Ever wonder how a writer creates their character's personalities? Lifestyles? I know that I sometimes wonder that. Today, I thought I would share how I create my characters.
Usually, they are already formed when I think of the idea. I know exactly how they will behave. Other times, I must give them personalities. There are three ways that these characters are formed.
Family, friends, and myself. Those who know me personally and have read Sweetness say that they can see a lot of me in Emily. Why? Because I gave Emily a lot of similar traits, as you may have noticed in the comparisons I did. Drake has a lot of characteristics as my nephews, one in particular. Jake was formed partially from the traits I liked in previous love interests. Therefore, a certain part of all my characters derive from those I know.*
Imagination. Isn't this where it really boils down to? Actually, I believe fantasy is a better word. As you may know, most of my books come from where I daydream to fall asleep. I create different lives that, even with the bad, I could see myself living. It's like imaginary friends that exist in a world in my head. You may as well say that I write to place myself in different situations to see how it turns out and the different choices one could make. However, once I get started, the characters sometimes go in a completely different direction than I originally planned.
Magic. As I've said, sometimes the personalities are just there. I can't change too many traits that a character has because, in my head, they are already who they are meant to be and if I change that, then everything else could be altered in their story.
*Note: That is not always the case. Sometimes, my characters form completely on their own based on their life experiences.
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