I'm writing a fantasy series, and I am focusing heavily on character development. Right now there are 4 main characters...and they are all POV characters. My problem is that when I develop a new character, he shares too many character traits with the 4 characters, and then I just get rid of the new character and combine a few of his character traits with one of the 4 main characters, which makes them more complex.
When I think of characters...I'm thinking of personality traits such as determined, carefree, reserved, etc. I've created a list of character traits belonging to each of the 4 main characters. It is difficult to come up with a new character because I don't want to use any of the character traits I'm already using for the 4 main characters.
So yeah...basically I just need advice on how to make characters different. There are only so many character traits.
EDIT: a lot of you are probably going to say you can make then different by giving them different backstories and putting them in different situations...but that still doesn't really make the character different IMO. I'm looking for something else.
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EDIT: Here are brief descriptions of the main characters. Note that I am not including much about their back stories. I’ll describe the protagonist first and then the other 3 MCs.
Character One: Zack
Age: 23
Zack is probably the most complicated character. He is a thinker and a fighter. One of his most noticeable characteristics is that he is angry all the time. When his anger escalates he will often yell, but for the most part he is quiet, which is common for people who think a lot. He is an introvert, but he isn’t passive and reserved by any means. His anger leads him to be very aggressive and fiery. He is never cold-hearted.
As for his thinking…he is not logical. He thinks a lot and he thinks deeply, but because he is emotionally driven, he is prone to logical fallacies. He tends to over think everything and worry too much. He makes simple things more complicated than they are. He is also very analytical and he pays attention to details, but he often misses the more obvious things because he is so frantic all the time. He doesn't know how to relax.
He is a very emotional character as well. He is definitely not emotionally stable. He has had a rocky relationship with his father, and his mother committed suicide, and he blames himself. That, and the fact that he dwells on the past too much, cause him to be very angry. He gets angry about a lot of things. While most people can overlook a lot of things, he reads into things too much and it usually makes him angry, and his rage starts showing up. This is mostly just because he cares about everything and everyone. If something happens that he doesn't like...he can't just shrug it off. He is easily affected.
Like I said, He is also a fighter. Since this is a fantasy series, he applies this throughout the story. Going through a lot of emotional pain has in a way helped him become strong. Not that he is a tough guy...like I explained he is far from it. He's strong in that he keeps persevering despite his problems and his pain. He is very determined to fix problems when they arise. If he sets his mind on something, he obsesses about it and becomes very passionate about fixing it. Throughout the story he constantly tries to fix his broken relationship with his father, but his anger always comes out and makes them drift apart.
Zack is also very indecisive. This is due to him over thinking everything. He can’t just make a rational decision and stick with it. Of course, this does not mean that he just sits there and thinks when he needs to take action; on the contrary, Zack is very much a man of action and a fighter. Zack will take action quickly if he needs to. He just won’t be confident about what he’s doing, since he hasn’t really made up his mind. He just knows that he needs to take action, and he does it. As you might guess, this often results in him making the wrong decision. This is one reason he is very unconfident.
Zack also has a hard time maintaining relationships, mostly because he tries too hard to fix things that he can’t fix. His difficult life has led him to be untrusting of people in general. When he sees someone in any sort of pain, he is very caring and sympathetic. In the story, he has two friends with whom he is very close. As you may imagine, based on what I’ve said already, he tries very hard to maintain the relationship. Most people would be scared away by him…since he is never laid back about anything.
Character Two: Isaac
Age: 19
I won’t give you a full description of Isaac since I’m not sure it is necessary. Just know that he is a happy and fun character. He is not exactly carefree, but compared to Zack, he is much more laid back and easy going. He is intelligent and very social. He talks often. He is a bit naive and curious. He loves being around people in general and loves adventure. He is also ambitious and has a bit of a hero complex. His main flaw is his ego.
Like I said, he is not completely carefree, and he isn’t a complete clown either. He chooses to live life happily and have fun, but he can still get serious. He’s meant to be a very lovable character.
Although he seems very different from Zack, they are not complete opposites. None of them are bad guys, neither of them are apathetic, and they both have a desire to help people (though Isaac sometimes has selfish reasons). I could give more examples, but I just want to make it clear that although they are very different, they are not meant to be complete opposites.
I would write more, but I should get on with this.
Character Three: Kelly
Age: 26
Kelly is a friend of Zack, and the only female main character. Again, I don’t think I need to say much about her. She is a loving and genuinely good person. She doesn’t have all the anger issues and emotional instability that Zack has. She has maternal instincts and is comfortable around people. She is also the wisest and most confident of anyone else.
I have developed this character more than you’d think by reading this short description, but I think I still need to develop her more.
