4 Super Easy Ways To Create Characters For Short Stories

In short stories, we have less time to develop characters. In this post, we cover 4 super easy ways to create characters for short stories – with examples.

Creating characters in short stories is the same as in novels, but once again, when dealing with a reduced word count, we have to make our writing work harder. We don’t have 80 000 words to develop a character arc.

How can we work with a reduced count and still have a fully developed character?

4 Super Easy Ways To Create Characters For Short Stories

1. Write Epic Descriptions

Sometimes you only need one line to summarise a character. Find a way to describe them that creates an immediate image in the reader’s mind.

Longer Description

‘At first glance Jack seemed fair enough, with his curly hair and quick laugh, but for a small man he carried some weight in the haunch and his smile disclosed buckteeth, not pronounced enough to let him eat popcorn out of the neck of a jug, but noticeable.’
~Brokeback Mountain – Annie Proulx

Your description doesn’t have to be long. It just has to be memorable.

Shorter Descriptions

1. ‘Allister was the kind of man who looked you in the eye, while he ran his hand up your wife’s leg, and your wife didn’t mind one bit.’
2. ‘He is a walking reminder of everything that is wrong with spray tan.’
3. ‘She was the kind of woman who made wives herd their husbands home.’
4. ‘She preferred the man straight up, with his marriage on the rocks.’

2. Dialogue

Dialogue is important. How does your character talk? Vocabulary, sentence structure, and how they talk all help us to show character.

Do they use the words ‘Say what?’ or ‘Excuse me?’ or ‘What you on about?’ or ‘Can you please say that again?’ or ‘I beg your pardon?’ Each phrase creates a different character.

Their age, education, background, and nationality all influence how they speak.

Example 1

‘It’ll be the same as it always is,” I said. “After an hour you’ll be off somewhere snogging the prettiest girl at the party, and I’ll be in the kitchen listening to somebody’s mum going on about politics or poetry or something.’
How to talk to girls at parties – Neil Gaiman

Example 2

It wasn’t his habit, he’d told her, to strike up conversations with ‘random’ people.
‘Why not?’ she’d asked.
And he’d said, with a look that suggested that her question was virtually incomprehensible, ‘Why not? Because I’ll never see them again.’
With her provocative little laugh, the woman had said, ‘But that’s the best reason for talking to strangers—you’ll never see them again.’
Mastiff – Joyce Carol Oates

Example 3

There is a funny lady with a big hat waving at us. She has sunglasses all over her face. ‘Daddy, who’s that?’
‘It’s my new friend. She is going to the beach with us.’ Daddy pulls on my arm, but I’m not going closer.
‘I don’t want to go to the beach with her. It’s supposed to be our day.’
Daddy stops and talks close to my face. ‘Well, she is coming with us and I ‘d like you to be very well-behaved. She is a very special friend.’
‘I want Mommy’ He holds me tight like he used to, every day.
‘But you are spending the weekend with Daddy, remember? And we’re going for ice-cream.’
‘I like ice-cream.’ I giggle when he tickles me.
‘Maybe she likes ice-cream too.’
‘Maybe.’ I don’t feel like ice-cream anymore, but I follow Daddy.

3. Body Language

Make your characters move. Use body language. This conveys a lot about them. Make sure to use strong verbs.

• Don’t say: the woman walked. That doesn’t tell us a lot about the woman.
• Rather say: she strode, she raced, she shuffled, she tiptoed. Those all create images and different scenarios.

Example 1

A big slow sweet-faced boy with these big hands and feet, thighs like hams. A shy gentle boy with good manners and a hushed voice.
He wasn’t simpleminded exactly, like the others in that class. He was watchful, he held back.
Heat – Joyce Carol Oates

Example 2

In other respects, she was not a particularly nervous woman, but the mere thought of being late on occasions like these would throw her into such a state of nerves that she would begin to twitch. It was nothing much–just a tiny vellicating muscle in the corner of the left eye, like a secret wink–but the annoying thing was that it refused to disappear until an hour or so after the train or plane or whatever it was had been safely caught.
The way up to heaven – Roald Dahl.

Example 3

Cheryl strode down the passage and flung open the door. Twelve identical suits turned towards her, the blush was unanimous. Gerald, blinded by the projector with his laser pointer in-hand, worked his jaw, slack and fish-like, in an attempt to salvage his board meeting.
‘Please don’t stop on my behalf.’ She said as she slid into her seat at the head of the table. Pretending not to notice as Gerald’s clutter hit the floor.

4. Internal Thoughts

Internal thoughts are still one of the simplest ways of showing character. Once you are in the mind of a character you can share their motivation, thought processes and backstory.

Example 1

Oh, she hated math class! Hated this place! Sitting at her desk in the row by the windows, at the front of the classroom, made Lisette feel like she was at the edge of a bright-lit room looking in—like she wasn’t a part of the class.
ID – Joyce Carol Oates

Example 2

On the shelf where caps and scarves were thrown, I found a bag with some figs and dates in it. Somebody must have stolen them and stashed them here to take home. All of a sudden, I was hungry. Nothing to eat since morning, except for a dry cheese sandwich on the Ontario Northland. I considered the ethics of stealing from a thief. But the figs would catch in my teeth and betray me.
Amundsen – Alice Munro

Example 3

I’m done. It’s over. I am not taking this anymore. Who does he think he is? I reach for the big black suitcase and start folding. Shirts. Shorts. Underwear. Careful little parcels of hope and freedom. I hear the garage door open, stuff the whole lot back in to the closet, and hurry to fix his dinner.

By using a combination of these methods, you can reveal a lot about your character without using too many words.

The Last Word

Short stories give you less space to develop your characters, so every word needs to work harder. Learn four easy ways to reveal character through descriptions, dialogue, body language, and internal thoughts. Use these techniques to create memorable, fully developed characters without using a lot of words.

Tip: Don’t forget to apply the principles of ‘show, don’t tell’ to really pack a punch.

Happy writing.

Image by Michaela from Pixabay

by Mia Botha

More posts from Mia:

1. How To Show Character Change Without Telling (With Examples)
2. 7 Supporting Character Types Every Writer Should Know
3. The 3 Surprises Every Story Needs
4. A Quick Start Guide To Writing For Children
5. 15 Inspiring Reasons To Start Writing Poetry
6. Worldbuilding: The Ultimate Setting Checklist For Writers
7. Show Don’t Tell: 5 Simple Techniques Every Writer Should Know
8. How To Show & Not Tell In Short Stories
9. A Complete Guide To Writing Prompts & Daily Writing Practice
10. How To Write What You Love

Looking for resources on the craft?

1. The Short Story Checklist
2. How To Show And Not Tell In Short Stories
3. If you want to learn how to write a short story, sign up for our online course.

Top Tip: Sign up for our free daily writing links.