Since characters are the main crux of any story it is fundamental that they are as memorable as possible. After all, you want your readers to fall in love with them, fight for them or just plain hate them. Whatever your intention, make sure they are with them for the whole journey. If a reader can’t engage with a character, then no matter how amazing and clever your plot is or how skillful you are as a writer, you’ve dropped a clanger and your audience is lost.

So, how do you make your characters memorable? Well, one way is to give them a ‘signature’, one that denotes a part of who they are in relation to your story.

When we first meet a person in ‘real life’ the first thing we notice is their physical appearance; then their facial features; the way they dress; voice and perhaps their behaviour: we then make a mental note and file it away accordingly.

And in stories, the best way to create a relationship between reader and character is to do just that, replicating ‘the real world’.

This is particularly effective when introducing a minor character; especially when ‘Mr Minor’ only makes fleeting appearances. When he does, because we have established him, (and embellished, if need be), we remember out first thoughts, allowing us to reconnect with the character. Without this, there is a possibility you may leave the reader wondering ‘who?’, ‘and why’s he relevant?’, and worse still, having them flick back to where ‘Mr Minor’ makes his first appearance so they can make sense of the plot. You won’t get any fans there!

So, how do we give our characters a ‘signature’? Well, here a few pointers:

1. A BODY SHAPE INDICATIVE OF HIS/HER PERSONALITY
Be creative! Let your words show your character’s personality. Most readers are unlikely to remember a person who is simply tall, short, fat or thin, but they would remember something more elaborate, like: ‘he scampered into the room like a tiny mouse searching out the sniff of cheese’. You can remind your readers of these characteristics when he/she/it reappears in your plot with variations of that ‘signature’. E.g: he nibbled on a small piece of bread’.

2. A FACIAL QUIRK
Perhaps your character has a squint or tic or flicks their eyelashes a lot. Each time you use this character, mention it, reinforce it.

3. DRESS SENSE
In general, clothes are a way of showing how we identify with the world.
Goths with their dark clothes and punks with their elaborate hairstyles are indicative of this.

In a story, this is an excellent way of giving the reader an insight into
the character’s mentality/life situation. For example: her skirt was shabby and stained with the remnants of yesterday’s food. (The reader would make an association and perhaps, depending on the context, think the character is sloppy, careless, sullen or maybe even poverty stricken.)

If this character appears later, we only need to reference someone wearing bedraggled, dirt ridden clothing to identify them.

4. SPEECH
Give your character some oddity of speech. Teenagers are naturally creative with the English language. For example, ‘Hey, chillax will you!’
(a combination of chill and relax). How about a distinctive expression, ‘Elementary, my dear Watson,’ as spoken by Sherlock Holmes (although the words were never actually uttered in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s books). Or perhaps your character repeats a word or expression at the beginning of a sentence. I once gave a minor character of mine the catchphrase, ‘...and I turned around and said...’ whenever she was in gossip mode. Just a whiff of that phrase and you knew what was coming next.

And lastly,

5. ODD BEHAVIOUR
What type of behaviour could you use to show a part of your character’s personality? It could a mannerism or perhaps indicate a cultural influence. What if they chewed their hair, or covered their mouth while speaking? Or how about them singing, loudly and out of tune? Whatever they do, make
it reflect their true identity.

So, to conclude, ‘signatures’ are a sure way of getting your reader to remember your characters well; even love them for their quirkiness, but beware, too many and they could have the opposite effect! It’s not a good idea to use all five for one character, overkill can kill your character.

But above all have fun! You might even discover something interesting about yourself while you’re at it!