LittlecoffeeWriter delights

Character Ideas:

Character creation masterpost

Character Alignment Chart

More character alignment descriptions

Muslim Character questions

Characters with magical powers

Building a new character advice

How to create a character for an online or tabletop RPG (also a good guide on creating characters in general)

Royalty/nobility TV Tropes page

Basic character profile

OC masterpost

Random character generators - (1), (2), (3), (4)

D&D Character Building Tool

Character Design Ideas:

How clothing affects a character’s personality

Character Design Inspiration blog

Concept art, fan art, cool art to be inspired by

Character design references and inspiration

Sources for POC character design ideas and models

Create your own character model using HeroForge

For horned characters

Body and hair types guide

Random outfit generator

Naming Help:

Amazing site with an endless amount of naming resources

General advice on avoiding naming appropriation

Hispanic Surnames

Gothic Victorian names

Huge master list for character things in general

Masterlist of names of all types - including but not limited to ancient/old world names, Celtic, African, Northern European, Southern and Central American Native names, Japanese, Chinese, Mongolian, Polynesian, and more

Another name masterlist

How to pick a character name guide

Yet another names masterlist

Creating Background/backstory:

Character Sheet/Development Sheet

Another character development list

In-depth character personality, motivations and traits sheet

320 talents and passions for characters

On writing likes and dislikes that aren’t frivolous

Why you should write non-human characters non-conforming to the gender binary

Stereotypes, tropes, and archetypes

Random backstory generator

Assassin and thief character tropes to avoid

Character Interactions and putting your character into your world/story:

Comparing character height/height references

Characters who are scientists and writing about them doing science

Describing what different voices sound like

Describing skin tones

Writing friendship interactions that are platonic

Why having one character knock their friend unconscious to prevent them from doing something is a bad idea

Advice on shipping OCs with canon characters and what to avoid doing

Sweet Polly Oliver and Sweet on Polly Oliver situations (think of Disney’s Mulan for an example)

How to write multiple viewpoints/juggling a main cast of more than 4 to 6 characters

How to make readers care about your morally gray hero/anti-hero

On platonic OC and canon character relationships

How to avoid Godmodding in RPs

When it’s cheap to kill off a character

Writing dialogue

Things you shouldn’t do to canon characters

Avoiding purple prose in writing and RPs

Slang resources

Dialogue tips

Websites to chart your story/plot/character relationships

1. Stasis

This is the status quo, what life is like for your character before the story really begins. This could last several chapters, or be implied rather than shown if your story begins in media res. Example: Harry Potter’s life with the Dursleys. 

2. Trigger

Synonymous with the inciting incident, this is something that happens to the character that kick starts their journey. The trigger could be bad or good, which could affect the nature of the Quest. Example: Percy Jackson is attacked by a monster on a school field trip, and he finds out that he’s a demi-god. 

3. Quest

The protagonist has a quest, and sets out on it. This takes up the middle portion of the story. I think the best example is any of the Percy Jackson books, in which Percy Jackson literally goes on a “Quest” starting about 25% into the book. 

4. Surprise

This could be interpreted two ways, either as multiple events that happen throughout the course of middle section, or one event that changes the hero’s quest, or both. In the first interpretation, this would be either good or bad turns of fortune, conflicts, obstacles, and revelations that move the middle portion along. In the second interpretation, this could be something big that clarifies the true nature of the conflict, or lifts a veil for the protagonist, which would likely happen about halfway or two thirds into the novel. You can, of course, have both. 

5. Critical Choice

The protagonist’s true character is revealed when they are given a choice. This a monumental moment in a character arc. Their decision reflects the growth that they have made along the journey; they wouldn’t have made the same decision during the stasis. This is often between a good but hard choice, and a bad but easy choice. For instance, the choice between betraying a friend to be one of the cool kids, and the choice to stand up for a friend against terrifying bullies. 

6. Climax

The result of the critical choice, and the highest point of tension in the story. Think, Harry Potter facing Voldemort for the final time at the end of the Deathly Hallows. Who will win? Who will lose? 

7. Reversal

Things begin to change in the protagonist’s favour and they defeat the final obstacle. Example: Cinderella putting on the glass slipper and proving that she was the girl at the ball. A new status is achieved.

8. Resolution

The ending of the story, in which a new stasis is achieved. This could be several chapters or a few pages in the case of a cliff hanger. Loose plot threads are tied up, and a readers are given a sense of closure. 

How to use the 8 Point Story Arc

This story structure has its pros and cons. One pro is that you have a lot of wiggle room with these story beats, and it is a time honoured story structure. The issue, on the other hand, is that they’re also quite vague, which you may not want. Everyone interprets these points differently. 

In many ways this story structure works best for short stories, because short stories don’t have a long middle, and the two beats ‘Quest’ and ‘Surprise,’ may be all that you need. But in a novel, ‘Quest’ and ‘Surprise’ may seem rather insubstantial for the middle portion of the novel, which most people struggle the most with anyway. 

You can also use this structure on multiple levels, using it to plan your entire book, but also using it to plan chapters and scenes within your book. 

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Appearance: 

Boy, girl, or undefined?

Freckles?

Any birthmarks or scars?

Eyes?

Hair color? 

Hair style? 

How tall are they?

What shade of skin do they have?

Any piercings? 

Tattoos?

Are they missing any body parts? 

How big is their nose?

Strong jawline?

Feminine looking or masculine looking?

What clothes do they wear? 

Big or small feet?

Weight?

Big or small lips?

Any missing teeth?

Good smile?

Any moles? 

What are their favorite shoes?

How big are their hands?

Soft or rough skin?

Muscles? 

Personality:

Are they sarcastic? 

What about innocent?

Badass?

Are they insecure? If so, about what?

What are their flaws?

Do they have a sense of humor?

Are they sexual?

Romantic?

What is their sexuality?

Have they ever had their heart broken?

Ever been in a relationship?

Smart or dumb or in between?

Do they know how to shoot a gun?

Use a sword?

Have they been trained in fighting?

Do they put up with bullshit? 

Do they let people walk over them?

Are they angry?

Any mental disorders? 

Any emotional disorders?

Have they ever been abused?

Rich or poor?

Are they selfish or selfless?

Is their someone they love?

Do they like animals?

Have they ever killed someone?

Family and Relationships: 

Do they get along with parents?

Any siblings, if so, do they like them?

Did Mom treat them right?

Did Dad treat them right?

Did siblings treat them right?

Did ANYONE in their family treat them right?

Any friends, how many?

Have they ever had a best friend?

Single or already in a relationship?

Is their anyone who hates them?

Is everyone in their family alive?

All of their friends alive?

Has anyone ever left them behind?

Do they hate anyone?

Do they get along with everyone?

Are they liked by all?

Does anyone love them?