8 Tips for RPG Character Creation (or just writing in general)
1. Have a goal
While
it may sound like I’m stating the obvious here, your character needs to
have something they want to accomplish. Maybe they want to be the best
at something, see a place, fall in love, conquer the world, or something
else. Whatever it is, they need to have something that they desire
beyond all other things. Ideally, give them more than one goal. Make
them have to sacrifice one to achieve the other, to add extra drama.
2. Have a reputation
Maybe
they’re the best artist in their class or they’re great at juggling.
Perhaps they slipped on the stairs in front of their whole village.
Either way, give something for the locals to remember about them. That
way it can give you a starting point for the interactions with other
characters.
3. Have a friend
Whether
a friend, a coworker, a sibling, an army buddy, or someone they saved,
have someone close to your character whom they’re close to and wish
well. Yeah, angsty “I have no friends” characters can be fun, but in
small doses; eventually the reader gets fed up with them. At the very
least the character needs someone to talk to or bounce ideas off of.
4. Have a home It
may be a neighborhood they grew up in, their parents’ house, or a room
they’ve been renting in a tavern. Hell, it could even be a person if you
so choose. Everyone needs to feel secure at one time or another.
5. Have a signature item Now,
recognize that this may not work for EVERY character, but it’s up to
you to decide what will fit and what won’t. In many cases, it can work. A
signature item is something that is recognizably YOUR CHARACTER’S, be
it a weapon, a scarf, a toy, or a piece of jewelry. It’s something that
makes them feel like them self.
6. Have a problem This
should be something other than the problem addressed in the main plot
line. Maybe a member of their family is sick, they are broke, or they’re
failing their classes. This helps make your character seem more
realistic because NO ONE has one problem at a time.
7. Have a secret This
can affect the plot or not; either way, it helps make your character
more well rounded. Maybe your character can’t read, left their crew mates
to die when a kracken attacked their ship, or made their long lost
sister run away. If you choose to have it affect the plot in any way,
this secret should embarrass your character, make it so that other
characters don’t trust your character, or somehow endanger them and the
people they’re close to if found out.
8. Have a reason to be brave and to fight
Maybe
it’s because your character wants to be like their hero, maybe it’s so
they can repay a debt (like if someone saved their life previously),
maybe it’s for their child, but your character needs to have a reason to
occasionally face their fears
