In my opinion, the best part of putting a story together is getting to know my characters. It's like meeting a bunch of new friends that you know can't abandon you. (Unless they find that escape hatch in your brain...).
Sure, some of them won't exactly be "likable", but that can be part of the fun too. As discussed in a previous post, Mary Sues make terrible company. I'd rather go on a road trip with my villain -- bent on world domination, of course -- than with a picture perfect mannequin.
While the best way to show character is to actually show it in action or in dialogue, you as the Writer have to have a real understanding of who they are and what makes them tick to make them come alive for an audience. How do we do this?
There are an abundance of websites with endless get-to-know-you templates out there, but for the most part I have found them to be too focused on exterior personal preferences and less on who the characters are on the inside.
Knowing that your guy's favorite color is chartreuse isn't a bad thing, but it isn't a deep thing either, and I highly doubt it'll play into the main conflict of the story. (If your plot is centered on the color chartreuse, please let me know. It's probably amazing.) So instead of compiling a list of fifty trivia facts, let's look at three** important things to get you started. (**Not in the least an exhaustive compilation...)
#1: Core Character Traits
When it comes to core character traits, try not to pick more than four to five that are specific enough to help you figure out what he or she might do when encountering a situation in your script.
(Useful if you get stuck on a scene and aren't sure how they might react...)
I say no more than five because it can get convoluted. While characters in movies can -- and should -- be just as complex as characters in novels, it's just best to keep their main behavioral tendencies short and sweet.
Example #1: Johnny has been through a lot. His parents were never around and he got sucked into gang life at 15 because he's bad at saying no. Still he was really smart, and his math teacher wanted to send him to a national competition, where Johnny's crush Tammy would also be attending, but Johnny had a fear of trains, planes, and automobiles... etc, etc, etc.
Example #2:
<~ Johnny ~>
- Survivor
- Pushover
- Clever
- Anxious
Having a short list like this will define their personalities a bit and also prevent you from having to search pages on pages to figure out how Johnny might fold under pressure or use his smarts to find a way out of a sticky situation.
As a rule of thumb it's also usually advisable to give them either one "negative" trait or a trait that can sometimes have an unfavorable flip side, to make them more realistic and prevent them from becoming Mary Sues. In this case "Anxious" or "Pushover" may see Johnny not standing up for someone when he should.
Not necessarily bad traits, but not always positive either.
#2: Tell Me What You Want (What You Really Really Want)
There is a difference between wanting something and needing something, even if the line doesn't always seem clear. ('Cause we all need that new iPhone, right?)
Here's where they branch out in terms of character development:
Need: A big hole in their life that requires filling.
Want: A goal or person they use to fill that hole.
A lot of times the want seems more obvious, as it generally drives the plot. Your character wants to take their band from the garage to the big stage, meet their idol and become someone else's, party hard, and get the girl. Your story will be about him pursuing those goals, and facing obstacles along the way.
But it's very important to understand his need, as the need compels the want.
His Want: To become famous, beat out the competition, $$$.
His Need: To feel the love and adoration he never got as a kid, to be able to say "suck it" to the bullies who dragged him down, and have way more money than he could ever spend because while it may not buy love, it'll buy friends.
The Want and the Need are not the same, but they are intrinsically connected. So, what do they want? And what are they willing to do to get what they need?
#3: I Wasn't Made For This (Or You)
Okay, so I have to admit that I'm guilty of this one sometimes, although I like to think I've improved. You've got a protagonist. You want them to be happy.
While the Romance and Rom-Com genres are obviously and inherently filled with romance, these days almost every genre has a little love in it.
But it's critical that their love interest, guy or gal, is more than just a love interest.
No one was born specifically to be the true love of someone else. Everyone has their own dreams, fears, goals, wants, and needs. So while they may end up in the arms of the hero, make sure they have a real personality -- i.e., if they never met the protagonist, their lives would still have been exciting and fulfilling.
A character created solely to be an object of affection is a prop, not a character.
IN CLOSING
Although I didn't cover it -- and so you don't shoot me -- character bios and histories are important to knowing who they are and should definitely be undertaken -- just don't get too caught up in the aesthetics.
The main point is that while knowing every detail of your characters' lives is not a bad thing, it's always important to dig a little deeper to find their purpose. Your writing will be all the richer for it.