Favorite questions that help to develop character in regards to story and plot:

1. What is your character’s controlling belief?2. What is your character’s biggest fear?3. What is your character’s great weakness?4. What does your character need?5. Who is your character hurting at the opening of the story?6. What is your character’s moral need (this will relate to who they are hurting)?7. What is the crisis or problem your character is in at the opening of the story (before

the inciting incident or any other events occur)?8. What is the “ghost,” wound, or hole in your character’s heart? (Something that

happened in the past that affects their actions today and may or may not be related to their weakness/fear).

9. What is your character’s obsession? Why are they obsessed with it?10. What is your character’s external goal?11. What is your character’s self revelation? What do they learn at the end of the story?12. What does your character believe or think they know at the opening of the story?13. How is your character wrong about what they believe at the opening of the story?14. How does the story world reflect your character’s needs, desires, fears, or challenge

their weaknesses?15. What is your character’s Inciting Incident? (This is an event that connects need and

desire, and jump starts the hero out of paralysis and into action). What would cause them to act?

16. Who are your character’s allies? And what do those characters want for themselves?17. Who are your character’s opponents? Who wants to stop the hero from getting what he

wants and why? What does the opponent want? Is he/she competing for the same thing?

18. What are the opponent’s values and how do they differ from the hero’s?

Favorite questions that help to get to the heart of your character:

1. How does your character relate to other human beings? Why?2. What’s his/her relationship with their family (mom, dad, siblings), friends, co-

workers?3. What/who does your character love? Why?4. What/who does your character hate? Why?5. What does your character view as his/her greatest failure?6. What does your character view as his/her greatest success?7. In what way does your character feel the world has wronged them?8. What’s your character’s greatest strength? And weakness?9. Who does your character think they are better than?10. Who/what do they think they will never live up to?11. What traits does your character value/respect in others?12. What causes your character shame?13. Who does your character trust?14. What are your character’s religious and political views? And what affect do they have

on their actions/way of life?15. If your character could change one thing about themself, what would it be?16. What does your character lie about when they meet other people?17. What’s your character’s motto?