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

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

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

“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.”

Why would an older small breed dog become obsessive about hygiene?

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

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

“Exactly.”

I was awaken between 2-3am by a voice that said “Hey”. Literally right next to my ear. Sounded like a males voice, but it wasn’t stern or deep. What could this mean?

“Tart!”

“No way.”

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

Delta Force selection is originally based on SAS selection, so why is there no brutal jungle phase for Delta Force? It seems like it's based only on the Brecon Beacons section.

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

“Cute girls?”

“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.”

Is it appropriate for parents to discipline their child in public if the child is being rude, disrespectful, and unruly towards them? Why or why not?

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.

“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?”

“Claire! Why are you still up?”

What are the types of values?

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

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

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

Has Great Britain ever been considered a "hyper-power" like the United States or Russia are currently considered? If not, why?

“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.”

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

Do that and you can ground your characters quite quickly.

Why does my best friend call me ugly and act like she’s joking, but today she looked at me and said “I wouldn’t lie to you”? What should I say back to her?

“But they’re cold!”

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.

“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—”

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Essentially, what you do is show the character:

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?”

“You need some tea!”

Sometime ago, the Iranian Minister said that a US Navy aircraft carrier would be an easy target for 300 speed boats armed with Katyusha rocket launchers. Is this true?

“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 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.”

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?”

What happened to the American Russell Bentley from Texas that was fighting for the pro-Russian commies?

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

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

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

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“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.”

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

“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.

What are the core beliefs of liberalism and conservatism? Can you provide a list of defining characteristics for each side?

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?”

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

“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—”

“I’ll put the kettle on.”

“I need to do laundry.”

“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, I—”

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

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

Create a context between this character and other characters.

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

“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.”

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

“Perv.”

“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.”

“Nary a cute boy in sight.”

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

“It’s not looking at you.”

“Exactly.”

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

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