---
title: Characters
category: Characters
tags: characters, cast, relationships, arcs
contextKey: characters.overview
micro: Track cast members, appearances, relationships and the shape of character change.
quickTitle: What are Characters?
quickSummary: Characters help you manage your cast, follow their story presence and keep emotional and relationship continuity clear.
screenshot:
---

# Overview

Characters are the people, beings or important figures who move through your story. PlotDirector treats characters as more than a name in a list. A character can appear in scenes, carry knowledge, form relationships, connect to story assets, move between locations and develop an arc across the book or series.

You can use character records lightly at first. A name and a short description are enough to begin. As the story becomes more complex, the same record can grow into a continuity anchor: where the character appears, what they know, how they feel, what relationships have changed, and which scenes matter most to their journey.

This is especially useful in series writing, ensemble casts, mysteries and stories with secrets. The more moving parts your story has, the more valuable it becomes to know exactly where a character is, what they have seen, and what the reader understands about them.

# When Should I Use This?

Create a character when a person matters enough to track across scenes. Main characters, recurring supporting characters, suspects, family members, witnesses, antagonists and important off-page figures usually deserve records.

You do not need to create a full record for every unnamed passer-by. If someone only appears once and has no continuity weight, a scene note may be enough. If they might return, affect a relationship, know something important, or carry an asset, create a character.

# How To Use It

Start with the character's display name and a short description. Add details that help you identify them quickly while planning. Then assign the character to scenes where they appear. Scene appearances are important because they allow the rest of the system to answer questions such as: when did this character last appear, where were they, and what did they know at that point?

Use relationship tools to record initial relationships and later changes. A character may begin as a stranger, become a friend, and later be revealed as family. PlotDirector keeps that evolution visible without erasing the past.

For revision, use character pages to look for long absences, uneven appearances and key scenes that define an arc.

# Example

Beth may begin as "housekeeper, guarded, knows more than she admits". She appears in early scenes as a warning presence, later becomes an ally, and eventually is revealed as Rebecca's sister. Her character record helps track that she was present for several clues before the reader understood their meaning.

# Writer Tip

Separate what the author knows from what the character knows. A character record can contain your private planning knowledge, while scene appearances and knowledge notes help track what the character has actually learned inside the story.

# Common Mistakes

- Creating rich biographies but not linking characters to scenes.
- Forgetting to update relationship changes when the story reveals new information.
- Treating character descriptions as fixed when the reader's understanding of the character evolves.
- Tracking only protagonists and losing continuity for important supporting characters.

# Related Guides

- [Scenes](/Help/Article/scenes.overview)
- [Locations](/Help/Article/locations.overview)
- [Story Assets](/Help/Article/storyAssets.overview)
