I hope this is in the right section, since this isn't actually a "tutorial" as much as a group advice (almost to the extent of a discussion) thread. I want to get as much input from others as I can, as well as adding my own strategies for character creation.
Here is my strategy for creating new characters:
I like to start by listening to music. Whatever music you listen to should be fine, but more concrete lyrics are going to be easier to work with, whereas more abstract music will allow you to make your character more unique.
Examples:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WzV3x9vGmGw (really concerete)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TL_hkg7txv4 (really abstract)
As you can see with these two examples, one is not necassarily better than the other. Personally, I like to work my way from one extreme to the other. If coming up with a personality is difficult for you already, you might one to start out with more concrete music. Stuff that has lyrics, and a very direct storyline. Then maybe try replacing ideas with things that are analogous.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RATEoDH9WiYNow, in this case, obviously there is no "law" for the character to break. Or is there......? When we think of "law," we think of regulations based on basic morality (like, don't kill people) that are written down by a powerful and inescapable government authority. However, wolves have something like this with alphas. However, every whim of the alpha is a law. Building upon this analogy, clearly this character has had "promises broken," particularly one about a "golden future." From this, we can derive about a character (who we may as well call Darrel =P) who has revolted against his alpha and his pack. He believes that his alpha has mislead him or is incapable of being a good leader. He stands by his decision, and has suffered greatly.
So, as you can tell with the above example, the basic system from here on out is analyze all of the aspects of the song, remember how that song makes you feel, and play it out.
Here are examples 1 and 2 as I would play them:
Example 1: Obviously, a victim of serious bullying. With the opening verse, it is clear that your character is regularly singled out for persecution. By using the word "freak" in the song, this implies that it is likely because your character is different, so I like to play on Jack London's wolf-dog rivalry. "When his sight goes read again..." this implies that you should have one particular bully that is/was particularly cruel, especially under certain circumstances. So far, this is lining up to be quite a bit like Jack London's
White Fang, who's bully was Lip-Lip. Though it was White Fang who was driven mad by laughter, to keep it accurate to the song (which is completely unnecessary, but I will just do so for this example) we will say that it was Lip-Lip who was driven mad by laughter. The rest is fairly obvious, or at least you get the idea.
Example 2: This song has a good amount of energy in the beginning, but also a sense of patience, much like a predator preparing for the perfect hunt. It is highly focused, so for magic users, perhaps your character is psychic. It is also very persistant, as indicated by numerous repetitions. This character probably enjoys long distance running and exploration.
From this point on, we get more artistic freedom. What would likely cause a character to have these attributes, and how would such a character deal with conflict? Well, as mentioned, this character would be rather persistent, so backing off would probably be a last resort. Yet, the song does not have a particularly stubborn or combative sound, which implies that the character could be like a mental ninja: using manipulation to consistantly get what he/she wants. By being able to consistantly get what he/she wants, this character would likely be an alpha, though one that does not need to fight often. This implies that the character has excellent leadership. If this is the way that this character has always been, than his/her sibling may/may not have caught on to his/her strategies. I am getting kindof tired of saying "his/her," so let's say this character is a male. How would siblings react to such behavior? Did they resent being manipulated, or did they see it as a form of politeness? Neither is the right answer (and, in fact, you are only using the song as an inspiration, so there is no right answer to any of these questions.). Anway, continue to think in cause/effect terms until you have most of the character worked out. After that, situations will force you to develop your character more.
So, any other strategies that people here use to help them develop characters?
