One of the biggest challenges all fiction writers face is creating characters that are realistic, or believable. A good fictional character will make the reader feel concerned and want to know what happened to him for 20, 50, or 200 pages. Oftentimes, realistic characters are not only interesting and unique, but also reachable and fun. This kind of balance is difficult to achieve, but fiction writers have come up with several approaches to creating characters that sound realistic and credible to readers.
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Method 1 of 3: Using Basic Details and Physical Description
Step 1. Give the character a name
The identifier for characters is their name. Think about people you know in real life and remind you of that character or the person who inspired the creation of that character. You can also use an existing name that you think fits the character and change the spelling. For example, Kris instead of Chris, or Tara instead of Tanya.
- Look for a name that fits the character's background and doesn't look out of place in relation to the role and position. A busy housewife who lives on the outskirts of Yogyakarta and comes from a genuine Javanese family might not be named Esmeralda, and an evil witch from another planet probably won't be named Jono or Cecep.
- There are several online applications for generating character names that you can use, filtered by background and gender.
Step 2. Pay attention to the gender, age, height, and weight of the character
If the character had to provide census data or fill out a hospital form, how would he or she determine gender, age, height and weight? While you may not use this character information in your story or novel, keep in mind that a character's gender and age will affect his point of view and how he expresses himself.
For example, the child character, Scout, in Harper Lee's novel To Kill a Mockingbird will see the world in the novel differently than his father, Atticus Finch, who is a grown man
Step 3. Draw what color your character's hair and eyes are
It is important to establish the physical characteristics of your character, especially hair and eye color. Often, character descriptions focus on hair or eye color and these details can help signal to the reader that the character is from a certain ethnic background and appearance. These descriptions can also indicate certain types of characters.
For example, describing a character's physical appearance as follows: “He has jet black hair and brown eyes that look dreamy when he is bored” not only gives the reader a clear physical picture, but also shows the character's personality
Step 4. Create a distinctive mark or scar on your character
The scar in the shape of a bolt of lightning on Harry Potter's forehead is a great example of a signature mark that shows off his personality and makes him unique. You can also use birthmarks, such as moles on a character's face, or other marks caused by accidents, such as burn marks or stitches. These scars or markers can make your character feel different to the reader. These physical signs can also give readers more information about your character.
- In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout's older brother, Jem, is described on the first page by a description of his broken arm: “When he was nearly thirteen, my brother Jem's hand was broken at the elbow. After recovering, and Jem's fear that he would never be able to play football disappeared, he was rarely aware of his injury. The left arm is slightly shorter than the right; when standing or walking, the back of the hand is perpendicular to the body, the thumb is in line with the thigh. He doesn't care at all, as long as he can pass and kick the ball”.
- Harper Lee uses injuries, or physical markings, to introduce Jem's character and tell readers that his left arm is shorter, a distinguishing characteristic that makes him a more distinctive and believable character.
Step 5. Pay attention to the character's dressing style
Clothing can be a great way to show readers more than just a character's personality and preferences. A character wearing a punk t-shirt, black jeans, and Doc Martens will give the impression of a rebellious character, while a character wearing a sweater and leather shoes will give the impression of a more conservative character.
- Be specific when you describe a character's outfit, but don't repeat it too often in the narrative. Building a character's dress style once will create a clear image in the reader's mind that they can refer back to.
- In Raymond Chandler's book The Big Sleep, the main character Philip Marlowe describes his outfit in two succinct sentences: “I wear a pale blue suit, with a navy shirt, tie and ornate handkerchief, black brogue shoes, black wool socks with a dark blue clock on it.. I'm neat, clean, shaved and sober, and I don't care who knows."
- Chandler uses very specific details to paint a vivid image of Marlowe and he inserts Marlowe's voice into the description, "I don't care who knows" to make it feel more immersive.
Step 6. Determine the character's background and social class
The character's social status in life will affect how he reacts to everyday events. A young man from Malang who lives in Washington D. C. will have a different experience or perspective than Javanese youth living in Semarang, Central Java. Meanwhile, middle-class women who live in Medan will have a different everyday experience than women who have to earn a living by selling nasi uduk in Jakarta. The background and social status of the character will be an integral part of his perspective as a character.
- While you don't have to announce your character's background and social class to the reader, your character will feel more realistic and natural if their point of view is influenced by their social status in life. The characters in Junot Diaz's fictional story, for example, use colloquial terms that indicate their social class and background to the reader.
- In Diaz's short story "The Cheater's Guide to Love" he says: "Perhaps if you were ever engaged to a very open-minded blanquita, you could have survived-but you weren't engaged to a very open-minded blanquita. Your lover is a naughty girl from Salcedo who doesn't believe in any openness; he even warns you of one thing, which he will never forgive, which is infidelity.”
- In this story, Diaz uses Spanish terms to indicate the background of the character/narrator, without having to tell the reader directly that the narrator is Spanish.
Step 7. Research the character's profession and career
Another way to make your characters more believable on the pages of a book is to dig deeper and in detail about their profession or career. If you're writing a character who works as an architect, this character should know how to design buildings and maybe see the city skyline in a unique way. Or if you're writing a character who works as a private detective, this character must know the basic protocols of a private detective and how to solve cases. Use books in libraries and online resources to make your character's career look convincing in the story.
If possible, try talking to someone in the profession you want to use for your character. Interview them about their daily habits at work to make sure you get the details of their profession right
Method 2 of 3: Using Character Motivation
Step 1. Give your character a purpose or ambition
One of the most distinguishing aspects of your character is his goals or ambitions in the story. The goals the characters want to achieve must drive the story and their goals must be unique to their personalities. For example, your character might be a young man from a remote village in the interior of Papua who wants to become a national soccer player. Or your character may be an old woman trying to reconnect a broken relationship with her long-lost son. Setting specific goals and targets for your characters will help make them appear more realistic and believable.
