I'm keeping this short and simple because i absolutely suck at teaching basics lmao.

In order to actually make a three dimensional character, I want you to do something.

Get a journal, or use whatever writing app you have. Title it "CHARACTERS" and follow my guidelines throughout this entire section. And when we're done with this personality section, tell me if I was actually helpful uwu

: :

(This is not the only way to make a character, it's just the best way for me.)

I'm sure before stumbling across this book, you already had a basic idea of who your character is, but if it's vague, then I can help you flesh that character out a little more.

1). Give them traits, but not "one word" traits.

"One word" traits are basically the reason why some of the naruto characters are kinda poorly written. It's because they have a trait, but that's all there is to it.

That's not how you give traits.

Everyone has a trait, and every trait has a REASON and DEGREE to it.

By Reason, I mean that traits have a bit of backstory behind them, usually forged from childhood. And by Degree, I mean that not everyone is the extreme version of a trait, they have limits.

Let's say we have a character called "Ami". Ami's trait is Happy. But what is the reason behind her being so happy?

Maybe it's because she never experienced hardship, or that she experienced hardship and smiling is her coping mechanism.

And she's HAPPIEST whenever she's around her family. But sometimes, she BREAKS DOWN by herself.

We have given DEGREES to her happiness (when she's at the peak of her joy, and when she's at rock bottom).

If we just stopped at "Happy" we would've ended up with some version of a shounen main character (which is bad, so bad).

Now I'm going to give Ami more traits. Bc one trait just isn't enough to make a person.

Ami is happy, she is also smart.

Why is she smart? Because she studies a lot, to gain praises from others because she likes positive attention. (REASON)

She's best at reading codes and seals, but is not very street smart. (DEGREE)

Ami is happy and smart; she is also a coward. Why? Because she's heard of shinobi deaths, and everyone keeps telling her that she's in it to die, so she's afraid of dying and will prioritize her life over other things. (REASON)

Her cowardice shows the most when she's fighting a stronger enemy, but she feels very safe when she's fighting weaker enemies with her teammates. (DEGREE)

now try it for your character!

2). Give her traits POSITIVE and NEGATIVE sides.

I guess it's because i believe there's always more than one way to see things, so instead of giving positive and negative traits, i give positive and negative SIDES to those traits. Because truly, every personality trait has it's pros, and cons.

Back to Ami.

Ami is Happy.

POSITIVE : She makes others happy with her happiness. She rarely gets upset. She appreciates things, especially her family.

NEGATIVE : She tries to hide her sadness from others and herself. She bottles pain up. She can come off as "ditzy" or "naive" to other shinobi. When she breaks down, she breaks down hard.

Ami is Smart.

POSITIVE : She can solve problems easily. She earns praises and her high scores will give her a name.

NEGATIVE : She's not street smart (can't solve problems in unconventional situations). She can get frustrated when she gets a question wrong.

Ami is a coward.

POSITIVE : she is not "self sacrificing" so she'll think of another way out before giving up her life. She values herself. She knows when to back down from a fight and run away

NEGATIVE : she might put her teammates at risk before her. She won't take any risks. She won't fight or speak up if she knows she's going to get hurt.

now try it for your character!

3). GIVE YOUR CHARACTER THEIR OWN WAY OF EXPRESSING EMOTIONS

we all emote differently. If I'm mad, I like to leave the room and punch walls then cry, and if I can't leave the room i might end up yelling. Someone else may like to punch others. Some may not even show their feelings at all.

The way they express themselves depends on the why. Is it because of their personality? Their backstory? Did someone tell them to express themselves that way? Did they learn it from anyone?

Back to Ami!

When Ami's happy, she hums in response, does eccentric kawaii poses when she talks, and smiles widely. This is because she comes from a very eccentric home.

When Ami's sad, she likes to seclude herself from others so they won't see her like that. She tries to pysch herself back up by giving herself a pep talk, but if it doesn't work she ends up crying.

When Ami's angry, she likes to confront the source of her anger and tell them what she thinks–unless the person's a higher authority that can hurt her. If so she bites her tongue and fumes silently.

When Ami's scared, she gets a bit irrational in her thoughts but tries to calm herself down. If the situation is really bad, then she starts crying and pleading for her life.

When Ami's jealous, she gets all jittery and becomes a bit hostile, but ends up apologising in the end out of shame.

that's just basically how it goes. Pick an emotion, and try to think of how your character would portray it :)

Now try it for your character!

4). PUT THEM IN A SITUATION AND SEE HOW THEY REACT

Sometimes, some parts of us don't show until the situation brings it out of us. That's why for every situation you experience with a person, you see a whole new side of them you've never seen before.

I'll give a plethora of situations. Think of how your character would react, and don't be afraid to be OOC! Sometimes, when the situation is dire, we react completely different than how we normally are.

The seven mist swordsmen surround your oc. There's no way out, and it looks like they want to kill your oc. How does your oc react?

A person just confessed their feelings for your oc. How do they react?

Your oc just heard the news of the death of an important figure in their village. How do they react?

Your oc just got slapped by someone of high authority. How do they react?

Your oc was walking down the street and sees a woman getting sexually assaulted in an alleyway. How do they react?

Your oc just learnt about sex. How do they react?

Your oc has been told they're going on an A Rank mission, one that they're likely not going to come back from alive. How do they react?

Your oc just learnt about the truth behind the Uchiha massacre. How do they react?

Your oc just smelt a wet fart. How do they react?

Your oc just figured out they love someone. How do they react?