Character Development

This is one of my favorite parts of RPing/writing. I absolutely love doing this, even if it doesn't work out so well sometimes. I plan the developments of my characters as soon as I start making them. I'm pretty nutso about this.

Developing an OC basically means changing a character mid RP/story, or at least that's how I see it. This means that they wouldn't have the same personality/disposition/etc. as they did at the beginning of the RP/story. Developing a character gives them so much more depth and makes them so much more realistic. And I'm all about characters having depth and being realistic.

The way I see it, there are two different types of development

First off, there's...

SMALL DEVELOPMENT

• This is when a character really doesn't develop that much. They still have some development, just not a lot. Maybe they learn something that changes the way they act a little. Maybe they get over a fear that they have. There are a lot of things that could happen. They key thing about small development is that the characters doesn't change much. There aren't any drastic changes, and it usually doesn't take a long time.
  

Then there's...

LARGE DEVELOPMENT

• This when some really big changes happen in the character. Something life-altering happens. They're probably a whole new person after a change this big. Maybe they learn something that changes their life completely. They are a different person in the end. The key thing about large development is that it's a drastic change. Such a drastic change couldn't possibly happen as quickly as a small change, right? Large development usually takes a fairly long time to happen. They change very slowly. There can be special cases where it happens pretty quickly.
  

Obviously, there's a lot more to development than just knowing about what it means. You have to know how to do it, right? It's pretty simple, actually. If you just do something to change your character, it'll work out. You could just stick them in a situation that's you think would be out of their comfort zone. Think of your character like yourself. If you were shoved into a situation that was out of your comfort zone, you would change, wouldn't you?

Here are some tips on how to develop your character.


1. Give your character a story!

• In your head, picture an entire novel revolving around your character. Think of an entire storyline for them. I find that this helps me picture what I want to do with a character. Do you want your character to change a lot, or only a little? Do you want them to change for the better, or for the worse? Don't forget to think of a history for them! The past has as much to do with development as the future does.
  

2. Plan out what you want your character to become!

• This kind of ties in with the previous tip. You have to decide what you want your character to become. Do they become braver? Do they become nicer? This is like planning out the ending to your character's "story," or like coming up with a "before" and "after" of your character.
  

3. Be interested in developing your character!

• This might just be the most important tip. If you don't have any interest in developing your character, you'll either a) never develop them, or b) not develop them as much as you could. You have to want to develop them. Characters don't develop themselves. You have to do it
  

4. Give your character room to develop!

• Everyone has room for improvement. When you are making your character, you have to give them something to improve on. Don't make them perfect in every single way, and don't say that they're "perfectly fine with the way they are and don't feel the need to improve themselves," or anything like that. Everyone strives to improve themselves. It's human nature.