This month, we’ve been gearing up to fast draft a novel in November by participating in Preptober. If you’re looking for a little inspiration, start here. This week, we’ll be digging into the How-tos of Preptober for you Plotters out there—so hopefully, you won’t get buried in those Post-Its! Strong character development is essential for planning a page-turning novel. But do you really need a 10-page profile to figure it out?

Here are 5 Character Development strategies for Preptober Plotters:

1. Start with a flaw

We’ve all heard the saying, “Nobody’s perfect”. Why not keep your characters relatable by making them realistic? Settle on a habit or mindset that’s holding your MC back from achieving their dreams and you’ll have a story on your hands. Perhaps what seems like an innocent quirk is more of a habitual tick. Maybe there’s a significant reason they hold back when interacting with others. Whatever the issue, ensure it’s something you’d like to explore, and you’re guaranteed to enjoy writing about it.

2. Find your theme

Now that you’ve got your flaw, it’s time to dig a little deeper. Where did this flaw come from? A bad experience at school? A tragic childhood incident? And there’s always the classic: parents. Explore what happened in your character’s past and how it’s affecting their mindset and interactions today. Settling on these details will help you discover your character’s goal and motivations—the reason for everything they say and do.

3. Give them an identity

If you haven’t already, it’s time to develop a basic bio. As we mentioned last week, don’t spend too much time on this. Set a timer and fill out a 1-2 page profile. We’ve got development worksheets here. Give your character a name, a birthplace, age. I enjoy searching for pictures of celebrities or models to establish physical features. But again—don’t let this be a time suck! Pick a handful of dynamic details and remember, you can always revise later.

4. Build their community

Working on your theme will give you a head start on this. Knowing what your character has been through, how they grew up, and the type of people who raised them will make it that much easier to establish their environment. Take a little time to brainstorm where they were raised, where they live today, and the types of people they keep in their circle. Nailing down these little details will make your world building that much easier.

5. Have a chat

If you haven’t started already while developing your character’s background, start freewriting about your character’s life—try to do this in 20 minutes or less. Write in your character’s POV to get to know their voice and personality better. By the time you start your story, you should know them almost as well as you know yourself. And don’t worry. Anything you don’t know, they’ll tell you as you draft.

Conclusion

Establishing strong, dynamic details for your character will drive everything they say and do, while also focusing your plot.  While there’s nothing wrong with enjoying the planning process, you don’t want to get lost in every aspect. Set timers and commit to not over fixating as you plan, and you’ll have more creative energy for that riveting plot!  Looking for a few good tips on that? Join us next time as we discuss how to plot in Preptober.