Whenever I write a story, there’s almost always a period of time where I sit down to hammer out the details, or what I call the pre-draft work. But when I’m writing a short story, I tend to focus more on plot than character. For me, characters need time to develop, and short stories often don’t have enough real estate to cultivate a fully fleshed out character. This makes character development in short stories a weak point for me.

In this article, I’ll be discussing some of my most common pitfalls when developing a character and how I work through them. I’ll also be developing a character as I go. Her name is Amy. I hope you enjoy her journey through this article.

Pitfall #1: Too Many Feelings

My top reason for reading and loving any story is emotional connection to the characters. I want to relate to them, root for them, cry for them, feel everything right along with them. And when I develop a character, I try to make sure I’m letting the reader experience all the feels.

But, in a short story, there’s not enough time to unpack all those feelings. The emotional tangles blur the focus and take away from the story’s overall impact. Let me introduce you to my character, Amy. She’s a teenager in a contemporary YA story, and here are her feelings:

• Amy feels guilty about her fight with her best friend.
• Amy feels responsible for her father’s disappearance.
• Amy feels annoyed at her mother for getting a new guy so soon after Dad disappeared.
• Amy feels confident because she’s never failed at anything she’s tried.
• Amy feels devastated when she finally does fail.

All very doable if I’m writing a novel, but way too ambitious for a short story. As much as I want to explore Amy’s complex emotions, I don’t have time to develop all these feelings. I have to pick one, two tops. So for Amy’s character development, I will focus on her confidence and self-reliance, and slide into her trashy feelings as the story develops.

Pitfall #2: Vague Objectives

One of the first things beta readers point out to me in a story is the lack of a clear objective. What is my character’s ultimate goal? To which my answer is often, “I don’t really know.” Because I tend to focus on story arcs in the pre-draft session, character arcs often take a backseat. But an engaging storyline can be made or broken by an aimless character. So I’ve got to give Amy a dream. But what do you give a girl who already thinks she has everything? An interesting question. One that sparks a dozen different answers. Brainstorming will help get those answers out and in front of me, but I still have to pick one.

So meet Amy. She’s a confident over-achiever who thinks she needs to be the best at everything. Is it because she secretly struggles with low self-esteem and doesn’t think she has value anywhere else but the top? If I do a good job with her character development, you’ll know by the end of the story.

Pitfall #3: Fuzzy Character Descriptions

Honestly, I don’t care much about character descriptions in a short story. So long as the descriptions aren’t distracting, I think this is okay. But that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t describe my characters at all, and it doesn’t mean I shouldn’t put any thought into what to put in and what to leave out.

It’s difficult to strike a balance. I don’t want to restrict the imagination of my readers, but I do need to provide an outline of some kind. I find that if I engage at least one of the senses, I can achieve this very tricky goal. Amy turns heads with her winning smile, has oaky brown skin, and the softest curls. If I can weave that naturally into the story, bonus points for me.

Pitfall #4: Inconsistencies

Because I often juggle too many character concepts at once, my short stories are full of inconsistencies. Like a character who is shy in one instant and bold in the next. Which isn’t necessarily wrong. Plenty of people act that way in real life. But this manifestation of character is usually unintentional and a byproduct of sloppy writing rather than careful consideration.

So once I know which feelings and goals I’m aiming for, I go back through the story and make sure everything aligns with those things in a logical way. For Amy that means leaving out her sage advice to her team mate to just try her best. It also means she can’t shrug it off when she gets the second highest score in Spanish.

In my article on Plot Development, I gave Amy three challenges, which I will develop further here.

Challenge #1: Complex internal struggles

This is where those feelings come in. Amy is confident and self-reliant, and it’s important to establish this aspect of her character right away, so that I can dive into the “why” of her actions. She feels confident when she succeeds, and conversely, she needs to succeed in order to feel confident. Her home life and relationships are complicated, so she relies on herself. Which means no asking for help. Ever. Which means she can’t allow herself to struggle, or admit that she’s struggling, because that means failure. Which is not an option. Not if she wants to be confident.

Challenge #2: Social biases meant to discourage her from her goal

This is where the underdog theme comes into play. The never-done-before situation. She wants the Valedictorian title, but no other brown girl has ever done it before at her school. And people smile in her face, but she picks up on the undertones. This is the obvious antagonist of the story. I may actually give it a face, or I may leave it abstract.

There’s also pressure on the other end of things. People are counting on her, and she carries the weight of her entire race on her shoulders because of it. So failure, admitting she’s struggling, definitely not an option.

Challenge #3: Poor performances (due in part to 1 and 2) that adversely affect her ability to reach her goal

Finally, the reality of her situation. She puts herself under a lot of pressure. Other people put her under a lot of pressure. And that pressure is bound to cause problems. A lower grade in Spanish class, for example. A poor decision, or a display of bad behavior that may take the opportunity away from her.

As I write the story, I will aim to stick to these challenges, and the way they’re meant to extract Amy’s character for the reader. Having already developed these ideas, it will be easier to pick up on any inconsistencies as I go.

Pitfall #5: Lackluster Endings

Sometimes I’m not sure where to end my story. So I lop it off because I’m hitting my word count, or I ramble on to give some profound thought at the end. Short stories may have simpler plots, but that doesn’t mean they can’t have deep meaning or satisfying endings.

Sometimes I run out of steam, and no ending seems to fit. Rereading my story notes, or character arcs, or coming back to the ending later are usually the best remedies for crafting a satisfactory ending.

I hope you’re enjoying the Crafting A Short Story Series so far. Short stories are a great way to practice craft on a micro level. They are also highly marketable (think literary magazines and writing contests) and easier to get feedback on than full length manuscripts. If you’re crafting a short story, take time to develop your character. It will really pay off in the end and save you a lot of editing headaches down the road. Next up in the series is Piecing It All Together.

That’s my Write or Die Advice. Happy developing.