When writing a novel, how can a character be developed well, but QUICKLY?

“Claire! Why are you still up?”

“I’m just a fan of your catch and release program.”

“I know! That’s why I’m putting them under you!”

Why do nearly all of the answers on Quora have “read more” and when I click on it, I get a virus warning every time? Has anyone else had this happen?

Claire sat back down, legs tucked elegantly beneath her. “You are looking a bit sloppy,” she said, inspecting May through narrowed eyes.

“Fine.” May collapsed into the warm spot Claire had just vacated.

“I’ll put the kettle on.”

Can you explain the difference between “mi piace” and “mi piacciono” in Italian?

“Claire, I—”

“I need to do laundry.”

“Hang on, are they playing ping-pong?”

What are your thoughts on RM's new album "Right Place, Wrong Person"?

“None of those either. Look upon the wasteland that is my sex life, and see that it is barren. Naught but a moggie followed me home.”

Essentially, what you do is show the character:

“I’m glad my sex life is so entertaining.”

Is the Philippines PH a poor 3rd world or 4th world country forever and forever?

“About wearing more clothes? How am I supposed to catch any fish if I don’t show off the bait?”

“Nope, I mean a cat followed me home. A black cat, to be exact. All the way from the club. Probably still out there, for all I know.”

“No way.”

When gallery photos are deleted at the same time, why are Google photos also deleted?

“Well, maybe if you didn’t spend all day reading—” May prodded the book with its garishly-coloured cover with her foot. “Bizarre comic book porn…”

Claire, one of May’s three flatmates, former university roommate, and best friend in all the world, shrugged expansively. “It’s a Saturday night. What else would I be doing?”

“So you didn’t meet any cute boys at the club tonight?” Claire called as she bustled about the small kitchen.

Beautiful European women were killed by inquisition but Russia was not Catholic. Is this the reason for a drastic difference explaining why Russian women are the prettiest?

Engaging in conversation that also shows something about their intelligence, personality, wit (or lack thereof); and

“Yep!” Claire chirped. “There’s this schoolboy, see, and he’s homeless, so he lives in this boarding house that used to be a hot springs bathhouse, which is cheap because it’s haunted, so he decides—”

“May! You’re home late! Early, I mean. Well, I mean, it’s early in the morning, but you’re home before I expected. Er, after. Before?”

Why do some people feel down in summer, specifically in July and August? What could be the reasons behind this feeling of sadness during those months only?

“I don’t know. Partying. Going to a pub. Anything besides sitting on the couch reading…” She squinted. “What the hell are you reading?”

“But they’re cold!”

“Exactly.”

How will Israelis respond to someone claiming that anti-Zionism is not anti-Semitism, in the same way as anti-feminism not being misogyny and opposing same-sex marriage not being homophobia?

“Perv.”

“Damn straight. So get to it! This time next week, I want to hear some moans coming through that wall.”

“Why is that always your first suggestion? I do not need some tea. It’s three o’clock in the morning! If I have tea, I’ll never get to sleep.”

This is a real question: Why do a lot of men/boys hate (yes, hate) women that voice their criteria in choosing a partner? Even when the criteria is sane and responsible. Besides it being, sadly, an effective mating strategy, why does it exist?

Do that and you can ground your characters quite quickly.

In the kitchen, Claire set out a battered pair of mugs: May’s black, with “PEBKAC: Problem Exists Between Keyboard and Chair” in white letters; Claire’s white, with “This must be Thursday. I never could get the hang of Thursdays” in dark blue. She carried both mugs into the living room. “A moggie followed you home? Is this some weird Internet slang I’m not current on?”

“They are! He broke the rules of the boarding house by petting this character while she was in cat form, so they invoke the ancient rules of single combat via ping-pong, and—”

Do narcissists love their children?

“Thanks. You’re looking pretty ratty yourself. Have you been in that bathrobe all day?”

“From the look of you, if you try to sleep now, you’ll spend the next three hours hanging onto your bed trying to stop the world spinning. Since you’re not going to sleep anyway, you might as well keep me company.”

They both burst out laughing. “I’m right, though,” Claire went on.

How do people develop stage 4 cancer without noticing until it’s too late?

“It’s not looking at you.”

“No, about the cat. You don’t need a cat. You remember what happened to your spider plant, right?”

“Exactly.”

What was your worst experience while living with roommates?

“I try not to, but thank you for reminding me. I know I don’t need a cat. I don’t want a cat. What would I do with a cat?”

“Yuuna and the Haunted Hot Springs!” Claire turned the book around.

“You don’t need a cat. You can’t take care of a cat. You can’t take care of a ficus.” Claire flopped on the other side of the sofa and wriggled her feet beneath May.

“Number one, it’s not porn, it’s ecchi, and number two, why would I waste a perfectly good Saturday doing anything else?” Claire pulled at her tea and sighed. “The only thing that could make this day better is if you'd come home with some cute boy, so that after you kicked him out tomorrow I could live vicariously through you.”

Create a context between this character and other characters.

“You need some tea!”

“It’s a cat. All cats are weird.” May sipped from her mug, inhaling the warmth. She closed her eyes. The room spun. She opened them again. “Ugh. I think I drank too much.”

May studied the black and white comic panels. “Oh, my. She looks…anatomically implausible. What is she doing to that poor man? Wait, are those cat ears?”

“Yes way. It’s washing itself under the street light. Uh-oh, I think it spotted me. It knows I’m watching it. I swear it’s looking at me.”

Here’s how we presented the character Claire when she was introduced, which the agent particularly singled out:

“You know what? Never mind,” May said. “I am way, way too drunk to be having this conversation.”

May yelped. “Hey! Your feet are cold!”

“Well, maybe if you’d wear more clothes, they wouldn’t feel so cold. Hussy!”

“Tart!”

“Nary a cute boy in sight.”

May pushed Claire’s feet away. Claire rose to peer out the window. “Huh. It’s still there.”

The agent had only one bad thing to say (the synopsis was crap; writing synopses is hard!), but praised the characterization and particularly how well we introduced a character’s personality quickly.

“Cute girls?”

“I’m serious!” Claire said. “It’s staring straight at me.” She let the curtain fall. “Weird.”

After Eunice and I finished London Under Veil, I entered the first chapter in a contest at a convention where you could submit something and have it critiqued by a professional book agent.

Doing something they enjoy, that expresses their personality, and that is in some way unusual or noteworthy;