I have a really hard time describing characters. I was wondering if someone could help me with my descriptors? Normally I'm just like 'Brown hair, blue eyes, bam, done' but I really want to learn how I can let the reader actually visualize the character instead of having a vague idea of what they look like. Any help would be appreciated!
Umm… I'm gonna follow this because I kind of struggle with this too.
This is silly, but try describing friends/family. Get specific on the tiny details. From the scarce freckles on their cheeks, to the flecks of gold in their eyes. Focus on one feature at a time, and write about it.
You said brown hair, and blue eyes? Why not: Deep, stormy blue eyes, with frizzy, carmel-brown colored hair?
That's what I do- and clearly there's gonna be more tips, and tricks. But it's a start.
Thank you! That actually helps a lot.
Try to describe other parts of your characters, just eye and hair color is a sparse description and doesn't give a strong visualization. For example, height and body shape are a big one, it's one of the first things you notice about a person. Also clothes can tell a lot about a character, a character who wears a business suit will give a very different impression than someone who wears a raggedy hoodie. You could also go into facial features, like describing a hooked nose, angular eyes, or chubby cheeks. What about how they present themselves, do they hold their chest up proudly or do they hunch over and try to avoid eye contact? And if you can, try to use the other senses. What does their voice sound like or do they wear a certain perfume? Based on the point of view, maybe write out your narrator's impression of the character. You don't have to and probably shouldn't put all this description into every single character, that would get long winded quickly, just pick out the parts that you think are most important to each character and make them stand out from others.
