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What Makes A Character Stand Out/Dynamic (round)?

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vicky271

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To those who take the time to read this post,

Update:Thanks to everyone for correcting me. They aren't the same, LOL, and i'm glad everyone pointed that out! :) I appreciate it ^^ (I added a similar/updated question below)

Characters stand out for different reasons. In relation to this, what about characters stands out to you the most?
 
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TomKnighton

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Obviously, the better developed a character is, the easier it is for him or her to stand out. Of course, all the back story in he world won't help a character out unless they're written properly.

What makes a character really come to life is how their flaws and human foibles kick in. One of my all-time favorite characters is Indiana Jones. He has a fear of snakes (but he just says he hates them...don't want to admit to fear and all that), but he keeps being put in a position where there are snakes he has to deal with.

We see him deal with it, fear and all, that makes him brave. A character who's perfect is about an interesting as a piece of cardboard.

Give me a character flaw, and then show me how that flaw is overcome at a critical juncture. If your character is a terrible liar, show him trying to lie during poker games with his friends. They tell him how they can tell. Then, when being interrogated by the bad guy, he lies convincingly. The bad guy knows the MC so well and knows he can't lie to save his life (literally), so he must be telling the truth.

Stuff like that is what I really like to see and what makes a character dynamic in my book. But I'm a self taught guy who's never had a writing professor in his entire life :)
 

RSwordsman

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I may be wrong but I'm going to disagree with your comparison of "roundness" to "dynamism." I don't think they mean the same thing.

A well-rounded character is one with a rich, lifelike assortment of traits. They have good points, and flaws. They have a moral compass that sometimes leads them astray whether they mean for good or evil. They feel things, and allow a reader to feel with them.

A dynamic character, however, is one who changes. They can be either flat or round, but through the course of the story, something happens to make them different than how they were in the beginning. If a flat character begins as nothing more than a racist carpenter, he may end the story by having made friends with a wonderful customer of a minority race, and making a piece of furniture for him as payment for a good deed. In turn, that makes him an accepting carpenter. He's still relatively flat.

One can only have so many round characters before they literally take up too much room in the story. But anyone involved who ends up fundamentally different in some way can be considered dynamic.

Oddly enough, I think flat characters are easier to picture. They can be boiled down to a handful of traits, sometimes even stereotypes. But round characters are easier to relate to. ;)
 

Osulagh

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...Round and Dynamic are in two different categories. I don't know if you're mixed up on this, or if your professor is.

In E.M. Forster's book, Aspects of the novel, he lists that characters are Round and Flat.
I'm unsure where the terms of Dynamic and Static came from, but these two are opposing terms just like the above.

Flat: One side to the character.
Round: More than one side.

Static: They don't change.
Dynamic: They change.

All of this information can be found in any High School or greater English textbook. I learned it in High School, and I was reminded of it five times (and counting) in college. To be dead honest, if your English professor is confused on this, he probably shouldn't be teaching.

So, what makes a character stand out? Or, what makes a character dynamic?
What makes them stand out is what makes them their own character. From here you go into general characterization. Though, a couple quick tricks I've picked up is to give them quarks, or make them eccentric, have them specialized in something, give them a strong voice, and there's probably more if my mind would like to work today.

What makes them dynamic is showing a different side of them. A cranky old man is a flat character. A cranky old man who cranky who is cranky because he doesn't want people to get close to him in fear that when he dies or they do someone will be hurt--after his wife, and children died--is an example of a dynamic character.

And, honestly, flat characters are the easiest to envision. Everybody can identify certain flat characters in a crowd; (just to name from school dramas and such) the nerd, the preppy cheerleader, the jock, the military brat, e.i. stock characters. People notice them all the time and pay no mind.
 
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vicky271

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Obviously, the better developed a character is, the easier it is for him or her to stand out. Of course, all the back story in he world won't help a character out unless they're written properly.

What makes a character really come to life is how their flaws and human foibles kick in. One of my all-time favorite characters is Indiana Jones. He has a fear of snakes (but he just says he hates them...don't want to admit to fear and all that), but he keeps being put in a position where there are snakes he has to deal with.