Character Four: Samuel
Age: 18 (the youngest)
Samuel is sort of the cool genius type. He is an extreme introvert and doesn’t talk much to anyone except Zack. He is a bit of a rebel and he has little respect for the law. Like Zack he is also a thinker. As a hobby he likes to go riding on his motorcycle or building things.
So far, he seems a lot like Zack right? Well, he is quite different. You’ll see once I flesh him out a bit more. Keep reading!
Where should I start. I guess one major difference is that Samuel is emotionally stable, in contrast to Zack. Samuel isn’t emotionless, but he is more reserved and detached, and doesn’t show his emotions as often. He can come across as a bit cold, but he really does care about people he is close too.
Like I said, Samuel is thinker, but in a different way than Zack. His thinking is less emotionally charged and more rational. He is also much more logical than Zack. This isn’t to say Samuel is all that logical either though (at least not like a Vulcan). I prefer the word rational. He is also scientific-minded (and a gear-head), which is another way he is different from Zack. Samuel sees things more clearly.
Samuel’s relationship with Zack shows other aspects of his personality. They connect because they do have some things in common (both being introverts and thinkers, and both having a general distrust for people). Zack talks about a lot of his thoughts and feelings and other abstract concepts, and Samuel can engage and talk intelligently about it. Even though Samuel is more rational and concrete in his thinking, he is an understanding person, so he can see what Zack is going through even though he cannot completely relate.
One major way the two are different is that Samuel tries to escape from conflict. He wants things to be rational and orderly, so when chaos arises, he prefers to escape where he can relax and take his mind off of the conflict. This is something Zack simply can’t do. Zack can’t escape because he feels a need to fix everything, so he runs toward chaos rather than away from it.
One part of Samuel’s back-story I should mention is that he feels like he has to be there for his mother even though he just wants to be out on his own. He values his freedom highly.
The New Main Character
I need a character that will become the series’ final antagonist. I’ve always wanted the final antagonist to be a fully developed character rather than an evil dude with a cape. He can, however, be morally ambiguous. In the story, he does things that seem wrong, and things that seem right. You never really know what side he’s really on. He is a POV character less often than the others, and when he is a POV character I don’t plan on revealing as many of his thoughts or feelings.
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So…how can I possibly make another character here? How could I make someone who is different? I already think Samuel is too similar to Zack (despite their many differences), I don’t fully understand Isaac, and I haven’t even developed Kelly enough. Assuming you’ve read this whole thing, I could really use your help. I’d be fine with you helping me develop these characters or help me develop the new character.
Note that the story wouldn’t really work if I dropped any of these characters.
When I think of characters...I'm thinking of personality traits such as determined, carefree, reserved, etc. I've created a list of character traits belonging to each of the 4 main characters. It is difficult to come up with a new character because I don't want to use any of the character traits I'm already using for the 4 main characters.
So yeah...basically I just need advice on how to make characters different. There are only so many character traits.
EDIT: a lot of you are probably going to say you can make then different by giving them different backstories and putting them in different situations...but that still doesn't really make the character different IMO. I'm looking for something else.
____________
EDIT: Here are brief descriptions of the main characters. Note that I am not including much about their back stories. I’ll describe the protagonist first and then the other 3 MCs.
Character One: Zack
Age: 23
Zack is probably the most complicated character. He is a thinker and a fighter. One of his most noticeable characteristics is that he is angry all the time. When his anger escalates he will often yell, but for the most part he is quiet, which is common for people who think a lot. He is an introvert, but he isn’t passive and reserved by any means. His anger leads him to be very aggressive and fiery. He is never cold-hearted.
As for his thinking…he is not logical. He thinks a lot and he thinks deeply, but because he is emotionally driven, he is prone to logical fallacies. He tends to over think everything and worry too much. He makes simple things more complicated than they are. He is also very analytical and he pays attention to details, but he often misses the more obvious things because he is so frantic all the time. He doesn't know how to relax.
He is a very emotional character as well. He is definitely not emotionally stable. He has had a rocky relationship with his father, and his mother committed suicide, and he blames himself. That, and the fact that he dwells on the past too much, cause him to be very angry. He gets angry about a lot of things. While most people can overlook a lot of things, he reads into things too much and it usually makes him angry, and his rage starts showing up. This is mostly just because he cares about everything and everyone. If something happens that he doesn't like...he can't just shrug it off. He is easily affected.
Like I said, He is also a fighter. Since this is a fantasy series, he applies this throughout the story. Going through a lot of emotional pain has in a way helped him become strong. Not that he is a tough guy...like I explained he is far from it. He's strong in that he keeps persevering despite his problems and his pain. He is very determined to fix problems when they arise. If he sets his mind on something, he obsesses about it and becomes very passionate about fixing it. Throughout the story he constantly tries to fix his broken relationship with his father, but his anger always comes out and makes them drift apart.
