The Ultimate Character Description Template

Making Great Character Descriptions

Character descriptions are challenging, and it can be easy to get lost in the minutia of the complex and lengthy sentences of overwriting. However, it is possible to write too sparsely and lack important details. Finding a balance is essential. Specific descriptive tools can give you a leg up in an original character description, no matter the purpose. For example, answering the five essential questions can help contextualize a character in a significant way. Addressing the who, what, where, why, and when surrounding a character can create an essential context for you as a creator and people wanting to learn more about your OC.

However, other techniques, such as writing descriptions with goals in mind, can be instrumental. For example, writing a description that gives the character an impactful presence can sell their role in a setting. Writing character descriptions around how others may see them is also helpful, as it can create mystery and contrast. For further suggestions on how to write great character descriptions, be sure to check our guide, which also features 101 examples of bold character descriptions.

Writing character descriptions can often be a goal-driven process. There is no universal formula for describing a character; the necessary elements can vary greatly depending on the description's purpose. For example, a character description for a specific story may differ significantly from a character description used in a roleplaying profile. Because of this, we’ve broken down three templates for different character descriptions.

Setting-Based Character Descriptions

Most often, when you are writing a character profile, it is associated with a larger story and setting. Most of the time, when an original character is formed, there is a narrative they are associated with, though that is not always the case. However, context is everything when a character profile is needed, and they are part of a realized or developing setting.

Beyond the essentials of characteristics you’d include in a description, you’ll likely spend a fair bit of time contextualizing the characters with their setting or narrative. For example, the character description of a heroic protagonist will vary from that of the villainous antagonist. Likewise, some more developed or plot-consequential characters may have more detailed descriptions than supporting characters.

Of course, this is also complicated by how much you want a reader to know about the character through the description. If it is for your use as their creator, you may reveal much more to keep track of essential narrative information. However, you'll need to be far more selective for publicly-facing profiles where you don’t wish to give away all your plot hooks.

Below is a template for a publicly-facing character description that ties them to their setting. We’ll also include some suggestions on how to take the description further if you’re compiling an OC’s information for yourself.

Setting-Based Character Description Template

This template has been designed to help you answer five essential questions about your OC and provide context to who they are in their setting. Simply treat it as a Q&A and use your answers as the foundation for your character description on a CharacterHub profile.

Character Detail Questions: Setting-Based

1. Who is your character? Beyond their name, who are they in the context of the larger setting?
2. What is your character’s role? Are they a protagonist or antagonist? Are they for or against society? How does their occupation or skill factor into this?
3. Where in the setting does your character originate? Where do they currently exist? Where do they want to go in life?
4. When has the character’s journey begun? Are they on the cusp of their adventure, or have they been on it? When are they with the events that define the setting?
5. Why does the character exist in the grand scheme of things? Why are they undertaking their current goals?

Using the Template on CharacterHub

Answering these questions in paragraphs will give you a strong foundation of description for a character profile like you might find on CharacterHub. You can dive deeper when you’ve addressed these broader questions.

For example, if you are working on a private profile for your creative new character that requires more information, you can simply build on these responses with spoilerific detail. On the other hand, if you want to dive into more detail that presents flavor without stepping too far into spoilers, you can use the customizable “About” feature on your character hub profile to list specific details. That feature becomes even more critical for other character descriptions, such as meta-character descriptions.

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Meta Character Descriptions

Casually browsing CharacterHub reveals a couple of things about OCs. First, a tremendous amount of talent is floating around the site, as seen in these OCs. Second, no two OCs are alike - every approach and focus differs. Third, however, is that some OCs are not necessarily associated with a story or projects - they just exist in the mind of their creator and are given form on the site. We might refer to these as Meta OCs, somewhere outside of a narrative and written in such a way that they exist outside of the traditional narrative as we know them.

For example, if an OC can appear in multiple AUs and fandoms while retaining core characteristics, we might look at them as meta. That means certain things need to remain consistent across all versions when developing their character description. These OCs are not locked into any specific story and are like players taking on roles. This is, of course, best exemplified by the iconic Tezuka Star System.

