How to create a Backstory easily?

• How do you create a Backstory easily?
• How do you create any Story easily?
• By Starting with the End.

Summary – 5 steps to a Backstory

1. Start with the End, or the Beginning of your actual Story.
2. Define the Core Events of your Character’s early Story.
3. Define the Characters she’s Interacted with.
4. Define Issues she faced.
5. Explain how she solved these Issues.

• Characters are defined by their Relationships.
• Therefore, exposing the Character’s early Relationships expose who she was in the beginning.



Start with the End

• The End of the Backstory
• Start with the Conclusion.
• It will give you a Clear direction.
• The Last scene of the Character’s Backstory is a Conclusion.
• It ends the Character’s early life.
• The feeling of Loss should be Clear.
• As well as the Acceptance of this new Situation.
• Or the Denial of this Situation.

• The Beginning of the Main Story
• Your Main Story needs at least 1 Exposition.
• You can give each Main Character her own Exposition.
• And then show how they gather.
• This create Synergy & Coherence.
• This 1st Scene is the transition between Episode 0 & Episode 1.
• It’s a lot like writing a Sequel.

• Linking
• Create a Moment.
• Create a Scenery linking the End of the Early Story & the beginning of the New one.
• It could be an Encounter.
• It could be the Discovery of a new world.
• It could be an even greater Crisis than those faced beforehand.
• Create a Movement.
• The Character needs to Act.

If you want to know more about Story Structure.



The 3 Core Events

• Discovery
• The Character needs to Discover her own world.
• She needs to know where the Important Locations are.
• Create her Landmarks.
• Let her Try multiple activities.
• Let her Discover her own interests.
• Let her ask questions about this world.
• Let her Play & Search.
• You only need 5 types of Information for her to discover the World :
  • Her Birthplace
  • How she’s supposed to grow
  • What should be her Education
  • What her life should be
  • What she is supposed to be as an adult

• Separation
• Your Character is likely to quit the Place she’s born in.
• The feeling of Loss expresses in 2 dimensions : the separation with her birthplace, and with the person she lost.
• The Character needs to feel Pain.
• It could be expressed through Sadness.
• As she advances the Sadness could vanish.
• There could be a form of Merriment.
• Or the Grief can stagnate.
• Depending on the character you wish to create.

• Departure
• The Character quits her Birthplace is search of a better life.
• Most often.
• What does better mean?
• What is the Character looking for?
• Does she try to Recover something?
• Is she Looking for help?
• Does she Act in Retaliation?
• Does she sought Revenge?
• Does she only want to be left alone?

If you want to know more about Main Events.

Early Relationships

Relationships define your Characters.

Kinship

• Characters are Born into a Family.
• Wherever they live with their biological family or were adopted.
• This Situation may be satisfying for the Character.
• It may not.
• The Character may resent their Family for the way they’re treating her.
• Or they may be grateful.
• Other than Family members the Character may have friends.
• She could also form her 1st Intimate Relationship.
• Expose the Character perspective & its potential distortions.
• When it comes to Relationships, Characters always have 3 Choices :
  • Preserve the Relationship
  • End the Relationship
  • Establish new Relationships

Kinship establishes your Characters future Affinities & Alignments.

Education

• Did the Character have a Formal Education?
• Or did she Learn from outdoors experiences?
• Early on, expose the Essential Principles the Character will follow.
• You can literally quote them.
• It’s less subtle, but clearer.
• Essential themes include :
  • Death & Pain
  • Protection & Devotion
  • Amity & Faithfulness
  • Emotions & Self-Control
  • Change, Willpower & Adaptability

Aspirations

• Your Character will develop Interests.
• Which can turn into Passion.
• The Character may be choosing these Interests.
• Or she could have been Indoctrinated.
• It’s often a mean of both : the Character is oriented by an educator & then develop an interest for this activity.
• The Character receives a Name.
• This Name was initially defined to follow a specific Path.
• Transcribed by her Name.
• What is this specific Path?
• What is this Ideal Model?
• And does she choose to Follow it?
• She can Pursue an Ideal model defined by her species.
• This model can become her Ideal Self.
• Or she can reject it.
• It could be reason for departure.

If you want to know more about displaying Relationships.



Early Issues

Emphasizing how your Character solves her Issues is one of the most important Characterizations.

Handicaps

• Every Character has Handicaps.
• Every Character has Weaknesses.
• And Weaknesses make Character Relatable.
• Your Character will have Handicaps related to her Origins.
• Her early Experiences.
• Her Education.
• And the Relationships she established.

Daily Issues

• Create Routines.
• The Characters has a Daily Pattern.
• She has Leisure time.
• She has Chores.
• She has Mundane issues.
• Breaking an engine or even the whole vehicle
• Spread little issues which will accumulate and create a grimmer event.

Crisis

• Let your Crisis unfold.
• Let it come slowly.
• And burst onto the Character.
• The more Brutal a Crisis is, the more entertaining it is for the Public.
• Crisis leave Scars.
• Crisis are Resolutions.
• They end a Phase.
• A Story needs no more than 3 Crisis.
• A Backstory can contain only 1 Major Crisis & 2 minor ones.

If you want to know more about Issues & Encounters.