherwise. I always try to ask myself: \- Where does the flaw come from? Why do they think/act the way that they do? \- Is this flaw something that conflicts with another character's worldview or principles? If so, is it something that they can reconcile or is it a dealbreaker for their relationship? \- Do I want them to overcome this flaw? Do I want this flaw to be important to the plot? All this aside, at the end of the day, not everyone is going to like all of your characters, because not everyone likes everyone else in the world. If you write what makes them interesting to *you*, then people will inevitably find them interesting because you thought they were important enough to write about! I personally love it when an author says "this character is just like this, god knows why" or when it seems like they really enjoyed writing a certain character, regardless of how flawed or not they are. I hope this helps! | 1 | 18,553 | 2 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | iho2tuj | ihouaiv | 1,658,805,131 | 1,658,822,975 | 1 | 2 | Flaws don't need to involve anyone feeling bad for your characters. A flaw is merely a character trait that causes your character to act in a way that may hinder their goal. A flaw could be being a coward, being overconfident, being insecure, being too cheery, being an alcoholic, being a doting mother, etc. Any of those things can be flaws as long as the character must work to overcome them and as long as the character isn't aware its a flaw immediately. | You have to make every flaw natural and that's it. You don't need anything else and definitely not the sympathy of the reader. What you need to gain from your reader is their intrest. People won't see those flaws as flaws if those flaws don't affect the story. Make those flaws have lasting effect on the reasoning of your character and people will acknowledge it. My favorite character have a internal monologue that I would like you to read. >Who could understand the heart of this transmigrator plus reincarnator Fang Yuan? The road he walked on was destined to be filled with endless darkness, he was destined to be lonely forever. The direction he walked was towards the light in his heart — immortality — a possibility so slim that it was almost impossible. In this world, nobody understood him. But he… Does not need anyone’s understanding. | 0 | 17,844 | 2 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | ihouaiv | iho4tbv | 1,658,822,975 | 1,658,806,119 | 2 | 1 | You have to make every flaw natural and that's it. You don't need anything else and definitely not the sympathy of the reader. What you need to gain from your reader is their intrest. People won't see those flaws as flaws if those flaws don't affect the story. Make those flaws have lasting effect on the reasoning of your character and people will acknowledge it. My favorite character have a internal monologue that I would like you to read. >Who could understand the heart of this transmigrator plus reincarnator Fang Yuan? The road he walked on was destined to be filled with endless darkness, he was destined to be lonely forever. The direction he walked was towards the light in his heart — immortality — a possibility so slim that it was almost impossible. In this world, nobody understood him. But he… Does not need anyone’s understanding. | You ask a great question, because it gets at the humanity of your characters. Human beings, your friends and family are all flawed, and you still love them, right? The reader won't dislike a character just because they are flawed - in fact, the "flaws" are what *does* make us love them. A character may be completely nice but get a little TOO excited about certain things, that may be a flaw - it may cause awkwardness or even larger issues in certain situations, but it shouldn't make you dislike the person. And I'll even admit to rooting for some absolute villains when their motivations are fully realized and, ultimately, humane. | 1 | 16,856 | 2 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | ihouaiv | ihoewf6 | 1,658,822,975 | 1,658,811,788 | 2 | 1 | You have to make every flaw natural and that's it. You don't need anything else and definitely not the sympathy of the reader. What you need to gain from your reader is their intrest. People won't see those flaws as flaws if those flaws don't affect the story. Make those flaws have lasting effect on the reasoning of your character and people will acknowledge it. My favorite character have a internal monologue that I would like you to read. >Who could understand the heart of this transmigrator plus reincarnator Fang Yuan? The road he walked on was destined to be filled with endless darkness, he was destined to be lonely forever. The direction he walked was towards the light in his heart — immortality — a possibility so slim that it was almost impossible. In this world, nobody understood him. But he… Does not need anyone’s understanding. | For me, you could make them a completely nice person with no flaws