Edit like an Editor: A Wattpad Featured Guide ✔

Part vi. Drafting a Developed Character

Now it's time to take all your ideas about your protagonist, your main characters, and your minor characters and channel them into the writing of your novel. You'll need to show your readers who your characters really are.

First Impressions

Every character in your novel has that first appearance on the page. As in life, first impressions matter. You want to stamp into your reader's brain your own sense of who each character is—their emotional presence as much as the details of their appearance and wardrobe.

Whatever you decide your protagonist looks like, it's a good idea to communicate that to the reader within the first ten pages or so; otherwise readers will busily create their own image of your character and it may not be at all what you want them to see.

For example, from "Fantasy in Death," Nora Roberts, writing as J. D. Robb, introduces Bart Minnock, who will soon be murdered by his holographic video game:

While swords of lightning slashed and stabbed murderously across the scarred shield of sky, Bart Minnock whistled his way home for the last time. Despite the battering rain, Bart's mood bounced along with his cheerful tune as he shot his doorman a snappy salute.

"Howzit going, Mr. Minnock?"

"It's going up, Jackie. Going way uptown."

"This rain could do the same, if you ask me."

"What rain?" With a laugh, Bart sloshed his way in soaked skids to the elevator.

Notice how efficient Roberts introduces this character with only a meager physical description. And yet, from his dialogue and behavior, the reader has a strong feeling for this upbeat, goofy guy who bounces along, whistling, completely oblivious to the literal storm raging around him. The little detail of the doorman shows us Bart Minnock is a wealthy city dweller. Notice, too, that the character's full name is right there, the moment he first appears on the page.

A little further on in Robert's novel, there's another character introduction. We meet CeeCee. Think about how this one feels different from the previous example.

Eve found CeeCee in the media room on the first level. A pretty blond with an explosion of curls, she sat in one of the roomy chairs. It dwarfed her, even with her legs tucked up, and her hands clasped in her lap. Her eyes—big, bright, and blue—were red-rimmed, puffy, and still carried the glassiness of shock.

Did you notice that this introduction of CeeCee contains much more physical detail? It's written to that the reader can really see CeeCee with her "explosion of curls" sitting in a chair that "dwarfed her," her eyes red-rimmed and glassy with shock (she just learned of Bart's demise).

Showing the Reader a Viewpoint Character

One of the special challenges in writing a novel is giving the reader a sense of what your protagonist looks like, particularly when the whole novel is written from that character's viewpoint.

With the viewpoint anchored in the character's head, it simply wouldn't feel natural for the character to say, "I have red hair and rectangular-rimmed glasses..."

The one time you can get away with this, however, is if your character speaks directly to the reader. If you have your protagonist speak directly to the reader, make sure to stay consistent in that communication with the protagonist and the reader throughout the entire novel. If you have the protagonist only speak directly to the reader once or twice (which is quite common in Wattpad stories) then it seems unnatural and amateur.