How do I create a main character?

Question

How do i flesh out a main character for a novel??? I want to make the characters more realistic, but can't seem to get started.

Answer 1

Realistic characters are realistic because they remind the reader of themselves or of someone they know. Since we all have a lot more in common than most people believe, I'd suggest first looking at your own self as a well from which to draw character traits. For instance, if you had a favorite stuffed animal as a child, then your main character did too. That can be mentioned in a brief sentence, in passing, at some point in the story.

I also find that it helps to give characters subtle little quirks that real people have. They could always be chomping gum, for example, and the play-off in the story is how it gets on everyone else's nerves. Or the main character could be easily distracted, always too tangled up in their own thoughts to pay attention to what is going on around them. Whatever quirk you chose, make sure it's a ding. Don't make their quirk the fact that they always open doors for ladies or anything like that. To be real, the character needs to be human, which means there needs to be something about themselves that they'd change if they could or something that makes other characters a little bit reluctant to get too close.

On the recommendation of a friend, I just finished reading STRAIGHT MAN by Richard Russo. This novel has some of the most real characters I've ever seen in fiction. If you're really interested in the craft, I'd highly recommend you check it out and find some more books like it to study how the author handles character development.

Answer 2

I'm an author, so hopefully I can help you.

The most important thing and the most vital thing to do is give your characters FLAWS. Thats the best and as I said the most important way to make your characters realistic. A perfect character stinks.

Also, too, if you need ideas about creating a character personality, try basing your characters on people you know. Thats another good way to make your characters as believable as possible.

Here's a good sight to visit with a LOT of tips on how to write, with thousands of different topics.

Hope I helped!!

Answer 3

Depends on what the novel is about. Try making spin offs of people in real life with over-exagerated qualities, like Bill Cosby did with Fat Albert. Give them a little tweak, an antagonist and maybe a little made up history created from the textbooks and your own experiences sploshed together in a blender.

Answer 4

Before you even start writing the book, you do a deep character study and really flesh your characters out. You may start with a picture from a magazine that resembles how you see the character in your mind. Think of their pasts, their dreams for the future. Remember that our pasts have a great deal of influence on how we behave now. For instance, a kid who was once bitten by a dog may grow up and fall in love with a girl, but breaks off the relationship when he finds out she has a doberman and refuses to give it up. Use some of your own sense memories to create your characters. Tiny snippets of your own past help a lot. And remember that every character rubs against every other character in a different way. Who loves who? Who hates who? Why? Work hard on those studies and you will have real 3 dimensional characters to work with in your story. Pax- C

Answer 5

A character (any) to be complete (a round character ) have four parts
-the physical
-the social
-the mental
-the historical

the physcial one how he or she look like, smell, a particular trait such as bald, a scar, a particular piece or style of clothing

the social one includes how the character thinks and interacts with others, a particular behavior, what things or persons he or she likes, a particular way of talking.

the mental one includes how the character thinks ordered thinking or chaotic one, a particular psicological problem, or a inner conflict either moral or ethical, and even which person you (as the narrator) will use to refer to the character.

the historical one means what happens to the character to be the way he or she is, if his mother dies in a terrorist attack, if she is an orphan, etc.

Hope that helps you.

Answer 6

In the first paragraphs focus making the story on your main character then go on later adding on to the story.

Answer 7

I am in the same position as you. I found this somewhere and am using it myself.


Create a short biography for your new character. You'll need to decide which physical aspects best suit your protagonist -- height, weight, hair and eye color and age. But these alone will not be enough. Consider creating a personality outline as well.

Include:

temperament
moral/ethical/religious beliefs
political stance
hobbies
habits
quirks or eccentricities
likes/dislikes
fears or phobias
short and long term goals
hopes and dreams

Answer 8

Hope it helps!if you want them to be realistic then think of them as you or one of your friends. Then think of what you would want to happen in your life, something that could happen, or if it's fantasy(like the one I'm making), then think of something magical! Hope it helps!

Answer 9

Main character for a novel has to be strong minded, and honest to the point of occasional arrogance, but with a flair and passion to go with it. You have to love them, but hate them at the same time. Trouble is, you have to be this kind of character to really understand one and make the most of one.