Screenwriting Blog
Posted on by Victoria Lucia

Develop Your Story’s Characters With These Character Development Questions

Develop Your Story’s Characters

With These Character Development Questions

We’ve all experienced watching a movie or a TV show where we relate so much to a character. The character is similar to how you see yourself or how you wish you were, and you feel passionate about the character. Seeing the character overcome their challengesis what hooks you. We’ve all also experienced losing interest in something because the characters were just flat and unexciting. They didn’t feel like real people. So as screenwriters, how can we create characters that are the former rather than the latter? I’ve put together a list of 20 character questions to understand better and further develop your characters! Yes, you need to get to know your characters like a best friend – love them or hate them.

Write Now in SoCreate!

Take advantage of SoCreate's free beta trials and create your account today.

Get Started!

20 Character Development Questions for Your Screenplay:

  1. What makes your character get up in the morning?

  2. What’s the worst day your character can remember having? What’s the best day?

  3. Your character is granted one wish. What do they wish for to improve their life instantly?

  4. What’s their biggest pet peeve?

  5. What’s their biggest fear?

  6. It’s the weekend - what’s your character doing?

  7. When was the last time your character did something brave?

  8. What did your character’s last daydream involve?

  9. What’s a secret that they don’t want anyone to know?

  10.  What does your character bring to their friend group? Are they the adventurous one, the funny one, the mom friend?

  11.  What is one thing your character always carries on their person?

  12. What’s something about your character that the other characters would be surprised to learn?

  13.  Is your character an introvert or an extrovert? An optimist or a pessimist? A morning person or a night owl?

  14.  What would a perfect day look like for your character?

  15. Your character needs to bury a body. Who are they calling for help?

  16. Desert island question, your character is stranded with one other person, and they only have three items on them. Who’s the person, and what are the three items?

  17. What’s your character’s worst habit?

  18. Has your character ever been in love?

  19. Does your character believe in a god? Are they religious?

  20. Your character is thrown a surprise birthday party! What’s that like? Who put it together, who’s attending, and how does your character react?

Hopefully, these questions can provide some additional insight and understanding to your characters. If you find yourself still struggling or in doubt about your character’s believability, you’ll want to check out SoCreate’s other blogs on the topic of characters:

Think of your script’s characters as real people. Real people have layers, secrets, flaws, and they experience growth. Aiming for what feels most real, rather than what’s coinvent for the story, can help you achieve more grounded and realistic characters.

Happy writing!

Victoria Lucia, Screenwriter and Digital Content Creator
Victoria Lucia Screenwriter and Digital Content Creatorvictorianlucia.com

You may also be interested in...

How To

Pick a Character Name for Your Screenplay

How to Pick a Character Name for Your Screenplay

Does anybody else have a long list of names saved in their Notes app that are unique, that make you feel something, or even just sound cool? No, just me? I refer to this list for many of my characters, which I regularly add to whenever I come across a name I like. Sometimes, especially for the main character, I find myself wanting a name that has a deeper meaning, and I need to be more thoughtful about choosing the name. Today, I want to talk about how to pick a character name. What’s in a name, anyway? Who Are They? Try to let your character inform their name. Is your character of a specific culture that ...
How to Develop Great Characters in Your Screenplay, with Writer Bryan Young

The Rule of 3, Plus More Character Development Tricks for Your Screenplay

Among all the guides for developing characters in your screenplay, I had never heard of these two tricks from screenwriter Bryan Young. Bryan is an award-winning storyteller, with films, podcasts, books, and posts on StarWars.com, Scyfy.com, HowStuffWorks.com, and more. He’s done a lot of reading and writing in his day, so he’s figured out what works for him when it comes to his storytelling formula. Try his character development tricks on for size to see how they work for you! The Rule of Three exists in many places, not just storytelling. In general, the Rule suggests that using three elements – whether that ...
How To

Write Character Arcs

Mastering the art of the arc.

How To Write Character Arcs

Having an idea for a main character with a handful of awesome characteristics is unfortunately not enough to transform your script into the next big blockbuster or award-winning TV show. If you really want your screenplay to resonate with readers and eventually viewers, you need to master the art of the character arc. What Is a Character Arc? Okay, so I need a character arc in my story. What on earth IS a character arc? A character arc maps out the journey or transformation that your main character experiences over the course of your story. The plot of your entire story is constructed around...