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Character Development: What It Is and Why It Matters
- Koree Ryan
- 4 days ago
- 4 min read
From the moment we are born, we are advancing—whether we would like to or not. Old, smaller teeth fall out and get replaced with new, stronger teeth… We cut our hair, and it grows back… We learn our first language as we take in the world around us.
Just like these natural, beautiful things our bodies and mind develop over time, we are also evolving inwardly and constantly. Whether for better or for worse, we are always developing as we adapt to our environments and think further about who we are and what we want.
The characters in our stories are also like this. Their likes and dislikes change, their personalities shift as they go through hardships, and their relationships with other characters can be altered—all a perfect recipe for character development.
Understanding "The Why" Behind Character Development
The crafting of a character’s development is extremely important in this way because it has so much appeal to a reader and propels the story. Without the depth that a well-thought-out character gives the plot, how enriched could the reader of your story be?
We use all kinds of literary devices to convey meaning and develop the plots of our stories, but character development helps the reader connect with and relate to characters. A good, well-rounded character can make a grand difference in your story and how it captivates the reader. Characters become something readers would live and die for or vehemently hate. Without characters that readers can tether themselves to, there lacks the passion needed between the reader and the story.
Character development builds a story up and keeps a reader interested. If this wasn’t true, why would there be so many fan accounts online for fictional characters? Why would there be fan art upon fan art being created of people that don’t exist (technically, however my heart begs to differ)? Attachment to and love for a story is better obtained through characters that are motivated by the things real humans are motivated by—personality traits that readers can relate to.
A Look into Character Development
But how does a writer develop their characters? How do we, as writers, create characters that progress in a way that makes sense? When I think about my favorite characters, they are often hard-headed, angry women that would cut your head off if you looked at them the wrong way. I especially like this type of character if the reader is shown how they have progressed to that point.
Someone who comes to mind is Feyre Archeron from one of my favorite fantasy series, A Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTAR) by Sarah J. Maas. Without spoiling it I will say that through hardship, independently made decisions, and terrible encounters with male characters she turns from meek and easily persuaded to in her own words, “. . . not a pet, not a doll, not an animal. I was a survivor, and I was strong. I would not be weak, or helpless again. I would not, could not be broken. Tamed.”
It’s important to note that Feyre could not get to this point in the plot where she becomes fierce and unbreakable without points in the plot of the series where she was tested and had to evolve and adapt.
A Process for Writers
All that in mind, there are other questions to consider when you dive into the world of character development. What kind of character do you want your story to have by the end of what you have put them through? What is their starting point, and what needs to happen to them so you can convey the kind of character you want and the story you want people to read?
Just as characters develop as the plot of your story thickens, so does your plot when your characters go through each conflict, defeat, and triumph. If the author of ACOTAR wanted to show how a woman’s walls around her heart and mind can be built up to adapt and resist confining patriarchal values, how would she have done so without first giving Feyre the personality traits of someone completely unlike that? Someone tame, someone who thought they were okay with being treated like a pet?
As writers, we have the responsibility of creating characters who experience situations and change once they get to the other side, just as people do. I liked Feyre and other characters in this novel so much because they showed strength in adversity and the ways in which women can take back their power.
Without giving your characters challenges, depth, and progression, they can become colorless. A good story keeps colorful characters in mind. (However, I did want to mention that “character development” does not equate to becoming more morally good. Some of the best characters are made through hardships and turmoil that turn them absolutely evil or even morally gray.)
I hope all of our colorful characters we think up for our stories are getting along well with our imaginations this week! Write on.
About the Author:
Koree Ryan is a 21-year-old college student of English, Religion, and Women and Genders Studies. Koree loves writing stories and reading fantasy and romance novels, as well as hanging out with a dear cat friend, Lucy.