And now we come to the finish line of this marathon of character-creating industry. The fourth page of my character worksheet is dedicated to backstory, the history of the character. This page acts as a kind of resume, a curriculum vitae if you will (assuming the position being applied for requires a bizarrely intrusive exploration of relationships and motivations).

Here’s the page:

Fair warning: of the entire character creation worksheet, I skimp the most on this particular section. All of the information is achievable, but I find that though this information truly rounds-out a character, it most often fails to make the “final cut” of the manuscript. Not that it isn’t worth pursuing, but if you’re going to cheat, this would be the place.

HISTORY

Current Address/Hometown: This is the basic information, useful in nailing down the exact location of your character, as well as the character’s built-in filter of the world. A protagonist from Iowa will have a profoundly different view of the invading alien fleet than would the protagonist from Dubai.

Description of Residence: This is useful in keeping the details straight throughout your story. Does your character’s home have two stories and a basement, or just one story and a basement? Is it a red brick or a white siding home? Is it a mud hovel with a thatch roof, or a log cabin?

Family: Here, I progress through the basic family relationships, asking for names and professions. Names of family members, even those who do not appear in the story, become useful in keeping the character’s full history alive.  In The Curse Merchant, my protagonist had an Aunt that become so compelling that she worked her way closer to the front of the plot, until she managed to find a place in my plans for a sequel.

Schooling: So many of our early relationship are developed in school, as is our world view. Is the character a high school dropout? Did she receive parochial schooling? Does he have an advanced degree, and if so, is it appropriate for the story?

Employment: Likewise, the character’s skill sets have been honed in some manner prior to the beginning of the story. If the protagonist is school-aged, this many be left largely untouched. But what kind of biases come with having held certain positions? Is the antagonist averse to tipping? Does this annoy the protagonist who put herself through college as a waitress? This is a quick and easy way to build empathy and antipathy.

Relationship: Here I explore the character’s recent relationships. Assuming there is a Significant Other of some definition at play in the story, I’ll briefly define their status: girlfriend, fiancee, mistress, etc. The most recent relationship often interferes with the current relationship in some manner, so it is worth defining here as well… and may even provide an interesting secondary character. Then there is the Best Friend, however that character defines it. Some characters (villains, in particular) may not have an entry for Best Friend, as they are horrible, horrible people. And yet, if they are people, what are the odds that someone considers them a friend on some level? It’s worth exploring towards creating three-dimensional characters.

Describe Relationship with Parents: The single most formative influence on our world view are our parents. They defined our views of the opposite sex, the same sex, and of how families interact. They give us our first creeds, our moral compass, our religion, and our political views. When these things change as we grow older and independent, we may find we view our parents in an entirely new light. Or, we may grow to become carbon copies of our parents. The relationship of your character with her parents (living or dead, which is also worth noting) is a tremendous source of character bias and emotional development.

Describe Relationship with Best Friend: Very often the protagonist’s best friend acts as a reflection character for the protagonist, a character which has similar views or upbringing, but for one decision or twist of fate follows a different path than the protagonist. Explore the “what ifs” between the friends. How are they different? How do they serve one another as friends? This character is likely to receive his or her own character sheet.

How Has the Places Influenced the Character: If the white cop grew up in the Deep South during the 1950’s, that character might have a different view of his new black partner than would a character that grew up in Detroit. Did Princess Rowena of Planet Lesbosia really just give Captain Sarah Womanshield a lingering hug because she’s just friendly like that? We are products of our environment. Define how the character’s various environments influences the character’s world view.

Fondest Memory: I particularly adore this entry. When the plot gets tough… and it will get tough (if it’s interesting)… the character will experience a transformation. What is the bright memory that your character clings to during the Black Moment of the monomyth? Why is this a fond memory? Is it a trip with her parents to the ballet? What does this say about her current relationship with her daughter? Is it the day the hero’s father gave him his first sword? What has become of that sword, or his father for that matter? So often as a writer, I find that the fondest memories are defined by darkness. A memory is cherished due to its absence. Explore this fond memory, the pain of the character’s present, and the connection between the two.

And celebrate, because you’re done with the character worksheet! Now, make one for each of the other major characters.

I was asked if I would share my Excel templates with others who may find them useful. Whereas the Character Worksheet is something I cooked up on my own, the Scene Worksheet is the creation of another author, Meredith Bond. And as she uses this worksheet as part of a writing course, I feel it’s largely inappropriate to share it.  I have however uploaded both the Character Worksheet to Google Docs. Here is the link:

Character Worksheet

Thanks for following along… this has been a long series of posts filled with writing theory. Thus, for the next few posts I fully intend on lightening the mood with a little personal discourse and some thoughts on the elements of my current projects.

