Creating Character Profiles

Rebecca Anne from Wolverhampton in the UK contacted me to ask how to create Character Profiles.

Reading back over my early articles on character building, I don't think I used the term "character profile" at all. I called them "mini-biographies" instead, but they are the same thing.

And their purpose is simply a means of getting to know your fictional characters before you start writing your novel.

I will talk about creating profiles in a moment, but first I should say just how important it is that you do get to know your fictional characters as thoroughly as you can before writing.

If you start Chapter 1 without knowing your novel's protagonist well, you simply won't be sure how they should act or react in any given situation - and that can only result in fiction that doesn't ring true.

But onto creating a character profile...

It is actually easy, and you will find full instructions for doing it in this article: Getting to Know Your Fictional Characters. All you do is take out a sheet or few of paper and flesh out your character by noting down things like what clothes they wear and what their favorite music is (plus a whole lot more besides - full details in the article).

I have considered drawing up a full worksheet for creating a character profile, but decided against it. For one thing, the entire section on Creating Characters is like one giant worksheet.

More importantly, though, you really don't need one of those "fill-in-the-blanks" sheets. They are as good as useless...

Like I said, the aim of the exercise is to get to know your characters. Once you have reached a certain level of understanding, you will be able to fill in any blanks as they arise, in your own mind.

For example, let's say one of your characters walks into a bar. Now, you probably didn't make a note on the character profile of what their favorite drink is, but because you know them as well as you do, you will instinctively know whether they will order a pint of bitter or a vodka martini or a glass of milk.

Oh, one last thing: as you write your profiles, always remember to include traits, etc that you would wouldn't expect to find in the same person - a sweet old lady with a sports car, a rock star who loves golf, and so on. Do that and you will create rounded characters, not flat stereotypes.

Hope that helps.

Harvey