What Batzulger said. Excellent starting point if you don't have other information immediately at hand (and in fan writing you usually do, but let's set that aside). What you do after that point is you start to internalize the character by understanding who they are and projecting what they might do in different situations. Some of this is stuff like the classic "coffee, tea or orange juice at breakfast?" question. Some of it will be deeper -- moral or ethical choices. Some will be history -- who were they before the story started?
Some of this will happen at the time you create the character. Some of this will happen as you write them. Eventually, you will know the character to the point that you don't have to stop and think about the next thing they'll say while you're writing -- they just say it as you type. Once you're at that stage, they will start to surprise you by saying something you didn't expect. This is really your subconscious mind "animating" them for you while you handle the foreground writing tasks, but it can be spooky the first time it occurs, and you will feel like the story just took over and was writing itself for a while. But it's the greatest thing when it happens, because that's when your characters start being people on their own.
Does that help?
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
Some of this will happen at the time you create the character. Some of this will happen as you write them. Eventually, you will know the character to the point that you don't have to stop and think about the next thing they'll say while you're writing -- they just say it as you type. Once you're at that stage, they will start to surprise you by saying something you didn't expect. This is really your subconscious mind "animating" them for you while you handle the foreground writing tasks, but it can be spooky the first time it occurs, and you will feel like the story just took over and was writing itself for a while. But it's the greatest thing when it happens, because that's when your characters start being people on their own.
Does that help?
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.