Below is a character development/interview template that I’ve curated from others that I’ve found over the years. I’ve taken the parts I liked, deleted the parts that didn’t apply, and added some of my own to make this template exactly right for my needs. If you enjoy this please feel free to copy and save it for your own use. If you share it, please give credit and link back to me.
Character Development
Name
1. Full Name
2. Nickname(s)
Physical Characteristics
1. Age at start
2. Age at end
3. Sex
4. Sexuality
5. Hair color
6. Hair style
7. Eye color
8. Body type/Build
9. Distinguishing Features
10. Skin type/tone:
11. Sense of style
12. Physical disabilities
Personal Background
1. Birthday
2. Birthplace
3. Education
4. Employment
5. Religion
6. Current residence
7. Past residence
Family Relationships
1. Mother
2. Father
3. Siblings
4. Children
5. Relevant extended family
Romantic Relationships
1. Current Spouse/Significant other
2. Relevant Past Lover(s)
3. Dated how long
4. Ended due to divorce/breakup/death/still ongoing affair
Platonic Relationships
1. Friends
2. Coworkers (if relevant)
3. Other significant relationships relevant to the story
Pets
1. How many
2. Type(s)
3. Name(s)
Hobbies & Interests
1. Favorite movie genre(s)
2. Favorite TV genre(s)
3. Favorite book genre(s)
4. Favorite music genre(s)
5. Favorite food(s)
6. Favorite color(s)
7. Favorite sport to watch
8. Skills/talents
9. Hobbies
Character Interview
1. When you walk into a room what do you notice first?
2. What are your goals in life?
3. What is your dream job?
4. What is your most treasured possession?
5. What unusual hobbies or interests do you have?
6. If you had one wish, what would it be?
7. What do you like best about yourself?
8. What do you like least about yourself?
9. What would you most like to change about yourself? Why?
10. What do you like best about your best friend?
11. What do you like least about your best friend?
12. What are you keeping a secret?
13. What are you lying to yourself about?
14. To others?
15. Who is the greatest love of your life?
16. Is there anyone in your life that you are attracted to?
17. What scares you about this person?
18. What does this person know about you that no one else knows?
19. Is there anyone you hate or are enemies with? Why?
20. If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be?
21. What’s your greatest source of frustration?
22. What’s your greatest source of joy?
23. What are you especially proud of in your life?
24. If you could change anything about your life what would it be?
25. What would you die for?
26. What do you live for?
27. What would you kill for?
28. What are you afraid of?
29. Would you steal? If yes, under what circumstances?
30. Would you lie? If yes, under what circumstances?
31. How would you change the world?
32. How would you change the people around you?
33. What do you think other people think of you?
34. Teachers?
35. Other kids?
36. Best friends?
37. Parents?
38. Siblings?
39. Other family members?
40. What is your biggest pet peeve?
41. Significant life events?
42. What is your biggest success?
43. If you could visit anywhere in the world, where would you go?
44. What is something you’ve always wanted to do but haven’t?
45. Name a person, living or dead, you would like to meet.
46. If you could have any superpower what would it be? Why?
47. If you had a free day where your only mission was to enjoy yourself, what would you do?
48. What's the evilest thing you've ever done to someone? Why did you do it?
49. What would be your epitaph?
50. Do you like to cook?
51. Do you eat healthy?
52. Do you practice good hygiene?
53. Do you hold the door open for the person behind you or do you let it go and slam in their face?
54. If you could go back in time for one day, where would you go?
55. Is the glass half-full or half-empty?
56. Do you pick up your dog’s poop or keep walking and leave it in the neighbor’s yard?
57. Are you right- or left handed?
58. What is your favorite holiday?
59. Do you believe in love at first sight?
60. Do you read your daily horoscope?
61. If you won the mega-lotto what would you do with the money?
62. Do you have any tattoos or body piercings? If so, what/where?
63. Do you or have you ever used recreational drugs?
64. Have you ever been suicidal?
65. What is your biggest regret?
66. If you could go back in time to change it would you?
67. Favorite alcoholic drink?
68. Do you believe in ghosts? UFO’s? Bigfoot? Loch Ness monster? Chupacabra?
69. If you could, would you want to know the exact date of your death? Why?
70. If you could have a romantic involvement with any other of my characters from any other of my novels, who would it be with?
Personality Traits
(Highlight all that apply)
Absent-minded Adventurous Affectionate Agreeable Aggressive Aloof Ambitious Analytical Anti-social Anxious Apathetic Appreciative Argumentative Articulate Artistic Assertive Athletic Awkward Bitter Bossy Brave Calculating Callous Careless Cautious Charismatic Childish Chivalrous Cheerful Clumsy Compassionate Competitive Conceited Condescending Confident Conformist Considerate Contemplative Cooperative Coward Creative Critical Cruel Cultured Curious Cynical Decisive Deceptive Delusional Demanding Dependable Dependent Depressed Devious Dignified Disciplined Discreet Dishonest Disloyal Distrusting Dominating Downtrodden Dramatic Dreamy Dull Easygoing Efficient Empathetic Empowering Energetic Enthusiastic Entrepreneurial Extrovert Fair Faithful Family-oriented Fastidious Feminine Flamboyant Flexible Flirtatious Foolish Friendly Frivolous Frugal Funny Generous Gentle Good-Listener Gossipy Graceful Grouchy Gullible Handy Hard-hearted Harsh Health-conscious Hedonistic Histrionic Honest Honorable Hot-tempered Humble Hypochondriac Idealistic Imaginative Immature Intolerant Impatient Impulsive Inconsiderate Indecisive Independent Industrious Inflexible Inhibited Innocent Insecure Integrity Intelligent Intense Introspective Introvert Intuitive Irrational Jealous Judgmental Kind-hearted Lazy Leader Lecherous Light-hearted Logical Loner Loud Loyal Manipulative Masculine Materialistic Mature Melodramatic Melancholic Merciful Merciless Messy Meticulous Modest Moody Musical Naive Narcissistic Narrow-minded Nature-lover Neat Nostalgic Nurturing Observant Obsessive Organized Optimistic Passionate Passive Passive-aggressive Patient Perfectionist Persistent Persuasive Perverted Pessimistic Petty Pleaser Polite Pompous Practical Procrastinator Promiscuous Proud Punctual Rational Rebellious Reserved Resourceful Responsible Restrained Romantic Rude Sanctimonious Sarcastic Secretive Seductive Self-centered Selfish Sensitive Sentimental Serene Sexy Shallow Shrewd Shy Smug Sneaky Snobbish Sociable Spiritual Spontaneous Stingy Stubborn Stylish Submissive Supportive Suspicious Suave Tacky Tactful Tech-savvy Tenacious Thoughtful Thoughtless Tolerant Tough Trusting Unconventional Undisciplined Ungrateful Unimaginative Unorganized Unpretentious Vain Vindictive Violent Vivacious Vulgar Wasteful Weak Willful Wise Workaholic Whiny Youthful Zany