# Writer Characters

> Develop fictional characters, motivations, relationships, arcs, and distinct dialogue voices, including in-character exploration that remains separate from canon.

- Skill: `firstp1ck/writer-characters` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add firstp1ck/writer-characters`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/firstp1ck/writer-characters/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- License: MIT
- Author: Firstp1ck (https://skillmd.com/u/firstp1ck)
- Updated: 2026-09-22
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/firstp1ck/writer-characters

---


# Characters and dialogue

## When to use

Use for cast design, unclear motivation, relationship progression, dialogue differentiation, or testing a character's response to pressure.

## Inputs and assumptions

Read existing appearances and knowledge state. Ask what role this character serves and which facts are fixed.

## Portable workflow

1. Define a concrete desire, a feared cost, a self-protective habit, and a contradiction that can produce choices.
2. Give relationships different tensions. A character may be generous with a sibling and guarded with a teacher without being inconsistent.
3. Establish what the character knows at this point. Do not grant access to narrator-only or future information.
4. Design voice through register, rhythm, evasions, favored subjects, and subtext. Avoid catchphrases as the sole identifier.
5. Test the character in a short exchange or difficult choice. Label in-character improvisation as exploration, not a manuscript event.
6. Propose an arc as pressure, choice, and consequence rather than a list of personality adjectives.
7. Save approved facts and proposed changes separately using [the project workflow](../../references/project-workflow.md).

## Safety and side effects

Preserve established identities and motives unless the author approves a retcon. Do not turn a simulated interview into canon automatically.

## Scripts, references, and dependencies

No external dependencies. [Style choices](../../references/styles.md) can help separate narrative voice from dialogue voice.

## Verification

Check whether two speakers remain distinguishable without dialogue tags, whether decisions follow from their current incentives, and whether each knows only what the story permits.

## Pi adapter

Use `/writer characters --brief "Give the rival a credible reason to help, without making him secretly benevolent"`.