I missed replying again last evening - my apologies.
You might want to start with situations where there are a limited number of possible actions, and think through what each character would do. Start small and work your way up to the more nuanced actions of real life.
Example #1: The character is at an intersection and wants to cross the street. The light is red. There's no traffic. Does the character wait for the light to change?
Mr. Law-abiding waits. There's a law against jaywalking, after all.
Mr. I'm-in-a-hurry doesn't wait. He's in a hurry.
Mr. Doesn't-want-to-stand-out does whatever everyone else is doing. He wants to blend in.
Mr. Nonconformist does whatever nobody else is doing. He wants to be different.
Mr. Oblivious doesn't wait. He doesn't even notice the light.
Mr. Afraid-of-cars waits. There might not be any cars now, but...
What does your character do, and why? Your character probably has some defining personality trait that applies here. If not, make one up and add it to the character's personality.
Once you've figured out how they handle the simple situations, work your way up to more complex situations. Don't worry about complex situations to begin with - get the characters figured out first, and going through the simple situations will help you figure out the characters.
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."
- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012
You might want to start with situations where there are a limited number of possible actions, and think through what each character would do. Start small and work your way up to the more nuanced actions of real life.
Example #1: The character is at an intersection and wants to cross the street. The light is red. There's no traffic. Does the character wait for the light to change?
Mr. Law-abiding waits. There's a law against jaywalking, after all.
Mr. I'm-in-a-hurry doesn't wait. He's in a hurry.
Mr. Doesn't-want-to-stand-out does whatever everyone else is doing. He wants to blend in.
Mr. Nonconformist does whatever nobody else is doing. He wants to be different.
Mr. Oblivious doesn't wait. He doesn't even notice the light.
Mr. Afraid-of-cars waits. There might not be any cars now, but...
What does your character do, and why? Your character probably has some defining personality trait that applies here. If not, make one up and add it to the character's personality.
Once you've figured out how they handle the simple situations, work your way up to more complex situations. Don't worry about complex situations to begin with - get the characters figured out first, and going through the simple situations will help you figure out the characters.
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."
- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012