Posted by Natalie Whipple at 8:10 AM
Angela Perry April 8, 2010 at 9:33 AM
Thank you! I knew I couldn't be the only person in the world who thinks character sheets are the most boring thing in the world.
You've listed some good reasons to slog through them, though. I think I'll try the idea of doing them after the first draft. I've always done them first and felt they were utterly useless.
Lyn South April 8, 2010 at 9:37 AM
Great post, Natalie. Thank you. I've used some character interview sheets and had the same experience you did: haven't really met them yet, so who are these characters anyway?
Which character sheet do you use? Have you used more than one pre-developed tool or developed your own?
http://lynsouth.com
Natalie Whipple April 8, 2010 at 9:38 AM
Lyn, the link to the one I'm using is in the parenthetical 2nd paragraph:)
Yeah, that's what I get for skimming. >.<
This post is so good, I tweeted it for you. Thanks!
Sarah Laurenson April 8, 2010 at 9:47 AM
Many thanks for the review and for some very good reasons to plod through one of these. And thanks for the link, too!
This sounds like exactly what I need for this umpteenth rewrite.
Sarah Ahiers April 8, 2010 at 10:02 AM
Oooh! Nice new header!
I am not a character sheet person. Even reading your pro and con list stresses me out a bit.
Maggie Desmond-O'Brien April 8, 2010 at 10:05 AM
Interesting post! I've tried this a few times and it didn't work for me, but I do compromise with a "book bible" of sorts where I list everything possibly relevant about my world and characters to keep it consistent.
I like how you showed Pros and Cons - they were spot on! :)
Joshua Scheer April 8, 2010 at 10:13 AM
I"ve never tried a character sheet before. I've always tried to sketch them out just a little bit before I got started but not that in-depth. After I finish the rough draft of the story I'm working I'll have to fill a couple of these out to see what it's like. Thanks for the tip.
Melissa Hurst April 8, 2010 at 10:24 AM
I spent a lot of time filling out character sheets before I began my WIP. I thought they were useful when I began to write. However, now that I'm over halfway done, I've discovered that I didn't know my characters as well as I thought I did. So I really like your idea of filling them out after the first draft is complete.
Matthew MacNish April 8, 2010 at 10:27 AM
Goodness, that thing looks tedious.
Am I the only novice writer dork in this blogosphere who hears the term character sheets and thinks Dungeons and Dragons?
Does that question date me more than I should allow?
Natalie Whipple April 8, 2010 at 10:28 AM
Matthew, I think the same thing! I just like that name best. I've heard them called profiles, sheets, lists, charts, interviews, etc.
Cynthia Reese April 8, 2010 at 10:35 AM
I'm so absent-minded I have to do a BRIEF character sheet on my main characters from the get-go. Otherwise, I might give my hero blue eyes halfway through the book when he started out with God-given green eyes.
But I don't spend a whole lot of time on it. I think I got mine off the Harlequin website eons ago, and it's mainly physical description, best friends, main problem, stuff like that. The Government Paperwork Act would say that it would take less than 15 minutes to fill out. :-)
Kelly Lyman April 8, 2010 at 11:01 AM
This was great. Thanks for posting. I've thought of some of these things on my own which I wrote down in a notebook but not all. I think it's great to have a "cheat sheet."
With my latest WIP I've actually taken a chapters and rewrote them from another characters POV (if they were present) and that really helped me learn more about them. I only did this with one character and I was going to use these chapters in my WIP (I've since cut them) but it helped me gain a better understanding for sure.
Ha! That's great Natalie, now I don't feel so alone, or dorky.
Also now that I know how cool you are, can I send you an email?
I would really like you to do a guest post on my blog (I do them weekly on Fridays ... check it tomorrow morning for a wonderful example from Cole Gibsen, to get an idea of what I'm talking about). You can just reply here whether it's okay to email you and then I'll give you some more details.
I've never used them, but using them as a revision tool sounds like a great idea. I'd always heard of writers filling them out before their first draft, which I tried once before, and it so did not work. But using it to help "fill in the gaps" about the characters for revision is something I'd never thought about before. Thanks for the insight!
Debbie Barr April 8, 2010 at 12:23 PM
I think I'll give that a try after I finish this blasted rough draft. But I appreciate your honesty about the good and the bad of it!
Nick April 8, 2010 at 12:33 PM
Matthew,
I'm sorry, but you are still dorky. However, you are not alone! There are plenty more dorks who like/play D&D out there! I wish I had more time and people to play D&D with.
Also, rolling character stats is awesome! Do you do that for your books?
Candyland April 8, 2010 at 12:34 PM
What a great tool. *Note to self*
L.T. Elliot April 8, 2010 at 1:04 PM
I'm down with the character sheets because I'm a gamer of old. ;) However, I agree with you about them being more useful after a first draft. It's just too hard to know for sure up front. Well, for me. I can't wait to read the post about writing being fun.
Mariah Irvin April 8, 2010 at 1:08 PM
I saw the link to the character sheet you're using on Twitter a few days ago and I printed one out for my MC... you're right! It's a lot of hard work. But, like you said, I've been getting to know my characters better and been having plot revelations.
R. Garrett Wilson April 8, 2010 at 1:48 PM
A few people in my writers' group wanted something different than the average character outline/sketch/sheet/whatever. We wanted to be able to track how a character changes in a story and relate those changes to the events that caused them. We came up with a character sheet that is shorter than the one you are using, but the dynamic aspects come in handy. It really is a character development tool instead of a static portrait at some point in the character's journey.
Character Sketch and Outline
I invite you (all of you) to try it out sometime. I would love to hear your feedback. I'm open to enhancements and additions.
Myrna Foster April 8, 2010 at 1:57 PM
Wow. That character sheet looks like a lot of work, but it might be worth a try.
Thanks for giving me something to think about.
Alyssa Goodnight April 8, 2010 at 2:24 PM
I've recently typed up a character spreadsheet for my WIP (my first time to try this), and it's helped fill in some missing pieces, but it's not NEARLY as detailed as those character questionaires you're working on. Maybe after the first draft...
C. Michael Fontes April 8, 2010 at 2:26 PM
A buddy of mine developed some really great character sheets you might be interested in. They are even able to track character-changing events, so you can see how your character grows. :)
http://rgarrettwilson.com/blog/?p=185
Krista Van Dolzer April 8, 2010 at 2:40 PM
Hmm. This got me thinking...about a lot of stuff that would be very boring to relate here:)
Thanks for this, Natalie.
Steph Schmidt April 8, 2010 at 3:01 PM
I was wondering if you were ever going to link or post a template of these dastardly character sheets. Thank you so much! I was fed up with the weak one I pulled off a website ages ago because half the questions didn't fit right with my genre.
Stephanie McGee April 8, 2010 at 3:45 PM
I do this sort of thing before I start work on a novel, but it's never in-depth. There's this book, The First Five Pages. In it, he has all these questions to think about for your characters. I pick and choose which ones I think are most appropriate to the character at hand. But I definitely don't hold myself to it while writing. (Mainly because sometimes, I don't have it right by me when I'm writing.)
I'm a big fan of character sheets. The one I got from a book is even more extensive than yours (though I'm adding a few questions from the one you use). Most of the questions I don't answer because they aren't relevant to my characters (e.g views on abortion). I also use the book Getting into Character. You think character sheets take time to fill out. That's nothing compared to the exercises in the book. But by the time I'm finished (I only do it for the key characters), I know my characters better than I know my own husband. (Okay, there's something really sad about that.) But I also get more ideas for my plot by doing the exercises. :)
Christine April 8, 2010 at 5:54 PM
Excellent post! I agree with you about how some things are revealed AFTER you write the first draft, but some are there prior. Maybe we could use the sheets before, during and post first draft?
Fill in the blank?
And yes, doing tedious chores helps stir the creative pot LOL.
Matthew MacNish April 8, 2010 at 6:17 PM
Nick, you had me rolling (with laughter, not 3d6) I have never thought of that, but it would be fun!
Kathi Oram Peterson April 8, 2010 at 7:07 PM
I agree with you. I use a notebook while I write. Have a page for each character with the basics. Then as I write the book and inspiration strikes I make a note under the character's name. Thanks for the great post!
Claire Dawn April 8, 2010 at 8:39 PM
You're right. That is crazy in-depth.
I made a mini-character sheet for each of the main characters: just motivations and conflicts and personality notes. And my MC really changed from who he was when I wrote that to who he was when I wrote the novel. So I'd kinda written off outlining (and all it's facets).
But you raise an interesting point about using it for revision. It would be a great tool to have in front of you when rereading.
J.R. Johansson April 9, 2010 at 8:46 AM
Aww man... You just convinced me to do character sheets AND that it's gonna stink. Sigh. Why is it so much work, anyway? :p
my word ver : ruccent - I'm pretty sure this is the word you end up with when you are reluctant to spell reluctant. Oddly apt here. Just sayin'.
Lydia Kang April 9, 2010 at 9:15 AM
Hmm, I feel torn about doing character sheets. Which is why mine are so lightly done. But this is great food for thought, thanks!
Ooh! Okay, I'll admit to being an organizational nut and this is very intriguing to me. I might do some character sheets.
Carrie Harris April 12, 2010 at 6:24 AM
I adore character sheets. It's one of the few organizational tools I actually use. Although I do mine after writing the first couple of chapters, because by then I've got the basics of the voice down and I'm trying to go deeper.
I tried doing character sheets before my first draft and it was miserable. It makes much more sense to fill them in after the first draft is done and I've met my characters.