at the beginning, but have the people around them gnaw at them, slowly eating them out and making a broken character, while having the story slowly develop them as a person. Seeing how their "good actions" have destroyed lives, how their "kindness" gave birth to evil within people, and how their power/influence was abused by those around them. As many people say, you don't have to make them likeable (which is very hypocritical of me, since I'm asking how to make my characters interesting and likeable HAHAHA) but rather, make them into characters that readers would root for. TLDR; make their "kindness" their flaw, being naïve and kind hearted makes them blind to what is happening around them. | 1 | 11,187 | 2 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | ihozah4 | ihoaw9o | 1,658,827,068 | 1,658,809,395 | 2 | 1 | Every human being is flawed. Still, there are humans you like (hopefully). Flawed doesn't mean unlikable, and in order to be flawed, characters do not have to be worse or more dysfunctional than the people you meet in your everyday life (although they can be). A character's flaws also aren't the only aspect of them you can focus on, just like flaws are not the only thing that defines real people. Overcoming a flaw is a common character arc, though. Characters without flaws easily seem bland because every single human being has flaws. Not having any feels one-dimensional and unrealistic. Further, if there are no flaws, there's no room for growth. Even the goals and wants and struggles of many characters, or the discrepancy between their wants and their needs are born out of their flaws. Flaws can be linked to strengths, or the same trait can be a flaw in one situation and a strength in another. The relationships between characters are influenced by their flaws, sometimes even in a positive way, by them supporting each other and helping each other overcome or compensate for a flaw or by having flaws and strengths that complement each other. It's not just about slapping random flaws onto your characterizations. It's about what you do with those flaws, and how they form a complex character in combination with other traits. That said, characters are allowed to be very flawed, and readers can like fictional characters even if they wouldn't want to hang out with them in real life. Often, readers like the characters they like more because they're interesting and entertaining to read, not because they're the kindest, nicest people in the world. If you want your reader to root for and sympathize with your characters, they'll need some positive traits, though, and readers will need to understand where they're coming from and why they do the bad things they do. In a book, you have the advantage that you control which information you share and can look into the (or some of the) characters' heads and share their thoughts and emotions, which can make readers sympathize with actions they'd condemn in real life. Still, some amount of likability is needed if you want the character to be liked. Readers can enjoy reading about a purely bad person, but because they're intrigued, not because they feel for the character. | u/Kichiwas-Hargan Characters don't need to be likeable, they need to be interesting enough that the reader wants to follow them through to the end of the story. Trump is an unlikeable, hateful, spiteful, idiot. But he would make a fascinating character (if only that). If your characters are interesting, they will be memorable. Also, the difference between someone following a recipe and a chef is that the person following the recipe doesn't know enough about cooking to tweak and adjust as they go. You're still following recipes. Relax and just write. | 1 | 17,673 | 2 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | iho1ddq | ihozah4 | 1,658,804,422 | 1,658,827,068 | 1 | 2 | I also struggle with this, and what I've landed on is trying to give my characters both a positive *and* a negative aspect to their flaws. A flaw isn't always fatal, after all, a lot of people's flaws come from a place of good intention or simply a different understanding of the world around them. A know-it-all could be genuinely excited when something they're passionate about comes up in conversation, and not realize that they're demeaning people by correcting them. An overly aggressive character could be trying to protect someone they care about, and only know how to do that based on behaviors they learned from a rough childhood. A character obsessed with vanity could be trans and just not know it yet, and think that if they don't like their face then no one else must, so they have to convince them otherwise. I always try to ask myself: \- Where does the flaw come from? Why do they think/act the way that they do? \- Is this flaw something that conflicts with another character's worldview or principles? If so, is it something that they can reconcile or is it a dealbreaker for their relationship? \- Do I want them to overcome this flaw? Do I want this