SHORT STORY WRITING
ACTIVITY: CREATING CHARACTERS
Instructions: Let's flesh them out by answering the following questions. Create at least 3-5 characters.
Let's begin!
Reminder: DON'T PICK LONG NAMES
CHARACTER 1
THE BASICS
Character's name: Sky Anson
Role in story: Son of Esther Anson; meets Cerise Garcia
Physical description: Fair skin, short straight black hair, hazel average-sized eyes, standing 5'9" tall,
toned arms, a thin torso with lightly defined muscles, a well-defined waist, and long legs.
Age: 27
Personality Type: earnest, courageous, and calm
INTERNAL: THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT YOUR
CHARACTER
What is his/her greatest fear? — Losing someone very dear to him
Inner motivation: His promises to his mother
Kryptonite: Anything that is color Red
What is his/her misbelief about the world? — Red is the color of unhappiness
The lesson he/she needs to learn: To let go of the tragic memory of his mother
What is the best thing in his/her life? — His mother and his memory with her watching a red balloon
flying towards the Sky on his birthdays
What is the worst thing in his/her life? — Losing his mother
What does he/she most often look down on people for? — Not applicable
What makes his/her heart feel alive? — To buy a balloon, let it go, and watch it flying towards the Sky
What makes him/her feel loved, and who was the last person to make them feel that way? — His
mother used to sing him "You are my Sunshine," reads him bedtime stories, holds his hands, giving him a
sense of assurance
Top three things he/she values most in life? — His mother, flying a balloon, His experiences
EXTERNAL: NOT NECESSARY, BUT GOOD TO KNOW AND SAYS A LOT ABOUT YOUR
CHARACTER
What's his/her favorite book, movie, and band? — "Love is in the air" by Jonathan Fenske, which his
mother used to tell as a bedtime story
Is there an object he/she can't bear to part with, and why? — Seeing red because of the tragic
accident caused his mother to die, he saw his mother's blood scattered on the ground and his favorite red
balloon flying towards the Sky
Describe a typical outfit for him/her from top to bottom. — He usually wears a polo-shirt that paired
with pants that copy the neutral color of his top and white rubber shoes.
What names or nicknames has he/she been called throughout their life? — Sky
What is his/her method of manipulation? — Not applicable
Describe his/her daily routine. — work, going to the grocery store, driving his car, home
Their go-to cure for a bad day? — He buys a balloon with color depending on what he's feeling, let it
go, and watch it flying towards the Sky
CHARACTER GOALS:
How is your character dissatisfied with their life? — He is longing for the warmth of love he last felt
with his mother
What does your character believe will bring them true happiness or contentment? — Someone who
can give love as genuine and warm as his mother's
What definitive step could they take to turn their dream into a reality? — He meets Cerise, who
leads him to learn bear with his fear
How has their fear kept them from taking this action already? — He repeatedly neglects the
emerging feelings towards Cerise
How does your protagonist feel they can accomplish their goal while still steering clear of the thing
they are afraid of? — His irresistible love for Cerise prevails
THE BACKSTORY SCENE THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING
THE SCENE WHERE…
What does your character go into the scene believing, and how are they surprised by the
outcome?
He frequently sees the lady in red Cerise in the memorial park whenever he pays a visit to his deceased
mother. He hates her presence as red brings back the tragic memory he had with his mother. Ironically,
how could he suddenly be fond of her?
How does your character struggle to hold onto their old beliefs?
His emerging feelings towards Cerise always in conflict with his tragic memory of his mother.
What is their conclusion/new belief?
His irresistible adoration towards Cerise leads him to learn to bear with his fear.
CHARACTER 2
THE BASICS
Character's name: Cerise Garcia
Role in story: lady in red who frequently pays a visit to his late fiancée in the memorial park
Physical description: Standing 5' 5" tall, this fair-skinned woman with an intelligent expression. She has
an angular face with a pointed chin, a straight-edged nose, small ears, chubby red cheeks, and red puffy
lips. Her hazelnut eyes are angular, and she has neat eyebrows.
Age: 26
Personality Type: Compassionate, brilliant, independent, and enthusiastic, but far less strongly and often
mixed with a longing for love.
INTERNAL: THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT YOUR
CHARACTER
What is his/her greatest fear? — Be left hanging in the air
Inner motivation: Promises she once planned with her late fiancée
Kryptonite: being in a relationship
What is his/her misbelief about the world? — She would never love someone the way she did with his
late fiancée
Lesson he/she needs to learn: She has to move on and give herself a chance to love again
What is the best thing in his/her life? — Herself and her memories with her late fiancée
What is the worst thing in his/her life? — Losing her fiancée
What does he/she most often look down on people for? — Not applicable
What makes his/her heart feel alive? — Achieving the things they once planned together with her late
fiancée
What makes him/her feel loved, and who was the last person to make them feel that way? — Her
fiancée used to sing her "You are my Sunshine" after her work, makes her the best coffee in the world,
kisses her forehead with adoration and holds her hand that gives her feelings of security and intimacy
Top three things he/she values most in life? — Her engagement ring, plans with her late fiancée, their
memories
EXTERNAL: NOT NECESSARY, BUT GOOD TO KNOW AND SAYS A LOT ABOUT YOUR
CHARACTER
What's his/her favorite book, movie, and band? — The Light We Lost by Jill Santopolo
Is there an object he/she can't bear to part with, and why? — Balloon; it was the main reason of the
car accident which took the life of his fiancée
Describe a typical outfit for him/her from top to bottom. — She normally wears red dress covers her
shoulders halfway and flows down into a graceful v-neck. She wears pumps, which goes hand in hand
with her dress. To top it all off she's wearing a lavish necklace with a diamond ring as a pendant.
