Characters can come alive in the minutiae of their day to day belongings, making them three dimensional. An ordinary trinket can convey depth. It doesn't matter if the things in the bag never make it into your story, they can help you lend specificity to your character's idiosyncrasies.
Think about who your character is, what they do, and what that means might be in their bag (and when I say bag, it can be a purse, wallet, knapsack, suitcase, or whatever fits your genre!)
The key here is to be specific, and not general.
Examples:
- Gun = bad, Colt 1873 single action revolver, 3" barrel, gold, loaded = good
Pen = bad, Crimson fountain pen with the engraved monogram, AA = good
Bus ticket = bad, The bottom of the bag is awash with orange day return train tickets from London to Brighton = good
So what is in your character's bag?
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