Lesson #2: Characters~Pt. 1

No one wants to have a perfect character.

Let's be honest here--what fun is it to read about someone who lives the ideal life, has an ideal personality, and looks perfect? It just reminds us how much our lives suck. It reminds us how screwed up our family is, and how mean we sometimes can be, and how we don't have a perfect body. If there's one thing that bothers me it's when characters aren't people I can easily relate to.

That being said, here's a little something you can use to make your characters more realistic.

In 7th or 8th grade, my class came up with "ASHAT." It stands for 5 things to think about for your character: Appearance, Speech, How others react to him/her, Actions, and Thoughts.

Step One: Appearance.


Some basic questions to think about:
-What clothes does he/she wear?
-How does he/she present herself?
-How does he/she walk?
-What does her physical appearance reveal?
-Does your character have any scars?

Like I said before--nobody's perfect. Don't be afraid to give your characters some flaws. Maybe she's short. Maybe he doesn't have a six pack. Maybe she has a little bit of a tummy. Maybe he has acne. Maybe she dresses in sweatpants all the time. Maybe he likes Armani suits.

Catch my drift?

Here's an example:

A boy is walking down the hallway, hunched over. His dark hair is tangled in a wild mess and his pale skin looks even paler underneath the fluorescent lights. He wears jeans that are two sizes too big, and a sweatshirt that is fraying on the edges. 


When you read that, what can you conclude about the boy?
Here's what I say:

-A boy is walking down the hallway, hunched over. He doesn't have a lot of self-confidence, so he tries to hide himself.
-His dark hair is tangled in a wild mess. He doesn't care much for grooming.
-his pale skin looks even paler underneath the fluorescent lights. Perhaps he doesn't go out much, which implies that he may be a very lonely kid.
-He wears jeans that are two sizes too big, and a sweatshirt that is fraying on the edges. Maybe these clothes are hand-me-downs, because perhaps he can't afford his own clothing.

Get it? Got it? Good(:

Step Two: Speech.


Dialogue is a major step in making someone feel real. What you say is what is in your heart. So the first important thing is: listen. If you're in the cafeteria of school, eavesdrop on some kid's conversations, or pay close attention to your own. What are some often used phrases? How are the kids saying them? What do they do while talking to friends? Do they swear?
The key to writing is understanding. You have to get why someone would say something.

What I like to do while writing dialogue is imagine that I'm the person speaking. How would I respond to the question? For example, if I were Calista, what would I say in response to Melodie's question? Basically, I'm having a conversation with myself :S but I think it really, really helps to put yourself into your character's perspective.

And honestly? No one actually talks like "OMG did you see him? WTF are you doing?" NO ONE SPEAKS IN TEXT LINGO. Okay, so I get it. You want to show that these girls are stupid, ditzy, and annoying. But I beg you, DO NOT USE THIS. I hate it. Where I go to school? No one uses text lingo. It just sounds...stupid. I may have used it in WSF but I'm probably going to change it when (if) I edit it, because it's so STUPID. Want to show how someone is ditzy? Rather than using text lingo, just use their dialogue. Maybe they ask a stupid question. Maybe they say something dumb. You know?

I'm gonna stop here because I'm getting lazy. I'll continue on later :)