KNOW-vember

Getting to Know Your Story Characters

By Marcia Thornton Jones

For those of you that have accepted the NaNoWriMo challenge, and also for those of you who, like me, know it’s not a good match for your personal writing process, here are a few writing prompts that will help you get to really know and love your characters!

Getting to Know Your Characters

Marcia’s 10 Prompts for Developing Round Characters

1.      What are three of you character’s favorite childhood memories? What happened? When does she think back to those memories?

2.      What is the one childhood toy she won’t throw away? Why? Where does she keep it?

3.      What are her ticks? Her habits? The quirks that others notice but that she’s unaware of?

4.      What is the one thing she cannot stand? The one topic that results in a rant?

5.      What energizes her? What spurs her into action? What creates intense focus and persistence?

6.      What was one of her childhood fantasies? What is a fantasy she has now? How have her fantasies changed over time? What elements about them are the same?

7.      What secrets about herself does she keep? What secrets about someone else does she keep? Under what circumstance(s) might she be tempted to betray those secrets?

8.      What do her parents, siblings, friends, lovers, teachers/bosses say about her when she’s not around? What would they say about her if they were testifying in court?

9.      When she walks into a room full of strangers, what is she thinking? What does she tell herself? What are her first three actions?

10.  How is this character like you? How is she different?

2016/Marcia T. Jones