Girls Write Out
Monday, December 05, 2011
I had to show this cover because it's a finalist for the ECPA best cover of 2011. It's the only novel on the list and I'm way excited!

And that brings to my topic: writing an interesting character. I like my characters to be overcomers--a woman who has faced hard things in life and come out stronger and better with God's help. Someone who turns her lemons into lemonade. So I thought I'd share the character sheet I use. Disclaimer: I have no idea where this thing came from. LOL It may have come from a book, it may have come from teaching somewhere.

So here are the questions to ask your character:

CHARACTER TRAITS

1. Give basic stats of your character: name, age, appearance.

2. What trauma or hard knocks happened when the character was young? How did this change him/her?

3. What is your character’s relationship with their family? Parents still alive? Any sibling rivalry?

3. What does your character do for a living? Can you come up with something even more interesting or that gives him/her a strength? This is a biggie for me. I like an interesting profession.

4. What secret does your character hide?

5. What does your character have to lose? How can you make his possible loss worse?

6. Who hates your character and why?

7. What does your character fear?

8. What quirk does your character have?

9. What’s in his/her refrigerator right now?

10. Look at your character’s feet. Describe what you see there. Does he wear dress shoes, gym shoes, or none at all? Is he in socks that are ratty and full of holes? Or is he wearing a pair of blue and gold slippers knitted by his grandmother?

11. Your character is doing intense spring cleaning. What is easy for her to throw out? What is difficult for her to part with? Why?

12. What is your character’s greatest regret?

Want to share something interesting from what you're working on right now? Let's share from #10. What's on your character's feet? Here's mine:

Tess is wearing clown shoes. She works at a bookstore in the children's department. Today she is the day she reads to the children so she is dressed like a clown.

Your turn!


Labels:

Colleen Coble  
posted at 9:38 PM  
  Comments (9)
 
 
Delicious Delicious
9 Comments:
At 10:19 AM, Blogger sadie crandle said...

Crocs. She's a chef.

 
At 10:31 AM, Blogger Chelsea Marie said...

Amy and Camden are both wearing sneakers. They are on a college campus heading to a meeting for their photography club.

 
At 10:32 AM, Blogger Colleen Coble said...

Love these! Keep them coming!

 
At 10:34 AM, Blogger Margo Carmichael said...

White go-go boots!

 
At 11:12 AM, Blogger Unknown said...

She's wearing Under Armor tennis shoes..at the State football Championship. Her son is playing defense.

 
At 11:25 AM, Blogger BrittaSue92 said...

She's wearing brown cowboy boots because she's going horseback riding.

 
At 11:51 AM, Blogger Timothy Fish said...

He wears black shoes, suitable for running across any terrain, but they're clean and free of scratches. My guy's the local sheriff, mainly because I need him to have enough authority to do what the ending requires him to do, but the story also requires that he pretty much ignore most of the trouble the villain has been causing in the area. So he shows up at the office every day, shoots the breeze with whoever might stop by, and goes home in the evening.

 
At 4:28 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

My character Millie is wearing sensible penny loafers and scorns high heeled pumps her sister typically wears...but that's because she (Millie) loathes her weak ankles and can't wear fashionably high heels. ;)
This.
is.
TOO COOL!!!!
=D

 
At 6:42 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

gray knee high boots with a wedged heel. she's walking at a fast pace towards Molly's Cupcakes shop.

 

Post a Comment

<< Home



The Authors
Kristin Billerbeck
Kristin Billerbeck is a proud Californian, wife, mother of four, and connoisseur of the irrelevant. She writes Christian Chick Lit; where she finds need for most of the useless facts lulling about in her head.

www.KristinBillerbeck.com

Colleen Coble

Colleen Coble writes romantic suspense with a strong atmospheric element. A lovable animal of some kind--usually a dog--always populates her novels. She can be bribed with DeBrand mocha truffles.

www.ColleenCoble.com

Denise Hunter

Denise Hunter writes women's fiction and love stories with a strong emotional element. Her husband says he provides her with all her romantic material, but Denise insists a good imagination helps too.

www.DeniseHunterBooks.com

Diann Hunt

Diann Hunt writes romantic comedy and humorous women's fiction. She has been happily married forever, loves her family, chocolate, her friends, chocolate, her dog, and well, chocolate.

www.DiannHunt.com

Hannah Alexander

Cheryl Hodde writes romantic medical suspense under the pen name of Hannah Alexander, using all the input she can get from her husband, Mel, for the medical expertise. For fun she hikes and reads. Out of guilt, she rescues discarded cats. She and Mel are presently taking orders from four pampered strays.

www.HannahAlexander.com

 
Subscribe
Enter your Email


Powered by FeedBlitz