Realistic Fiction- Helpful tips to writing it

This is a short tid bit of help for those who struggle with writing realistic fiction. It describes and helps with the creation of realistic characters, problems, and settings.

Realistic fiction. Some people can writer it, others struggle. They key to realistic fiction is making realistic characters and realistic situations, avoiding things that edge too close to exaggerative. A common problem with creating characters is the desire to give them a lot of hardships to struggle through, when really only one or two are needed. A lot of people want their character to have a lot going on, whether its animosity between the character and his/her family, problems fitting in, deaths of close ones, and them being the reason behind someone else dying. These are all good, but they can all be separate plots, for separate stories.

Focus on one problem, and build on it. Give one plot the attention it deserves, and once it is resolved, if it is ever resolved, then move on to another hardship in their life. Don’t give them too much to handle at once, so that it isn’t humanly possible to handle.

Keep the characters average humans. Make their natural hair color be natural. Don’t claim they were born with pink hair, for that isn’t realistic. Give them normal eye colors. You can make a normal person, without taking away from the character.

When creating a setting, pick a place in the world, maybe do some research on it, or if you don’t want a specific setting, then envision a normal town and describe it. This will help create a normal setting.

You may have noticed the word normal is said a lot, and I’m sure a lot of you are thinking, I don’t want my story to be “normal” I want it to be something special, extraordinary even. Well that is still possible, because it is the character’s abnormal personalities that really create the realistic story! They catch the reader, by observing and explaining their thoughts, or just by have their own opinion. The reader tries to relate to the main character, and when they are able to, they look to the way they attempt to resolve the problem and they compare it to how they are trying to handle what they are going through.

Really, a good story lies in the characters. The reader will hate some, love others, cry when one they became close to dies, and relate to them as much as possible. Fully developed characters make the story!

To create a fully developed character, perhaps you could use this skeleton to help:

---Biography---

Character Name:

Physical Appearance-
Gender:
Age:
Height:
Weight:
Hair:
Eyes:
Distinguishing Marks:
Distinguishing Mannerisms:
Describe the character's appearance in a brief paragraph:

Background-
Birth date:
Birthplace:
Ethnic origin:
Family members:

Personality-
In one word:
First impression:
Gets angry at:
Laughs at:
Cries at:
Regrets:
Vulnerability:
Prejudices:
Fears:
Most valued possession (and why):
Pressing need:
Pressing desire:
Other goals:
Responsibilities:
Sense of humor:
Other positive personality traits:
Other negative personality traits (character flaws):

Other details-
Hobbies:
Skills:
Smells:
Favorite color:
Favorite food:
Favorite beverage:
Favorite music:
Favorite clothing:
Describe this character's home:

What complications arise from this character?

Comments/Notes: