How to create compelling fleshed out characters, Part 3 · 9:07am Feb 11th, 2014

Back on Track (Yet Again)

Let's take a look at some of the key points I've mentioned already:

[1] All of your characters are really you.
All this really means is that, when making up a character (or an entire story), you should start with something you feel passionate about: something you believe, something you agree with or disagree with, something you feel very conflicted about or unsure of, or something you've experienced firsthand. It doesn't have to be the biggest thing in the world... if you really like breakfast cereal, maybe that's enough. As long as it's something you can connect with.

[2] Some of your characters are also the reader.
On the one side, I want to write a story that I would like to read. On the other side, I have to make sure other people can enjoy it. The key here is to make all your characters sympathetic to the reader in some way. If the reader cares about your characters, they'll care about your story. Avoid extremes. Avoid getting preachy. Avoid pandering to the audience as well as yourself. At best, the reader should be able to imagine themselves as the character.

(I know these two things are in direct contradiction to each other, but that's the way it goes: As a writer, you should love the act of writing but distance yourself from the thing you wrote. Be prepared to kill your darlings.)

[3] The little stuff is important as dressing and spice, but it's not a foundation.
"Fleshing out" a character is more than just giving them a longer backstory and describing more of the stuff they have in their house. If you start with a good foundation, the little stuff will come to you effortlessly and naturally.

[4] Characters aren't interesting by themselves. It's the connections that matter most.
You think you want advice on how to flesh out characters, but I don't think that's entirely correct... what you really need is to flesh out the connections between your characters. Strong and interesting relationships will improve not only the characters themselves, but the story as well.

[5] When developing characters, make them be/do whatever the story requires them to be/do.
Never forget that characters serve a purpose.

What purpose is that? I'm glad you asked.
So as far as I can tell, characters serve one of three purposes:

Hello, I'm a focal character! The things I do matter to the reader, and they have an emotional rapport with me that causes them to feel invested in the story. My job is to convince the reader to willingly suspend their sense of disbelief long enough that they can sit back and enjoy the story, despite all the flaws and mistakes it contains (and believe me there's always some, no matter how good the author is). When the reader thinks about me, they should be able to imagine me as a real person.

Hello, I'm a catalyst character! The things I do (and the things that happen to me) have an impact of some sort on some other character, a relationship between two characters, or the plot itself. The type of change I provoke depends on my personality, my motives, and my methods. Whether I'm successful or not--and in what ways--depends on the type of story the author wants to tell. When the reader thinks about me, they should be able to clearly remember the effect I had on the story and its focal characters.

Hello, I'm useless window-dressing! I move the plot forward or provide pretty-looking special effects, but have no meaningful or interesting relationship with any other focal characters. I undergo no growth or evolution, my relationships do not change over time, and the reader learns nothing new or interesting about me that changes how my character is perceived. I might be very likeable and well fleshed out, and I might have great potential to serve as an interesting character sometime in the future, but my purpose in this particular story is purely mechanical. At worst, I'm just a background character: little more than a prop with dialogue. When the reader thinks about me, they should be able to clearly remember how pretty my wings and mane are. The rest of my characteristics are transparent, but that's as it should be. I don't want to steal the spotlight from the focal characters. My appearances in the show should be a garnish and nothing more.

Remember to make characters sympathetic

So now you know what a character's purpose is. But how do you make characters good? That's a very complicated question with many, many answers... but if I had to pick just one, I'd say sympathy. If the reader doesn't care about a character, they won't care about the story.

I mean, seriously... who would you put your money on?

Take a look at all the major villains that have appeared throughout the series and you'll see a recurring pattern throughout them all.

Obviously, some of you will have different opinions than mine... but as far as I'm concerned, this is a solid indicator of which villains are the most engaging. Let me try and break down my reasoning here:

I believe I was punished unfairly for the crime of being different, and am passionate about seeking revenge on those who wronged me. I only want to be loved and appreciated for who I am, but the harder I cling to this hopeless dream the faster it slips away from me. I'm also redeemed by the end of the episode, allowing me to draw in the spooky goth demographic who might otherwise be turned off by all the sugary pink glitter that pervades the rest of the show. The first two episodes are basically an excuse to watch me come out of my shell and return to my loving family at last. Seriously: who hasn't felt like me at some point or another?

Prognosis: You care about me because I am a fully fleshed out character with hopes and dreams, believable motives, strong relationships to other characters, and significant character growth. Be honest... part of you wishes the show was about me.