flaw to be important to the plot? All this aside, at the end of the day, not everyone is going to like all of your characters, because not everyone likes everyone else in the world. If you write what makes them interesting to *you*, then people will inevitably find them interesting because you thought they were important enough to write about! I personally love it when an author says "this character is just like this, god knows why" or when it seems like they really enjoyed writing a certain character, regardless of how flawed or not they are. I hope this helps! | Every human being is flawed. Still, there are humans you like (hopefully). Flawed doesn't mean unlikable, and in order to be flawed, characters do not have to be worse or more dysfunctional than the people you meet in your everyday life (although they can be). A character's flaws also aren't the only aspect of them you can focus on, just like flaws are not the only thing that defines real people. Overcoming a flaw is a common character arc, though. Characters without flaws easily seem bland because every single human being has flaws. Not having any feels one-dimensional and unrealistic. Further, if there are no flaws, there's no room for growth. Even the goals and wants and struggles of many characters, or the discrepancy between their wants and their needs are born out of their flaws. Flaws can be linked to strengths, or the same trait can be a flaw in one situation and a strength in another. The relationships between characters are influenced by their flaws, sometimes even in a positive way, by them supporting each other and helping each other overcome or compensate for a flaw or by having flaws and strengths that complement each other. It's not just about slapping random flaws onto your characterizations. It's about what you do with those flaws, and how they form a complex character in combination with other traits. That said, characters are allowed to be very flawed, and readers can like fictional characters even if they wouldn't want to hang out with them in real life. Often, readers like the characters they like more because they're interesting and entertaining to read, not because they're the kindest, nicest people in the world. If you want your reader to root for and sympathize with your characters, they'll need some positive traits, though, and readers will need to understand where they're coming from and why they do the bad things they do. In a book, you have the advantage that you control which information you share and can look into the (or some of the) characters' heads and share their thoughts and emotions, which can make readers sympathize with actions they'd condemn in real life. Still, some amount of likability is needed if you want the character to be liked. Readers can enjoy reading about a purely bad person, but because they're intrigued, not because they feel for the character. | 0 | 22,646 | 2 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | iho2tuj | ihozah4 | 1,658,805,131 | 1,658,827,068 | 1 | 2 | Flaws don't need to involve anyone feeling bad for your characters. A flaw is merely a character trait that causes your character to act in a way that may hinder their goal. A flaw could be being a coward, being overconfident, being insecure, being too cheery, being an alcoholic, being a doting mother, etc. Any of those things can be flaws as long as the character must work to overcome them and as long as the character isn't aware its a flaw immediately. | Every human being is flawed. Still, there are humans you like (hopefully). Flawed doesn't mean unlikable, and in order to be flawed, characters do not have to be worse or more dysfunctional than the people you meet in your everyday life (although they can be). A character's flaws also aren't the only aspect of them you can focus on, just like flaws are not the only thing that defines real people. Overcoming a flaw is a common character arc, though. Characters without flaws easily seem bland because every single human being has flaws. Not having any feels one-dimensional and unrealistic. Further, if there are no flaws, there's no room for growth. Even the goals and wants and struggles of many characters, or the discrepancy between their wants and their needs are born out of their flaws. Flaws can be linked to strengths, or the same trait can be a flaw in one situation and a strength in another. The relationships between characters are influenced by their flaws, sometimes even in a positive way, by them supporting each other and helping each other overcome or compensate for a flaw or by having flaws and strengths that complement each other. It's not just about slapping random flaws onto your characterizations. It's about what you do with those flaws, and how they form a complex character in combination with other traits. That said, characters are allowed to be very flawed, and readers can like fictional characters even if they wouldn't want to hang out with them in real life. Often, readers like the