Young Writers Society

I have this habbit of making my charecters every thing im not, beautiful, perfect, flawless, and totally bold and kind. Well this time im screwing that. My vampire, Nathan, is pretty but dirty, speach impediment issues, a man of few words, acts like a child though he is frozes at 29 nearly thirty. Christine, is sarcastic, average Doest talk and totally relys on no one but herself and her books. Rei is a geek. He is 'hot' but a geek none the less, not your 'perfect' jock with peircing eyes and raven silky locks. But I am still stuck on making diolog realistic and making beleiveable charecters. Please help!

What I do is basically think about what I would do in the situation.

Okay, I'm sorry, that's not very helpful--if you follow this ad verbatim all your characters will end up self-inserts, pretty much. And I certainly think a story populated by gutless lazy cowards would be very uninteresting. I could be wrong, though. (not saying you're a gutless lazy coward, but I most certainly am)

I'm sorry if this isn't much help...character creation has always come naturally to me. I usually don't have to think about it, I just...write and the character comes forward. But I understand it's difficult; when I was just starting out I tended to make all my characters unrealistically attractive as well. Basically...

The thing I tend to do is people-watch. I'm very good at just noticing random interactions between people both in my school and just around...wherever. I mean, I don't sit and watch people unless I'm really bored, but sometimes peoples' conversations will catch my eye...ear...whatever, and I pay attention. Yeah, that's called eavesdropping--but it will definitely give you a feel for realistic dialogue. Really, there's no better way to write dialogue than listen to a LOT of real dialogue. Just listen, don't talk; and notice the cadences of speech, and how everyone talks in a subtly different manner. This has helped influence some of the dialogue quirks I give my characters--Louis Orson, one of my favorite characters, had developed a habit of stating questions as sentences ("Like what." instead of "Like what?", etc.) and a tendency to say "You know?". It has also made me realize that teenage males really, really, REALLY like cursing.

Honestly, I can't think of a better way to improve your characterization and dialogue skills than PRACTICE. Keep on practicing and you'll get better--just four years ago I had no clue how to write realistic characters, and I know I feel I've got a pretty good grasp on characterization. Don't get dejected; just keep trying. Notice how people really talk and interact, etc. etc.

If you're really having trouble, why not join the "Character Development" group if you haven't already? They provide a plethora of activities on strengthening characterization; you coudl really benefit from it.

There are tons of characterization exercises out there on the web. Aside from character profiles detailing everything from what your character wears to what they eat for breakfast, some useful ones are character interviews, random character shorts (especially writing about how they deal with adversity!), journal pages, and detailed histories. Basically it's all a process of getting to know your characters, getting to spend time with them and talk to them until they become "real" people.

Often, using some qualities that you see in your friends is a good way to start: maybe your friend Rebecca is shy. By observing how she acts, both with you and with other people, you've got the basic recipe for a shy person. But remember to keep things realistic. No one is perfect. And no one is perfectly flawed either. People have weaknesses and strengths, and examining these is the heart of good fiction.

As for dialogue, watch a good movie. Examine how they make dialogue sound "realistic". And then, for comparison, listen to a conversation in your favorite cafe or bookstore. You'll begin to notice how "realistic" dialogue and real dialogue are different. And they are different! As a bonus, people-watching is also a great way to come up with characters!

Basically, you've gotta find what works for you. And realize that a lot more writing goes into a novel than just the words that the audience ends up reading.

~Annie

Oh, and if all else fails- base your characters on people you know. I tend to use people around me as inspiration, and then let my imagination do the rest.

Good luck!

Well, if you say to yourself: "My character is going to be totally dirty and realistic!" Then you're doing it wrong.

You can try the Character Development group, that might help you out a bit.

ankhirke wrote:Basically it's all a process of getting to know your characters, getting to spend time with them and talk to them until they become "real" people.

I agree with this completely. I never find getting in my character's heads is a real problem for me because my characters are like real people to me. I know everything about them. For a couple of my stories I didn't actually start writing it until about a year or two after creating the characters. Allow me to explain.
In one of my stories there are four main female girls, Tori, Amy, Madison, and Emilee. When I first created them I didn't think 'oh, I want a character that is like this and this and this. I thought the name Tori was the coolest thing ever and my connotation of that name was a rich, pretty blond girl with blue eyes and is pretty much just perfect. Her best friend formed as Amy and then Madison and Emilee just filled themselves in.
I did not start writing their story until at least a year or two of first creating them. This may sound crazy but it actually works. I think about them constantly. I pretend that they go to my school and I think about what classes they are in and who they are talking to. They are constantly having conversations with each other in my head and plots just form. I put them in certain situations and then they just run with it.
I created them at the end of my 7th grade year. Their story begins when they are in 8th grade because that's when they really started to evolve for me. I'm currently in 11th grade. They are in 11th grade. I have everything all planned out from when they were in eighth grade up until now.
I know them so well that when I sit down and write from any of their POV's it can just flow. They each have a distinct voice and because I am so close and familiar to them they are very easy to write with.

I hope that made some sense. (I'm epically bad at explaining things )
You can PM me for more info or whatever if you want.

EDIT: I also just wanted to add that you don't have to spend as much time with your characters as I do. I just like having the whole story before I begin to write it.

Here's a tip that comes in handy: The Double-Axe method.

Basically, think of all your character's good traits now.

Good work. Now, write down a list of all of these. Here's my example for a female character:

1)Funny
2)Pretty

That'll be enough for the example.

Now, think of corresponding flaws. This is why it's a Double-Axe method, because each trait will hurt the character and help them. For the example:

1)Funny 1)Jokes at innappropriate time
2)Pretty 2)Vain

Good. Now we have a person who is more developed. Now, the past. Think of something - anything - that could cause these traits. Remember: 1 event does automatically mean 1 trait or vice versa. Anything will do, really.

After that, your character will be more round and developed. Now, take tnme's advice and do that. You may not go a year with doing that, but whatever.