Characterization
Characterization is defined as 'the use of literary techniques to create a character.'
When creating characters, there are two broad categories: Direct and Indirect.
Direct Description
Direct description – the text explicitly tells the reader what the character is like.
TELL the reader what the character is like:
She always had a calculating personality to her. Before stating anything, she would assess the person before her, her dark eyes scanning them, her decision made within moments of the introduction.
Here, the character’s traits are laid out before the reader as a fact. There’s nothing to insinuate or guess about her; the author already spells it out.
DESCRIBE what the character looks like:
Her eyes match a clear and bright sky, wide and blue, shaded under a thick layer of dark lashes. Her golden hair has a life of its own, hanging down around her waist as she makes another step forward.
The author directly explains the character’s appearance in the text, acting as an omniscient narrator, rather than slowly revealing it through dialogue or a character’s thoughts.
Indirect Descriptions
Indirect descriptions – the text shows who the character is through speech, thoughts, effects on others, actions and looks.
| Speech | What does the character say? How does the character think? |
| Thoughts | What is revealed through the character's private thoughts and feelings? |
| Effects on other characters | What is revealed through the character's effect on other people? How do other characters feel or behave in reaction to the character? |
| Actions | What does the character do? How does the character behave? |
| Looks | What does the character look like? How does the character dress? |
Use DIALOGUE to give insight on a character:
Gesturing across the crowded cafeteria to a boy sitting by himself, Liz turned to Ellie. “That’s Jet. Word is he got expelled from every school where he lived last year. He moved here for a fresh start or something. Ten bucks he doesn’t last a week.”
Liz is showing who Jet is by her speech, giving him a brief background and introducing details to the reader slowly, rather than all at once, as a direct description would.
Show the THOUGHTS of a character to create a personality:
Beep beep beep, danger! my mind warned, but I tried to ignore it. No, I would talk him out of this. I look fine. The moment I thought it, though, I caught a glimpse of my reflection a store window. My hair wound up in a bun without anything out of place, my tight blue shirt that clung to me, showing off the lack of my chest and bony figure.
“I do look like a snob, don’t I?”
In this part, the main character’s weariness of the situation she’s in is expanded by her indecisive thoughts, helping paint the picture of a fragile personality.
Use OTHER CHARACTERS’ REACTIONS to build a character:
When he glided into the room, the class went silent, every pair of eyes watching him with some kind of expectance.
In this excerpt, the character is making a large impact of the room, adding to the mystery behind him.
Show the character’s ACTIONS to enhance their personality:
Josie tugged at her hair irritably, trying to focus her annoyance to the one action.
Actions are something that might take the entire novel to make an impact on a reader. They need some consistency. If Josie tugs on her hair in certain situations, it could show the reader that she’s uncomfortable without spelling it out for them.
Portray a character through their LOOKS:
Giving myself no time to overthink it, I cut my hair. The loosely tied ponytail unraveled when the scissors were finished with their destruction, leaving me with a jagged, choppy cut.
A sudden change in appearances could be symbolic of the growth of a character, shifting with the plot of the story.
In conclusion
- Characters are built through direct and indirect descriptions.
- Staggering the uses of both will create a more interesting and interactive story.
- The use of all these traits in a story isn’t imperative. Choose the details that will make the character feel realistic and individual.