Character Creation Basics 5: Your Intent

These are all part of a coherent whole and do not have to be created or decided upon in order. I often don't do any of these in the order listed:
1. Name/pronouns/nicknames
2. Physical attributes
3. Mental/Personality attributes
4. Background
5. Your Intent
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This is the step that will save you the most heartbreak. When thinking about a character, figure out what purpose they serve for your narrative. Obviously there are main characters, antagonists, etc. but determining their purpose gives you a better idea of how long to spend on them.
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Obviously, if you get fulfillment out of coming up with a family tree going back 4 generations for a character that says something in passing to the main character, do that! But I think we've all been mystified by the J.R.R. Tolkiens and the George R.R. Martins into thinking we have to put that level of detail and forethought into our characters and worlds. .
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For me, realizing my intent for the characters is what got me to get over the writer's block and just write. If my readers and I only have a limited amount of time, I'm not going to waste it pouring detail and background into them. They may not even get a physical description. .
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As with any advice, take this with a grain of salt. You can practice all 5 of these steps on a character/characters you don't even plan on using. But this last one can help determine if you use them after all. .
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Thank you so much for taking the time to follow along with these posts. Comment and let me know if you found them helpful or if there's another subject you'd like me to tackle!