Character Development Worksheet

Character development worksheet

Name

Physicality

Age

Appearance

What’s their gender, nationality, ethnicity, skin colour, eye colour, hair colour and hairstyle? What’s their posture like? How do they move?

Physical flaws

Everyone has some health problems, what are theirs? What are the parts of their body that they like and dislike?

Dress

What clothing and jewellery do they wear?

Speech

What are their favourite turns of phrase? What does their voice sound like?

Mannerisms

What physical ticks do they have?

Brain

How smart is your character? Do they have any mental illness or neurological disorders?

Personality

Character flaws / weaknesses

What does your character dislike about themselves? What would the character’s employer, family members or friends dislike about them?

Best quality

What do other people love about them? What do they love about themselves? What quality is going to help them overcome their obstacles?

Spiritual and political beliefs

Occupation and hobbies

Income

What’s their socio economic status, and what’s their attitude towards money?

Internal dialogue

Is your character’s self-talk positive or negative? Do they reveal their inner voice through their dialogue, or are what they think and what they say quite different things?

Personality traits

What personality traits does your character have? What qualities do they most admire and despise in others?

Emotion

How does your character deal with their emotions?

Habits

Does your character drink, smoke or take drugs? What’s their favourite food and drink?

Secrets

What secrets does your character have? Who are they hiding them from, and why?

Interpersonal relationships

How does your character treat other people?

Past

Family

What kind of family did your character grow up with?

Where did they grow up?

Education

Present

What is their goal in the context of your narrative?

What does your character want to achieve? What will they sacrifice for their goal?

What do they need?

What do they need that they may not be aware of? What’s driving them?

Obstacles

What’s standing in your character’s way?

Home

What suburb does your character live in? What kind of home do they have, and how is it furnished?

Relationships
Does your character have a partner, kids, or a group of friends? What are these key players like, and how does your character relate to them?
Perception
How do they see themselves, how do they believe they are perceived by others, and how are they actually perceived?