Julie Israel

What makes us care about a story? As readers, suspense and plot and can keep us turning pages, but they end when the book does. Likewise powerful prose or keen observations strike us in the moment, but can leave fleeting impressions. So what is it that really gives a novel substance? That strikes some chord in us and keeps resonating even between chapters, or long after their close?

While you consider your own answer, allow me to suggest:

Characters: their purpose, and why strong ones matter

Characters are our way into a story. They are the difference between “Hurricane Flattens Town” and “Widowed Rescuer Adopts School Collapse Survivors” or “Sisters, 11 and 15, Lead Rebuild Of Elderly Neighbor’s Home.” They take an experience that is broad and generic and they funnel it down to the individual, resulting in something small and specific — and much more intimate.

It is the intimacy of that focus, a following of a character, that allows us to relate to and root for them. They are our human connection, and those with depth will make us the most invested not only when we read, but when we finish a book.

Contrarily, those who aren’t deep enough won’t compel us to care nearly as much, and leave little to remember them by. So how, as writers, can we avoid writing characters that feel flat, and be sure to give them greater dimension?

I got you, boo.

Character Pitfall #1: The Catchphrase

I cannot tell you the number of books I’ve read where a protagonist’s, or someone in their periphery’s, personality extends no further than calling everyone babe or repeatedly using the same ~quirky~ swear words. Literally, I can’t tell you, because I don’t remember most of them.

This is not to say that a character can’t use a catchphrase. But a catchphrase should be an extension of something, not the only outfit they ever wear.

Instead: Develop voice.

Voice is not just what is said, but how it’s said — or better, the way one typically says things. Swanning in sassy flourish? Dripping with sarcasm? Spaced out, or awash in wonder? Slant and sly, with hands in one’s pockets? Vocabulary, tone, influences, worldview, and sentence structure can all come into play here. Done well, a character’s voice suggests, and may reveal much more about them than is on the page.

Examples of great voice:

1. Oskar Schell in Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close. Please, please pick up a copy and read even the first passage, and prepare to be amazed. Within a few sentences, you’ll have a clear picture of something like a small boy with a bow tie and glasses and his head in the clouds, musing and quietly desperate and too inquisitive for his own good. Author Jonathan Safran Foer pulls this off entirely in voice, using runaway sentences that feel like a child’s wandering mind — and though littered with 5-pt words like “entomology” and “raisons d’être” and cultured namedrops, there’s also fart humor and repeated use of the eponymous qualifiers “incredibly” and “extremely,” conversational habits of a gradeschooler. Oskar uses catchphrases throughout the book (“What the!” “heavy boots” etc.), but they are earned, clearly punctuation on a vivid personality.

2. Spud in Trainspotting. But what about when the character in question is not the narrator — or is one of multiple POVs in a book? It’s been years, but to this day I remember how impressively easy it became to tell the four protagonists of Trainspotting apart, because they all had such distinct voices. Spud, acknowledged as the most laid-back of them, had less of a catchphrase than conversational mannerisms that made him particularly easy to spot: rambling and easygoing placeholders like “likes” and “man,” and referring to other people as “cats.”

3. Ella Malikova (Illuminae), Cheryl Blossom (the show Riverdale), and Holden Caulfield (Catcher in the Rye). More ways to carve out a voice: Have it embody a character’s vibe or opinions, or let them choose uncommon language conversationally. At least once Ella ribs her cousin as “cuz mine”; Cheryl somehow has a penchant for both extremely new and random old English, (“#cherylbombshell” vs “pray, …” and “wherefore”), or even inventing words in that vein (“whyfore?”); Holden meanwhile has been described as “angst personified” and you can see it in his iconic cry of “phonies” — and his Goodreads quote page.

Character Pitfall #2: The Paper Quirk

Listen…I can’t think of a better example of this than a casual roast I once read on Twitter, calling out characters in foreign-language shows whose entire personality appeared to be using random phrases in English. (I thought of one on the spot.) Again — by all means give your characters quirks! But beware the cardboard or grab bag quality of giving them only quirks, or quirks that may come off gratuitous, quirks for the sake of quirks. Readers will pick up on it (I share this having loved every John Green book I’ve read, including the quirk factor — and due to his good-natured reply).

Alternatively: Consider using quirks as a window, or breadcrumbs to something deeper.

That character who loves dropping random English — do they dream of life abroad someday? Was their mother an English teacher, or is their hero a Hollywood movie star, and they hope to be just like them? Do they only switch to English to drop a flirty line to their crush? Motivation! Backstory! A secret? I’ll say it again: A quirk can just be a quirk and we can still love it. But it takes on more dimension if we paint it so.

Examples of quirks & good development:

Kaz Brekker of Six of Crows always wears gloves…because he can’t stand skin to skin contact after a palpably upsetting backstory. Dawes in Ninth House and Hell Bent frequently ducks her chin into her turtleneck, trying to disappear…because she’s non-confrontational (and this repeatedly demonstrates it, and sets her character up for growth). Romy Grey (All The Rage) is perpetually in red lipstick, because makeup is armor. Young inventor Violet Baudelaire (A Series of Unfortunate Events) puts her hair up…specifically when she needs to think.

Collections, habits, observable traits…these things don’t have to, but can certainly serve the story and character arcs in addition to fleshing players out. In my experience, quirks that reflect their past or way of thinking, or embody the personality they belong to are especially good at bringing characters off the page, and sticking in the reader’s memory.

Character Pitfall #3: Tropes / Stock Characters / Stereotypes / Clichés

We know them well: The Mean Girl. The Himbo. The Hacker. The Crotchety Old Man, the Fight-starter, the Misfit, the Cynic, the Flirts-with-anything-with-a-heartbeat. Consume any media, and you may just find personalities who reduce down to types, and sometimes clichés, we recognize. And — as long as they aren’t harmful — that’s not a bad thing, per se; tropes often serve the story.

But it’s good to remember that people are more complex than any one impression of them. So characters who are also more complex than a cookie-cutter trait, demeanor, etc. will not only be more more human and interesting, but feel more authentic, relatable, and memorable.

Instead: Subvert expectations, and allow for growth.

So how, when building out a character, do we take their personas beyond face value? One way to break the mold is to do just that: set up an expectation, and then pivot. Mitch Turner in V.E. Schwab’s Vicious is a hulking muscle man…so he’s used to people assuming he’s all brawn and no brains. Which is the perfect cover for the shrewdness, IT and hacking skills he actually brings to the table. Also, he has a fondness for chocolate milk, which is the softest, most winning detail to bring readers past the image of a hardened bodyguard.

Another way to improve them is to give stock characters their own arc, or show growth/change. The optimist learns not to trust so blindly. The bully sees the harm they’ve done and apologizes. The quiet girl finally erupts, calling others on their BS. With just a little more effort, characters that feel familiar can make us care and win our hearts.

And as always…

This post brought to you by thoughts gathered over breakfast, making it a starter list with room to grow. Are there any character pitfalls you would add — or ways to improve on those here?