Models of Characterization

[JBPuffin]

This thread's title is rather vague, but I think it's the best term for what I'm looking for. I'm writing a story, and I'm trying to figure out how I want to distinguish my characters. I'm no J.R.R. Tolkien or whoever you hold on a pedestal as an author, so I don't expect to be able to do particularly well at distinguishing some of them, but it has got me thinking about how authors screenwriters and other individuals responsible for creating characters go about displaying their individual differences. I don't want to load down every character with 15 different ticks or quirks, but I do want to ensure that each character is recognizable. Of course, given the nature of the work itself, that might end up being the road I go down…

So, I'm coming to the playground for some answers. What are some good examples of authors and similar people creating clear differences between characters who, in abother work, might be hard to tell apart? Are there specific traditions of characterization, much like there are different traditions of writing? Are there any books or anything about this that I could read? Thanks, y'all.

Edit: I should note that this includes character growth, or at least it does in my head. Showing a character growing and changing, or how they have changed, is basically showing how one character distinguishes for another, with the caveat that the two characters in question are essentially the same except for their chronological positioning.

[Cozzer]

If it's a book, you have two weapons: dialogue, and description.

With dialogue, it's easy to go overboard: you want your smart character to speak a bit more eruditely than the others, without becoming a Varsuuvius (unless, like in OOTS' case, you're writing an humorous story).

With description, it helps to decide on a few superficial qualities you want a character to have, and subtly bring them up when you describe actions these characters are performing. Let's say you want a character to appear big, quiet and wise. He might look "thoughtfully" at the scenery, while "lumbering" towards the door. If a character is nervous and easy to anger, you might describe him pacing around the room while the others are quietly waiting for their contact to arrive.

In both cases, the hard thing is to find the balance between "is this guy supposed to be nimble? when did that ever come up?" and "yes, we get it, this guy is nimble, sheesh!". That only comes from practice, experience and lots of rewrites.

[Brother Oni]

One technique I heard for helping to establish a character's personality and 'voice' in your own mind is to re-write a famous speech in the tone and manner of the character.

The example used in the article was the Gettysburg Address as it's fairly well known, long enough and complex enough to get a real feel for a character, but short enough to read quickly (the original text is 271 words).

In the case of demonstrating character growth, it's even better for differentiation; an idealist might have a view fairly similar to Abraham Lincolns, while a pessimist might have a view of 'a bunch of guys died for nothing and a bunch more will die the next time this crap happens again'.

[JBPuffin]

If it's a book, you have two weapons: dialogue, and description.

With dialogue, it's easy to go overboard: you want your smart character to speak a bit more eruditely than the others, without becoming a Varsuuvius (unless, like in OOTS' case, you're writing an humorous story).

With description, it helps to decide on a few superficial qualities you want a character to have, and subtly bring them up when you describe actions these characters are performing. Let's say you want a character to appear big, quiet and wise. He might look "thoughtfully" at the scenery, while "lumbering" towards the door. If a character is nervous and easy to anger, you might describe him pacing around the room while the others are quietly waiting for their contact to arrive.

In both cases, the hard thing is to find the balance between "is this guy supposed to be nimble? when did that ever come up?" and "yes, we get it, this guy is nimble, sheesh!". That only comes from practice, experience and lots of rewrites.

I definitely have this going on - in this case, the "smart" one's vocabulary is erudite to the point of unintelligible at times, which fits the character (and will be a clear avenue for growth as things progress...), and while I will have to measure balance more intentionally, I've got these in my toolkit. Thanks for reminding me, Cozzer. *thumbs up*


One technique I heard for helping to establish a character's personality and 'voice' in your own mind is to re-write a famous speech in the tone and manner of the character.

The example used in the article was the Gettysburg Address as it's fairly well known, long enough and complex enough to get a real feel for a character, but short enough to read quickly (the original text is 271 words).

In the case of demonstrating character growth, it's even better for differentiation; an idealist might have a view fairly similar to Abraham Lincolns, while a pessimist might have a view of 'a bunch of guys died for nothing and a bunch more will die the next time this crap happens again'.

On the other hand, I hadn't even considered this. The original draft kind of did this with song lyrics, sometimes, but not terribly intentionally. I'll think about this, see what happens...