What names or nicknames has he/she been called throughout their life? — Red
What is his/her method of manipulation? — Not applicable
Describe his/her daily routine. — work, coffee shop, driving her car round the city, home
Their go-to cure for a bad day? — paying a visit to her late fiancée in the memorial park
CHARACTER GOALS:
How is your character dissatisfied with their life? — She is longing for the warmth of love she last felt
with her late fiancée
What does your character believe will bring them true happiness or contentment? — Someone who
can love her that gives her feelings of security and intimacy
What definitive step could they take to turn their dream into a reality? — Sky gradually breaks down
the walls she built without her even noticing. And when she rebuilt the walls Sky added windows to let
the sunshine in.
How has their fear kept them from taking this action already? — Each time she sees Sky with a
balloon, she walks away as this triggers a traumatic memory of her late fiancée
How does your protagonist feel they can accomplish their goal while still steering clear of the thing
they are afraid of? — Her irresistible love for Sky prevails
THE BACKSTORY SCENE THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING
THE SCENE WHERE…
What does your character go into the scene believing and how are they surprised by the
outcome?
She frequently sees a charismatic man in the memorial park whenever she pays a visit to her late fiancée.
She hates his presence as he always brings a balloon with him and this triggers a traumatic memory of her
late fiancée. Ironically, how could she suddenly be allured by his presence?
How does your character struggle to hold onto their old beliefs?
She always compares Sky of his late fiancée giving her in a quandary state.
What is their conclusion/new belief?
Her irresistible love for Sky breaks the wall she built around her heart ages ago.
CHARACTER 3
THE BASICS
Character's name: Esther Anson
Role in story: deceased mother of Sky Anson
Physical description: She has friendly hazel eyes gleaming with energy and positivity, and her mid-back
length, lank, black hair is un-styled.
Age: 35 (when she died)
Personality Type: Selfless, Stable, Mature, Attentive, Playful, Passionate, and Dedicated
INTERNAL: THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT YOUR
CHARACTER
What is his/her greatest fear? — to leave Sky living all alone
Inner motivation: Her son
Kryptonite: seeing her son unhappy
What is his/her misbelief about the world? — Not Applicable
Lesson he/she needs to learn: Not applicable
What is the best thing in his/her life? — Her son
What is the worst thing in his/her life? — Not applicable
What does he/she most often look down on people for? — Not applicable
What makes his/her heart feel alive? — Seeing her Sky happy
What makes him/her feel loved, and who was the last person to make them feel that way? — Sky is
very attached to her mother, and He would always makes her the best coffee in the world; says how he
loves her frequently
Top three things he/she values most in life? — Her son, work, and her son's happiness
EXTERNAL: NOT NECESSARY, BUT GOOD TO KNOW AND SAYS A LOT ABOUT YOUR
CHARACTER
What's his/her favorite book, movie, and band? — In My Heart by Mackenzie Porter
Is there an object he/she can't bear to part with, and why? — None
Describe a typical outfit for him/her from top to bottom. — She usually wears clean, tacky clothes
that are mostly bright-colored and poorly-fitting, and she wears no jewelry. She wears dull brownishyellow pants and an old penny loafer.
What names or nicknames has he/she been called throughout their life? — Esther
What is his/her method of manipulation? — Not Applicable
Describe his/her daily routine. — wakes up at 4:30 in the morning to cook food for breakfast and
lunch, cleans the house, gives a kiss to her son as she leaves for work, come home at 4 o'clock, cooks for
dinner, read a bedtime story to her son
Their go-to cure for a bad day? — playing around with her son
CHARACTER GOALS:
How is your character dissatisfied with their life? — Not applicable. She is always happy and positive.
What does your character believe will bring them true happiness or contentment? — Just seeing her
son happy
What definitive step could they take to turn their dream into a reality? — Not applicable.
How has their fear kept them from taking this action already? — Not applicable.
How does your protagonist feel they can accomplish their goal while still steering clear of the thing
they are afraid of? — Not applicable.
THE BACKSTORY SCENE THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING
THE SCENE WHERE…
What does your character go into the scene believing, and how are they surprised by the
outcome?
Her son is her life. It is her son's 8th birthday when a car suddenly hits her, leaving Sky all alone with his
life.
How does your character struggle to hold onto their old beliefs?
She used to think she can take care of her son, provides him everything he needs, and grow old together.
What is their conclusion/new belief?
Now that she has departed, she only watches him grow without physical presence.