We see him deal with it, fear and all, that makes him brave. A character who's perfect is about an interesting as a piece of cardboard.

Give me a character flaw, and then show me how that flaw is overcome at a critical juncture. If your character is a terrible liar, show him trying to lie during poker games with his friends. They tell him how they can tell. Then, when being interrogated by the bad guy, he lies convincingly. The bad guy knows the MC so well and knows he can't lie to save his life (literally), so he must be telling the truth.

Stuff like that is what I really like to see and what makes a character dynamic in my book. But I'm a self taught guy who's never had a writing professor in his entire life :)

LOL I liked what you had to say! I agree with you, I think it plays into development. A character has a mortal flaw and we see how that comes into play as they deal with it and overcome it! :) Thanks for your input, I really appreciate it :)



I may be wrong but I'm going to disagree with your comparison of "roundness" to "dynamism." I don't think they mean the same thing.

A well-rounded character is one with a rich, lifelike assortment of traits. They have good points, and flaws. They have a moral compass that sometimes leads them astray whether they mean for good or evil. They feel things, and allow a reader to feel with them.

A dynamic character, however, is one who changes. They can be either flat or round, but through the course of the story, something happens to make them different than how they were in the beginning. If a flat character begins as nothing more than a racist carpenter, he may end the story by having made friends with a wonderful customer of a minority race, and making a piece of furniture for him as payment for a good deed. In turn, that makes him an accepting carpenter. He's still relatively flat.

One can only have so many round characters before they literally take up too much room in the story. But anyone involved who ends up fundamentally different in some way can be considered dynamic.

Oddly enough, I think flat characters are easier to picture. They can be boiled down to a handful of traits, sometimes even stereotypes. But round characters are easier to relate to. ;)

I looked back at my notes, apparently my professor believes that a flat character is the same as a static character (same with a round or dynamic character) :) But he's very much a believer in "development categorizes the character". :)

Hahahahaha! I wish I could say I find flat characters easier to picture, I find I have to know everything about them and figured out how I am going to develop them before a clear picture comes to mind ^^




...Round and Dynamic are in two different categories. I don't know if you're mixed up on this, or if your professor is.

In E.M. Forster's book, Aspects of the novel, he lists that characters are Round and Flat.
I'm unsure where the terms of Dynamic and Static came from, but these two are opposing terms just like the above.

Flat: One side to the character.
Round: More than one side.

Static: They don't change.
Dynamic: They change.

All of this information can be found in any High School or greater English textbook. I learned it in High School, and I was reminded of it five times (and counting) in college. To be dead honest, if your English professor is confused on this, he probably shouldn't be teaching.

So, what makes a character stand out? Or, what makes a character dynamic?
What makes them stand out is what makes them their own character. From here you go into general characterization. Though, a couple quick tricks I've picked up is to give them quarks, or make them eccentric, have them specialized in something, give them a strong voice, and there's probably more if my mind would like to work today.

What makes them dynamic is showing a different side of them. A cranky old man is a flat character. A cranky old man who cranky who is cranky because he doesn't want people to get close to him in fear that when he dies or they do someone will be hurt--after his wife, and children died--is an example of a dynamic character.

And, honestly, flat characters are the easiest to envision. Everybody can identify certain flat characters in a crowd; (just to name from school dramas and such) the nerd, the preppy cheerleader, the jock, the military brat, e.i. stock characters. People notice them all the time and pay no mind.

Thanks for your feedback! It was very helpful ^^ He categorizes them together because he believes that development is the most essential key to a character :) (he really is a good professor, this was a prose class and there was some very good information in this class!).

Hahahaha! Your the second person to say that! :) I wish I had a easy time envisioning a flat character...but I have to know everything before I can envision them :/
 

maxitoutwriter

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I think reading books from authors who have well developed characters can provide these insights.
 

KellyAssauer

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For those of us that write character based stories (meaning that the story is character driven rather than plot driven) this isn't a question. The character must develop over the course of the story, because that development is the story. =)
 

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Hmm, some of the things I look for are well-defined and believable emotions (not just told, but shown), a distinctive character voice, relatable goals, hopes and fears.

