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Originally Posted by KellyC
What makes this so hard is that I only have one page to write about each type of character. How do I go about doing that?
I thought that if I include more details and show a bit more aspect about a character's life, it would make him more "rounded." That's what I'm trying to go for in scene 1 and scene 2, with the latter being more detailed. But this doesn't seem to be the case.
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You're on the right track. There does not need to be actual conflict in the story to create a well-rounded character. On the other hand, a round character does need to have a more developed personality. My method for accomplishing this is to try to put myself in a character's head. What does Bill do for fun (besides listen to Mariners games)? Does he love his wife? What's his job? Does he have retrement plans? Does he hate hippies?
Is he a hippie? Once you have a complete character mapped out, just write about him as if he were an actual person. Focus on the character, rather than events or surroundings.
It's very possible to flesh out a character in a single page. The literary snob term for what you're writing is a character study. You're not really telling a story so much as describing a person who just happens to not exist (or at least not in the way you're imagining).