Page Three of my character worksheet begins to needle into the minor details of the character, primarily the speech patterns and physical trappings which help in forming a mental picture of the character.  At this point in the planning process, I begin to skimp to a degree if I’m not dealing with a major character. But for my protagonist and antagonist, I do my level best to fill in every blank. Remembering of course that none of it is immutable, and will likely be overwritten by the time the manuscript is complete.

Here’s the third page:

The value of the Speech and Mannerisms section is felt mostly in dialogue. Prior to making your choices for this section, go out in public and listen to real speech for a while. For The Curse Merchant, I actually filled out my character worksheets while sitting in the middle of a crowded community college cafeteria (I see the alliteration fairy is earning her pay this morning). Writing believable dialogue can be a challenge, but I find that filling in this worksheet can help keep my characters speaking at the level that I have intended for them.

SPEECH & MANNERISMS

Three Favorite Idioms/Expressions: In your prose, you should absolutely strive to limit the use of cliche and idiomatic expression. However, in your characters’ dialogue, idioms can and should present themselves. Define three idioms or expressions that the character tends to use, even over-use. Consider the personality of the character when making these choices, as they can serve to subconsciously remind you, and the reader, of the character’s mindset.

Three Favorite Words: I am a big believer in the psychological component of speech. Our diction carries hidden clues toward our personality. Choose three weighted words, keywords if you will, that may or may not pop up repeatedly in the character’s speech. Again, choose your words carefully, with respect to the character’s personality.

Most Used Vocal Pause: I don’t condone heavy use of vocal pauses within written dialogue. Even though dialogue is meant to be organic, it should never become distracting. Beginning every spoken sentence with “Uh, yeah.” or “So, um…” can become tiresome. However, this shouldn’t preclude the occasional use of vocal pauses, particularly during moments when you, as the author, have pulled the rug from underneath your character’s feet. In an effort to keep the characters distinct and identifiable within your manuscript, attempt to keep the chosen vocal pauses unique to each character. If your protagonist says “uh”, be sure the love interest says “hmm.”

Describe Vocal Tone: Just as knowing your character’s appearance helps to solidify the character for the mind’s eye, knowing the precise tone of your character’s voice will be equally formative for the mind’s ear. The description of vocal tone may often enter into the manuscript upon first hearing the character speak. Hint: I often cheat and describe a vocal tone simply by typing in an actor’s name. Wilford Brimley and Gilbert Gottfried have very different vocal tones.

Nervous Tic: Here we enter the realm of mannerism. Everyone has some type of “business” that is subconscious, yet often obvious (even annoying) to those surrounding us. Tapping a pen, clicking teeth, playing with hair, cracking knuckles, clearing the throat… these are actions that communicate anxiety, boredom, impatience. All by showing instead of telling. They also help to pace out a dialogue-heavy scene to give a moment’s pause for the reader.

Bad Habit: Beyond physical business, everyone has at least one bad habit. Poor dental hygiene, dirty laundry, bad accounting, procrastination. Go ahead and define a bad habit for each character. This is especially useful for virtuous protagonists or love interests who have a tendency to sublimate beyond the reader’s ability to empathize.

Good Habit: Not everything is nose picking and knuckle cracking. Just as virtuous characters require some manner of grounding, the more nefarious “heavies” in our plots often benefit from a humanizing element. Let them keep a spotless kitchen. Keep them on top of their bookkeeping. These habit entries are a kind of reflection of the Vice/Virtue entries in the previous page of the character worksheet, the distinction being that these habits should be mannerisms… mundane physical activities.

WARDROBE

Casual Attire/Work Clothes: For no particular reason, I tend to obsess on character wardrobe. Define a “typical” ensemble for day-to-day wear, and work attire. Whether these details enter into your manuscript is entirely up to the story itself. It must benefit the story, forward the character, or otherwise be beneficial to the reader. Otherwise it becomes verbal chaff. However, there is something to be said for implying a character’s personality via wardrobe versus straight exposition. The difference being “she was a quirky undergrad” and “she wore a poodle skirt, combat boots, and a Flogging Molly t-shirt”.

Favorite Shoes: There are entire schools of thought dedicated to the connection between personality and one’s shoes. If not, then there ought to be.

Sleepwear: Clearly important for steamy romance novels, but very often a middle-of-the-night scene will present itself, and should the character go sprinting into the night, it would be beneficial to know if she sleeps in the nude before the police catch up with her.

Underwear: Boxers or briefs. It may seem silly, but one’s choice in underwear can communicate elements of personality. When you find the woman wearing a leopard print bra-and-panty set undressing in front of the tax accountant wearing tighty-whiteys, the sexual dynamic rather presents itself.

Make-up: Bold emphasis on the eyes? Blood-red lipstick? Nothing but foundation? No make-up at all? Create in your mind a firm impression of the character, and as she develops throughout the story feel free to play with the choice of make-up, as the face she puts forward to the world tells a lot about the character.

