I don't claim to be an expert on making characters in the slightest, I mean, I still find it very hard but step by step, it's easier than you think.

I plan to be an author though, right? So this is good for me.

Remember too: the less cliche and stereotypical, the more interesting that character will become.

Okay, let's make a totally random character:

Name: Felicity

Age: 18

Quote: Don't let the bad shit get to you, live for the moment, okay?

Personality: stands up for what she believes in, is easy to fall in love, doesn't have many close friends, smokes, withdrawn

Remember not to make personality traits that clash, i.e. she can't be outspoken and argumentative but also shy.

I've just made her up and I can already imagine what she'd be like in my head.

Appearance: long brown wavy hair, eyebrow piercing, braces, 5ft 4, size 10, a few freckles

And now I can imagine what she looks like. Pair that with the personality and that's all you really need to make a character, all the other stuff is just a bonus to develop her more.

Dress sense: 70s floral dresses, calf-high boots, thick belt, leather jackets, butterfly clips in hair, a few charm bracelets, autumn-coloured tights

Usually, you can tell what somebody's like by the way that they dress, and I could imagine the kind of things that she'd wear right away.

Okay now, from the descriptions that I've given of Felicity, you more than likely imagined a few things that differed from what I imagined and that's what makes it interesting; no one thinks exactly the same even when given the same description of a character, so make them your own!

You don't even need a particularly good imagination but it helps.

I'm very likely not gonna use this character in anything, it was just an example.