True Alpha ━ 𝐓𝐖 𝐖𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐈𝐏𝐒

― 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘢 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘳

╚═⋟ 𝐁𝐔𝐈𝐋𝐃 𝐀 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐑 ⋞═╝

When it comes to making your character(s), there are so many things you have to consider. We all want to make the "perfect" character, but let us fill you in on the "perfect" character:

The perfect character is the one who is imperfect, flawed, makes mistakes but owns up to those mistakes, learns from them. The perfect character is the one who isn't afraid to make mistakes, who knows that he/she isn't perfect. The perfect character is the one who fails and doesn't react calmly; but instead reacts by screaming or crying or deciding that they're entire life is a failure before they decide to get back on their feet and try again. The perfect character is the one who develops through the story after different events, situations, and/or people motivate her or challenge him/her to grow.

That's the perfect character.

No one is perfect so why should we make our characters perfect? Our characters are reflections of people in our everyday lives, they're reflections of us. So why are we trying our damnedest to make that "perfect" character?

If a character is perfect, then the reader can't relate to that character. The storyline is flat and boring because the character has no need to change. There isn't anything compelling about a perfectly perfect character.

Give them flaws. Give them quirks. Give them a real purpose. Give them something to change about themselves. Give them something they hate about themselves.

And your OC doesn't have to badass like literally every Teen Wolf female or male, but don't make them whiny or completely dependent on the love interest or just other characters in general. Give them their own reasons to do something in the show. Give them a different purpose. They can rely on the other characters but being completely dependent on the canon characters makes your character weak and whiny and readers don't like that.

Here's a basic template for you to use for creating characters that Tracy pulled from an app she has on her phone (called Character Planner) and other resources via Pinterest:

── 𝐁𝐀𝐒𝐈𝐂 𝐈𝐍𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍:

character full name:
reason behind name / meaning of name:
nickname?:
why that nickname?:
age / date of birth:

── 𝐏𝐇𝐘𝐒𝐈𝐂𝐀𝐋 𝐀𝐏𝐏𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐄:

height:
skin tone:
eye color:
distinguishable features / marks:
hair color / style:
body type / size:
face shape:
ethnicity: 
flaws (something(s) that might not match with conventional beauty standards):

── 𝐋𝐈𝐅𝐄 / 𝐈𝐍𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐓:

skills:
incompetence (what can't they do?):
strengths / talents (both inherent and learned / gained):
weaknesses:
hobbies:
habits:
pets:
behaviors in front of others / loved ones:
behaviors when they're alone:
what do they think about when they're alone?
motivations:
discouragements:
intelligence level:
confidence level:
greatest fear / phobia:
why is your character important to the story? how do they affect the storyline?

── 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐃𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐋𝐎𝐏𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓:

When you give your character a backstory that makes them who they are in the beginning of the chapter, it's a good start for character creation. 

Character development throughout the story is when they learn from the past to make better choices as the story moves on. It's when they let the events and the people around them aid in their growth.

❈ tip: a character that grows or regresses as you move along is okay. ❈

goals, motivations, conflicts
      beginning?:
      middle?:
      end?:

psychological (irreparably damaged, able to heal in time, etc)
       beginning?:
       middle:
       end?:

do your character(s) love themselves? will they learn to as time goes on?

do your character(s) blame themselves for something that happened in their past? do they blame someone else? do they eventually move past blaming themselves / others?

And another thing: 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐁𝐋𝐄𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐂 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐎𝐊𝐀𝐘. We know a lot of readers and fans hate problematic characters—even we hate some of the ones in our favorite fandoms. But as long as it tells a story with the right message and you as the author acknowledge that it does. And if they don't get redeemed, that's fine: you can just kill them off or even just keep them for the sake of the story. Just have fun.

シ 𝙗𝙧𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙮