Step 1: Casting

So you've got your trip planned. You know the exact location of the hotel in which you'll be staying, you've got a map to guide you, pit stops are planned, weather has been accounted for, and luggage is packed. The next thing you'll be wanting to know is; who are you bringing with you? People don't usually go on vacation without bringing family or friends. Even a trip to the store is more entertaining when you have company. Similarly, it will be extremely difficult to tell an engaging story without characters.

Characters come in one of four flavors: main cast, side cast, supporting cast, and back cast. The main cast is the character or characters that will take center stage in your story. The spotlight should focus on the main cast for the majority of the show, meaning the plot progression and conflict revolves around these characters. Because of how much time the main cast will spend in the spotlight, the costume and makeup departments will spend the most time on these characters. This means the main cast should be the characters we see being developed the most.

Example: In the Harry Potter series, Harry, Ron, and Hermione are the main cast, most especially Harry. These three take the spotlight for the vast majority of the series, and the main conflict centers around Harry's uniqueness. Though these three are center stage, JK Rowling did a poor job developing their characters (see Dimensions below).

Side cast include characters who are frequently present and help further the story but are not necessarily essential to the main narrative. These characters wait on either wing of the stage, waiting until they are called to join the main cast at the center. Because they aren't in the spotlight as frequently as the main cast, development of these characters isn't as important, as their primary role is to add additional color to the story.

Example: In RWBY, the main cast is, as the name suggests, Team RWBY. It is these four girls that we follow for the majority of the show, most especially the first three volumes. Team JNPR is what would be classified as side cast. Though we often see Team JNPR drifting in and out of the frame, it is the adventures of Team RWBY that the show follows. As such, the members of Team RWBY should see more character development throughout the series than those of Team JNPR.

Next is supporting cast. These characters wait behind the curtain for most of the show, only appearing very briefly. When they do appear, it is not usually for any largely significant purpose, but rather for the purpose. of world building. Remember, your main cast members are not (usually) the only people inhabiting your world's universe.

Example: In RWBY, the supporting cast would be most of the teachers. Professors Port and Goodwitch, and Dr. Oobleck, who, though we see somewhat frequently, their appearances are brief. In Harry Potter, we would consider Argus Filch, Vincent Crabbe, and Gregory Goyle to be supporting cast members.

Finally, we have back cast. These characters are usually nameless, though in some circumstances they may be named simply to add more color to the story. Back cast characters have almost no role in the narrative than to simply act as inhabitants of your story's world.

Example: The students of Hogwarts are whom we would classify as back cast. We know they exist and that there are hundreds of them, but they are not named and only serve as a general populace. Professors Vector and Sinistra are also back cast. They never actually appear in the books and are just name drops meant to add more color to the story. Professor Peach in RWBY would be another example of a back cast member.

When examining your cast, I advise following what I call the pyramid layout. Main cast should make up the peak of the pyramid and back cast the base, with side and supporting falling in the middle respectively. The closer to the top the cast member is, the more importance should be placed on their development. However, the peak of the pyramid has the smallest width, meaning that only one or two characters can stand comfortably at the top. This means you should have only one or two main cast members that you invest a good amount of time developing. There should then be more side characters than main cast, more supporting cast than side, and most of your characters should be nameless and not developed at all. You should also note that there will be characters that don't fit exactly in one description or another, and instead fall in a categorization between categories.

Example: In my Male Reader x Pyrrha Nikos story, Strength of a Soldier, (F/N) is the main character. The story focuses solely around him; his past, his conflicts, his character development. He is the most important aspect of the story and it is him that we follow throughout the narrative. Pyrrha would be one of those characters that falls into two categories. She is one of the main characters but is sometimes pushed to the side in favor of developing (F/N). The rest of Team JNPR as well as Team RWBY make up the side cast. They are drizzled throughout the story, though not so much to the point where the story relies on them. Supporting cast includes Professor Ozpin and Goodwitch, as well as Charlotte, who despite only being used once, is an important plot device used to further both plot progression and character development. Finally, the nameless White Fang members and Purifiers, as well as those gathered at the peace rally are the back cast. They aren't named and don't really make an appearance, they're just there.

Step 2: Show, Don't Tell

When developing a character, the motto you should hold yourself to is 'show, don't tell'. You must remember that your characters are people, not words. Words are simply the medium through which we are telling the story, but there are so many more elements that must be considered when writing. This is the meaning behind my penname, A Story Without Words. Posted on my profile page's wall is my own personal belief, "A story is comprised not of words, but of people." What this means is that if you are developing your character properly, the rest of the story should follow. This happens because the story focuses on your main character, and when properly developing your main character you are simultaneously creating your story. That being said, let's look at how to do that.

"Show, don't tell". This means that when writing your story, you should be developing your character, not describing them. The different between development and description is that one is through words and the other is through events. Character development is the show, character description is the tell. Thus, 'show, don't tell", could also be written as 'Develop, don't describe'.

Let's take a closer look at the distinction between the two. First you should remember that description is an extremely useful tool. It helps paint a picture of the world you are trying to create or the character you are introducing. Description usually takes the form of adjective; tall, short, red, blue, man, woman, etc. Description should be used when introducing a character to allow the reader to picture in their head what the character looks like. Description should not be used to tell the reader what that character is like.

If description is the cover of the book, then development is the story. Inexperienced authors will often try to develop a character by describing them. I once read a story where the main character was supposed to be a "badass", and the author simply wrote "(F/N) was a badass." That's not character development, that's lazy writing. Don't tell me (F/N)'s a badass, show me they're a badass. Don't tell me John's a good fighter, show me he's a good fighter. You have to develop these things in scenes.

Exercise: Write a short passage about a character suffering from depression. Remember to properly develop this character and their depression in a scene or conversation. Think about how the character is dressed and how they interact with their environment. You might find it useful to write as if you are an observer watching this character, taking note of their appearance. Are their clothes dirty and baggy? Are their shoulders slouched? What tone of voice do they have? If you want some feedback, feel free to send me the passage over private message.

Step 3: Dimensions

Once you have gotten used to the idea of developing characters through scenes rather than describing characters through words, the next step is to add multiple dimensions to said character. This is where we get the notion of flat vs round characters. A good way to determine whether you have written a flat or round character is by attempting to describe them. If you can describe the character in just a few adjectives they are most likely a flat character. If however, you need a sentence, or even better, several sentences, you know you've written a round character.

Example: Wizard. Scar. Angst. Hero. Who did I just describe? Harry Potter's character can be summarized in just a few short words and people will immediately be able to identify him. Similarly, Ron is the goofy sidekick and Hermione is the smart one. They're all extremely flat characters who, quite frankly, I don't really enjoy reading about, despite Harry Potter being one of my personal favorite book series.

To develop an interesting, multi-dimensional character, you need to take your drawing of a circle and make it a sphere. Add shading, shadows, a light source. This is how we make our characters come to life.

Step 4: Origins

One of the easiest and best ways to add dimension to a character is to give that character a good origin story. John is depressed (though hopefully you now understand that you must show John is depressed, not just tell me). The next thing to ask yourself is, why is John depressed? Did his girlfriend break up with him? Did his mother recently pass away? At a basic level these reasons are adequate, but there is certainly more that can be done.

It is important when developing a character to understand that behavior is temporary, but personality is longer lasting. A breakup or the passing of a family member may change John's behavior for the time being, but in the long run it probably won't have a long-lasting effect on his personality.

Example: Look at Ilia Amitola from RWBY. She is one of the most multi-dimensioned characters in the show, due largely to her origin. She was a Faunus who had the ability to pass as human, and as a child she even laughed with her friends and made fun of other Faunus. When her supposed friends laughed at her parents' deaths however, her demeanor changed. It was this experience that drove her to become the person she was. She had seen the Faunus situation from both sides and knew just how ugly it was. Even though she has the ability to pass as human, she decides not to because she believes the society she lives in needs to change, and she wants to help bring about that change. As the show progresses however, she becomes conflicted, knowing that violence is not the best way to achieve what she truly wants. This internal conflict adds another dimension to her character, thus making her more multi-dimensional.

Example: (F/N) from my Male Reader x Pyrrha Nikos, Strength of a Soldier story, is another good example of a well-developed multi-dimensional character. He often acts like an immature child because it was something he never had the leisure to experience before. This is, however, ultimately a lie, a mask he uses to hide from others his past and the fact that he is extremely haunted by his actions. Occasionally, (F/N) slips up, allowing Pyrrha to glimpse the person he truly is. In the end, he is a tired old man hiding behind the looks and personality of a young body.

This is a good example of how, by adequately developinga character, the story writes itself. When writing Strength of a Soldier, Ididn't write (F/N) into the story, I wrote the story around (F/N). I knew thecharacter I wanted him to be and because of that, the story wrote itself. Theorigin presented the first few chapters was for character development. Hisbehavior and interactions with Teams JNPR and RWBY were for characterdevelopment. The peace rally is for character development. And the ending willultimately be for character development.