Ask the Author–Do You Have a Favorite Character that You’ve Written?

Happy January! If you’re expecting another big motivational post about New Year resolutions or having the best year ever, this isn’t it. I decided to stick to the schedule, which means it is an “Ask the Author” post. Last month the question was about my favorite part of writing. This month is somewhat of a followup.

Do you have a favorite character that you’ve written?
I’m not exactly sure authors are supposed to pick favorite characters. It’s kind of like a teacher having a favorite student. However, just like most teachers, I think most writers have characters they prefer. They may try to hide it or deny it, but it still happens.
I like most of my characters a lot. Well, I don’t know that I really like the bad guys, but they still intrigue me. If I really had to pick, however, I think I might go with Alder and Dillyn. I have to put them together because that is a lot of the reason that makes them so fun for me to write. I just love the way they are perfect contrasts with each other.
Now, the obvious question might be, “why?” Out of everybody, why are Alder and Dillyn your favorites? Why not Ashlynn? Ashlynn seems to be far more easy to relate to for somebody like me. After all, we’re both girls. We share similar experiences in the modern world, and because it is easier to write about what you know, Ashlynn has many of the same interests I have. Perhaps this is the reason Ashlynn isn’t my favorite character. I already knew enough about her that I didn’t have to spend as much time learning about her. Alder and Dillyn, on the other hand, were so much fun to learn about. I got to know them a little at a time. Sometimes they would surprise me—something that Ashlynn never really did. One of the most fun parts of getting to know Alder and Dillyn was learning about their differences. I knew most of their similarities from the start, but it took me a little while to see their differences. I just assumed that since they were best friends in the same situation and fighting for the same things, they would be closer to the same. I quickly learned differently. They may have had a similar moral code and worked well together, but in a lot of ways, they are almost opposites. I won’t go into a huge compare/contrast lecture right now. If you want to try and find evidence, the book should supply at least some. Later books will show even more.
My second favorite characters are likely Alvorach and Karynne. They don’t get as much time in the books as I would like because the books are Ashlynn’s story, not theirs, but sometimes it is hard for me not to go off on unnecessary tangents just to talk more about them.
As you can see, I don’t have an easy time picking a favorite character. The characters I end up liking, however, tend to be the ones I spend the most time learning about.

Who are your favorite characters (Aviandria or elsewhere)? How do you pick favorite characters?