Tuesday Tip: Character Sheets

Tuesday Tip

Characters are obviously very important in a work of fiction. Your characters should be interesting and realistic. When creating them, be sure to consider the following:

• Does my character fit my story?
• Does my character's name fit my character? (For instance, is the name accurate for the time period?)

Creating a character sheet for every character in your story, particularly the main characters, is crucial.This helps keep the character consistent, yet developing, throughout the story. 

Here are some things to include in your character sheet:

• Character's name
• Character's role (hero, heroine, villain)
• hair color, eye color, age, height, weight
• Identifying features (such as scars, impairments, etc)
• Character's goal
• Hobbies
• Occupation
• Educational background
• Friends and enemies
• Family background (including religion, economic status, nationality, relationship with parents/siblings)
• Most important thing for the reader to know about the character
• Strengths/weaknesses

The more the reader understands the character, the more they care about your character. This makes a better manuscript overall. It's important to show the good and bad about each character, as everyone has both qualities. Someone's weaknesses may ultimately be what causes them to change and become stronger.