-

I believe I was punished unfairly for the crime of being different, but I'm not interested in revenge. I just want to make the world a better place... according to my own personal views, that is. I want people to love and appreciate me, but if not, I'll gladly settle for being paid attention to. Unfortunately, my twisted and demented nature prevents me from realizing that some people might actually appreciate what I have to offer, if only I took a less threatening approach. My problem isn't my craziness but my self-centered arrogance, and I can't imagine the possability that I might be wrong about anything. I'm kind of a huge jerk, but you can't ignore the lessons I have to offer. It took awhile for me to redeem myself, but even then I refused to change my core principles... just my approach.

Prognosis: You care about me because I represent a primordial force that runs deep within all things: everyone has a little trickster in them. You may hate me for who I am, but you cannot ignore what I am saying. You also secretly delight in my mischief. Admit it!

-

I'm just trying to survive, and I carry the weight of an entire kingdom on my shoulders. Other people see me as nothing but a grotesque and horrifying monster, and it's reached the point where I now believe it myself. I have no interest in redemption. I can become anyone at all, and yet I choose to revel in monstrosity. I tell myself that I'm ensuring the survival of my entire species but I say this only to justify my actions: All I really care about is myself. Even the subjects I claim to defend are nothing but expendable minions. There might be a peaceful way for my people to survive... but if there is, I'm beyond caring about it. My way is faster and easier, and my stubborn refusal to change for the better is a key component of my identity. After my ultimate defeat I'm never seen again, but my powers and personality are so open to interpretation that I've captured the imaginations of many fans and have become a popular subject for conjecture. Most of the best fan-made stories about me deviate drastically from my official characterization. People want to see me change, one way or another, and the show didn't provide that.

Prognosis: You care about me because of the situation I am in and the choices I have been forced to make. Unfortunately, you don't care about me as an individual: I don't have much in the way of personality or motive, and my character doesn't evolve or adapt at all. The only positive relationship I have is with my subjects, and even that connection is sparse and underdeveloped. I am a stock villain full of unrealized potential.

-

I'm just trying to survive, and I don't have the patience or vision required to make any long term plans or schemes, though I like to fool people into thinking my true motives are grandiose. I take whatever opportunities come my way and I don't think too hard about the consequences. I'm driven more by obsession than reason, and my primary motivation is my rivalry with the protagonist. As much as I like having a collection of mysterious artifacts and idols sitting on my mantlepiece, my real reward is to see my foe cast down in humiliation. I keep trying to kill her off permenantly, but it never seems to work... which is good, because without her my life would have no meaning. My nature is that of the predator pursuing its prey, spouting tired old cliches in an exotic foreign accent. Nothing more, nothing less. I exist only in relation to my foe.

Prognosis: You care about me because you want to see how the protagonist will defeat me (and have no doubt, my defeat is a forgone conclusion). I'm flat and two dimensional, so you don't have to think about whether I have redeeming features that require you to second-guess your knee-jerk reaction to me. I'm a genuine, dyed in the wool mustache-twirling looney-toons villain. You hate me, and you know you love it.

-

I'm a mindless, ravenous force of destruction whose only desire is to consume the target of my hate. I have no known reasons or motives for threatening my victims. Maybe I do have good reasons that were never explained, but that's just lazy story-writing. In fact, the only thing we know about my backstory is that two other characters defeated me in a brief flashback sequence. They weren't even main characters. I am immensely powerful and sinister, but I have no interesting relationships. We learn nothing new about me that could cast me in a different light and my character doesn't change or evolve at all. In fact, one could argue that I have no character to begin with. I have only five lines of dialogue, and my grasp of language and sentence structure is tenuous at best. For all this and more, I have no chance of redemption... not because I am evil beyond hope, but because I'm not interesting enough to bring back for another episode.

Prognosis: Wow. Just... wow. I don't even know where to start with this one. All he wants is to "conquer the world." And we live on "the world." Therefore, he affects us. You could easily replace his character with a volcano or earthquake and nobody would notice.

...Remind you of anypony?

Look at both extremes of the Villain Sympathy chart: despite being on opposite sides from each other, Nightmare Moon and King Sombra are nearly identical. Both were imprisoned long ago. Both managed to break free to threaten the world once more. Both wield immense cosmic powers. Both are shadowy and sinister. Both go up against our rag-tag team of protagonists and both are defeated by the power of friendship. And yet only one of these characters is sympathetic. Why? There's a ton of reasons, but the one that sticks out the most in my mind is this:

Remember what I said before about relationships and connections between characters? Well, Luna just happens to be both a character and a relationship. It's easy to forget that Luna and Nightmare Moon are the exact same pony. Luna has to live with the consequences of what Nightmare Moon has done. In that regard, the shadow of her past is always hovering over her. She changed so dramatically that she essentially became a different character... but her relationship to her former self isn't entirely gone. And on some level, some of what made Nightmare Moon such a cool and awesome villain survives within her today. Who wouldn't want shadowy magical powers?

