How to write believable Characters

First recognize that different genres of fiction have different needs. A tightly plotted action or suspense thriller may not need characters fleshed out in detail as much as a literary novel. Also be aware that the more outlandish your plot is, the more important character believability becomes. Read any Steven King book and you'll see this. The reason he can take us on these journeys through strange and unusual events is his power to create realistic characters. When we believe the character, we believe what's happening to them.

The process of creating characters is so varied I suspect there are as many methods as there are authors. As always, take these tips as guidelines- not law. Every writer must do what works for him or her. These ideas will hopefully serve as a springboard to get you on your way.Here's how I create my characters:

* Step 1- Consider the story. In general the more my emphasis rest on the plot of the book, the more my characters need to serve that plot. If the story focus is more character based then my plot needs to serve the character.

If I need a character that will chase down a killer then I
better design someone who's able to do that. Everything from their build to their psychology must help them get to the killer. Now it's important not to make the character a perfect fit. No one is perfect, that's what makes life interesting. Your characters should have flaws that make it uncomfortable for them to reach their goal.
For example the character chasing the killer might have a wife and family that worry about his safety. This creates tension- tension
drives story.

When constructing a more literary work then the character
should be in mind already, and the plot forms around them. For
example- a coming of age story requires a young character who will
experience events that will shape their life. If you don't have
those elements you don't have a coming of age story- so your plot
must support your character.

* Step 2- Get to know your character. I like to use a form that
looks like an extensive dossier when I create my characters. For
supporting characters the dossier is smaller, but still quite
detailed. Design one for yourself and be sure to include details
about:

• The character's appearance.
• Their habits and mannerisms.
• Their motivations.
• Their past.
• How the character will change in the course of the story.

Don't make the mistake of assuming the bad guys don't need
as much character detail- they do, particularly in motivation. Sure
a story about a killer is suspenseful and scary, but if you have a
killer who murders because he sees his abusive father in every
victim, well- that's a little richer. Remember- the bad guys have
motivations that seem good to them. Hitler thought he was a nice guy-
your bad guy should too.

When you finish your dossier you may want to get creative
with it. I've spent time leafing through old magazines until I find
a picture of someone who reminds me of my character. I cut the
picture out and paste it to the dossier. Somehow this makes the
person seem real in my mind. I can think of them as a human rather
than a construction when I see an actual face.

* Step 3- Interview your character. Don't let your family see you do
this or they'll call the guys with the butterfly nets. You need to
sit down at the keyboard or with your notepad and interview these
characters. Ask them all kinds of questions about the story and
their lives. Why do you need to do this? Because it helps you iron
out the wrinkles in your character's construction. If you interview
your character and they reveal a motivation that just seems weak to
you- great. Now you have a chance to fix it before writing hundreds
of pages.

* Step 4- Introducing you character. When you finally sit down to
write you'll wonder how you go about introducing your character. A
few points to consider:

• Introduce them at a moment of change in their lives. Don't show
how your character was born and raised in intricate detail- jump
into their lives at the moment something dramatic happens. Instead
of beginning your story "He was born at 2:34am in Lakeview
hospital," you can begin like this- "Marvin had never killed anyone
before. Looking down at the body at his feet he wondered if it would
be the last time." Whoa! Much more interesting, eh?

• "Show, don't tell," still applies. Try to show your character's
nature rather than tell about it. The exception is minor characters.
You can use some short exposition to explain your minor characters
just to get them moving fast. You don't want to spend a large chunk
of text describing the Boy Scout who helps Granny walk across the
street- and your reader doesn't either. Just give enough information
about the kid to get Granny across the street- then go back to
Granny's life.

• Some authors go for the bullet approach. Decide if it's right for
you. The bullet approach works like this- when a character is
introduced the story stops briefly and the author spends some time
writing expository information that gives the reader everything they
need to know about the character. This works for some writers- but I
don't recommend it. For one thing fiction has to be hyper-realistic.
In real life we don't get to know people all at once like that. It's
a gradual discovery. Consider your story and consider what other
authors in your genre are doing and decide for yourself.

That's the basic recipe for character creation. I hope it
helps you get your characters off the ground and running. Remember-
characters are the building blocks of story- don't forget to spend
time on them before you dive into your first draft. You'll be glad
you did.




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Jeff Heisler is a freelance writer and editor of Write Away.
Read more of Jeff's writing articles at
http://www.heislerink.com/writeaway.asp.

