Characterization

CHARACTER INTERVIEWS:

I blogged once about the importance of characterizing, but I haven't yet mentioned how I do my characterization.  Sometimes in the past, I've either downloaded or invented a questionnaire, which I answer from the point of view of my character.  That can work, but I often find myself answering questions that aren't particularly useful to the story.  Even when the questions are useful, I find I'm writing around what's important instead of getting to what motivates my character.  Some writers use these questionnaires to great effect, and it's something writers can try to see if it works for them.  All one needs to do is google to find one.  Here is one of many:  [Character Questionnaire]

APPROACHES TO CHARACTER TYPING:

But like I said, questionnaires like that, at least on their own, aren't enough for me to create fully developed characters. These questionnaires, however, can be used to supplement something else. I now start with a character theory called the Enneagram.  One can start with one of several systems of personality typing, including the Meyer's-Briggs system used by employers and universities to help people choose a job or a major. [Meyer's-Briggs] Another simpler route may be the color system. [Color Typing ]There are countless other personality systems out there. I would start with a personality type from one of these systems  to get down the core of the character then fill it out with a questionnaire or just pertinent details about the character.  History?  Family?  Loves?  Hates?  Appearance?

I use the Enneagram because it comes ready made with details about how the character might realistically interact with other characters, their relationship with their parents, their desires and fears, etc.   [Enneagram]  I pick a primary character type then what's called a wing, a character type on either side of the main one that tempers and modifies the main character type.  So for instance, in the book I just submitted for publication, After the Dream, my female protagonist is Julia, a Loyalist with Investigator tendencies.  Her primary identity in the beginning of the novel is based in intense loyalty toward her husband, who doesn't return nor value her loyalty.  But when that husband is gone from her life, she become a lost soul. Afterward, Julia spends so much of her time in her own head as a Investigator [also called a Thinker] introvert that she struggles to get outside her own reality enough to try romance again. Meanwhile, Pedro, my male protagonist in the same book, is an Individualist [also called Artist] with Investigator tendencies.  His world, whether he's in a relationship or not, tends to be an emotional ride of introversion.  It is hard for two introverts, accustomed to their own internal difficulties, to connect in the social world outside their own heads.  Just knowing the basic character types helps me understand dramas and conflicts that the characters may deal with as they go forward.

FOR EXAMPLE: 

In the book I'm working on currently, Pigs Fly, the extroverted Connor, an Enthusiast [also called a Thrillseeker] with Loyalist tendencies, has left behind his buddy Pedro and his other friends.  He is a thrillseeker without thrills, a wolf without a pack.  He meets up and clashes with Robin, an extroverted Reformer [or Perfectionist] with Helper tendencies who can't stand him.

On the Enneagram website, toward the bottom of specific character type descriptions, there is a link to descriptions of character interactions your character might have in a relationship with any of the character types.  In other words, if you have the gist of how you want your character to relate with another character, this may help you decide on the types of your other character.  Also, this may help relationships in your book gain a sense of realism.

Knowing and understanding your character helps create a realistic foundation of drives, desires, internal and external conflicts, and fears to give your character a sense of weight and meaning.  Once one knows the basics of a character, he/she can then vary up the basic character and make him or her truly unique and realistic.