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Character Development Questionnaire Guide

The Character Development Questionnaire is a tool designed to help writers explore and define their characters through seven key aspects: backstory, personality, values, appearance, vocabulary, quirks, and wants/desires. It provides a structured format for writers to detail their characters' traits, relationships, and complexities, encouraging deeper engagement with their stories. By answering the questions, writers may uncover new scenes and dimensions that enhance character depth and narrative richness.

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Jonathan A. Brantley
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14 views4 pages

Character Development Questionnaire Guide

The Character Development Questionnaire is a tool designed to help writers explore and define their characters through seven key aspects: backstory, personality, values, appearance, vocabulary, quirks, and wants/desires. It provides a structured format for writers to detail their characters' traits, relationships, and complexities, encouraging deeper engagement with their stories. By answering the questions, writers may uncover new scenes and dimensions that enhance character depth and narrative richness.

Uploaded by

Jonathan A. Brantley
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Character Development Questionnaire

Introduction

Whether you are starting fresh or have been working on a story for a while, you will be

amazed at how many hidden dimensions this quick questionnaire will reveal about your

characters.

Seven aspects help define a character, and they are:

I.​ Backstory

II.​ Personality

III.​ Values

IV.​ Appearance

V.​ Vocabulary

VI.​ Quirks

VII.​ Wants/Desires

A.​ This often showcases the character's strengths and weaknesses

What You Do: Write down phrases or adjectives to describe your character. You can do this

separately for each of your major characters (and in some cases, your minor ones). If the
questions give you more details, feel free to write more. You might even discover scenes

you did not know you wanted to write.

Whether you are starting fresh or have been working on a story for a while, you will be

amazed at how many hidden dimensions this quick questionnaire will reveal about your

characters.

You might even discover scenes you did not know you wanted to write or backstory that

will make your characters come alive and be more three-dimensional. Not all questions

below can be answered for all of the characters, so interpret them in any way that makes

sense for your story and let them lead you where they will. That’s one of the joys of creative

writing!

Down to Basics

1.​ Name:

2.​ Age:

3.​ Gender:

4.​ Nationality, race, or other “group” affiliation:

5.​ Where and when does the character live:

6.​ Mother (describe, plus current whereabouts and circumstances):

7.​ Father (describe, plus current whereabouts and circumstances):

8.​ Siblings, if any (describe, plus current whereabouts and circumstances):

2
Physical Features

1.​ Hair:

2.​ Eyes:

3.​ Height:

4.​ Weight:

5.​ Body Type (i.e., thick boned, rail thin, stocky, soft, wiry):

6.​ Fashion Style:

7.​ Physical or Mental Limitations:

8.​ Physical or Mental Strengths:

9.​ Places the character has lived or lives:

More In-Depth

1.​ Favorite Activity:

2.​ Best Friend:

3.​ Worst Enemy:

4.​ A Wish, Dream, or Desire:

5.​ One Thing That Makes Your Character Laugh:

3
6.​ A Fear your Character has:

7.​ Something the Character would like to learn:

8.​ Something the Character would like to forget:

9.​ Something the Character would never do:

10.​ A secret your Character has:

11.​Does your Character have a love interest?

12.​Does your Character have a pet?

13.​ Does your Character have a quirky habit?

14.​What else would be helpful to know about this character? The more questions you

ask and the deeper your answers, the more interesting, three-dimensional, and

complex your characters will be.

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