Character Corner - Creating a Protagonist

There is a rule of thumb in writing, main characters have to be well written. They must be developed, relatable, and believable. So, how do you create a figure, in this way? 

Well, I have a little cheat for this. Is it useful? Yes. Clever? Yes. Memorable? Yes. Simple? Well.... that depends on your idea of simple. It doesn't make creating the character easier to create a character, to begin with, but it does make it easier to keep them organized, and well written. 

I think.

This cheat is an acronym. A.P.P.P.P.B. What in the world does that mean? Appearance, personality, perception, prevalence, popularity, background. Let's break it down further. The appearance is how to character looks. Are they short, tall? What color is their hair, how long is it? What race are they? Do they have any birthmarks? What is their fashion sense? What are their facial features? Scars? Eye color? It's just how the character looks guys.

Personality is how the character acts. Is this person kind, are they selfish, are they brave, loyal? Are they innovative, witty, smart, mischievous? Funny, social, secluded, are they quirky? What are they like? Who are they? 

Perception, how they view the world. Does this character see people as in need of redemption, as evil, how do they regard the world, how do they comprehend people? What do they think of humanity? 

Perception and personality are two of the most defining features of a character. This can make or break the story. You need to make this make sense, this creates the character. Do it right. 

Prevalence is just their place in the world. Background character, a secondary character, the main character, the protagonist, an antagonist, the main character's best friend, their sibling, mentor, who are they in the story? What do they do? 

The prevalence of a character is what they are, and which characters they relate to. It's just their position in the narrative arc and is used to weed the diamonds from the dirt. That basically means it's used to figure out what characters are worth keeping, who can be scrapped and should be put in the background, I mean, that is if you have a story that requires background characters. 

Popularity is just who likes the character and who doesn't. The character's allies, enemies, their friends, and foes. This ties into the prevalence and can link to appearance if you some shallow characters who judge solely on looks. If you need advice on those people, take your best pictures with people, and show them to a teenage girl. Yeah... 

And finally, BACKGROUND!! Yay. 

This is my FAVORITE part of creating a character. This is when you really combine everything else. This is where you create the real heart of the character. Write the history, the family, the everything they are. This is, without a doubt, most fun part of making a fictional figure. 

And that is how you create a character, the Viper way. Have a fantastic morning, afternoon, night, evening, WHATEVER TIME OF DAY IT IS WHERE YOU ARE! And, goodbye!