Creating Characters for Short Stories

Break the habit of always writing about yourself.

When you first started writing, your teachers probably told you to stick to subjects you know well. It makes sense, then, that you would intuitively use yourself as the protagonist of your stories. Maybe you don’t write about your whole self, but turn aspects of your personality into characters.

To me, I’m the easiest person in the world to use a character, because I already know myself intimately. There came a point in my life, though, when my stories seemed repetitive and a little stale. What was I doing wrong? Maybe nothing, but I knew I’d have to start doing something differently, or I’d be stuck in a rut forever. I came to the conclusion that my problem had a lot to do with the characters I’d been using. My mother and I are interesting people for at least half a dozen stories, but who isn’t interesting enough for that?

I needed to expand my range of characters and create new scenarios for my imaginary characters to live out. If you’re taking the time to read this article, you’re probably looking to break out of a character rut, too. My first step toward becoming a better short story writer was to stop writing about myself, and maybe yours should be, too.

I’ll be the first to admit it—writing myself into my stories was a hard habit to break. It takes a lot more work to create a believable person from scratch than it does to just stick yourself into the story. Instead of asking myself what I would do in a particular situation, I was forcing myself to make up whole new moral perspectives for virtual strangers.

Taking yourself off the page is an uphill battle, but worth the time and creative energy as you find your range of talent increasing. Not only will these exercises make you a more versatile writer, but you’ll also find a renewed excitement in the act of creation.

Find models for new characters.