Absolutely, you’ve hit the nail on the head. While authors can certainly craft characters with deliberate traits meant to be annoying or abrasive, there’s always the risk that even beloved characters may come across as irritating to some readers. It’s a natural part of the reading experience that readers will have varied reactions to characters based on their own perspectives, preferences, and experiences. As an author, it’s important to accept that you can’t entirely control how readers will perceive your characters.
Let them show some form of sympathy for others
Providing context for a character’s behaviour can make a world of difference in how they’re perceived by readers. While a character who constantly seeks attention and validation might initially come across as annoying, understanding the reasons behind their actions can add depth and complexity to their portrayal.
Exploring the character’s backstory, motivations, and inner struggles can humanize them and evoke empathy from readers. A “tragic” backstory alone may not excuse or justify annoying behaviour, but it can help readers empathize and understand the root causes of their actions. This, in turn, can lead to a more nuanced and sympathetic portrayal that resonates with readers on a deeper level.
Don’t reduce them to just their quirks
Characters with one-dimensional traits or stereotypes can benefit from additional depth and development to feel more authentic and relatable to readers. While quirks and idiosyncrasies can add flavour to a character, they shouldn’t define them entirely.
Fleshing out characters involves exploring their backgrounds, motivations, fears, desires, and internal conflicts. By delving into these aspects, authors can create characters who feel like real people with complex inner lives.
Here are a few tips for adding depth to characters:
- Backstory: Develop a backstory for your character that explains how they became the person they are today. Consider their upbringing, past experiences, and significant life events that have shaped their personality and worldview.
- Motivations and Goals: What does your character want? What are their aspirations, dreams, and ambitions? Understanding what drives your character can add depth to their actions and decisions throughout the story.
- Strengths and Weaknesses: Give your character a mix of strengths and weaknesses that make them feel human and relatable. Characters who are flawed and imperfect are often more compelling than those who are flawless.
- Relationships: Explore your character’s relationships with other characters in the story. How do they interact with family, friends, and romantic interests? Relationships can reveal a lot about a character’s personality and values.
- Growth and Change: Consider how your character evolves throughout the story. What challenges do they face, and how do they overcome them? Characters who undergo growth and transformation are often more engaging for readers.
Avoid as much negativity as possible
Balancing moments of vulnerability or despair with moments of proactivity and positivity is crucial for creating well-rounded and relatable characters. While it’s natural for characters to experience low moments, it’s essential to ensure that these moments are balanced with moments of resilience, growth, and hope.
Here are some tips for striking this balance:
- Show Proactivity: Even during challenging times, give your character opportunities to take action and work towards solutions to their problems. This can help readers root for the character and feel invested in their journey.
- Highlight Positive Moments: Intersperse moments of hope, joy, and triumph throughout the story to provide relief from the heavier emotional moments. These positive moments can serve as anchors for readers, reminding them that there is light at the end of the tunnel.
- Character Growth: Allow your character to learn and grow from their experiences, overcoming obstacles and evolving as a person. This not only adds depth to the character but also gives readers a sense of progression and development.
- Supportive Relationships: Show how friends, family, or mentors support and encourage the character during difficult times. These relationships can provide comfort and strength to the character and offer readers a sense of camaraderie and connection.
- Humour and Levity: Incorporate moments of humour and levity to break up the tension and add balance to the narrative. Humour can serve as a coping mechanism for characters and readers alike, helping to alleviate stress and make the story more enjoyable to read.
Ultimately, the key is to create characters who feel authentic and relatable by portraying a range of emotions and experiences. By balancing moments of vulnerability with moments of strength and positivity, you can create dynamic characters that resonate with readers on a deeper level.
Londa Cele Novels 