characters they like more because they're interesting and entertaining to read, not because they're the kindest, nicest people in the world. If you want your reader to root for and sympathize with your characters, they'll need some positive traits, though, and readers will need to understand where they're coming from and why they do the bad things they do. In a book, you have the advantage that you control which information you share and can look into the (or some of the) characters' heads and share their thoughts and emotions, which can make readers sympathize with actions they'd condemn in real life. Still, some amount of likability is needed if you want the character to be liked. Readers can enjoy reading about a purely bad person, but because they're intrigued, not because they feel for the character. | 0 | 21,937 | 2 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | iho4tbv | ihozah4 | 1,658,806,119 | 1,658,827,068 | 1 | 2 | You ask a great question, because it gets at the humanity of your characters. Human beings, your friends and family are all flawed, and you still love them, right? The reader won't dislike a character just because they are flawed - in fact, the "flaws" are what *does* make us love them. A character may be completely nice but get a little TOO excited about certain things, that may be a flaw - it may cause awkwardness or even larger issues in certain situations, but it shouldn't make you dislike the person. And I'll even admit to rooting for some absolute villains when their motivations are fully realized and, ultimately, humane. | Every human being is flawed. Still, there are humans you like (hopefully). Flawed doesn't mean unlikable, and in order to be flawed, characters do not have to be worse or more dysfunctional than the people you meet in your everyday life (although they can be). A character's flaws also aren't the only aspect of them you can focus on, just like flaws are not the only thing that defines real people. Overcoming a flaw is a common character arc, though. Characters without flaws easily seem bland because every single human being has flaws. Not having any feels one-dimensional and unrealistic. Further, if there are no flaws, there's no room for growth. Even the goals and wants and struggles of many characters, or the discrepancy between their wants and their needs are born out of their flaws. Flaws can be linked to strengths, or the same trait can be a flaw in one situation and a strength in another. The relationships between characters are influenced by their flaws, sometimes even in a positive way, by them supporting each other and helping each other overcome or compensate for a flaw or by having flaws and strengths that complement each other. It's not just about slapping random flaws onto your characterizations. It's about what you do with those flaws, and how they form a complex character in combination with other traits. That said, characters are allowed to be very flawed, and readers can like fictional characters even if they wouldn't want to hang out with them in real life. Often, readers like the characters they like more because they're interesting and entertaining to read, not because they're the kindest, nicest people in the world. If you want your reader to root for and sympathize with your characters, they'll need some positive traits, though, and readers will need to understand where they're coming from and why they do the bad things they do. In a book, you have the advantage that you control which information you share and can look into the (or some of the) characters' heads and share their thoughts and emotions, which can make readers sympathize with actions they'd condemn in real life. Still, some amount of likability is needed if you want the character to be liked. Readers can enjoy reading about a purely bad person, but because they're intrigued, not because they feel for the character. | 0 | 20,949 | 2 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | ihozah4 | ihoewf6 | 1,658,827,068 | 1,658,811,788 | 2 | 1 | Every human being is flawed. Still, there are humans you like (hopefully). Flawed doesn't mean unlikable, and in order to be flawed, characters do not have to be worse or more dysfunctional than the people you meet in your everyday life (although they can be). A character's flaws also aren't the only aspect of them you can focus on, just like flaws are not the only thing that defines real people. Overcoming a flaw is a common character arc, though. Characters without flaws easily seem bland because every single human being has flaws. Not having any feels one-dimensional and unrealistic. Further, if there are no flaws, there's no room for growth. Even the goals and wants and struggles of many characters, or the discrepancy between their wants and their needs are born out of their flaws. Flaws can be linked to strengths, or the same trait can be a flaw in one situation and a strength in another. The relationships between characters are influenced by their