When writing a novel, how can a character be developed well, but QUICKLY?

“Well, maybe if you’d wear more clothes, they wouldn’t feel so cold. Hussy!”

“They are! He broke the rules of the boarding house by petting this character while she was in cat form, so they invoke the ancient rules of single combat via ping-pong, and—”

Create a context between this character and other characters.

Why do you think most harem anime and manga have lame male protagonists that would be considered losers and pathetic by most people?

Claire sat back down, legs tucked elegantly beneath her. “You are looking a bit sloppy,” she said, inspecting May through narrowed eyes.

“I try not to, but thank you for reminding me. I know I don’t need a cat. I don’t want a cat. What would I do with a cat?”

“It’s not looking at you.”

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“Number one, it’s not porn, it’s ecchi, and number two, why would I waste a perfectly good Saturday doing anything else?” Claire pulled at her tea and sighed. “The only thing that could make this day better is if you'd come home with some cute boy, so that after you kicked him out tomorrow I could live vicariously through you.”

“You need some tea!”

In the kitchen, Claire set out a battered pair of mugs: May’s black, with “PEBKAC: Problem Exists Between Keyboard and Chair” in white letters; Claire’s white, with “This must be Thursday. I never could get the hang of Thursdays” in dark blue. She carried both mugs into the living room. “A moggie followed you home? Is this some weird Internet slang I’m not current on?”

What caused the decline of the Soprano crew?

“I need to do laundry.”

“Nary a cute boy in sight.”

May studied the black and white comic panels. “Oh, my. She looks…anatomically implausible. What is she doing to that poor man? Wait, are those cat ears?”

So who has worn a cock cage. One of my guy FWBs put one on me last Sunday and left with the keys? I was very nervous at first but have calmed down. Told me he'll unlock it tomorrow.. Let me know.

“None of those either. Look upon the wasteland that is my sex life, and see that it is barren. Naught but a moggie followed me home.”

May yelped. “Hey! Your feet are cold!”

“You know what? Never mind,” May said. “I am way, way too drunk to be having this conversation.”

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“I don’t know. Partying. Going to a pub. Anything besides sitting on the couch reading…” She squinted. “What the hell are you reading?”

“You don’t need a cat. You can’t take care of a cat. You can’t take care of a ficus.” Claire flopped on the other side of the sofa and wriggled her feet beneath May.

“About wearing more clothes? How am I supposed to catch any fish if I don’t show off the bait?”

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“Hang on, are they playing ping-pong?”

“I’m just a fan of your catch and release program.”

“No, about the cat. You don’t need a cat. You remember what happened to your spider plant, right?”

So I’m getting piano lessons and my teacher wants me to get an upright piano instead of a keyboard. An upright piano is way above my price range, so what do I do? And what’s the difference between an upright piano and a keyboard?

“Cute girls?”

“But they’re cold!”

“Damn straight. So get to it! This time next week, I want to hear some moans coming through that wall.”

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“May! You’re home late! Early, I mean. Well, I mean, it’s early in the morning, but you’re home before I expected. Er, after. Before?”

“Perv.”

Doing something they enjoy, that expresses their personality, and that is in some way unusual or noteworthy;

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Engaging in conversation that also shows something about their intelligence, personality, wit (or lack thereof); and

They both burst out laughing. “I’m right, though,” Claire went on.

“So you didn’t meet any cute boys at the club tonight?” Claire called as she bustled about the small kitchen.

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“Nope, I mean a cat followed me home. A black cat, to be exact. All the way from the club. Probably still out there, for all I know.”

“I’m serious!” Claire said. “It’s staring straight at me.” She let the curtain fall. “Weird.”

The agent had only one bad thing to say (the synopsis was crap; writing synopses is hard!), but praised the characterization and particularly how well we introduced a character’s personality quickly.

Is it wrong of me to feel uncomfortable that my friend thinks my brother is hot?

“No way.”

“Exactly.”

Claire, one of May’s three flatmates, former university roommate, and best friend in all the world, shrugged expansively. “It’s a Saturday night. What else would I be doing?”

What is unattractive about a nice guy? Why do some women don’t choose nice guys?

“Tart!”

“Yep!” Claire chirped. “There’s this schoolboy, see, and he’s homeless, so he lives in this boarding house that used to be a hot springs bathhouse, which is cheap because it’s haunted, so he decides—”

Here’s how we presented the character Claire when she was introduced, which the agent particularly singled out:

When was the first time your wife had beastiality?

“I’m glad my sex life is so entertaining.”

Do that and you can ground your characters quite quickly.

“Yuuna and the Haunted Hot Springs!” Claire turned the book around.

Why do you think Democrat favorability ratings are so low?

“From the look of you, if you try to sleep now, you’ll spend the next three hours hanging onto your bed trying to stop the world spinning. Since you’re not going to sleep anyway, you might as well keep me company.”

“I’ll put the kettle on.”

“Yes way. It’s washing itself under the street light. Uh-oh, I think it spotted me. It knows I’m watching it. I swear it’s looking at me.”

To a flat Earther, what's wrong with the idea that gravity is simply a force inherent to space which operates only in one dimension? Why do they go further and try to deny gravity rather than just saying it's different than physicists claim?

May pushed Claire’s feet away. Claire rose to peer out the window. “Huh. It’s still there.”

“I know! That’s why I’m putting them under you!”

“Thanks. You’re looking pretty ratty yourself. Have you been in that bathrobe all day?”

“Exactly.”

“Claire, I—”

Essentially, what you do is show the character:

“Well, maybe if you didn’t spend all day reading—” May prodded the book with its garishly-coloured cover with her foot. “Bizarre comic book porn…”

After Eunice and I finished London Under Veil, I entered the first chapter in a contest at a convention where you could submit something and have it critiqued by a professional book agent.

“Why is that always your first suggestion? I do not need some tea. It’s three o’clock in the morning! If I have tea, I’ll never get to sleep.”

“Claire! Why are you still up?”

“Fine.” May collapsed into the warm spot Claire had just vacated.

“It’s a cat. All cats are weird.” May sipped from her mug, inhaling the warmth. She closed her eyes. The room spun. She opened them again. “Ugh. I think I drank too much.”