Struggling With Flat Characters? These 5 Books Will Transform Your Writing

LISTEN ON APPLE PODCAST | LISTEN ON SPOTIFY | LISTEN ON YOUTUBE

One of the questions I get asked by aspiring authors all the time is: "What books should I read to learn character development?" I get this question so often because character development is one of the most challenging aspects of fiction writing—but it's also what separates memorable stories from forgettable ones.

Today I'm sharing my top five books for character creation and development. These are the books that have had the biggest impact on me as a writer and on the hundreds of writers I've coached. While there are many incredible resources out there, these five books offer practical frameworks you can immediately apply to your work-in-progress.

(This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you purchase through these links at no extra cost to you.)

1. The Emotional Wound Thesaurus: A Writer's Guide to Psychological Trauma by Angela Ackerman & Becca Puglisi

Many writers learn that characters need goals and motivations but stop there, leaving them with flat characters who feel like cardboard cutouts going through the motions of their plot. If you can relate, what you're probably missing is understanding WHY your character is the person who shows up on page one with those specific goals, motivations, and behaviors. 

And this is where The Emotional Wound Thesaurus: A Writer's Guide to Psychological Trauma by Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi comes in. This book will give you countless ideas for your character's backstory and more importantly, how to use that backstory to inform the story present. It’s structured by types of trauma like crime and victimization, failures and mistakes, and injustice and hardship. Within each of those categories, you'll find specific wounding events that help you build authentic character psychology—showing you exactly how different traumas shape the way people think, feel, and behave in the world. For example, someone who experienced abandonment as a child will approach relationships completely differently than someone who faced betrayal or neglect.

But one of my favorite parts is the chapter on brainstorming the villain's journey. Most writers spend all their time developing their protagonist's backstory and completely neglect their antagonist's emotional wounds. This chapter shows you how to create a villain who isn't just evil for the sake of being evil—they're probably someone whose past created the twisted logic that drives their actions.

So, if your characters feel flat or you're having trouble getting to that deeper layer of why your characters do what they do, this book would be a great addition to your writing-craft library!

2. Creating Character Arcs: The Masterful Author's Guide to Uniting Story Structure, Plot, and Character Development by K.M. Weiland

Many writers excel at creating interesting characters with compelling backstories and rich emotional wounds, but then struggle to show those characters actually growing or changing throughout the story. If this sounds like you, what you're probably missing is understanding HOW to structure meaningful character transformation that aligns with your plot.

And this is where Creating Character Arcs: The Masterful Author's Guide to Uniting Story Structure, Plot, and Character Development by K.M. Weiland comes in. This book will teach you how to craft character arcs whether they're positive, negative, or flat, and how to write character growth across an entire series. Weiland breaks down exactly how character change should align with story structure, showing you where your character should be emotionally at each major plot point and how their internal transformation drives the external action. She demonstrates that every significant character should be changing in some way, and those changes should interconnect to create a rich, layered narrative.

But one of my favorite parts is the FAQ section where Weiland addresses the exact same questions I get from writers constantly. Questions like "How can I figure out what my character's arc should be?" and "Can a character's arc be a subplot?" and "Should all my minor characters have arcs?" As someone who coaches writers, I can tell you these questions come up repeatedly, and Weiland addresses each one with clear, practical guidance.

So, if your characters feel static or you struggle to show meaningful character development throughout your story, this is the book for you!

3. The Complete Writer's Guide to Heroes and Heroines: Sixteen Master Archetypes by Tami D. Cowden, Caro LaFever & Sue Viders

Many writers know they need a compelling protagonist but find themselves staring at a blank page with absolutely no idea where to start. If this sounds familiar, what you're probably missing is a concrete framework for building interesting, multi-dimensional characters from the ground up.

