Thanks, Jenny! That's the 64 million dollar question, right? Or, as we say in the South, "How much salt should we put in our gumbo?" Everyone has their own "perfect" amount. But we all know that it needs at least some salt. So, to some degree, it depends on the audience preference. Some genres need a lot of life in their characters, others not so much.

Anyway -- we can debate this for the rest of time and never come up with a "perfect" amount. LOL!
Thanks for the comment!

Love it!

Thanks, Denise!

That is so beautifully said. Thank you for sharing this with us Sarah.

They do have minds of their own, don't they? I don't think that we need to take each character and go through a checklist of each aspect. It's more when we can't make them talk to us. I find that, when I'm stuck, some of these things can kick start a conversation. But that's not necessary if your characters are forthcoming and tell you what's going on. LOL!
Thanks!
Thanks!

I'm so glad to be of help, Sally! These concepts changed the way I write. Hopefully, they will help others.
Thanks!!

I don't feel as though I create my protagonists. They seem to arise on their own and then fully form throughout the body of the story. On occasion they are a tad insistent.

Great piece. It's a keeper!

That's the best way to create protagonists, Debbie. We let them into our space, let them tell us who they are, and ask hard questions. They should evolve over the course of a story and we may not have a clue what they want until four or five chapters in. Or, really, we may not know until the end. But then we get to go backwards -- to start at the beginning again, with our new knowledge of who they are, and edit to make them real.
In so many words, we don't have to have "perfectly flawed" characters when we start. It's okay to come to know them as we go.
One more point in a very long comment (sorry!). When I first meet someone (a real person), I don't want to know everything about them. I want to know enough to decide if they are going to be a friend, for instance, but the deep part of them doesn't come until we trust each other enough to express it. Right? Characters are the same way. Readers don't need vast descriptions or specific details. We want something that makes us want to read more. So, a dump of information instead of some mystery usually doesn't entice a reader. Not saying you're doing that, of course, just that not knowing from the beginning is NOT a bad thing.
Whew! I'm done now. 🙂 Hope this makes sense.