Are You Making These 10 Character Mistakes in Your Writing?

Avoid creating weak characters

Photo by Cord Allman on Unsplash

Have you watched the series Six Feet Under on Netflix? It’s a story of a family of undertakers: two brothers — one gay, the other a commitment phoebe addicted to the thrills of relationships and unavailable women, a teen sister, and a mother. There are also side characters who interact with the main characters.

The series is interesting to me as a writer for one reason only, and that is to see how the writers differentiate the characters and create growth and interest.

Here is what I found so far — I haven’t watched all the episodes yet, so my evaluation of the characters may change after I’ve watched all the seasons:

Dave, the gay character, has very little dimension and growth. He is a cliché of “being gay” and seems preoccupied with having sex as if that is the only interest of a gay person. He is balanced a bit by his boyfriend, Keith, who has family and work issues. Keith is a complicated person who happens to be gay; therefore, he is more likable and believable.

Nathan (Nate), the older brother, is a nice guy who is a magnet for crazy women. As the series starts, he attracts Brenda, who is mentally unstable, a sex addict, unable to commit, and drives Nathan crazy because he is both…