I guess “How to write a good character” is the second most asked question after “How to write a story,” but the interesting fact about both questions is that they are both broader questions to answer.
Writing a good character isn’t just about giving them a name, appearance, or a few personality traits. It’s about creating a living, breathing person within your story – someone who feels real, with layers of complexity, desires, fears, and contradictions.
Before understanding anything, you really need to clarify yourself “What is a good character in your dictionary” or in simpler words What is good and bad in your eyes?
Hard to get? Let’s dive into it!
What is a Good Character in Your Dictionary?
You can’t write a good character when you don’t know what makes him good, right?
A good character isn’t necessarily someone who is morally upright or perfect in every trait. Like how stupid it will look when your antagonist is serving and kind-hearted with everyone?
5 Questions to Ask Yourself to Write a Good Character
Your Intentions with This Character?
First, ask yourself, what are your intentions with your character? Because somehow your character development revolves around your intentions.
For Example: I am writing a character of the antagonist and I want him to kill the side character who’s the best friend of my main character. So, if my story’s villain is doing anything but killing the supporting character (with potential) is a problem for me.
The first thing that makes them a ✨good character✨ is that they are serving their roles.
But here is the thing, your character shouldn’t play their role as a line on a stone. A good character is believable, memorable, and engaging with the story’s theme and the main conflict of a story. They might be flawed, make questionable choices, or even be outright villains – but what makes them good is how well they are fulfilling their roles.
A good character resonates with readers because they reflect something true about the human experience. They feel like someone you could meet in real life, with real struggles and emotions. Whether they’re a hero, anti-hero, or villain, their depth and authenticity are what set them apart.
For Example: Consider Severus Snape from Harry Potter. At first glance, Snape appears to be a cold, antagonistic figure. However, as the story unfolds, his actions reveal a deeply complex character whose motivations are driven by love, loyalty, and redemption. Despite his flaws and questionable choices, Snape serves his role in the story perfectly, leaving a lasting impression on readers by the end.
Why You Need This Character?
After resolving the confusion about your intentions with your character now come to this second question: Why do you need this character in your novel?
Every character in your story should serve a purpose. If a character doesn’t contribute to the plot or emotional journey of your story, then they are simply taking up space. Ask yourself:
- Is this character pushing the plot forward?
- Are they creating conflict in a story or solving a problem?
- Are they adding emotional depth to the story?
- Do your story scenes or story subplots taking place for them?
A well-placed character can be the driving force of a story, while an unnecessary one can weigh the narrative down.
What Role Is He/ She Playing in Your Story?
Once you have identified the need for your character, the next question is: What role is this character playing in your story?
Every character plays a specific role in the narrative, whether it’s the protagonist, antagonist, mentor, side character, or comic relief. Defining their presence in some role helps you shape their actions, motivations, and interactions with other characters.
Ask yourself:
- Are they helping or hindering the protagonist’s journey?
- Do they represent a particular moral or philosophical viewpoint?
- Where do they fit the best? (as a helper of the hero or villain)
Don’t limit your character to just one role! A character can serve multiple roles at different points in the story. For example, a mentor can later become an antagonist, or a sidekick might rise to become a hero. This adds depth and unpredictability to your character arc.
What’s Your Character’s Demand? Needs, Goals and Weakness
Every character has a demand – something that drives their actions and decisions throughout the story. Just like other humans they also have interests, visions, and characteristics flaws (might be for others but they do!)
- Needs: What does your character need to survive or feel fulfilled?
- Goals: What is your character actively trying to achieve?
- Weakness: What internal character weakness or external flaw is holding them back?
- Traits: What are they good at? (Their character traits should be relevant)
Understanding these three elements creates a layered character that readers can connect with. A character’s needs and goals push them forward, while their weaknesses create conflict, making their journey more relatable and loveable to read.
For example:
- Character: Daniel Moore (A 28-year-old taxi driver living in a small town, struggling to make ends meet)
- Needs: A sense of control over his life — he feels like life is slipping through his fingers after his father died and left behind a pile of debts. His core need is to forgive himself for not living up to his father’s expectations and realize that he’s not responsible for his father’s mistakes.
