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Monday 2 May 2016

Character Development Questions

These are the questions I have been using to 'profile' my main characters. I have borrowed them from all over the place, and cobbled together this monster list. I won't pretend that by the time I'd gotten half way through with each of my main characters, I was past caring. For each character, I had to stop, and come back the following day so as not to just give 'i don't really care' answers and to actually give some thought to what i was writing.

What I ended up with is a group of characters that I know really well, and whose stories I feel excited to start telling. If this list is of any use to anyone, then please do feel free to copy it - unlike the rest of the content of my blog, which is absolutely my own work and I retain all rights to!

Enjoy:

name
role
age
mental age
birth date 
height
weight
ethnic heritage
hair colour
hair length
eye colour


physical description 
style of dress
sense of humour
personality type
what obsesses them
religion

political stance
hobbies
sexuality 
favourite colour
contents of purse
description of childhood home
Home town
education
work experiences
family
best friend
significant other
past relationships and how they impact on current
male friends
female friends
enemies
best childhood memory
worst childhood memory
one line characterization 
strongest traits
weakest traits
character's paradox
greatest hope
deepest fear
biggest regret
philosophy for life
how they see themselves
biggest secret
one word description
favourite food
allergies 
where were they born?
names of parents
parents jobs
parenting styles experienced
siblings & ages
closeness to siblings
where do they live now?
who do they live with?
describe their house
what is their occupation
scars or tattoos
social class
physical weaknesses
left or right handed
what does their voice sound like?
frequently used words or phrases
what is in their pocket/ with them at all times?
quirks or mannerisms
did they enjoy school? why?
where did they learn their skills or abilities
any childhood heroes?
what did they want to be when they grew up?
who was their first love?
Are they a virgin? if not when and with who?

most important life event so far
major influences? 
greatest achievement?
most evil thing they have done
ever broken a law?
scariest moment
most embarrassing moment
if they could change 1 thing, what & why?
basically optimist or pessimist
views on sex
could they ever kill someone? under what circumstances?
what's the worst thing another human could do?
do they believe in soul mates/ love at first sight?
what would make a successful life?
do they hide their feelings or are they open and honest? 
do they have any biases or prejudices? 
is there anything they would. never ever do under any circumstance?
what would they die for?
how do they generally treat others? (polite, rude, keep at a distance etc)
does treatment of others change if they get to know them? how? 
who is the most important person in their life? why?
what do they look for in a potential lover?
do they have any children? how many and what age?
who would they turn to if they needed help?
do they trust anyone to protect them? who and why?
if they died or were missing, who would miss them?
who do they hate and why?
do they tend to argue with people or avoid conflict?
do they take on leadership roles or defer responsibility?
how are they with large groups of people?
do they care what others think of them? 
what is their most treasured possession? 
what,  if anything,  do they like to read? 
what is their idea of good entertainment 
do they drink or take drugs?  if so why and are they addicted? 
how would they spend a day off? 
what offends or shocks them
how are they in stressful situations
Are they spontaneous or do they have to plan? 
.what are their pet hates?
describe their day to day routine
how do they feel when their routine is disrupted?
if they could change 1 thing about themselves,  what &  why
would others describe them as extrovert or introvert
the things they consider themselves to be good at
the things they think they are bad at
organised or messy
do they like themselves? 
what is their reason for their role (hero/villain etc)
where will they be in 5 years?
given a choice how would they want to die?
if they had 48 hours to live,  what 3 things would they do/regret
what would they want to be remembered for
what will they be remembered for
three words they think others user to describe them
what advice would I,  the author, give my character? 
what is worse - failing or never trying
are they streetwise, book - smart,  intellectual, slow - witted? 
Are they more/less/exactly as curvy add they think they are? 
Are they more/less/exactly as capable as they think? 
does their education or upbringing reflect in their speech patterns?
have they travelled?
do they want to travel? 
can they easily forgive and forget? 
do they want children
how do they rationalise failure? internally or externally?
do they enjoy suffering or others suffering?
do they have a good imagination? 
what do they think is stupid? 
can they laugh at themselves
how do they feel about their physical body? 
what are their gestures like?  (vigorous, weak, controlled, compulsive, energetic, sluggish)
what is their main facial expression (sour, cheerful, vacant, worried, concentrating)

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