June 20th, 2011
CREATING A HERO
When beginning an action story, one of the first things you need to create is your hero. Creating a hero is
rather easy, but there is more to it than simply giving him or her a name. You need to make a character that is
relatable to your reader otherwise they will have nothing invested when the hero falls into dangerous times.
The way to accomplish this is by getting to know your character before you even begin writing your story.
Naming Your Hero
Creating a hero can be one of the most fun things about writing a story. You need to begin somewhere, and
you should start with a name. There are two ways to name a hero. The first is simply finding a name that
means something to you. This could possibly be an uncle’s, or a grandmother’s name you have a strong
connection with who you’d like to base your character off of. There is nothing wrong with using a name in this
fashion. The other fun way is by searching through a name database online and finding a name whose
meaning matches the personality of your hero. Remember, a strong name will mean a strong hero.
Creating a Personality
With a name, you now need to figure out what your hero is like. A good way to do this is simply taking out a
piece of paper and writing your character’s name at the top of the page. Then, answer the twelve following
questions about your hero: 1. What is the age of him/her? 2. What were his/her parents like? 3. How important
is family to him/her? 4. What are his/her hobbies? 5. What is his/her education? 6. Where does he/she work?
7. What does he/she during free time? 8. Who is his/her best friend and why? 9. Who is his/her worst enemy
and why? 10. What single event in his/her life has made him/her who he/she is today? 11. What does he/she
like most about his/her life? 12. What reaction do you want your reader to have to him/her? If you notice, there
is no mention of any physical characteristics. The physical description is best left for later and should be
thought of as a separate entity as the emotional characteristics.
Physical Description
The first thing to do with the physical description is to go online, or flip through a magazine and find an image
of someone who matches the picture you have of your hero in your head. When you have an idea, begin
describing them. You can do this on the other side of the paper you used for the hero’s personality. Describe
the hero’s hair, eyes, height, weight and style of dress. Also consider, do they have any marks on them that
can identify them? Something like a tattoo, a scar, or even an unusual piercing can be very telling about a
character, and you can create a whole story for the hero to explain why he/she has them. The physical
description is not as important as the personality, but it is essential if you want your reader to be able to
visualize the hero.
Lesson Learned
Before you begin writing your story, there is one more thing you need to decide on: what is your character
going to learn during the course of your story. There are two types of characters, round and flat. A flat
character is the same at the beginning of the story as they are at the end. You don’t want to make your hero a
flat character. A round character makes some sort of change, usually for the better, through something they
have learned during the story. The lesson can be something about him or herself. For example, the hero can
learn to live for the first time without their significant other being there to help guide them. The lesson can also
be about something external. For example, the hero can learn that even though it isn’t always easy to trust
people, that sometimes you need to go out on a limb and let someone into his/her world. Think of a good
lesson that the hero can learn that relates to the plot of your story. It is best to do this before you start writing
because you want to give hints of this lesson throughout the story, so that when the lesson is learned at the
end, the reader is not surprised.
Book Sale Totals:
PREVIOUS TOTAL: 192
WEEKEND TOTAL: 10
SOLD BOOK OVERALL TOTAL: 202
Until next time - It's "write a novel in a week" week. Are you up to the challenge?
CREATING A HERO
When beginning an action story, one of the first things you need to create is your hero. Creating a hero is
rather easy, but there is more to it than simply giving him or her a name. You need to make a character that is
relatable to your reader otherwise they will have nothing invested when the hero falls into dangerous times.
The way to accomplish this is by getting to know your character before you even begin writing your story.
Naming Your Hero
Creating a hero can be one of the most fun things about writing a story. You need to begin somewhere, and
you should start with a name. There are two ways to name a hero. The first is simply finding a name that
means something to you. This could possibly be an uncle’s, or a grandmother’s name you have a strong
connection with who you’d like to base your character off of. There is nothing wrong with using a name in this
fashion. The other fun way is by searching through a name database online and finding a name whose
meaning matches the personality of your hero. Remember, a strong name will mean a strong hero.
Creating a Personality
With a name, you now need to figure out what your hero is like. A good way to do this is simply taking out a
piece of paper and writing your character’s name at the top of the page. Then, answer the twelve following
questions about your hero: 1. What is the age of him/her? 2. What were his/her parents like? 3. How important
is family to him/her? 4. What are his/her hobbies? 5. What is his/her education? 6. Where does he/she work?
7. What does he/she during free time? 8. Who is his/her best friend and why? 9. Who is his/her worst enemy
and why? 10. What single event in his/her life has made him/her who he/she is today? 11. What does he/she
like most about his/her life? 12. What reaction do you want your reader to have to him/her? If you notice, there
is no mention of any physical characteristics. The physical description is best left for later and should be
thought of as a separate entity as the emotional characteristics.
Physical Description
The first thing to do with the physical description is to go online, or flip through a magazine and find an image
of someone who matches the picture you have of your hero in your head. When you have an idea, begin
describing them. You can do this on the other side of the paper you used for the hero’s personality. Describe
the hero’s hair, eyes, height, weight and style of dress. Also consider, do they have any marks on them that
can identify them? Something like a tattoo, a scar, or even an unusual piercing can be very telling about a
character, and you can create a whole story for the hero to explain why he/she has them. The physical
description is not as important as the personality, but it is essential if you want your reader to be able to
visualize the hero.
Lesson Learned
Before you begin writing your story, there is one more thing you need to decide on: what is your character
going to learn during the course of your story. There are two types of characters, round and flat. A flat
character is the same at the beginning of the story as they are at the end. You don’t want to make your hero a
flat character. A round character makes some sort of change, usually for the better, through something they
have learned during the story. The lesson can be something about him or herself. For example, the hero can
learn to live for the first time without their significant other being there to help guide them. The lesson can also
be about something external. For example, the hero can learn that even though it isn’t always easy to trust
people, that sometimes you need to go out on a limb and let someone into his/her world. Think of a good
lesson that the hero can learn that relates to the plot of your story. It is best to do this before you start writing
because you want to give hints of this lesson throughout the story, so that when the lesson is learned at the
end, the reader is not surprised.
Book Sale Totals:
PREVIOUS TOTAL: 192
WEEKEND TOTAL: 10
SOLD BOOK OVERALL TOTAL: 202
Until next time - It's "write a novel in a week" week. Are you up to the challenge?
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