So, when it comes to meta-character descriptions, a lot comes down to how the character is used and how much of them might be “acting” in another setting. However, even actors known for transforming from role to role have consistent and bankable characteristics. After all, if I were to say a Robert Downey Jr. type, you would already get an idea of what sort of character would be, right? In that sense, that should be what guides your meta-character description.

Meta Character Description Template

Use these questions as a template for filling out the character description on their profile on CharacterHub. Consider approaching these details like filling out a casting or dating profile comprised of essential traits. This is an especially great template for roleplayers not tied to a gaming system and who like to float in and out of settings.

The key to these questions is that they are more about motivation than setting. Motivation might carry through, no matter their situation, hence the emphasis on really understanding and describing them from that angle.

Character Detail Questions: Meta

1. Who is your character? Who do they want to be?
2. What are your character’s particular talents? What are they known for?
3. Where might we find your character when it comes to their free time? Where might they try to work?
4. When does your character get involved with situations? Where are they in their timeline?
5. Why do they do what they do? Why do they get up in the morning?

Using the Template on CharacterHub

With these questions answered, you have a tremendous descriptive foundation for a meta character. But this is just a basic template; you can constantly tailor it to your needs or supplement it with other profile features.

For example, tagging profiles is an excellent technique for any OC. You can use the tags to slot your OC into specific favored roles. For example, is your character leading man material? Or are they particularly suited for darker, more challenging roles? Tagging them as such through CharacterHub allows you to mark them so that you can find other characters of that type and allow other creators to find your OC, which is perfect for RP purposes.

You also can take advantage of the creator’s notes feature of the profile, which can supplement your descriptive section to talk about the influences behind the creation of your OC. Were you a big fan of Spock from Star Trek: Strange New Worlds? Did it influence the type of character your OC became? Then, include that inspiration in the creator’s notes for valuable context.

Gaming Character Descriptions

Creating gaming characters has some commonalities with roleplaying. While there is often a lot of crossover between them, you are likely writing within a system and a setting when writing descriptions for a gaming character. Writing descriptions can still be a very open process, and it can be easy to get bogged down in details, but for the initial sessions of a game like Dungeons & Dragons, you’ll probably be a little more sparse, just to not overwhelm the narrative. 

Writing gaming character descriptions almost works like a combination of the previous two categories, where you’ll not only write about things within a setting but potentially include some meta details. Let’s see how our template can give us a strong foundation.

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Gaming Character Description Template

This specialized template for describing gaming characters is only a partial step in the work required to create such characters. Remember that this series of questions is meant to serve as a good foundation and that you can and should expand on it based on your needs and interests.

Character Detail Questions: Gaming

1. Who is your character? Who are they in the context of the setting? Who do they wish to be?
2. What is their goal? What do they need? What role do they play in a group or setting?
3. Where do they come from, and how does that influence their worldview?
4. When did they become part of the events of the setting or storyline? When did they get swept into something larger?
5. Why are they journeying? Why are they opening themselves up to new experiences?

Using the Template on CharacterHub

With these questions in mind, you may wonder what other features of a CharacterHub profile can help you achieve even better gaming character profiles. One essential slot in the profile system is for the backstory. You can use this section to create the backstory you can share with potential gaming groups and play partners, so they have a good sense of how your character fits into a potential setting. Additionally, because a character profile is fully editable, you can easily make changes to ensure your backstory aligns with the setting created by the larger gaming group.

Of course, stats will likely come into play if we discuss gaming profiles. Thankfully, CharacterHub offers many options for filling in a stat block, allowing you to display character stats on a scale consistent with a gaming setting or even in a general sense. For example, while my character Dash Kameku is not currently used in a game, I still have some basic stats that help establish his character. However, if you play a dedicated system with specific scoring and modifiers, you can attach that to your character description, providing an updated record of their journey.

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CharacterHub: A Repository for Great Characters

One of the best ways to figure out how to write great character descriptions is to see examples of them. You can see how other creators across CharacterHub “sell” their OCs by browsing through the latest entries or exploring tags to fine-tune your search based on your interests. If you like how a creator introduces a concept about their character through vivid description, let them know via a comment and try adapting their style to your work. Remember that these templates we’ve shared are only the beginning of the descriptive process. They will give you an excellent foundation, but you can constantly tailor them to your specific purpose.

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