32 Character Development Writing Prompts
Want to create characters that readers won’t forget?
It’s not just about crazy plots and epic settings, you gotta make your characters real.
Imagine your characters aren’t just words, but living, breathing people.
To help you with this magic trick, we’ve got a bunch of prompts to get you thinking about your characters’ desires, fears, pasts, and the whole shebang.
Use these prompts to develop your main character, understand your sidekicks better, or even explore the villain’s shadowy motivations.
Basically, they’re here to guide your imagination and make your story characters rock!
So, dive on in and meet the folks who will make your story shine!
Character Development Writing Prompts
Family Heirloom: Every family has its tales, whispered across generations. Imagine a character coming across a long-lost heirloom – perhaps a piece of jewelry, a diary, or an old photograph. As they delve deeper into its origins, they discover unsettling truths about their lineage, forcing them to question their identity and the role of family legacy.
Memories of the Senses: Smells, tastes, and sounds can evoke powerful memories. Your character comes across a particular sensory trigger – the aroma of a perfume, a song, or the taste of a specific dish. This sensation transports them back to a pivotal moment in their past. How does reliving this memory change their perception of their current situation?
Unexpected Mentorship: In a world where everyone is fixated on forward momentum, your character finds guidance in the most unexpected person: someone society overlooks or undervalues. Through their interactions, your character not only gains a new skill or insight but learns profound lessons on humility and the hidden wisdom that exists everywhere.
Confrontation with a Bully: Throughout life, your character has been tormented by a bully, be it at school, work, or even in the family. But circumstances change, and now the roles are reversed. How does your character choose to act? Do they seek revenge, try for reconciliation, or something entirely different?
Revisiting Childhood Haunts: Your character revisits a place of significance from their childhood. The weight of nostalgia and time’s passage is palpable. As they walk through these once familiar grounds, they stumble upon something – an object, a letter, or a person – that reshapes their understanding of a pivotal event from their youth.
Unsent Letter: Tucked away in an old box, your character finds a letter they wrote long ago but never sent. Reading it, they’re confronted with their past hopes, fears, and feelings. Motivated by this discovery, they decide to either finally send the letter or confront the recipient in person. How does this encounter shape their future?
Brush with Death: After a near-death experience, your character is jolted into re-evaluating their life’s priorities and relationships. Confronting their mortality head-on, they undergo a transformation, deciding to pursue a long-forgotten dream, mend a broken relationship, or confront a long-held fear.
Gift of the Unwanted: Your character receives an unexpected gift, one they initially see as worthless or even a burden. However, over time, this gift – whether it’s an object, an animal, or even a responsibility – becomes central to their growth and self-understanding, teaching them the value of perspective and the hidden blessings in life.
The Anonymous Benefactor: In dire straits, your character unexpectedly receives help, but the source remains anonymous. Driven by gratitude and curiosity, they embark on a journey to discover their mysterious benefactor. In the process, they uncover personal connections and long-buried secrets that reshape their understanding of community and self-worth.
Lost in Translation: While traveling or relocating, your character finds themselves in a place where they don’t speak the language or understand the culture. Through misunderstandings and misadventures, they learn the importance of patience, adaptability, and the universality of human connection beyond words.
Rediscovered Diary: Stumbling upon an old diary from their teenage years, your character reads about hopes, dreams, and fears they’d long since forgotten. This trip down memory lane pushes them to pursue an old passion or rectify mistakes from their youth, challenging their current life trajectory.
The Unfamiliar Familiar: Your character suddenly realizes that someone they’ve known for years has an entirely hidden side to their life. As they delve deeper into this newfound aspect of their friend or family member, they’re forced to confront their own biases and the dangers of taking people at face value.
Changing of the Seasons: A once cherished tradition or yearly event no longer holds the same joy for your character. As they grapple with the reasons behind this change in sentiment, they come to understand deeper shifts in their values, relationships, and personal growth.