Characters tend to be what draw me into a story first and foremost, followed by the interesting particulars of the setting and situation. Plot's important, obviously. I want things to happen for a reason (and hopefully for the important characters to be a large part of that reason), but in some ways it's a distant third.
 

rwm4768

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Round =/= dynamic.

A round character is someone who gives the appearance of being an actual human being with all kinds of interests, values, and other personality traits. A dynamic character is a character who changes over the course of the story.

As for how to make your character more well-rounded, the best way to do that is put them in a variety of situation (in the novel or not). Find out how they react to those situations. See what aspects of their personality you find out.

I like to start with a few key traits, then figure out the characters from there. Some people make a nearly exhaustive list of character traits before writing anything.
 

Sonsofthepharaohs

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I think everyone else has nailed it in terms of the definitions. As to how you create round and dynamic characters... I don't quite know the answer. But i think you will know when you have.

I was worried about my character being inconsistent. I thought he seemed like two different people, all professional and authoritative and serious in his day job, but when he got home he was playful and light hearted, teasing, not serious at all. I asked one of my betas if they thought this was realistic.

The answer was a resounding yes. People don't act the same in every aspect of their lives. They have different faces they present to the world than the one they wear at home, in the company of family and friends. They have different moods, different personas.

I thought about this, and realised my character is very much like my uncle. My uncle was very high up in the military, so very serious and a bit intimidating in his day job, but at home he was an absolute hoot, totally daft, jokey, always playing and being a big kid. I realised this seemingly dual personality was probably his coping mechanism, as he needed to destress and be silly when he wasn't in uniform.

So this is what made me realise that my MC is actually pretty well rounded.

Now I just have to work on making him dynamic...
 

BethS

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He said that knowing all the information in the world about your character isn't enough, you need to know how they will develop and what they will develop into.

What is your opinion on this matter?

Ummm...I don't agree?

This comes down to how an individual writer approaches the process of writing, but it is not necessary to know much of anything about a character when you start the story. A character is reshaped and refined in the forge-fire of conflict, and that process is part of what makes a character well-rounded. The other part has to do with creating a character who is deeply motivated, for good or ill. Whether the writer plans all this in advance or discovers who the character is along the way is immaterial. You don't have to know what the character will develop into; you only have to see to it that the character does develop.
 
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Quinn_Inuit

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I'm sure this professor is a nice person, but I'm starting to get the impression that his approach to the material is...idiosyncratic, to put it mildly. There are some very well-read people on this board, and I recommend giving their arguments careful consideration.
 

vicky271

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I'm sure this professor is a nice person, but I'm starting to get the impression that his approach to the material is...idiosyncratic, to put it mildly. There are some very well-read people on this board, and I recommend giving their arguments careful consideration.

LOL! Yes, everyone seems to really know their stuff! I should probably post information I learnt through the class and see what everyone thinks :)
 

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If by "round" you mean three-dimensional, which I think is the far more common term, it's not the same thing as dynamic. Just like real people, who are all three-dimensional, but who are not all dynamic, characters are the same.

In writing, "flat" characters are most often called "cardboard".

But the short answer is that the same thing makes a character three-dimensional and/or dynamic that makes real people the same way.

In the poem called An Essay on Man, Alexander Pope has the line, The proper study of Mankind is Man.

In writing, the proper study of Character is man. A three-dimensional character needs the same traits that makes a real person three-dimension. He has good traits and bad, pimples, bunions, bills to pay, grouchiness, temptations, and imperfections' Sometimes generous, sometimes selfish, sometimes reasonable, sometimes unreasonable. He trips over cracks in the sidewalk, he likes cats and hates dogs, or the other way around. He has a real life outside whatever problem the story throws at him. He makes good choices, he makes bad choices, and he farts. He may not fart on the page, but any reader knows he does have to fart occasionally.

Too, "dynamic" is a personality trait, one some people have, and some people lack, one some characters should have, and others should not. All characters should be as three-dimensional as space allows, but all characters should not be dynamic. Often, not even the protagonist should be dynamic.