flaws, sometimes even in a positive way, by them supporting each other and helping each other overcome or compensate for a flaw or by having flaws and strengths that complement each other. It's not just about slapping random flaws onto your characterizations. It's about what you do with those flaws, and how they form a complex character in combination with other traits. That said, characters are allowed to be very flawed, and readers can like fictional characters even if they wouldn't want to hang out with them in real life. Often, readers like the characters they like more because they're interesting and entertaining to read, not because they're the kindest, nicest people in the world. If you want your reader to root for and sympathize with your characters, they'll need some positive traits, though, and readers will need to understand where they're coming from and why they do the bad things they do. In a book, you have the advantage that you control which information you share and can look into the (or some of the) characters' heads and share their thoughts and emotions, which can make readers sympathize with actions they'd condemn in real life. Still, some amount of likability is needed if you want the character to be liked. Readers can enjoy reading about a purely bad person, but because they're intrigued, not because they feel for the character. | For me, you could make them a completely nice person with no flaws at the beginning, but have the people around them gnaw at them, slowly eating them out and making a broken character, while having the story slowly develop them as a person. Seeing how their "good actions" have destroyed lives, how their "kindness" gave birth to evil within people, and how their power/influence was abused by those around them. As many people say, you don't have to make them likeable (which is very hypocritical of me, since I'm asking how to make my characters interesting and likeable HAHAHA) but rather, make them into characters that readers would root for. TLDR; make their "kindness" their flaw, being naïve and kind hearted makes them blind to what is happening around them. | 1 | 15,280 | 2 | ||
w87sxh | writing_train | 0.79 | I want to make my characters flawed without them coming off as unlikable to the readers Since I've learned that characters need to have flaws to be interesting, I'm gonna do that with my own characters for a book I'm gonna write, but here's the problem: I'm afraid that readers will dislike and won't feel bad for my characters for having flaws even though that's what they need to have in order to be complex. But if I made my characters completely nice people with no flaws, then people would say that they're bland and I don't want that, I want my characters to be memorable, fun, and compelling for the readers to root for and relate to them. It's like these people can't make up their mind or something lol. It's just gonna be tough to write my characters carefully to be less unlikable when they have flaws because they're what made a character....human. Any suggestions? | ihoy493 | ihozah4 | 1,658,826,106 | 1,658,827,068 | 1 | 2 | The reader has to learn about the flaws over time. Like when a character pauses slightly for no reason or changes the subject during dialogue. Subtle stuff They should never openly list their flaws to everyone they meet (like my old boss, crazy weirdo) | Every human being is flawed. Still, there are humans you like (hopefully). Flawed doesn't mean unlikable, and in order to be flawed, characters do not have to be worse or more dysfunctional than the people you meet in your everyday life (although they can be). A character's flaws also aren't the only aspect of them you can focus on, just like flaws are not the only thing that defines real people. Overcoming a flaw is a common character arc, though. Characters without flaws easily seem bland because every single human being has flaws. Not having any feels one-dimensional and unrealistic. Further, if there are no flaws, there's no room for growth. Even the goals and wants and struggles of many characters, or the discrepancy between their wants and their needs are born out of their flaws. Flaws can be linked to strengths, or the same trait can be a flaw in one situation and a strength in another. The relationships between characters are influenced by their flaws, sometimes even in a positive way, by them supporting each other and helping each other overcome or compensate for a flaw or by having flaws and strengths that complement each other. It's not just about slapping random flaws onto your characterizations. It's about what you do with those flaws, and how they form a complex character in combination with other traits. That said, characters are allowed to be very flawed, and readers can like fictional characters even if they wouldn't want to hang out with them in real life. Often, readers like the characters they like more because they're interesting and entertaining to read, not because they're the kindest, nicest people in the world. If you want your reader to root for and sympathize with your characters, they'll need some positive traits, though, and readers will need to understand where they're coming from and why they do the bad things they do. In a book, you have the advantage that you control which information you share and can look into the (or some of the) characters' heads and share their thoughts and emotions, which can make readers sympathize with actions they'd condemn in real life. Still, some amount of likability is needed if you want the character to be liked. Readers can enjoy reading about a purely bad person, but because they're intrigued, not because they feel for the character. | 0 | 962 | 2 | ||