And this is where The Complete Writer's Guide to Heroes and Heroines: Sixteen Master Archetypes by Tami D. Cowden, Caro LaFever, and Sue Viders comes in. This book provides a comprehensive framework for sixteen different character archetypes, including their qualities, virtues, background, sub-types, and possible occupations. It's incredibly fun to start with an archetype and then make that character your own. For example, one archetype is "The Lost Soul"—someone who's tormented and filled with angst and passion, drifting through life with a heavy heart and wounded spirit. The book provides pages of information on each archetype, including detailed backstory possibilities and character examples from popular books and movies.

But what really sets this book apart is the section on "archetype interactions." The authors don't just give you individual character blueprints; they show you how different archetypes work together on the page. They ask three key questions for any character pairing: How will they clash? How will they mesh? And how will they change each other through life's lessons? This approach shows you that you're creating relationships and dynamics that will drive your entire story forward, not just individual characters in isolation.

So, if you're stuck on character creation or need a solid starting point for developing your protagonist, this book is your go-to resource!

4. The Emotional Craft of Fiction: How to Write the Story Beneath the Surface by Donald Maass

Many writers know they should "show, don't tell" when it comes to emotions, but have no idea what that actually means in practice. If this sounds like you, what you're probably missing is understanding how to filter everything through your character's unique emotional lens rather than writing from a distant, objective viewpoint.

And this is where The Emotional Craft of Fiction: How to Write the Story Beneath the Surface by Donald Maass comes in. This book teaches you how to make every sentence, every description, and every bit of dialogue reflect your point-of-view character's unique perspective and emotional state. Maass shows you how to tap into your character's emotions during failure and defeat, how to write emotional high moments, how to craft emotional goals in your scenes, and how to write feelings without naming them. When you master these techniques, your writing becomes incredibly immersive—readers won't just understand what your character is going through, they'll feel it themselves.

But my favorite part is chapter 3, where Maass talks about "me-centric" narration (aka filtering everything through your character's subjective lens). This is something many writers struggle with because they're trying to balance so many elements like plot, setting, dialogue, and characters, making it hard to stay grounded in the protagonist's head. But that anchoring in your character's emotional experience is exactly what separates good fiction from great fiction.

So, if your writing feels distant and objective or you've received feedback that you're telling emotions instead of showing them, this book should be next on your to-read list!

5. Story Genius: How to Use Brain Science to Go Beyond Outlining and Write a Riveting Novel by Lisa Cron

Many writers feel like their plot and characters exist in separate worlds, never quite connecting in a meaningful way. If this resonates with you, what you're probably missing is understanding how to seamlessly integrate character development with plot structure from the very beginning of your writing process.

And this is where Story Genius: How to Use Brain Science to Go Beyond Outlining and Write a Riveting Novel by Lisa Cron comes in. This book gives you a practical system for creating characters that readers can't help but care about, and shows you exactly how to weave character development and plot together. Cron teaches you to focus on your protagonist's internal struggle first, then determine what external events will force your character to confront that internal issue. She shows you how to create "cause and effect trajectories" that connect your character's past wounds to their present-day plot points and so much more.

But my absolute favorite part is chapter 12, called "Going Back to Move Forward: How to Harvest the Past to Set Up the Plot." This chapter will completely change how you think about character backstory and plot development. Lisa shows you how to dig into your character's past to discover the specific events that created their internal struggle in the first place. The key insight is that readers don't actually care about what happens in your story; they care about what your character makes of what happens.

So, if you have a great plot but your characters feel like they're just going through the motions, or you have compelling characters but struggle to create a plot that serves their emotional journey, this book would be a great addition to your writing-craft library!

Final Thoughts

So there you have it—five incredible books that have completely transformed how I approach character development. These books each offer a different lens for approaching character creation, and together they'll give you a comprehensive toolkit for creating characters readers will never forget.

Want these five character development books sent to your email? Click here, add your name and email, and I’ll send this list right to your inbox 💌 

And if you're looking for a structured approach to put all these concepts into practice, I'd love for you to join the waitlist for my Notes to Novel course. I have an entire module dedicated to character development that walks you through creating compelling characters step-by-step, from their emotional wounds to their transformation arcs and so much more.