12 Exercises for Improving Dialogue

Dialogue is one of the most difficult aspects of writing to master. There are many pitfalls you must try to avoid, such as:

Stilted language
Dialogue that does not sound like natural speech.
Filler
Dialogue that does not further the scene and does not deepen your
understanding of the characters.
Exposition
Dialogue that has the character explain the plot or repeat information
for the benefit of the audience.
Naming
Having one character use another character’s name to establish identity.
People almost never say other people’s names back to them, and if they do it
is a character trait typical of a used car salesman.
Overuse of Modifiers
Too many dialogue modifiers such as shouted, exclaimed,
cried, whispered, stammered, opined, insinuated,
hedged and a million others. Modifiers such as this can sometimes be
useful, but are often annoying and used as a crutch for poorly designed
dialogue.

Here are a few exercises to help you master dialogue as a tool for writing:

1. Write down the things you say over the course of the day. Examine your own speech patterns. You don’t have to get every word, but you may find that you say less than you think and that your statements are surprisingly short. You might also find that you rarely speak in complete sentences.
2. Find a crowded place such as a restaurant, a bar, or a shopping mall and write down snippets of the conversations you hear. Avoid trying to record whole conversations, just follow along for a brief exchange and then listen for your next target. If you are worried about looking suspicious, you might want to purchase a Palm Pilot, Handspring Visor or other hand-held PDA device. These handy spy tools make it look like you are conducting business or playing with your favorite electronic toy rather than eavesdropping.
3. Test responses to the same question. Think of a question that will require at least a little thought, and ask it of several different people. Compare their responses. Remember that you are focused on their words. Write them down as soon as you can.
4. Record several different TV shows. Some choices include: sitcom, news, drama, talk show, infomercial, sporting event, etc.). Write down a transcript using just the dialogue and people’s names. If you don’t know the names, just use a description such as announcer or redheaded woman. You can also transcribe two shows of the same genre, using one show you like and one you dislike. Compare dialogue between the fiction and non-fiction programming you recorded. Look for such things as greetings, descriptions of physical actions, complete sentences, slang, verbal ticks (Such as like, you know, uhhhh, well, etc.). Compare how these dialogue crutches change according to the show format and quality.
5. Rewrite one or more of the shows in exercise 4 as prose, trying to recreate the show as accurately as possible. Note how easy or difficult it is to work in the entire dialogue from the show. Does it seem to flow naturally and read well or does it get in your way. Rewrite again eliminating any dialogue you feel is unnecessary. Try not to change any dialogue though until your final draft. Work with what you have. Remember that you don’t necessarily have to rewrite the whole show. Do enough to be sure you have the feeling for it.
6. Rewrite one of the the transcripts from exercise 4 using as much of the dialogue as possible, but changing the scene in as many ways as possible. Change the setting, change the people’s intent, and change the tone. See how easy or difficult it is to give the same words a different intent. Again, do enough to be sure you have the feeling for it.
7. Write the dialogue for a scene without using any modifiers. Just write down a conversation as it goes along naturally. After you have completed the dialogue, add narrative description, but not dialogue tags such as said, shouted or ordered. Instead, try to work the dialogue into the action as a logical progression of the statements. Finally, add any dialogue tags that are absolutely necessary, and keep them simple such as said, told, or asked. Again, only put them in if you can find not other options. Compare this to the previous dialogue you have written and see what you like or dislike about the changes.
8. Write a scene in which one person tells another person a story. Make sure that you write it as a dialogue and not just a first person narrative, but clearly have one person telling the story and the other person listening and asking questions or making comments. The purpose of this scene will be both to have the story stand alone as a subject, and to have the characters’ reactions to the story be the focal point of the scene.
9. Write a scene in which one person is listening to two other people have an argument or discussion. For example, a child listening to her parents argue about money. Have the third character narrate the argument and explain what is going on, but have the other two provide the entire dialogue. It is not necessary to have the narrator understand the argument completely. Miscommunication is a major aspect of dialogue.
10. Write a conversation between two liars. Give everything they say a double or triple meaning. Never state or indicate through outside description that these two people are lying. Let the reader figure it out strictly from the dialogue. Try not to be obvious, such as having one person accuse the other of lying. That is too easy.
11. Write a conversation in which no character speaks more than three words per line of dialogue. Again, avoid crutches such as explaining everything they say through narration. Use your narration to enhance the scene, not explain the dialogue.
12. Write a narrative or scripted scene in which several characters are taking an active role in the conversation. This can be a difficult aspect of dialogue to master, because with each additional character, the reader or audience must be able to keep track of the motivations and interests of the individuals involved. This can be especially difficult in prose, where the time between one character speaking and the next can be interrupted by action or description. See how many characters your can sustain within the scene and still have it make sense and be engaging.
Source:
http://www.poewar.com/12-exercises-for-improving-dialogue/