How well do you know your characters?
Do they behave consistently throughout the story? How much depth do they have? Could you predict how they would act in certain situations? Do they fly off the page and take control of the story, sending it in unexpected directions?
Below are a few ideas to help you get to know your story people inside and out:
- Keep a tracker, file or spreadsheet showing all information about each character.
- Interview your characters to get to know them properly.
- Get inside their heads. Hold imaginary conversations whilst pretending to be each character. You might want to do this somewhere private!
- Learn everything about your main characters – what they like for breakfast, their appearance, family background, style, accent and key characteristics.
I would love to hear your ideas for how you do this, so please add them into the comments below.