r9tf7y | writing_train | 0.9 | I want to write a book but am apparently only good at short stories I struggle to fill in longer stories. Is this a handicap or do more people like to write short stories? (around 1000 to 4000 words) | hne7ww8 | hnea1c2 | 1,638,749,548 | 1,638,750,458 | 8 | 16 | I wouldn't know. I haven't tried to write a linear story in years. I do think it would be a little easier to just bundle a collection of loosely connected short stories into one book, though. | It's a difference in style. But there's nothing wrong with focusing on short stories. Put yourself an anthology together. But if you want to change from short stories to novels, try writing your novel as a series of short stories: - First story is the introduction and the inciting event. Create an opening, a rising action, with the 'climax' being the inciting event for the rest of the novel. - second short story is the first major problem - aka, the first rising action event. - A few more rising action stories, if you like - Then the story where you pull it all together into the overall climax - and one final short story, showing the aftermath & resolution. | 0 | 910 | 2 | ||
r9tf7y | writing_train | 0.9 | I want to write a book but am apparently only good at short stories I struggle to fill in longer stories. Is this a handicap or do more people like to write short stories? (around 1000 to 4000 words) | hnee18m | hnej2bb | 1,638,752,168 | 1,638,754,397 | 3 | 7 | honestly, do what makes you feel the best. we can get caught up in what might be the overarching ideas of what is best, but it really boils down to the individual. i would love to write novels but i’m so much more aligned with writing poetry. | Embrace it! Step One - Make a pulp fiction hero or heroine. Step Two - Write an origin story for the character. Step Three - Publish the origin story as an ebook. Sell it for $0.99 each. Step Four - Write more short stories featuring your hero. Step Five - Publish the short stories as part of a series. Step Six - Repeat steps 4 & 5 until you have another to publish anthologies of 12 or more stories and sell the ebook for $9.99 each. Step Seven - Keep doing it! ... And this method works. The first 2 books of the Witcher series by Sapkowski are just anthologies of short stories. And the Witcher novels really just feel like anthologies, but the stories are "labeled" as chapters. And Charles Moffat's Wulfric the Wanderer series does the same thing, but he (annoyingly) didn't publish them in chronological order. Robert E. Howard's Conan the Barbarian also follows the same thing. It is like a tradition when it comes to Sword and Sorcery pulp fiction books. Writing a series of short stories is the way to go. ... Eventually maybe you can make the switch to writing novels. Try to mentally think of each chapter as a short story. Maybe that will help. | 0 | 2,229 | 2.333333 | ||
r9tf7y | writing_train | 0.9 | I want to write a book but am apparently only good at short stories I struggle to fill in longer stories. Is this a handicap or do more people like to write short stories? (around 1000 to 4000 words) | hnej2bb | hnegjx9 | 1,638,754,397 | 1,638,753,298 | 7 | 2 | Embrace it! Step One - Make a pulp fiction hero or heroine. Step Two - Write an origin story for the character. Step Three - Publish the origin story as an ebook. Sell it for $0.99 each. Step Four - Write more short stories featuring your hero. Step Five - Publish the short stories as part of a series. Step Six - Repeat steps 4 & 5 until you have another to publish anthologies of 12 or more stories and sell the ebook for $9.99 each. Step Seven - Keep doing it! ... And this method works. The first 2 books of the Witcher series by Sapkowski are just anthologies of short stories. And the Witcher novels really just feel like anthologies, but the stories are "labeled" as chapters. And Charles Moffat's Wulfric the Wanderer series does the same thing, but he (annoyingly) didn't publish them in chronological order. Robert E. Howard's Conan the Barbarian also follows the same thing. It is like a tradition when it comes to Sword and Sorcery pulp fiction books. Writing a series of short stories is the way to go. ... Eventually maybe you can make the switch to writing novels. Try to mentally think of each chapter as a short story. Maybe that will help. | Nothing wrong with short stories. If you want to write a novel, You could always try to write a collection of short stories that are connected. Either set in the same world or with the same characters. That’s certainly a strategy: | 1 | 1,099 | 3.5 | ||
