How to See and Hear a Character

This is the second of three posts in a series on creating a character from scratch. In this series, I cover one step per post, to give you a sense of why I think it’s important, how I figure it out for my own characters, and various tips and tricks to help you on your own way.

Last we met, I talked about how I go about naming characters and pointed you in the direction of some fun ways to find the right name for your character. This time around, I'll cover the process I embark on to figure out a character's physicality, and how that plays into the fabric of the story.

How to Name a Character

When creating a character from scratch, I often figure out three things right off the bat:

1. Their name
2. Their physicality, including what they sound like
3. Who is most important to them

In this series, I’ll be covering one step per post, sharing why each one is important, how I figure it out for my own characters, and tips and tricks to help you on your way.

How to Build a Creative Support Network

When we first think of becoming writers, we often think of it as a relatively solitary endeavor. We imagine ourselves holing up in the attic, pecking away on a typewriter, producing page after page in a kind of creative fervor, perhaps with an inquisitive mouse for company.

What our daydreams don’t usually include is a writing community. I’m not even talking about editors and agents and other professionals who help us bring our book to the masses. I’m talking about other writers.

At its core, there are three types of writers who make up your creative support network: mentors, peers, and mentees.

Location, Location, Location! ... and Why It Matters to Your Character

[This post is excerpted from my free workbook on character development!]

Just as there are people our characters’ lives wouldn’t be the same without, there are places that become fixtures, even iconic, to them. Where do they spend their waking hours?