Characters in Role Play & Writing

As someone who enjoys both role playing and writing, I make a lot of characters. Are they all amazing heroes and villains? No. In fact, there have been many duds. Sometimes I can rework a character and shape them into one that I like better, but most of the time I end up removing them completely.

Whether you are a role player or a writer, you know that your characters are important. Even a little side character should give a preview of their personality. You might need them later on and their interaction with your main character might make a difference.

When I create a character, I take one of two approaches: 

1. Plan the character in advance. Give them a back story and know everything about them. 
2. Dive right in and see who they become once they interact with other people. 

Both of these have led to characters I like, but I have to admit that the second method generally produces characters I enjoy more. In role play, I can bank on other players affecting my character's behavior. In writing it might just be luck. I have several characters that have written themselves into my stories and grew into incredible people that play a huge role in the tale I'm telling.

No matter what method you choose, you should have a foundation to build on.

"Data! Data! Data!" he cried impatiently. "I can't make bricks without clay."

~Sherlock Holmes

If you want a good brick, I mean character, you need data. Clay to mold. This mostly applies to characters you plan ahead of time, but even spontaneous ones should be built on a rock and not sand.

There are so many sad stories in RP and books.

"My parents were murdered by a demon and now I plan to hunt them! I have honed my skills and slaughtered thousands of bandits with my blade. Yes, I have a rough exterior and drown my sorrows with violence and mead, but I am actually a sensitive man deep inside."

This is okay every now and again. People make it work all the time. Do we want to see it over and over though?

The answer to that is no. It's not rhetorical. Let's all say it together. No!

Motivation is important. Just give them better goals, maybe even simpler ones. Your character doesn't have to be an orphan wanting revenge. Maybe they just want to get a job, start a family. Then they get dragged into an evil plot or drafted into war. Hell, give them a disease that makes them go on a journey to find a cure.

No matter what their goal or motivation (because that is a workshop/post all its own). They still have a background that needs addressed. 

Once you have a seed planted, your character will grow based on your plan for them, and their environment.

Questions to ask for establishing your foundation:

-Where are they from?

-What do they do?

-Why do they do it?

Nature and nurture.

In writing, your characters are molded based on your plan and sometimes by a hard turn in the story. In role play, other people will have an impact on them. 

This is where your foundation and your seed start to make your character who they are.

If your character is a pampered noble who never left a pristine city, they will be in for culture shock when they walk out those gates into a world war. How they handle that shock is a reflection of their upbringing and personality.

Your character's behavior is directly related to their history and environment.

Example time!

The Miner's Mind

Say your character was forced to work in a mine for the majority of his life. Because of that he prefers to stay inside in confined places as he is accustomed to that environment. Or, for the same reason, he prefers being out in the fresh air because it is still new.

Family Ties

If your character lost their family, they may be eager to start a new one. If they were abandoned or betrayed, however, they won’t be as easily trusting of others.

Same backgrounds, different paths taken by the character. These help you make choices in life and every day circumstances. They determine how your character will handle certain events, big and small.

Bar fights, religion, politics, haunted houses, shopping, every response your character has to an encounter will be the result of their decisions and history.

Hey there. Come around here often?

~D-bag in a bar.

Now that the boring stuff is over (I tried to keep it short), here are some little handouts! As always, feel free to save and print and share if you'd like. Print off the quiz and fill it out! It can be a real eye-opener about your character.

Download: Character Behaviors

Download: Character Quiz

Pitch a Tent and Write

Hey folks, remember when I talked about Camp NaNoWriMo? They usually have it a couple times a year and the month of April is one of those camps!

“But Stacy,” you say, “It’s already so far into the month! I can’t write 50,000 words now!”

Well, you probably could if you put your mind to it, but that’s not what I’m encouraging you to do. Campers can set their own goal (unlike the official NaNoWriMo in November) with a minimum of 10k words. You can totally write 10,000 words.

I didn't actually intend to participate this month because I have a pretty full plate, but I have felt quite a bit of pressure to do it anyway. So here I am, pressuring you to join in too.

“But Stacy,” you repeat, desperately grasping for excuses, “I don’t know what to write about.”

Seek and ye shall find, child.

I have the tendency to think of ideas or have crazy dreams and never actually produce anything related to them, so why not share them with you? Below are some different writing prompts to help you get started on pumping out those words like an absolute boss!

Here is the link to the Camp NaNo website: https://campnanowrimo.org

Keep an open mind when looking at prompts online. Don’t assume the dialogue or scene falls into a specific genre.  Be creative in using what you find instead of conforming to a pattern.

One

Dialogue Prompt

"In my line of work, one should expect to see a good deal of blood."

"And what line of work is that, exactly?"

"I am a secretary."

Ni

Synopsis Prompt

A man has become a squatter in the crawlspace of a house. Describe what the residents go through on a day to day basis until they discover him. Sounds through the house, a faint whispering, etc.

Sahm

Scene Prompt

Detectives and a medical examiner arrive at an apartment a few hours after a woman has been murdered. When the doctor begins to examine the body, however, the woman opens her eyes.

Quatro

Character Prompt

A former Soviet spy has settled in a rural American town, but even as an octogenarian, he suffers from constant paranoia that the friendly townsfolk are actually plotting to kill him for his treachery decades ago.

Cinq

Synopsis Prompt

You are the lead for a team of scientists waking up on their last morning on a space station. Everyone is excited to go home after being there for over a year. Before you can get on the shuttle, everyone must have a final medical exam to ensure they are healthy enough for the trip home. During the morning of packing, a scream is heard and the doctor is found dead, surrounded by a number of vials filled with blood samples. One of the samples is clearly tainted, meaning one of your team is carrying a dangerous disease, but there is no label. No one can go home until you determine who is infected. Everyone is desperate to leave, but no one is willing to give another sample. Your wing of the station is placed under lockdown until the host is found: violence ensues..

Sei

Synopsis Prompt

In an apocalyptic world, an insane billionaire runs the city. Your character has committed a crime by his standards and has been sentenced to death, but they wake up the morning after their execution. So they are executed again and the process repeats. Death and awakening over and over. It becomes a sport for the man to have them killed, but during the day the character forms strange relationships with the others in his estate.

I actually started one based on number 3, but kept re-writing it over and over and never finished it. So go nuts!

I know it’s tough to get motivated when the weather is (occasionally) nice or you come home from a long day at the office and just need a break. I feel you, I really do. It’s the end of tax season and I work at an accounting office and on top of all the last minute tax returns, we also have financial statements and other documents out the wazoo! When I get home, I want to shovel in some dinner, drink an iced coffee and then enjoy a cup of tea while mass murdering orcs.

And I can still do that too. Just not as much as I would like. The orc kill count is going to be lower than my word count this month, but I will have a greater sense of accomplishment for sure!