Unexpected Guardian Angel: Your character is going through a particularly tough phase when they notice someone always seems to be looking out for them in subtle ways – leaving helpful notes, intervening at the right moment, or offering silent support. The revelation of this guardian angel’s identity prompts them to reassess the bonds they share with those around them.
Legacy of a Stranger: Your character is inexplicably left something in a will by a complete stranger. Determined to understand why, they delve into the life and history of the deceased, only to discover intersections and parallels with their own life that they’d never anticipated.
Life in a Day: Encountering an old camera or smartphone, your character discovers a series of photos or videos capturing a single day in their past. Reliving that day, moment by moment, they come to recognize small, seemingly insignificant decisions and interactions that profoundly impacted the course of their life.
The Shadowed Past: A startling news story brings an individual from your character’s past back into the spotlight. This person played a dark, secretive role in their younger years. How does your character handle the resurgence of these memories and the emotions associated with them? What choices are they compelled to make now?
Silent Melodies: Your character begins to hear music that no one else can—a soundtrack to their life that plays during moments of significance. How do they interpret these melodies? Do they search for their source, or use the music as a guide in making pivotal decisions?
The Unopened Door: For years, your character has passed by a certain door in their town or city, always curious but never entering. One day, they finally muster the courage to step inside. What they discover transforms their understanding of a foundational aspect of their life.
Role Reversal: Due to an unexpected turn of events, your character finds themselves in the shoes of someone they’ve judged or misunderstood. Through living this person’s life, they confront their own prejudices and misconceptions, forging a deeper understanding of empathy.
Chronicle of Dreams: Every night, your character has vivid, interconnected dreams that seem to hint at a larger narrative or message. As they begin to document and interpret these dreams, the boundary between their dream world and reality starts to blur.
Twin Lives: Your character encounters someone who has lived an eerily parallel life, with strikingly similar events, joys, and tragedies, but with different choices made at key moments. This mirror into an alternate version of their life forces them to reflect deeply on fate, free will, and the nature of decision-making.
The Unintended Gift: A mistaken delivery brings an unexpected item to your character’s doorstep. Initially seeing it as a nuisance, they eventually realize its significance and the intricate ways it’s tied to their past, present, and future.
Echoes of a Forgotten Friendship: A long-forgotten childhood friend reaches out, reigniting memories your character had buried. Their renewed connection unravels threads of mystery, joy, pain, and lessons that reshape how your character perceives their formative years.
Fleeting Reflection: Every time your character looks into a mirror, they see a fleeting image of themselves from a different age—sometimes younger, sometimes older. These brief glimpses force them to grapple with their past regrets and future anxieties, ultimately shaping their present choices.
Unspoken Confession: An old friend hands your character a sealed envelope and makes them promise not to open it until a specific event or time. The weight of the unopened confession affects their relationship and daily life, driving them to confront the power of anticipation and the value of patience.
Mysterious Benefactor: Someone starts leaving your character cryptic notes, each one guiding them to perform kind actions in unexpected places. Following these directives leads them to a transformative journey of self-awareness, as they discover the profound impact of unseen good deeds.
A Day Without Shadows: Your character wakes up to find that, for some unexplained reason, they no longer cast a shadow. This strange phenomenon makes them question their existence and place in the world, leading to introspection about identity and the concept of the ‘soul’.
The Book of Possibilities: In an old bookstore, your character stumbles upon a unique book detailing events from their life, but with various outcomes based on different choices. As they read, they are faced with the profound realization of the many paths their life could have taken.
Lost and Found: An item your character lost many years ago suddenly reappears in a place they least expect. The return of this item not only revives memories but also introduces them to someone pivotal, altering the trajectory of their life.
Silent Observers: Statues around the city begin “whispering” to your character, revealing secrets and offering advice. Through these unexpected conversations, your character learns about hidden facets of their community and undergoes personal growth in understanding and compassion.
Stolen Identity: Someone starts living a parallel life, taking on your character’s identity. Instead of confronting the imposter, your character chooses to observe from a distance, learning about themselves from this outsider’s perspective and the ways in which others perceive them.