As someone else said, you need to know nothing about a character before you start writing. I never do. My study of Character is Man. I don't create characters to put on the page. I'm neither God nor Victor Frankenstein. I put people on the page. I know myself well. I know my perfections and imperfection, my wise choices and my stupid choices, etc. And I've known a lot of other people in my life. I've known them well. And whether in articles, newspapers, journals, or autobiographies, I've read abut many, many others.

So I put people on the page.
 

RN Hill

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To those who take the time to read this post,

I have a question for everyone. Something I have been wondering as I create my characters and throw them into the world in which I created for my current writing project. What exactly makes a character round (the professional term for this is dynamic)? My professor told me its the development in the character, and how believable the development is (we got a ton of paradigms for character development). He said that knowing all the information in the world about your character isn't enough, you need to know how they will develop and what they will develop into.

What is your opinion on this matter?

I find characters that are well rounded are easier to picture :)

Bold is my emphasis.

This is your story, that bold part. How and why your character changes. It sounds like your professor wants you to know the entire story inside and out already? To me, most of the fun is discovering where the story is going. I would find this very difficult -- seems stifling to me.
 

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Bold is my emphasis.

This is your story, that bold part. How and why your character changes. It sounds like your professor wants you to know the entire story inside and out already? To me, most of the fun is discovering where the story is going. I would find this very difficult -- seems stifling to me.

I concur. Forcing a character to make choices to because it's where you think that character should go is a recipe for a hollow, unbelievable character.
 

blacbird

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I create my characters and throw them into the world in which I created for my current writing project.

So, you "created" your world first, then "created" characters to populate it. Something in a back file drawer of the rearmost cabinet in the unused back room of my brain suggests that, to "create" really interesting 3-dimensional characters that readers will identify and engage with, you might be doing this bassackwards.

caw
 

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So, you "created" your world first, then "created" characters to populate it. Something in a back file drawer of the rearmost cabinet in the unused back room of my brain suggests that, to "create" really interesting 3-dimensional characters that readers will identify and engage with, you might be doing this bassackwards.

caw

This may be unduly harsh. I know there are a lot of writers who would agree (Terry Pratchett comes to mind), but I'm sure a lot of writers create a world first, then add characters (especially the ones who write stories that take place on our world :p ). Heck, Tolkien created the _languages_ first.
 

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The real question, I think, is how many bestselling novels has this professor written? I'm much more likely to take advice from someone who shows me he can practice what he preaches.
 

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The real question, I think, is how many bestselling novels has this professor written? I'm much more likely to take advice from someone who shows me he can practice what he preaches.

Skill as an author is neither a necessary nor sufficient condition for large sales numbers.

Also, the ability to teach something to beginners and the ability to do it well are not always correlated. I know a number of excellent martial artists who would be positively dangerous as teachers of new students*, and others of more modest skill levels who are superb instructors.

I think a more relevant question to the OP is "Has this professor written something you like either from a story or technical perspective?" If so, he may have something to teach her, and we will do her the greatest service if we help her identify what that is. If not, then he may not be the best choice as instructor.


*Not in the "accidental punch in the face" sense, but more in the "today we do jump back spin kicks and the new person pulls a tendon because nobody thought to teach him how to land properly" sense.
 

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This may be unduly harsh. I know there are a lot of writers who would agree (Terry Pratchett comes to mind), but I'm sure a lot of writers create a world first, then add characters (especially the ones who write stories that take place on our world :p ). Heck, Tolkien created the _languages_ first.

Well, perhaps it's just me, but I don't separate "world", "plot" and "characters" into separate discrete boxes when constructing a story. Story ideas evolve for me as a close combination of characters, setting and progression of events.

caw
 

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Well, perhaps it's just me, but I don't separate "world", "plot" and "characters" into separate discrete boxes when constructing a story. Story ideas evolve for me as a close combination of characters, setting and progression of events.

caw

I don't think that's just you, by any means, but I really do get the impression that some authors create one of those before the other two.
 

vicky271

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I'm sure a lot of writers create a world first, then add characters (especially the ones who write stories that take place on our world :p ). Heck, Tolkien created the _languages_ first.

I agree! :)
 
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vicky271

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Thank you to everyone for responding! :) I'm glad you could straighten this out for me :)
 
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