Another important aspect of the goals your characters want to achieve is that they should have small goals, like trying to get a boyfriend, and big goals, like confirming that love is real. Try to target small and large for your characters so that their stories feel both special and general, or universal, to the reader
Step 2. Consider your character's strengths and weaknesses
Heroes who have no flaws or villains who have no conscience will be bland characters on paper. Give your character strengths and weaknesses to create a character that is complete, yet accessible to the reader. If you are creating a main character who will be the protagonist, make a list of strengths and weaknesses for that character. The protagonist's weaknesses should be slightly more significant than his strengths, especially if he is going to be an underdog or underachieving character in the story.
- For example, your character may be shy or introverted, but has the intelligence to solve riddles or puzzles. Or your character may struggle to contain their anger, but try to maintain control of their emotions.
- Balancing your character's strengths with weaknesses will make your character more attractive and accessible to readers, thereby making the character feel more realistic.
Step 3. Give your character a past trauma or fear
However, not all characters have to be moved by past traumas or fears. But creating a backstory for your characters with events that could harm or damage them can create tension in their lives in the present. A backstory is an event or moment in your character's life that takes place before the story begins.
- Backstory also allows you to make the characters more believable on the pages of the book. Characters who refer to events in the past will broaden the scope of the story and give them a more developed presence in the story.
- For example, in Diaz's short story “The Cheater's Guide to Love”, the reader is told about the backstory, the narrator's past “sins” when he was still in touch with his girlfriend. This backstory is the reason why the narrator's girlfriend leaves him. Thus, a backstory has two functions in a story: it shows the reader something more about the narrator and is the main plot point in the story. The backstory also broadens the scope of the story as the reader is immersed in the narrator's spontaneous drama (his girlfriend leaves him), but this drama stems from past events that the narrator has to deal with in the present.
Step 4. Create enemies for your character
Another way to create a more realistic character in the story is to create a person or force that opposes the main character. The presence of a great enemy will add an element of reality to the story because in real life we are often faced with opposing forces or difficult individuals.
- Enemies can be in the form of a nosy neighbor, an annoying family member, or a difficult partner. The individual who becomes your character's enemy must match the character's goals or ambitions.
- For example, a character trying to get a basketball scholarship might have enemies in the form of rival teammates, or an arrogant coach. A character who tries to win back the girl he cheated on may have enemies in the form of his inability to control his own desires or being monogamous.
Method 3 of 3: Using Dialog
Step 1. Don't be afraid to use colloquial terms
Colloquial terms are words, informal phrases or slang in a written work. Your character should sound as unique as the individuals you meet every day, and that includes any slang or informal terms they might use. For example, two teenage boys might not greet each other with the words: "Good afternoon, sir." Instead, they'll say "How are you?" or "What are you doing?"
Be careful not to use too many colloquial terms in your dialogue. If overused, colloquial terms will start to distract or seem like just attention grabbing. Try to balance between correct Indonesian terms and slang or colloquial terms
Step 2. Think about code switching
Code switching is a language switch that a character makes in response to who he or she is talking to. This often happens in everyday life, especially for individuals from different backgrounds or social classes who are trying to blend in or blend in.
If you are writing characters from a particular background, setting, or social class, you should consider how they will use local slang in their dialogue and descriptions depending on who they are talking to in a scene. Surabaya people who talk to other Surabaya people, for example, will likely use greetings such as “rek” or “kon”. But the same Surabayan will use more formal language when speaking to the police such as “Good afternoon, sir” or “Okay, sir.”
Step 3. Use the tag dialog (introductory phrase)
Dialog tags, or speech tags are like guides. This tag dialog connects the written dialogue with the characters. Some of the more commonly used dialogue tags are "say" and "tell". The tag dialog need not be redundant or overly verbose. The main purpose of using dialog tags is to show which character is speaking and when. You can also build trustworthy characters through the tag dialog.
- Each tag must contain at least one noun or pronoun (Scout, he, Jem, you, you, they, we) and a verb indicating how the dialogue is pronounced (say, ask, whisper, comment). For example, “Scout said to Jem…” or “Jem whispered to Scout…”
- You can add adjectives or adverbs to the tag dialog to provide more information about the speaker. For example, “Scout spoke quietly to Jem” or “Jem whispered sharply to Scout.” Adding an adverb can be a quick and useful way to show certain temperaments or emotions in a character. But be careful not to overuse adjectives or adverbs in the tag dialog. Try to use only one adjective or adverb per scene for each character tag dialogue.
Step 4. Read the character dialogue aloud
Character dialogue should feel unique to their personality and represent how they interact with other characters. Good dialogue in fiction should do more than just tell the reader how a character goes from A to B, or how one character knows another. Read character dialogue aloud to make sure it sounds like what one person would say to another in a scene. Dialogue must also sound real to the character.
- For example, in the book To Kill a Mockingbird, Lee uses dialogue to distinguish the characters in a scene. He also uses colloquial terms to represent children living in cities in the South in the 1950s.
- Lee differentiates Jem's dialogue from Charles Baker Harris' dialogue and Scout's dialogue by using slang and colloquial terms. This confirms Jem as a character and creates a dynamic among the three speakers involved in the scene.
"Hi."
"Hi to you," said Jem kindly.
"I'm Charles Baker Harris," he said, "I can read."
"So what?" I said.
Perhaps you want to know that I can read. If there's anything to read, I can…”
"How old are you?" asked Jem, "four and a half?"
"Almost seven."
"Well, sure enough," said Jem, pointing his thumb at me. “This Scout has been good at reading since he was born, even though he hasn't gone to school yet. For a child who is almost seven years old, you look so small.”
