3. Creating Powerful Characters: Breathe Life into Your Story

Make readers care about your characters with these development tips

Truly great novels are driven by unforgettable characters. Actually, I could stop the post here, because this is the bottom line when it comes to a powerful story.

So, whether you're writing a fast-paced thriller or a sweeping romance, the key to captivating your audience lies in creating characters who are complex, relatable, and memorable.

In this post, I'll explore the elements of great character development, from motivations and flaws to arcs and relationships. By the end, you'll have a toolkit to craft characters that leap off the page and into the hearts of your readers.

1. Start with Character Motivation

One of the most important aspects of character development is understanding what motivates your characters. In other words, why the people in your world are compelled to do stuff. Every action they take must stem from their desires, fears, or needs.

Ultimately, a well-rounded character is driven by a combination of internal and external motivations:

Internal Motivations:

Are personal desires or emotional needs, such as the longing for love, validation, or self-worth. Internal motivations drive character growth and can lead to powerful, intimate moments in your story.

External Motivations:

Are goals such as winning a competition, solving a mystery, or defeating an enemy. External motivations drive the plot and give characters a clear objective to pursue.

Now, is this dog internally or externally motivated? Comment below!

2. Understanding Character Flaws

Flaws are what make characters relatable and human. Perfect characters are boring because they don’t face the same struggles we do.

Consider what flaws your character might have, pride, insecurity, fear of failure, and how these flaws will affect their actions and decisions throughout the story (internal motivations).

3. Creating a Backstory

Every character has a past, and that past shapes who they are in your story. Developing a backstory helps explain your character’s motivations, fears, and personality. Where did they come from? What key events in their life shaped them into the person they are today? A detailed backstory can inform their dialogue, relationships, and choices. Some writers go into lots of detail (they create whole books on their characters - think J.K. Rowling) others develop very little detail at all, the rest are somewhere in between (me).

4. Crafting a Character Arc

A character arc is the transformation a character undergoes over the course of the story. Most characters will experience some form of growth or change by the end of the narrative. This could be a shift in their worldview, a change in their priorities, or a new understanding of themselves. This arc could occur across a book, or even over an entire series. The choice is yours. But having a character follow an arc usually means a reader follows too.

Positive Arcs:

In a positive arc, the character overcomes their flaws and grows as a person. For example, a character who starts off as selfish may learn to value others by the end.

Negative Arcs:

In a negative arc, the character spirals downward, becoming more flawed or morally corrupt as the story progresses. This type of arc is often seen in tragedies or stories where the character’s flaws ultimately lead to their downfall.

5. Building Relationships

No character exists in isolation. The relationships between characters, whether romantic, familial, or antagonistic, add depth to your story. Consider how your characters interact with one another and how these relationships evolve over time. Do they have a best friend or a mentor? A rival or an enemy? Relationships can reveal different sides of your characters and create dynamic interactions.

6. Show, Don’t Tell: Character Actions Speak Louder

When it comes to character development, actions speak louder than words. Instead of telling your readers that a character is brave, show them through their actions. For example, if a character rushes into a burning building to save someone, readers will understand that they are courageous without being explicitly told. Character actions, choices, and reactions are the most authentic ways to reveal their personality.

7. Dialogue: A Window into the Soul

The way your characters speak is just as important as what they say (we could do a whole post on dialogue, in fact, there will be one - stay tuned). Dialogue should reflect a character’s personality, background, and emotional state. Does your character speak formally or casually? Do they use slang or have a unique way of phrasing things? Dialogue can reveal a lot about a character without needing long descriptions.

8. Physical Traits and Mannerisms

While character depth is mostly shaped by their internal world, their external appearance and physical traits can also play a role. Are they tall and imposing, or small and unassuming? Do they have a nervous tic, like biting their nails, or a signature style of dress? Or fart? I’m looking at you here, Jackson Lamb. These details help readers visualise your character and can even contribute to their personality. For instance, a character who dresses meticulously might be a perfectionist.

9. Consistency and Growth

While characters should be dynamic, changing and growing throughout the story, they should also remain consistent with their core traits and values. Sudden, unexplained shifts in behaviour can feel jarring to readers. If your character does undergo a significant change, make sure it’s justified by the events of the story.

Final Thoughts

Crafting powerful characters takes time and attention to detail, but the payoff is worth it. Strong characters make readers care about your story and keep them invested from beginning to end. By focusing on motivations, flaws, arcs, and relationships, you’ll create characters that resonate long after the last page is turned.

As we dive deeper into the challenge, don’t forget that unforgettable characters are the heart of any great story. Happy character-building!

Finally, if you’ve any questions or comments, feel free to drop me a line below. I’m always happy to chat.

About The Author

Keith Nixon is the best-selling author of twenty-four novels, including the critically acclaimed Solomon Gray series, which has sold over 350,000 copies globally. Known for his gritty crime thrillers set against the backdrop of Margate and London, Keith’s work has reached the No.1 spot on Amazon in the UK, US, Canada, and Australia.

After spending 17 years living near Margate, a town that plays a central role in his books, Keith relocated with his family to the edge of the Peak District. However, it’s the atmospheric streets of London and the coastlines of Kent that inspire his most intense and suspenseful plots.

A former high-flying executive (he did get on quite a few planes) in the high-tech industry, Keith’s travels across the globe have informed the diverse perspectives and intricate characters in his novels. Today, he writes (almost) full-time, with his books published by Gladius Press and Bastei Lubbe (in German).