Zack is also very indecisive. This is due to him over thinking everything. He can’t just make a rational decision and stick with it. Of course, this does not mean that he just sits there and thinks when he needs to take action; on the contrary, Zack is very much a man of action and a fighter. Zack will take action quickly if he needs to. He just won’t be confident about what he’s doing, since he hasn’t really made up his mind. He just knows that he needs to take action, and he does it. As you might guess, this often results in him making the wrong decision. This is one reason he is very unconfident.
Zack also has a hard time maintaining relationships, mostly because he tries too hard to fix things that he can’t fix. His difficult life has led him to be untrusting of people in general. When he sees someone in any sort of pain, he is very caring and sympathetic. In the story, he has two friends with whom he is very close. As you may imagine, based on what I’ve said already, he tries very hard to maintain the relationship. Most people would be scared away by him…since he is never laid back about anything.
Character Two: Isaac
Age: 19
I won’t give you a full description of Isaac since I’m not sure it is necessary. Just know that he is a happy and fun character. He is not exactly carefree, but compared to Zack, he is much more laid back and easy going. He is intelligent and very social. He talks often. He is a bit naive and curious. He loves being around people in general and loves adventure. He is also ambitious and has a bit of a hero complex. His main flaw is his ego.
Like I said, he is not completely carefree, and he isn’t a complete clown either. He chooses to live life happily and have fun, but he can still get serious. He’s meant to be a very lovable character.
Although he seems very different from Zack, they are not complete opposites. None of them are bad guys, neither of them are apathetic, and they both have a desire to help people (though Isaac sometimes has selfish reasons). I could give more examples, but I just want to make it clear that although they are very different, they are not meant to be complete opposites.
I would write more, but I should get on with this.
Character Three: Kelly
Age: 26
Kelly is a friend of Zack, and the only female main character. Again, I don’t think I need to say much about her. She is a loving and genuinely good person. She doesn’t have all the anger issues and emotional instability that Zack has. She has maternal instincts and is comfortable around people. She is also the wisest and most confident of anyone else.
I have developed this character more than you’d think by reading this short description, but I think I still need to develop her more.
Character Four: Samuel
Age: 18 (the youngest)
Samuel is sort of the cool genius type. He is an extreme introvert and doesn’t talk much to anyone except Zack. He is a bit of a rebel and he has little respect for the law. Like Zack he is also a thinker. As a hobby he likes to go riding on his motorcycle or building things.
So far, he seems a lot like Zack right? Well, he is quite different. You’ll see once I flesh him out a bit more. Keep reading!
Where should I start. I guess one major difference is that Samuel is emotionally stable, in contrast to Zack. Samuel isn’t emotionless, but he is more reserved and detached, and doesn’t show his emotions as often. He can come across as a bit cold, but he really does care about people he is close too.
Like I said, Samuel is thinker, but in a different way than Zack. His thinking is less emotionally charged and more rational. He is also much more logical than Zack. This isn’t to say Samuel is all that logical either though (at least not like a Vulcan). I prefer the word rational. He is also scientific-minded (and a gear-head), which is another way he is different from Zack. Samuel sees things more clearly.
Samuel’s relationship with Zack shows other aspects of his personality. They connect because they do have some things in common (both being introverts and thinkers, and both having a general distrust for people). Zack talks about a lot of his thoughts and feelings and other abstract concepts, and Samuel can engage and talk intelligently about it. Even though Samuel is more rational and concrete in his thinking, he is an understanding person, so he can see what Zack is going through even though he cannot completely relate.
One major way the two are different is that Samuel tries to escape from conflict. He wants things to be rational and orderly, so when chaos arises, he prefers to escape where he can relax and take his mind off of the conflict. This is something Zack simply can’t do. Zack can’t escape because he feels a need to fix everything, so he runs toward chaos rather than away from it.
One part of Samuel’s back-story I should mention is that he feels like he has to be there for his mother even though he just wants to be out on his own. He values his freedom highly.
The New Main Character
I need a character that will become the series’ final antagonist. I’ve always wanted the final antagonist to be a fully developed character rather than an evil dude with a cape. He can, however, be morally ambiguous. In the story, he does things that seem wrong, and things that seem right. You never really know what side he’s really on. He is a POV character less often than the others, and when he is a POV character I don’t plan on revealing as many of his thoughts or feelings.
______________
So…how can I possibly make another character here? How could I make someone who is different? I already think Samuel is too similar to Zack (despite their many differences), I don’t fully understand Isaac, and I haven’t even developed Kelly enough. Assuming you’ve read this whole thing, I could really use your help. I’d be fine with you helping me develop these characters or help me develop the new character.
Note that the story wouldn’t really work if I dropped any of these characters.
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