r9tf7y | writing_train | 0.9 | I want to write a book but am apparently only good at short stories I struggle to fill in longer stories. Is this a handicap or do more people like to write short stories? (around 1000 to 4000 words) | hngakzx | hnee18m | 1,638,794,459 | 1,638,752,168 | 4 | 3 | I struggle ridiculously to even reach the 1000 words mark. | honestly, do what makes you feel the best. we can get caught up in what might be the overarching ideas of what is best, but it really boils down to the individual. i would love to write novels but i’m so much more aligned with writing poetry. | 1 | 42,291 | 1.333333 | ||
r9tf7y | writing_train | 0.9 | I want to write a book but am apparently only good at short stories I struggle to fill in longer stories. Is this a handicap or do more people like to write short stories? (around 1000 to 4000 words) | hngakzx | hnejgpx | 1,638,794,459 | 1,638,754,575 | 4 | 3 | I struggle ridiculously to even reach the 1000 words mark. | Do you stick in one genre? Lot's of novelists write books of short stories. Write 20 or so short stories and figure out how to query them as a novel length book. | 1 | 39,884 | 1.333333 | ||
r9tf7y | writing_train | 0.9 | I want to write a book but am apparently only good at short stories I struggle to fill in longer stories. Is this a handicap or do more people like to write short stories? (around 1000 to 4000 words) | hnegjx9 | hngakzx | 1,638,753,298 | 1,638,794,459 | 2 | 4 | Nothing wrong with short stories. If you want to write a novel, You could always try to write a collection of short stories that are connected. Either set in the same world or with the same characters. That’s certainly a strategy: | I struggle ridiculously to even reach the 1000 words mark. | 0 | 41,161 | 2 | ||
r9tf7y | writing_train | 0.9 | I want to write a book but am apparently only good at short stories I struggle to fill in longer stories. Is this a handicap or do more people like to write short stories? (around 1000 to 4000 words) | hnfdh3x | hngakzx | 1,638,769,137 | 1,638,794,459 | 2 | 4 | I have been writing short stories and novellas (ranging from about 6k to 18k words). All of them take place in the same world after a big war that ends our society. Some of the people and places appear in more than one. I put three of them together into a 32k collection and put it on KDP. I have another one coming early in the new year. It's what work for me. I feel no need to write a novel at the moment. I'd rather focus on smaller chunks of story telling. | I struggle ridiculously to even reach the 1000 words mark. | 0 | 25,322 | 2 | ||
r9tf7y | writing_train | 0.9 | I want to write a book but am apparently only good at short stories I struggle to fill in longer stories. Is this a handicap or do more people like to write short stories? (around 1000 to 4000 words) | hngakzx | hng0un7 | 1,638,794,459 | 1,638,787,266 | 4 | 2 | I struggle ridiculously to even reach the 1000 words mark. | Sounds good lengthfor a chapter. | 1 | 7,193 | 2 | ||
r9tf7y | writing_train | 0.9 | I want to write a book but am apparently only good at short stories I struggle to fill in longer stories. Is this a handicap or do more people like to write short stories? (around 1000 to 4000 words) | hnejgpx | hnegjx9 | 1,638,754,575 | 1,638,753,298 | 3 | 2 | Do you stick in one genre? Lot's of novelists write books of short stories. Write 20 or so short stories and figure out how to query them as a novel length book. | Nothing wrong with short stories. If you want to write a novel, You could always try to write a collection of short stories that are connected. Either set in the same world or with the same characters. That’s certainly a strategy: | 1 | 1,277 | 1.5 | ||
r9tf7y | writing_train | 0.9 | I want to write a book but am apparently only good at short stories I struggle to fill in longer stories. Is this a handicap or do more people like to write short stories? (around 1000 to 4000 words) | hnegjx9 | hnhat67 | 1,638,753,298 | 1,638,810,927 | 2 | 3 | Nothing wrong with short stories. If you want to write a novel, You could always try to write a collection of short stories that are connected. Either set in the same world or with the same characters. That’s certainly a strategy: | Have you tried breaking it down? So don’t look at it as 100k words, break it down into ~5k chapters, and then split it into three acts so you’re only writing 6-7 chapters not 20. If you’re struggling to write longer stories you are probably resolving your conflicts too quickly. This tends to make things come across as a bit young adult, and frankly I think is where everyone sort of starts out. In the end, do what you enjoy. If you are enjoying short stories then keep on with it. | 0 | 57,629 | 1.5 | ||