Typical Accessories: The bracelets, necklaces, earrings, watches, wallets, belt buckles, and even the glasses frames find their way into the business of dialogue. Be sure to nail down exactly what the character is wearing, and keep it consistent within the scene!

Next time, we will conclude this exploration of character worksheets by creating the character’s personal history and resume.

Today, let’s take a look at the second page of my character worksheet, which outlines the character’s personality and the character’s journey within the story. Here’s the sheet:

Let’s pick it apart.

PERSONALITY

Zodiac Sign: I know what you’re thinking. Seriously? Astrology? Views on whether the planets literally influence the lives of mortals aside, the traditional signs of the Zodiac break human personalities down into twelve archetypes… and that ought to get any writer’s mouth watering. I like to choose an arbitrary sign of the Zodiac, not to force the character to conform, but to give me a quick and easy star by which to navigate the character conflict.

%Extrovert/Introvert: How outgoing and proactive is your character? I choose a number to represent this, and try to keep it in mind as I wander through dialogue. I find this especially useful for secondary characters.

Greatest Fear: Name the one thing that would most devastate your character. Armed with this knowledge, you are poised to brandish this fear at your character. Repeatedly.

Greatest Hope: Similarly, the character’s ultimate dream should be something the character continually strives for. Tempt the character with this hope. Dangle it in front of her to urge her forward. This makes motivation much easier to define.

Greatest Vice: Keep this mundane. A vice is chewing nails, smoking, gambling, picking one’s nose, or picking others’ noses. It is thrown into the regular business of the prose between lines of dialogue and scene changes, and helps to ground the character in the mind of the reader.

Greatest Virtue: This is something that is utterly redeemable about the character, which the character doesn’t necessarily work at. It’s a constructive element of the personality that comes naturally. Does he always drop coins into the cups of beggars? Does he tip heavily? Does he mow the lawn of the old lady next door? Does he invest? These are the things that help balance antagonists. That is, unless you’re shooting for a perfectly cartoonish villain.

How Character Wants to be Seen by Others: This goes hand-in-hand with Greatest Hope, generally speaking, and defines the total package of character in the light of his hopes and ambitions, and helps to define the character’s “filter” from reality.

How Character is Actually Seen by Others: Here’s where the filter falls away. This entry combined with the previous entry can arm you with truckloads of dramatic irony for your character, as well as empathy (or antipathy) from your reader.

Minor Phobias: Do spiders give her the creepy-crawlies? Is he afraid of heights? These minor phobias often steer the character through the mundane business of life, and often present very real complications at the worst possible moments.

Minor Fetishes: Unless it’s integral to the plot, this is something that might not manifest in the story. The question remains, however, what turns your character on? This need not be sexual in nature. Does the character get a thrill from eating a triple chocolate sundae? Driving too fast? Dressing up in animal suits and playing tic tac toe on the kitchen table with a can of aerosol cheese?

Religious/Political Affiliation: We as human beings adore labels, particularly within a plural society. We carry within each of us a bevy of bias founded upon one’s own philosophies, be they political or religious. Depending on the story itself, this may be a very key, fundamental element to the plot. The more specifically you define their political and cosmological beliefs, the more concretely the character will present herself to the reader.

Favorite Music Style: If you answer Country/Western, and the story takes place in Renaissance Italy, then you might need to be sure that time travel is a core plot element.

CHARACTER JOURNEY

(this is a vitally important section to complete for any character)

Character Transformed from (what) to (what)?: This is a fill-in-the-blanks question. For any novel, you must have character development. Otherwise what was the point in the story? Most writers accept this on some level, but how deeply have you defined it for your character? Break it down simply. Your character began as a Blank, but has transformed into a Blank. Just fill in those Blanks. John transformed from a bigot to a compassionate husband. Judith transformed from a victim to an independent woman. Ughfrak transformed from a fifth-level demi-imp to a sixteenth level Demon Lord.

What Does Character Now Possess?: Your character may win or lose. When you get into the secondary characters, particularly the antagonist, you will have to deal with at least one character coming out on the bottom. Win or lose, however, each character will possess some knowledge, understanding, or even an item which represents the transformation the character has undergone. John now has a Korean wife. Judith now has a blue belt in Jiu Jitsu. Ughfrak now has the Greater Turning Stone of Beelzuboom the Filthy.

What Does Character Wish She Knew at Beginning of Story?: Part of the character’s journey should be painful. There should be failure, loss, even regret. And though our trials and tribulations define us and often make us stronger, we can’t help but to succumb to speculation. “Had I only known…” Define this speculation for the character. When the dust settled, what could have avoided all of this? Remember to keep this entry “filtered” through the eyes of your character.

Next time we’ll discuss Speech, Mannerisms, and Wardrobe!