How to Create a Character Profile

hello everybody today we're talking about characters again a lot of you have told me that you really struggle with creating characters they're flat they're unrealistic they're one-dimensional and that blows now there are a lot of elements that go into creating really strong characters but I think one of the most important steps is to try to get to know the character is if they were a real person if you know the character inside and out it's going to be a lot easier to write for them and a simple way to get to know your character is to create a fancy dancy character profile a character profile is essentially a list of your characters traits and these lists get very specific now some of you might be thinking well that's nice Jenna but I don't know what sort of [ __ ] I'm supposed to list Oh silly human that's what I'm here for I'm going to give you a ton of things you ought to consider when creating a character profile and I'm going to divide these things into five simple categories a few things to keep in mind one just because you're listing these things doesn't mean they need to go into your novel this process is to help you get to know your characters so you can easily write for them it's not so you can include a laundry list of information that nobody cares about into your book and - I'm about to list some things you should consider I am a hundred percent positive that I'm missing a ton of [ __ ] a friend of mine once downloaded a character profile that had a hundred categories to fill out a hundred I'm not listing a hundred things consider the list I'm about to give you a starting point category number one the basic stats what's your character sex and what's their gender keep in mind sex and gender are not the same thing sex is biology I'm talking chromosomes hormones genitals the fun stuff gender is a concept it's whatever a particular society defines as masculine or feminine next stacked what's your character's age you're gonna want to think about this one carefully because age plays a huge role in a character's life experience and life experience can completely transform someone's personality next we move on to race ethnicity and culture these are important to consider one because it can help guide the characters physical description and two because some people place a lot of their identity in their the city and culture and even fictional worlds have countries or realms or clans your characters gotta have some kind of lineage it could be Cuban it could be elfin next there's physical appearance and the key things to consider our height body type and face it's also good to know how your character's appearance affects them have you ever met a supremely gorgeous person who was supremely arrogant I'm sure you have but keep in mind that a person's appearance doesn't have to dictate their personality just because a character small doesn't mean they're sweet or weak and the last basic stat where is your character from where do they live and I'm talking specifics country state town and residence you also want to know what their lifestyles like are they rich are they poor or they coasting are they struggling next we move on to category two relationships first and foremost what's their family like not only that you should know what their relationship with their families like maybe their dad's an abusive piece of [ __ ] maybe their mom has a drinking problem the number one thing that [ __ ] a person up is their family so digging through a character's family tree is a great way to reveal their insecurities and issues next we move on to friends a person's friendships can say a lot about them if you're hanging out with a bunch of [ __ ] you're probably an [ __ ] too and as the story progresses your characters friendships might change maybe they're friends abandon them in their time of need or maybe the character just outgrows them next category is number three the sexy stuff what's their sexual orientation please keep in mind that there are a lot of sexual orientations to choose from if you can only think of three or four there's more than that which brings me to my next point what specifically is your character attracted to just because your character is attracted to men doesn't mean they're attracted to all men what's gonna get your character all riled up what's gonna make a pop a boner of course you've got your obvious options boobs butts abs biceps legs length of things but most people are attracted to far more traits than that eyes hair smile the scent of Cologne the way a person dresses or carries themselves and most importantly personality lots of people are attracted to confidence or quirkiness or having things in common tap into your character's hormones and figure out what turns their brain into a gutter and on that note what's your character sexual experience just because your character likes dicks doesn't mean they've seen one or had one in their mouth not only do I like to determine a character sexual history I also like to determine why that's their sexual history why are they a player why are they 'virgin and lastly what's your character's romantic experience sexual experience and romantic experience are not the same thing sexuality refers to a tingling in your privates romance refers to a tingling in your heart has your character ever been on a date have they ever fallen in love have they had their heart shattered into a million pieces that could never be put back together my smile was taken long ago [ __ ] change I next is category number four skills what the hell is your character good at and how did they develop these skills if your character is a regular nerd in one chapter and then in the next there are single-handedly fighting off werewolves you're gonna have to be able to rationalize this no one is suddenly an expert at something unless it's magic and it could very well be magic next you want to look at your character schooling or occupation are they good at school do they like their jobs most people don't and lastly you want to take a look at their hobbies what the hell does your character do when they're not killing aliens or casting spells and finally we reach the most important category number five personality and character we'll start with the easy stuff is your character an introvert or an extrovert most people actually qualify as amber verts which is the middle ground between introvert and extrovert but it's still a good idea to figure out if your character is more on the reserved side or more on the outgoing side is your character right-brained or left-brained right brain people tend to be more creative left brain people tend to be more analytical and people who are balanced are just good at everything [ __ ] then we move on to your character strengths and weaknesses this is pivotal especially for your most important characters because their strengths and weaknesses are going to fuel the plot if a character is ambitious that could be a major strength if they're ambitious to the point of disregarding the feelings of everyone who cares about them that could be a major weakness or possibly sociopathic behavior if your character is a good guy you want to know what makes them heroic and what makes them human if they're a bad guy you want to know what makes them formidable and what makes them falter what are your characters goals and dreams what is your character aspiring toward and do these aspirations change over the course of the novel it's actually very common for a character's goals to change as the story progresses especially if the character in question is the protagonist on the flip side what are your characters fears and insecurities in order to write a compelling story your characters need to have some pretty legitimate fears and insecurities maybe they're insecure about their future maybe they're afraid of losing their identity or sense of self maybe they're scared to die in doing this you are essentially determining the root of your character's vulnerability and this is vital if you want to make a realistic sir what are your characters beliefs most people believe in something it could be a simple code of ethics it could be a religion it could be science it could be a combination of these things but you at least want to know if your character has a sense of duty purpose or right and wrong and lastly what would your character die for someone's about to fire a gun what would compel your character to run in front of that bullet figuring out what this thing or person is is sort of like tapping into the heart and soul of your character you learn a lot about a person when you determine what it is they truly care about so there you have it these are just a few things to consider when creating a character profile remember there are a ton more things you can look into I encourage you to look online for examples of character profiles you can find them everywhere and I've got a sample character profile up on my blog count blog EULA I use the protagonist of my upcoming novel the Savior's champion as an example links listed below remember the key is to get to know your character so well they feel like a real complex person once that character feels three-dimensional to you it'll be so much easier to write for them on that note don't forget to subscribe to my channel I post new videos on Wednesdays Eve the awakening is still available in eBook and paperback on Amazon right now you can also order a signed copy links are listed below and if you have any questions or if there's something you'd like me to talk about my next video be sure to tweet me at generosity bye

Channel: Writing with Jenna Moreci

Views: 325,504

Rating: 4.9141097 out of 5

Keywords: write, writer, writing, read, reader, reading, book, books, ebook, publishing, publish, author, novel, words, language, character, fiction, humor, funny, inspiration, motivation, profile, letters, paper, computer, laptop

Id: wQcQ-As2BU0

Length: 8min 50sec (530 seconds)

Published: Wed May 11 2016