Character Research!

As discussed in a previous post, I love writing and have been writing since I was a young child. And yet, I do not know how to properly write a character. My writing tends to revolve around poetry and short stories. Because of this, I figured that I would research how to create a character, as I plan on utilizing character development heavily in my short film.

Something that I came across a lot during my research was the importance of character development. Characters must change and grow their personalities and morals based on their experiences. This process allows for characters to become more relatable to viewers as well as more dynamic and less static. This is very hard to encapsulate, and even harder when I only have two minutes to set up an interesting basis for a character that requires development. I did find ways that should make this easier, though.

A huge tip was to give the character strengths and weaknesses. I plan to make these flaws and abilities some that I can personally relate to, so the character will be easier for me to write. Another way to help the character have more depth is by giving them clear morality, although I don't know if I will have the time or need to do this.

I want to create realistic motives as well, and stay in my lane of dealing with my own experiences when making characters. For example, I don't want my character to have the motive of time traveling to the black hole age of the universe.

Another was to make them obviously struggling with something within themselves or with the outside world; give them a conflict that they must solve before the end of the story. 

This can include:

- Character vs. Self

- Character vs. Character

- Character vs. Nature

- Character vs. Supernatural

- Character vs. Technology

- Character vs. Society

Smaller details I want to include are smaller ticks and habits of the character that create a sense of individuality that can clearly be attributed to my mc.

Thank you for reading! Until next time.

https://www.masterclass.com/articles/writing-tips-for-character-development#how-to-develop-a-protagonist

https://self-publishingschool.com/character-development/

https://www.masterclass.com/articles/what-is-conflict-in-literature-6-different-types-of-literary-conflict-and-how-to-create-conflict-in-writing