Do you create a backstory for your characters?

[Aidan of the tavern]

I also make a table/chart with the year of various characters' births and major life events. It's a good time-chart to figure out how old characters are in relation to each other (etc) throughout the story, and how old they were when certain major events happened. For example, a new King is crowned, there is a war, etc. This is particularly useful if the characters are related (not just by blood but by circumstance). Few authors mention exact ages I've noticed, but it's helpful to know what the rough ages are, so that I don't accidentally make the King 90 years old or something.

This can also help plot snarls that may crop up.

Yes, I have a timeline which I fill in to give me an idea of the timeframe. Otherwise I get confused and contradict myself. I also make a note of character ages even though I probably won't tell the reader .

 

[Butterfly]

I have a few short stories set in the POVs' history at key events in their lives. Kind of like a short opening anthology to the whole story.

 

[scottmarlowe]

Yes, most definitely. But I only do what I need for the story at first then fill in the rest at a later time as it's needed. This means that some characters can get a pretty good treatment upfront while others might only be a name and a role or profession. I do the same with general worldbuilding. I mostly just try to stay focused on moving the writing along. Otherwise I think it can become a huge task unto itself.

 

[Jabrosky]

A few ideas on the characters' personalities and backstories can definitely help, although over-definition for some reason tends to feel constraining on my creativity as with other forms of outlining.

 

[Masronyx]

How do you make the chart/table? Do you use Microsoft Excel or do you write it out longhand?

I also make a table/chart with the year of various characters' births and major life events. It's a good time-chart to figure out how old characters are in relation to each other (etc) throughout the story, and how old they were when certain major events happened. For example, a new King is crowned, there is a war, etc. This is particularly useful if the characters are related (not just by blood but by circumstance). Few authors mention exact ages I've noticed, but it's helpful to know what the rough ages are, so that I don't accidentally make the King 90 years old or something.

This can also help plot snarls that may crop up.

 

[Jess A]

How do you make the chart/table? Do you use Microsoft Excel or do you write it out longhand?

I draw family trees and things out longhand. I do a lot of planning with pen and paper, actually.

However, you can also create a very simple table using MS Word, and I have also done this. Excel is a good idea, though. Play around with longhand or the computer until you figure out what works for you, and what info you want etc.

Another point is the calendar. I haven't yet specified any sort of 'year' for my world. So I've started from year '1000' because it's easy to calculate. For instance, if I start the table or family tree at the birth of the first King/Queen of the major land, I might say it was year '0' or '1000'. The year may never make it into the book anyway and if it does I'll change it.

An example of a table and simple plot might be (sorry if the format is awkward):

Year ---- Event/Birth/Death -------------------------Current age of important character
1000 ------- King founds new country ---------------------- King is 35
1036 ------- King marries Queen -----------------------------King is 36, Queen is 27
1036-------- Queen is evil, war is waged ------------------- King is 36, Queen is 27
1037---------Queen takes her baby son away-------------
1040-------- Main character is born --------------------------
1056---------She goes on a quest --------------------------- She is 16, evil Queen's son is 19
1056---------She meets the queen's son and turns out he's a fantastic bloke so they adventure together ...etc.... King by now is 56 and getting old.


Probably none of this exact info would go into a novel, and my example plot sounds rather like the Lion King 2 just me having a laugh. But say this was my plot, I need to know that the ages and characters are realistic in relation to each other. You can add or take columns. Really it's a personal preference whether you do this sort of detail or format. This is what works for me, along with family trees, written diagrams, religion/history charts and drawn-out maps, etc.

 

[D4RKM4K3R]

i find it definitely gives ur characters in ur story more depth but sometimes its unnessasary to have them if there's no references to these events in ur story i find aha.

 

[Jess A]

i find it definitely gives ur characters in ur story more depth but sometimes its unnessasary to have them if there's no references to these events in ur story i find aha.

It's not so much that it goes into the story. Hardly any of it does. It's to help the writer keep track of certain things and plot specifics, as well as give a context for the plot.

Novels are very complex things. It may not seem like it at first thought, but they are.

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Edit:

Check this out: http://mythicscribes.com/forums/wor...ful-worldbuilding-tool-perhaps.html#post94907

Mindfire's world building tool is useful for this - it's mostly about world building, but if you scroll down you will see some tables relating to protagonists and antagonists. This is another way to set up a table.

 

[Addison]

The only con I find in making a back story is if you add too much of it into the actual story. I write a back story for most of my characters, those who are a bigger piece of the story, so I know where they're from, how they got here. They become more realistic in my mind.

 

[MrChristopher]

Yes and no.

Major characters get lots of notes and background detail. Supporting characters might get a paragraph or two of notes. Cameos will get a few lines of detail: maybe something physical or a personality trait.

Pros for doing it for every character: Lots of detail for even the smallest player. It can show in how you bring them to life on paper.
Cons: VERY time consuming and possibly de-motivating for the author.

Find a balance is my advice - just don't get too sidetracked from writing your main story I think. You can always come back and rewrite some characters if they don't seem "alive" enough when you've finished your first draft.

 

[Masronyx]

I agree with the pros and cons. I'd just as soon not get too sidetracked with the more minor characters.
However, too, a benefit for character bios is how jotting down HOW they interact with one another; not so much that you get a story of the protagonist and the antagonist's days on the preschool playground, but it's good to figure out WHY these two characters like/dislike each other. There is that line between detailed bios and just plain overdoing it and veering away from the original intent of the novel.

Yes and no.

Major characters get lots of notes and background detail. Supporting characters might get a paragraph or two of notes. Cameos will get a few lines of detail: maybe something physical or a personality trait.

Pros for doing it for every character: Lots of detail for even the smallest player. It can show in how you bring them to life on paper.
Cons: VERY time consuming and possibly de-motivating for the author.

Find a balance is my advice - just don't get too sidetracked from writing your main story I think. You can always come back and rewrite some characters if they don't seem "alive" enough when you've finished your first draft.

 

[SineNomine]

Yes, so much so that I can't possibly imagine NOT doing it for the major characters unless I was making a deliberate attempt to discover write. The goal is just to more fully flesh out your characters. To know, intuitively, what they might do or say in a situation. I think it is somewhat like method acting if you want a really poor analogy: Learn everything about them so you can become them. It lets you write events surrounding characters that feel more natural instead of sometimes coming across as having characters act a certain entirely to move the plot along. I believe readers can get a feel for when the characters are second nature to the author and when they have been winging it.

The danger is of course, as others have mentioned, is being tempted to infodump in the story. All that backstory just begs to be told. You just have to resist that urge. Some aspects of it will come up organically in the story, but for the most part that information is for YOU, the author, so you can write them better, not for the reader.