Creating Characters That Leap Off The Page: What Are The 15 VITAL Steps?

Creating Characters: A Daunting Process

When writing a screenplay, the process of creating characters can be so arduous yet so enlightening, so varied yet at the same time so individually unique, that simply trying to define how to do it is like trying to catch smoke.

How do you craft multi-dimensional characters that will wow industry executives? How do you make an audience invest in your characters and their journeys? Can you move past writing lifeless caricatures and cardboard cut-outs to writing characters so well-developed that they seem to spring to life off the page?

Whether you’re a novice screenwriter taking your first steps towards that ever-elusive first draft or a seasoned pro, developing your fifth feature, there is always one immutable fact: Characters are the driving force of your story. If your characters are not compelling then your screenplay is going nowhere.

Therefore, before you first put pen to paper (or more likely finger to keyboard), it may benefit you to learn these 15 essential steps for creating characters.