- Goals: To save enough money to move to the city and start his own small car repair business — something his father always dreamed of but never managed to do.
- Weakness: When his father was alive his pride never let him learn anything from his father. He still refuses help, even when he’s drowning. He’d rather suffer quietly than let anyone know he’s struggling — including his longtime crush, Mia, who works at the local diner.
- Traits: However, despite an emotionally closed personality, Daniel is a Hardworking and sharp observer. It’s another fact that sometimes he drinks a little too much when things get heavier.
Your Character’s Relation and Interactions with Other Characters
This question sometimes seems easy when it comes to writing a main character or antagonist personality. But it’s not a very friendly question when it’s about your side character profile. Because side characters often live in the shadows of the protagonist or villain. They’re supporting roles, not the ones carrying the plot on their backs.
Yet, every great story makes side characters feel just as real as the main character — even if they only show up for a few pages and don’t get captured on major climax.
The Fact is:
Their needs, goals, and weaknesses aren’t that big — they just have to intersect with the main plot in some meaningful way.
A character’s relationship dynamics can reveal more about their personality and intentions than any monologue or inner thoughts ever could. How they interact with other characters shows who they really are from the inside out.
To write a good character, you need to merge or include every character with others.
Not emotionally? Okay — then physically. But they should interact with each other if they’re with your main characters for long terms or short terms.
For Example:
The character of Mia — the crush of Daniel Moore we’ve discussed earlier.
If Mia only existed to be Daniel’s love interest, she would be a flat, forgettable character.
But what if:
- Mia serves as a supporting character of Daniel but has her own vision — to break out of the small town and move to the city too.
- Her goal is to save up for a nursing degree-wither
- Her weakness is that she’s always putting others first — including Daniel — without realizing she’s holding herself back.
Here if we’re creating Mia’s character profile, the story should revolve around Mia with other characters.
- When Daniel repairs cars, Mia quietly leaves a free coffee at the garage without saying a word — a small gesture she thinks he never notices, but he always does.
- When Mia talks about leaving town, Daniel laughs it off like a far-fetched dream — not because he doesn’t believe in her, but because the thought of her leaving scares him more than he’d ever admit.
- Mia was unknowingly very close to Daniel’s father — sharing small talks and coffee breaks in the evening, never realizing the connection between Daniel and his father until much later. (Character relations sometimes create shocking story twists as well)
- Daniel’s little sister hates Mia out of jealousy, sensing how special she is to her father. But Mia’s kindness never wavers — always bringing candies for the little girl, even when her warmth is met with cold silence.
A Basic Template to Write a Good Character Profile
Writing a good character profile for a novel is like creating a detailed blueprint for your character. Here are some steps to help you write a solid character profile:
- Basic Information: Start with the basics: the character’s name, age, gender, and any other relevant demographic details.
- Physical Description: Describe their appearance in detail: height (in general), build, hair and eye colour, and distinguishing features (scars, tattoos, etc.).
- Personality Traits: Outline their personality traits: are they introverted or extroverted, confident or insecure, optimistic or pessimistic?
- Background and History: Provide a backstory: family background, childhood experiences, and major life events that shaped them.
- Motivations and Goals: What does your character want? Their motivations and goals should drive their actions throughout the story.
- Conflicts and Challenges: What are the internal and external conflicts they face? How do these shape their decisions?
- Strengths and Weaknesses: Every character should have strengths and weaknesses. Consider their skills, talents, and flaws.
- Relationships: Define their relationships with other characters: friends, family, love interests, rivals, etc.
- Voice and Mannerisms: How do they speak? What are their typical gestures or habits? Develop their unique voice.
- Character Arc: Plan their development throughout the novel. How will they change or grow?
- Symbolism and Themes: Consider if your character embodies or interacts with any themes or symbols in your story.
- Role in the Plot: Lastly, understand their role in the overall plot. How do they contribute to the story’s progression and themes?
Remember, the key to writing a good character profile is depth and consistency. Understanding your character inside and out will help you write more authentic and engaging narratives.