What Makes A Character Likable? My Favorite Character Traits

Part of being a writer is creating things that will be enjoyed by readers. You’ve got to have all sorts of things just right. You need an attractive, believable setting, lovable (or perhaps hate-able) characters, and a decent plot line. A little while ago, I wrote a list of things that make a story enjoyable for me. You can read that here. Right now, I want to break things down a little further and examine a few of the elements of a story. I’m going to start with characters.

Perhaps my very favorite thing about both reading and writing are the characters. In fact, I am slightly prone to character crushes. It is so important to love the characters, because if there aren’t characters you like, why should you care what happens to them? The plot is pale and pointless of you aren’t invested in the people involved. At any rate, I’ve been thinking a lot about what makes a perfect character. It could be different for others, but here is my personal list.
1- Selflessness. At least to me, the ability to put others before himself is a mark of a great character. One of my very favorite characters of all time is actually a minor character only appearing in one book (The Black Cauldron) of the Prydain Chronicles. (Spoiler alert: If you haven’t read the books and plan on reading them anytime soon, you might want to skip the rest of this paragraph. Just know he is selfless and awesome). His name is Adaon. He is kind, supportive, talented and strong. He is betrothed to a girl which he loves, and he has a lot of good things going for him. He is willing to give all that up, however, to go after a careless, selfish show-off who has never treated Adaon with anything but rudeness. He ends up losing his life in the process. He gave everything to help others.
2- Humility. An awesome character doesn’t realize they are awesome. There are a few exceptions, I suppose, but even if they know they are amazing, they never brag about it. I think I was about twelve when Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire came out, and I remember having a bit of a crush on Cedric Diggory. This just happened to be during a dark period of my life where my favorite character in every book I read would inevitably die (and in case you were wondering, yes, I did read The Black Cauldron during this time). He was described as good looking, but that wasn’t what drew me to him. Even though everybody thought he was handsome, and he was certainly good enough to represent the school in the tournament, he didn’t act puffed up. Sometimes, though you knew he enjoyed it, he even seemed slightly embarrassed by all the extra attention. In the beginning, he was even arguing with his father when his father was trying to make him look better than Harry. He was a cool guy, but he didn’t try to draw attention to himself.
3-Intelligence. I like a smart character. Sherlock Holmes is by far one of my favorite literary creations. (Finally, somebody who doesn’t die, though Sir Arthur Conan Doyle did try to kill him. Luckily for the world, he was convinced to resurrect Mr. Holmes.) There is something attractive about the way Holmes takes seemingly trivial things and can turn them into something pivotal. He is also proof that a character doesn’t have to be perfect to be likable. Sherlock Holmes doesn’t always achieve complete success. Just ask Irene Adler. However, even though he is sometimes too late, he usually figures it out in the end.
4-Bravery. Bilbo Baggins is brave. He may not seem so at first, or even believe himself to be, but he does a multitude of brave things throughout The Hobbit. He starts on an adventure, which for a Hobbit, is brave enough. He banters with trolls to save the dwarfs. He provokes giant spiders for the same reason. He confronts Smaug, and returns to the dragon’s den more than once, even though it terrifies him. He risks Thorin’s wrath in order to try and divert a war with the Arkenstone. The entire story is sprinkled with little (or sometimes big) acts of his bravery.
5-Devotion. Whether devoted to a cause, or to a person, it can make an exceptional character. Edgar Rice Burroughs writes a fair number of devoted characters. From John Carter’s love of Deja Thoris to Tarzan’s protectiveness toward Jane, his characters would do anything for those they care about. Perhaps the perfect example of devotion is a certain Sir Percival Blakeney. He is both devoted to his cause as the Scarlet Pimpernel, and to his beloved wife, Marguerite. He would give his life to rescue the innocent people in France, but if you do anything to threaten Marguerite you see the full majesty of this impressive character. In fact, the only time you really ever see Sir Percy angry is when Chauvelin pulls Marguerite into his nefarious plots.
6-Whit. I’m not sure if that’s exactly the right word for what I am meaning here, but I have wracked my brain and I can’t think of anything better, so I’ll just explain. What I want to convey is the character’s ability to foil the bad guy, while using a sense of humor to sweeten it even more. Since I was just talking about Sir Percy, I’ll use him as my first example. He always gets the best of Chauvelin, but always makes sure to leave him in a predicament that is humorous to everyone except perhaps Chauvelin and the Republic. Most often, these are garnished with witty taunts designed to drive the villain crazy while putting on the air of amiable conversation. Robin Hood also likes to have fun at the antagonist’s expense. He is always embarrassing the Sheriff of Nottingham while never doing him any real harm, other than lightening his purse a bit. When relieving a person’s fortune, he treats them quite well for the most part. He feeds and entertains them before requiring his payment, which is only what he feels the person can afford. For those who are rich, this hospitality is rather expensive. For those who have nothing, that is all that is required. Either way, he is fast to bring a bit of humor into his dealings.

Most characters won’t exhibit every single one of these traits (though some come pretty close) but every single one of the characters I most love show at least one, and often more of these characteristics. I’ve tried to load the characters in Aviandria with some of these, and I truly hope I’ve succeeded. What’s on your list of favorite character traits? What makes you love a character? I’d love to hear your ideas in the comments below.