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Wow, lots of people have said great things! But I’m a strong believer in the importance of backstory. So, that is at the top of my list. When I talk about backstory, I mean everything that has shaped the character in one way or another. This includes:

-parents

-friends

-social status

-education

-death

-pets

-location they grew up in

-any innate talents (like perfect pitch, photographic memory, things that aren’t learned, they just are.)

-culture

-fears

-etc.

 

I guess since everyone else has, I’ll give an example of my own character.

 

So, we have Kare. Because of spoilery parts of his backstory as a kid, he’s very protective of young children. He also is very skiddish of strangers. He can be easily intimidated by cruel men from his past, but he’s perfectly able to stand up for himself against “friends” or wild creatures. He’s also rather reclusive.
In terms of vices, he doesn’t trust many people, leading to them not trusting him and whispering about him. He has a strong sense of what’s right and wrong. Sometimes that can get him into trouble because he acts recklessly or gets into arguments. He’s also petrified of the dark, closed in spaces, and fire.
He however can be surprisingly gentle once you crack his shell.