Landscape Entertainment Forum Making Your Characters... (Cre..

Here is some stuff that I found if your having a problem with making your characters relatable. I don't anyone is having problems with their imaginations running wild, but if you do need some help, here is something i found from a website...

Create a Relatable Character Use Tips and Tricks to Create Character Empathy
Writers can utilize certain actions and traits that cause the reader to like the character or relate to him on a psychological level, without knowing anything else about him, and sometimes even showing him doing unsavory things a few pages later.
Utilize for Both Sympathetic and Empathetic Characters The character does not necessarily have to be “sympathetic” or likable, but a writer wants the reader to at least relate to the character on some level (“empathetic”) and want to continue reading the story. For certain genres such as romance, the character does need to be sympathetic or likable. So also think about the requirements of a novel’s genre or category.
Utilize One or Two Traits to Create Instant Character Appeal Of the following list, a writer only needs to use one or two of them in the first five pages to make the character appealing enough for the reader to continue. These things act on a deeper psychological level to draw the reader to the character.
Victim of an injustice: Many times, a character has some event in his past where he was wronged unfairly or abused. This might have also caused long-term hardships or handicaps, whether physical, financial, or emotional.Abandoned, neglected, or rejected: This especially works with children, but this event in a character’s past can make her likable. Loneliness is an emotion most readers can intensely sympathize with.Kindness: A character performing a kindness to another human being, a child, or an animal, usually creates instant likability. Any action of love in the first five pages will show the reader the character is worth reading about because they have the capacity to love another.Extraordinary abilities: A character with exceptional abilities, whether intellectual, physical, social, or supernatural, naturally appeals to most readers. This also includes a good sense of humor or wit. Showing this ability in the first five pages in a small way will make the character intriguing.Utilize Action and Interaction With Characters or Setting When using any of the above traits, show the trait in action. Try not to “tell” the reader what the character is like. Instead, “show” the reader the character’s trait through her interaction with another character or in how she responds to external events. Utilize the setting of the story to both set the stage and show the character’s empathetic trait to the reader at the same time. Have the character interact with the setting or with events happening within the specific setting. If a novel can show one of these empathetic types of traits to the reader within the first five pages, the reader will be more likely to be intrigued or interested enough to keep reader.

Thanks Johnny, I am also receiving a newsletter from a screenwriter in England. I think anything that could spark the person's imagination is very helpful. I have the gears turning, but want one that says "pick me,pick me" - then I will base and develop the rest. For some reason, a lonely middle aged man perks my interest- a loner with a secret life!