It’s been a psychology-heavy year on the nonfiction side of my editorial and coaching practice. I’ve been studying a lot of attachment theory and relational healing and reparenting processes and therapeutic approaches for various projects, and while my formal psychology training ended with AP Psych in high school, I’ve really enjoyed learning more about how people work and what informs the ways we move through the world and relate to one another.
And now, I’m spending the month of October working with The Inkwell to dive deep into how we can use psychology as a foundation from which to build our fictional characters.
One belief I’ve always held about compelling characters is that, even though readers may not agree with the choices they make it’s important to be able to track why they made those choices. That makes them relatable, even if they’re not likeable.
This, I think, is where a lot of the psychology I’ve been studying comese in. When you look at your characters through the lens of why they are the way they are, why they believe what they believe, and how they came to be the people they are today, then their actions become inevitable extensions of who they are. As a writer, it gets easier to understand how they would respond to the situations you create for them; and for readers, it’s easier to lean in, because they can feel the characters’ authenticity.
Interested in a psychological approach to fictional character development? Here’s a simple framework you can use, including five psychological “ins” to your characters, with reflective questions and mini-exercises you can use to start bringing them to life.
1. Formative Wounds & Core Memories
What happened to your character early in life that still echoes today? It might be a betrayal, a sudden loss, constant pressure, or even a lack of something (like affection or safety).
Ask: What’s one hurt or defining experience from childhood or adolescence?
Ask: How does this shape your character’s current worldview?
Try this exercise: Write your character’s earliest memory of betrayal or loss.
Note: Core memories can also be positive, of course. Flip this exercise to explore the positive early life events that were formative in cementing your character’s belief system or world view.
2. Attachment Style
Psychologists describe four major attachment styles: secure, anxious, avoidant, and anxious-avoidant. (Here is a great overview of attachment theory and the four styles.) Your character’s attachment style will shape how they respond to closeness and conflict in relationships and with the world around them.
Ask: Which attachment style best fits my character?
Ask: How does this show up in their relationships?
Try this exercise: Draft a scene in which your character’s attachment style surfaces during a vulnerable or high-stakes moment.
3. Defense Mechanisms
We all develop ways to protect ourselves from emotional pain. Humor, perfectionism, anger, overachievement, sarcasm, risky behavior, and denial are some of the strategies your character might use to deflect discomfort.
Ask: What defenses does my character use most often?
Ask: How do these defenses help them? How do they hurt them?
Try this exercise: Write a scene in which your character uses their defense mechanism instead of admitting what they truly feel.
4. Core Fears & Desires
Every character has something they want most—and something they fear most. The tension between the two can drive an entire story, especially if going after the thing they want puts them in danger of facing that fear.
Ask: What does my character want more than anything?
Ask: What are they most afraid of?
Ask: Where do those two things contradict each other?
Try this exercise: Write a journal entry from your character’s perspective in which she confesses to what she wants most and admits to her greatest fears. (Inspiration from Hamilton, Elphaba, Hercules, and others.)
5. Limiting Beliefs
Limiting beliefs are the “truths” your character believes about themselves or the world that hold them back. For example: “I’m unlovable.” “If I’m not perfect, I’ll be abandoned.” “Love makes you weak.” They’re often invisible to the character but glaringly obvious to the reader.
Ask: What false belief does my character carry?
Ask: How does this belief impact their choices?
Try this exercise: Write a scene where another character accidentally exposes your protagonist’s limiting belief.
Hint: These limiting beliefs are often planted and nurtured in the moments those formative wounds and core memories are made. Use one to influence the other.
Pulling It All Together
When you explore a character through each of these five lenses, you end up with more than just a list of traits and mannerisms; you get a psychological profile that explains how your character thinks, feels, and acts—and makes your novel so much more immersive as a result.
Bonus exercise: Try creating profiels for two characters who interact often (love interests, business partners, friends, etc.). Where do their fears or beliefs clash? Where do their defense mechanisms rub against each other? That’s where your biggest conflict lives.
Want More?
This month inside The Inkwell, my private community for novelists, we’re going deeper into psychology and character work with guided exercises, member-only prompts, and space to workshop your characters with other writers.
If you’re ready to explore your characters’ inner worlds—and want some community support while you do—come join us!