There are two main ways to reveal characters: direct characterization, and indirect characterization. What defines these two characterization types, and what are the strengths and weaknesses of each?
Category: Character writing
Read Now Novel’s best character writing blog posts below. Learn how to create a cast for your story that is rich with bold personalities. The best stories make it easy for us to connect with characters and become invested in their story outcomes. Learn how to describe characters’ faces, postures, speech and more. You can also find helpful guides on creating conflict between characters, different kinds of relationships between members of the cast of your story and more.
Creating characters who spring to life on the page is vital for filling your story with people your readers can love, despise, relate to and find intriguing. Learn more.
Character profiles are helpful process work for writing. A profile contains all you need to know about your characters; ID facts such as name, age, gender, birthplace, plus story elements such as characters’ goals, motivations, desires, and conflicts. Read how to write character profiles in 10, simple tips:
A main antagonist is the character who is the main enemy or opposition to a hero or protagonist. Antagonists supply core conflict. How do you create and write potent opponents? Read a definition, examples and quotes, plus 8 steps to write yours:
Knowing how to develop a character so your reader invests in them and believes their journey is key to writing great character-driven stories. Try these 7 simple steps to begin creating affecting, intriguing character arcs:
In creative writing, practice is key. Try these creative writing exercises for deeper characterization. Use every detail, from appearance to movement, gesture, voice, habit, and reputation to make your characters great:
Character growth or change is integral to great stories. Giving characters bad as well as good character traits makes your characterization deeper. It also helps to spark ideas for multiple elements of backstory, for how the character acquired these dominant qualities in the first place. Read 7 useful character attributes, with examples from books.
In learning how to write character development, it’s helpful to think about how each element of storytelling contributes. What are the basic facts about your character the reader should know, going in? What does dialogue do to develop your character further? Action? Narration? Description? Their desires and fears?
The development of characters is a topic blog readers and Now Novel members often ask us about. Creating an interesting, dynamic character arc is easy when you’re aware of the many ways people change. Here are 6 interesting ways people change, plus tips to craft a compelling, engaging character arc: