Character development

After my recent post of Who Are You?, I decided to take that concept a step further and do a Who Are You? Character Edition.

I found some great character development worksheets and I included links to those resources at the end of this post.

Let’s get to know some characters from Unethical and see their roles in the story. The first one is the protagonist, Sarah.

Character: Sarah (at this time still has no last name because I can’t make up my mind even after 30,000+ words)
Age: 34
Hair: Brown, shoulder length with natural curl
Eyes: Green
Height: 5’6”
Weight: 145
Body type: toned but not too thin, fit and healthy
Thing the character would most like to change about herself and why: her knees because she thinks they are knobby, always keeps them covered
Intelligences and Attitudes: She is analytical, smart, goal-oriented, introspective, optimistic to a fault, rational, kindhearted, believes herself to be honest and ethical, brave although she doesn’t know it, and introverted.
Talents: cooking, writing, shooting
Drives and Motivators in Character’s Life: Never let others hold you back. Always do the right thing. Sometimes you gotta do it on your own. People can change.
Likes: wine, books, hiking, camping, movies, food, working out (yeah, right)
Dislikes: feeling lonely, reality TV, not being needed, feeling helpless
Pet Peeves: liars and laziness
Value Character Places on Things and Why: She places little value on things even though she has a nice house, car, and clothes. It is her husband who places the value on those things.
Spirituality: She has faith though she is not actively religious
Mother: Alcoholic, divorced from Sarah’s father when Sarah was 12, they have no relationship
Father: Alcoholic, divorced from Sarah’s mother when Sarah was 12, they have no relationship
Brother: Jason, younger brother by four years, meth addict, dependent personality, in and out of jail, only calls when he wants something, will sell anyone out for meth or money
Husband: Matt, two years older than Sarah, married 10 years, met in college, computer programmer, blond hair, brown eyes, looks like a quarterback, marriage seems fine from the outside looking in
Lover: Brian, Sarah’s client, has a violent past, brown hair, dark eyes, longish hair, rugged, tattooed
Friends: She has none
General Behavior Toward Others: polite, professional
Describe How Others Perceive the Character: People generally like her although she sometimes comes across as snobbish or standoffish just because she is introverted and overly polite.
Upbringing: Alcoholic parents divorced when Sarah was 12. They were unstable and abusive. Sarah and her younger brother, Jason, went into foster care where Sarah tried to take care of both of them. She did well in school and earned her Doctorate in psychology by the age of 30. She now has her own private practice.
Residence: Very nice, two-story, brick home. Beautifully landscaped and cleaned by professionals at Matt’s insistence. He picked out most of the belongings in the house. Hardwood floors, his and her offices. Sarah likes it but would be happy somewhere else if it meant that she and Matt could be closer. Sarah’s favorite place is her reading nook in her bedroom.
Secrets the Character Keeps: She is having an affair with her client.
Additional: Sarah has good intentions. She really wants to do the right thing and be the ethical, moral person she believes herself to be. She is blind to the faults in others and herself. She never thought in a million years that she would risk her marriage or her career for a man. People get hurt by her choices.

Links to Character Development Resources:
Anne Olwin
The Writer’s Craft
Pamela Dowd

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