How I Create Depth in My Smaller Supporting Characters

I've noticed a trend in my reading. I crave knowing more about supporting characters in a book. When I don't get this—even with an otherwise great book—I feel a bit cheated.

Depth in character personality adds dimension to a story. I don't like filing characters away in my mind as "one of the sisters" or "another court member" and forget their backstory by the time they circle around in the book. This holds especially true in the vast fictional worlds of the Science Fiction and Fantasy (SFF) genre, which is primarily what I read.

Passing characters serve a specific role in a passing moment, where a touch of detail—a name, role, or task—helps create believable world building. Main characters are the foundation of a story and have full development arcs. I touch on how I created my series characters in a prior blog post: Creating My Novel’s Characters, but I'll write about how I create main character personalities in a future blog post.

But smaller supporting characters—who have less screen time yet serve the plot in critical ways—need to be memorable enough that the reader can hopefully more easily recall them when referenced again.

As I write and edit, I think: how can I pack the most punch out of this supporting character?

I use a few different techniques. First, I view each person as having their own backstory, what contributed to their personality and their mannerisms. In my fictional Reign of the North Forest society I also focus on their occupations because, well, these forever-kids need to do something with their lives. Personalities, skills, and even certain physical characteristics may all be a reflection of the work they do. Sometimes I'll intentionally incorporate an opposite trait to surprise the reader.

I'll illustrate with a couple of examples. When Sarah meets Horatio, she ponders a clinical assessment of his crooked nose. This gives depth to both characters. Sarah's judgment is consistent with how a medical professional may perceive their world, which in turn provides perspective into Horatio's character.

Huracan is my "Nutty Professor." He's that quirky character whose scientific mind will wander to his chemistry experiments mid-conversation. This makes for some lighthearted banter, set against an otherwise serious backdrop.

All this is fun for me and hopefully makes for a better reading experience.