| One of the most important things about writing is to develop your characters in a manner that others can easily understand. One of the easiest ways to do this is to create a character profile. An example of a blank profile is below. I use this form when I write to get a feel for my own character. Profiles help give your characters personalities and make main characters stand out. You can use the examples below or come up with your own; it makes no difference to me. Explanations are in parantheses. Name: (This one should be fairly obvious.) Place of Birth (Birth date can be added but is not necessary): Physical Description: (This should contain everything possible about the looks of a character. Height, weight, even stupid things that don't seem important like shoe size. You don't have to use these things in your story, they just help you get a mental picture of what your character should look like.) Ethnic Origin: (This may or may not be important. It's all up to the writer.) Family Members: (Once again, may or may not be important. It might be helpful if family members are going to be somewhat important characters, though. Social Class: (Is your character a king or a slave or someone in between? That is something you might want to think about.) Hobbies: (May or may not be important. Just a brief list of things your character enjoys doing.) Personal Qualities: (Does your character have an overactive imagination? Are they superstitious? Once again, may or may not be important.) Greatest Strength: (This one shouldn't need to be explained.) Greatest Weakness: (See above.) Greatest Fear: (Nope, doesn't need an explanation.) Ambitions: (What is your character planning to achieve during the story?) Attitude Towards Life: (How does your character view their own personal lifestyle?) Attitude towards Death: (How does your character feel about dying?) Sexual Orientation: (Probably not necessary, but in some cases it could be.) Motivation: (What drives them toward their ultimate goal? Submitted by my pal Sid Ney.) Back |