Need help with character creation.

When I'm writing a script, I hit the same problem: Whenever I introduce a new character, be it a minor or major character in the plot, they have a personality that is too similar to another character in the story, so their lines are practically interchangeable. How do I break this habit?

edited 5th Sep '11 8:11:32 AM by Gringoamericano

You need to spend more time developing that character.

It's easy to start from personality quirks, and then work your way up to more subtle variations in characterization.

I find the best way to develop a character is to use them. It doesn't neccessarily have to be using them in the canon of your story, just anything. Short character prompts from their perspective, roleplaying, character quizzes, etc. It's when you start to use them that you really begin to figure out the tiny details like their motivations, their fears, and the other stuff that makes them develop into people.

edited 4th Sep '11 8:36:19 PM by Hermiethefrog

I used to have that problem, mostly because I would typically base all of my characters off myself. My characters typically talked like me, thought like me, and reacted the same way I would react. The only way I could break that is to challenge myself to write a character that was as far away from myself as possible. So instead of level headed intellectuals who always thought before they act and always considered others before themselves, I would start writing darker, impulsive, selfish, and moronic characters. Once I did that, it was much easier for me to write characters with even subtle differences from each other.

Okay, I'll restate what I probably said before:

• First, motivation: What does your character wants?
• Second, personality: How does he act to fulfill his wants?
• Third, role: What's his occupation/lifestyle/role in society, and how does it tie in with the former two?
• Fourth: background: How has the past influence the former three?
• Fifth: quirks: What sets him off from other characters?

I should adopt these guidelines for my own characters.

Somehow, I found the regular role-playing character signup template to be exceptionally useful in fleshing out your characters right off the bat. After that? You'll have to let said character's own actions and reactions to the world shape him/her up.

Try giving them each a back story, even if it has no relavents to the plot. This will make both more three dimensional and less like each other.

Check this awesome guide:

Develop Character Personality

edited 5th Sep '11 9:21:37 AM by FallenLegend