Entry tags:

exercise, main character

Character Creation Exercise
I nicked these questions from an article called 'Create a sleuth for the LONG HAUL' by William G. Tapply in the current issue of The Writer. It is, as you may have guessed from the title, all about creating an enticing, three dimensional sleuth who will entertain readers through a series of books, rather than just one. While these questions are especially helpful in creating mystery-solving characters, I think you'll find they offer a good jumping off point for any main character.

This week's exercise is to create a character using these questions, then write a short story or piece of flash featuring that character.

• Is she a first-person narrator?
• What does she do for a living?
• What personal demons haunt him?
• Does he carry a gun/weapon? If so, has he ever used it?
• What's her favorite type of music?
• What does she like to do to relax?
• Does he have any health problems?
• Who depends on him, and why?
• What is her deepest secret?
• What makes him irrationally angry?
• What makes her laugh? Cry?

As always, we'd love to read what you come up with, but if you'd like to keep your work private, we respect that as well :)