r9tf7y | writing_train | 0.9 | I want to write a book but am apparently only good at short stories I struggle to fill in longer stories. Is this a handicap or do more people like to write short stories? (around 1000 to 4000 words) | hnfdh3x | hnhat67 | 1,638,769,137 | 1,638,810,927 | 2 | 3 | I have been writing short stories and novellas (ranging from about 6k to 18k words). All of them take place in the same world after a big war that ends our society. Some of the people and places appear in more than one. I put three of them together into a 32k collection and put it on KDP. I have another one coming early in the new year. It's what work for me. I feel no need to write a novel at the moment. I'd rather focus on smaller chunks of story telling. | Have you tried breaking it down? So don’t look at it as 100k words, break it down into ~5k chapters, and then split it into three acts so you’re only writing 6-7 chapters not 20. If you’re struggling to write longer stories you are probably resolving your conflicts too quickly. This tends to make things come across as a bit young adult, and frankly I think is where everyone sort of starts out. In the end, do what you enjoy. If you are enjoying short stories then keep on with it. | 0 | 41,790 | 1.5 | ||
r9tf7y | writing_train | 0.9 | I want to write a book but am apparently only good at short stories I struggle to fill in longer stories. Is this a handicap or do more people like to write short stories? (around 1000 to 4000 words) | hnhat67 | hng0un7 | 1,638,810,927 | 1,638,787,266 | 3 | 2 | Have you tried breaking it down? So don’t look at it as 100k words, break it down into ~5k chapters, and then split it into three acts so you’re only writing 6-7 chapters not 20. If you’re struggling to write longer stories you are probably resolving your conflicts too quickly. This tends to make things come across as a bit young adult, and frankly I think is where everyone sort of starts out. In the end, do what you enjoy. If you are enjoying short stories then keep on with it. | Sounds good lengthfor a chapter. | 1 | 23,661 | 1.5 | ||
r9tf7y | writing_train | 0.9 | I want to write a book but am apparently only good at short stories I struggle to fill in longer stories. Is this a handicap or do more people like to write short stories? (around 1000 to 4000 words) | hnh4pa1 | hnhat67 | 1,638,808,530 | 1,638,810,927 | 2 | 3 | If you can push yourself up to 80kish you’d do really good in certain genres where it’s expected to be shorter. Word count/length is really dependent on genre. But also short stories have a strong place in journals, magazines, and anthologies. You could get into those instead. | Have you tried breaking it down? So don’t look at it as 100k words, break it down into ~5k chapters, and then split it into three acts so you’re only writing 6-7 chapters not 20. If you’re struggling to write longer stories you are probably resolving your conflicts too quickly. This tends to make things come across as a bit young adult, and frankly I think is where everyone sort of starts out. In the end, do what you enjoy. If you are enjoying short stories then keep on with it. | 0 | 2,397 | 1.5 | ||
r9tf7y | writing_train | 0.9 | I want to write a book but am apparently only good at short stories I struggle to fill in longer stories. Is this a handicap or do more people like to write short stories? (around 1000 to 4000 words) | hnidwvz | hnegjx9 | 1,638,826,156 | 1,638,753,298 | 3 | 2 | Short stories can be upwards of 20000 words. If it's what you like doing, then keep doing it. Here's a secret: most of the people that claim to LOVE writing novels aren't any good at it. So do what you do, and do it for you. | Nothing wrong with short stories. If you want to write a novel, You could always try to write a collection of short stories that are connected. Either set in the same world or with the same characters. That’s certainly a strategy: | 1 | 72,858 | 1.5 | ||
r9tf7y | writing_train | 0.9 | I want to write a book but am apparently only good at short stories I struggle to fill in longer stories. Is this a handicap or do more people like to write short stories? (around 1000 to 4000 words) | hnidwvz | hnfdh3x | 1,638,826,156 | 1,638,769,137 | 3 | 2 | Short stories can be upwards of 20000 words. If it's what you like doing, then keep doing it. Here's a secret: most of the people that claim to LOVE writing novels aren't any good at it. So do what you do, and do it for you. | I have been writing short stories and novellas (ranging from about 6k to 18k words). All of them take place in the same world after a big war that ends our society. Some of the people and places appear in more than one. I put three of them together into a 32k collection and put it on KDP. I have another one coming early in the new year. It's what work for me. I feel no need to write a novel at the moment. I'd rather focus on smaller chunks of story telling. | 1 | 57,019 | 1.5 |
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