: Re: How do you make a realistic character? Ok, so I feel like my character is too perfect. I try to make her have flaws but it's not working so well. I reread my story so far and I found

@Berryessa137

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One: the most common mistake is to confuse personality flaws for character flaws. Personality flaws are superficial e.g talks loudly on phone or chews with an open mouth. Character flaws need to be deeper and meaningful. Is your character torn between moving away to another state for her career and taking care of her ill mother who can't travel with her? Then in due course of the story the character might find out that she would rather move to the new state and focus on her career but can't, not because she cares for her mother but in fact doesn't want her mother to leave all her property for her younger sibling.

But it's up to you to not make the reader hate her despite such an awful way of thinking.

Two: the flaws don't have to be force-fed to the reader. They need to be organic and not feel unnecessary. If they feel cheesy and forced then maybe they need not be mentioned at all.

Three: the flaws are flaws. They are there. Hidden or visible. It's the writing that makes them known. Is it necessary to list each and every flaw in the first chapter? Maybe not. Reveal slowly.

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