Writing.Com General Discussion

While I think it's important to know who your characters are, answering long lists of questions about what they like and where they've been and what they think about this and that can give you a clear idea about who they are, but they can sit in a chair all day long and be who they are. Far more important is to know what will put them in motion, that will cause them to seek some change in their conditions.

"What do they want? What do they want to avoid?" Once I know that, I can start to get a picture of the type of person who might have those priorities. But the need to get off their butt and do something is essential to both character and plot. They're inseparable.