Add to this her appearance in a later episode, where she forms a powerful and believable bond with Twilight Sparkle. Of course they'd be friends: they're a perfect match, with similar interests. Princess Luna is one of the most compelling and engaging side-characters I've ever seen, especially when you consider she's a cartoon character in a show aimed at tweenage girls.

On the other end of the spectrum...

I must point out that the term "sympathetic" doesn't have to mean "likeable." No. Ohh, no... no-no-no-no no.

My goodness no.

Do you know what "X-Pac heat" is?

This is Sean "X-Pac" Waltman. He was a wrestle-man. He is primarily known for being bad, and a lot of crowds boo'd him. Quite a bit, actually.

To clarify: some wrestlers are supposed to be bad guys (or "heels"). It's a part of their on-stage persona. So when they get on stage, the crowd boos because they want to see the bad guy get his comeuppance. This kind of booing is referred to as "heat". Then when the good guy wrestler (or "face") gets on stage and kicks the bad guy's butt, the crowd cheers louder than ever.

X-Pac, however, was not boo'd because of his persona. The crowd boo'd him because he was a bad performer. They didn't want to watch him get his butt kicked by the good guy. They wanted him to get off stage so that other, more entertaining wrestlers could take the spotlight. This is referred to as "X-Pac heat." And it is the wrong kind of heat.

Remind you of anypony?

She-who-must-not-be-named is the perfect example of a bad villain, and I can sum it up with just one word: Tool. She's a mechanism. An excuse. A reason to pull Twilight Sparkle into an adventure. The problem here is that there's absolutely zero subtlety about it. It doesn't mesh with... well, with anything else in the entire series. She's a whiny teenager, for god's sake. Who is she, really? Where did she come from? Does she have any redeeming qualities? Who knows? And, more importantly, who cares? Somebody tell me what Sunset Shimmer brings to the table that Diamond Tiara didn't already have to offer.

When I say you need to promote sympathy for the character, I don't mean they have to be heroic or noble or even likeable. If the reader is supposed to hate your villain, then make sure they enjoy hating your villain.

This, on the other hand, is an example of "good" heat.

God, just look at her! Don't you want to slap that smug little grin right off her face? What a cheap, empty, arrogant little...

...Sorry. Got a little carried away there. Anyways, this is a good example of a "good" villain. The kind the audience loves to boo. Of course, this is an extremely guilty pleasure... by all accounts, Trixie is a flat and uninteresting character. She doesn't change or evolve over time, she doesn't learn her lesson, we don't see her form or break any relationships with other characters, and we don't learn anything new about her over the course of the episode (even from the very start, we know she's just a bunch of empty, hollow bragging in a ten gallon wizard's hat). But it does feel unbelievably satisfying when she gets her comeuppance. The viewer has a connection with Trixie, because "we've all known someone like that."

In the end, Trixie is a flat and uninteresting character... but at least she provokes an emotional response. That's all the story requires of her. Fortunately, Twilight Sparkle takes care of our need for positive character growth: her friends (as well as the viewer) learn how powerful her magic is, and Twilight learns that her friends won't hate her because of it.

And although Trixie doesn't stand on her own, her involvement with the story earns her a great deal of sympathy and emotional investment. There are a few parts near the end of her episode where Trixie reacts like a regular person with regular concerns. We also feel sympathetic when we see how helpless she is when facing a real threat... she knows exactly how much trouble she's in. Maybe shedeserved her comeuppance, but she certainly didn't deserve to die. At the end of the episode she runs off into the horizon unrepentant, which means she's stil la jerk... but you have to have at least a little respect for someone with that much gumption.

To be continued. Again.

For now, here's all the source links for the art I ~~shamelessly ripped off~~ borrowed under totally legit fair-use laws that are totally real and not made up:

Sombra: cmaggot
Chrysalis: Nastylady
Discord: tsaoshin
Nightmare Moon: cosmicunicorn
Ahuizotal: assasinmonkey
Sunset Shimmer: vector-brony
Luna and Nightmare Moon: Cherkivi
Trixie: tadashi--kun