Hi! So I have trouble coming up with ideas for how to flesh out my characters and the plot. My characters are very 2D and I never know what should happen next. Do you have any advice for how to get the creative juices flowing?
Fleshing Out Flat Characters
If you haven’t already, take a spin through my character section. The best way to flesh out your character is to figure out the following:
their three best personality traits
their best talents/skills
what others think of them
what they think of themselves
the internal flaw that holds them back and must change
how this flaw affects their daily life
what caused this flaw to exist
the big life lesson they must learn before they can change
what their life has been like so far
who their family and friends are
what their normal/daily life is like when the story starts
Once I have all of this figured out, I love to cast my characters. I have two rules for casting: 1) All of the above has to be figured out first, as well as appearance (preferably), 2) Try to avoid using actors/models you’re really familiar with. Faceclaim lists/sites are helpful.
Casting is a great way to round out your characters in your mind, because just as with reading a book when you’ve already seen the movie, your brain tends to create an amalgam of the movie actor and what you personally imagine as you read. The same happens here. Your brain has probably already created an image of this character, so the actor/model will meld with that to create a really solid version in your head. It will be much easier to imagine them talking, moving, and reacting.