How Much Character Development is Too Much?

Guest post by author Chase Connor

Writers should develop characters like they do their relationships.

                But maybe you don’t know their mom’s maiden name.

                Or what name they gave their childhood pet.

                The type of shampoo they use.

                Or about the time they accidentally told the cashier at the bakery that they loved them.

TMI – Too Much Info

One, (as mentioned before) this leaves nothing else to learn in the future, taking away the excitement. And two, if the character acts…out of character…in the future, it is highly upsetting to the readers.

                There is a thin line between character development and character obsession.

Character Motivation

To understand a character’s motivation, you have to understand the character, and that’s where the writer begins making these decisions about what the character is like and what makes them…them.

                But how does a writer known when to hold back on what they share with a reader?

                Introduce the character to the reader.

                Give enough information to breed familiarity.

                Throw in tidbits of information here and there to keep things exciting.

                It takes years out of a lifetime for two people to become close friends. Don’t try to make it happen in 300 pages.

Literary agents tell us that the #1 complaint from publishers about a manuscript is that they couldn’t connect with the characters.

Tell us about your biggest challenges writing characters in the comments, or book a 1-on-1 meeting with a literary agent to help improve your characters.