Do a google search for tips on writing and interesting character and you’ll find an endless supply of advice. One thing most of it shares is the notion that an author really has to know his or her characters, inside and out. You should know everything there is to know about the people on your page if you want them to come alive for your reader, whether or not all the details make it to the page.

And what better way than questions? You’ll find a robust supply of suggested interview questions with your potential characters online. Blog articles, writers’ columns, entire books on getting to the core of your protagonists, their sidekicks, and foils abound. I’ve used some of them in the early stages of character creation myself.

There are great, insightful questions, but there are some missing. If I really want to know who I’m writing about, there are some vital areas that need dealt with.

Critical flaws, spoken and unspoken needs and desires, and inner and external conflict are all important. Answer that flavor of question first. Then dig deeper. Some of my questions are standard fare, but what I really want to know—the details that get in deep and tell me who our character really is—are a little different.

The questions What book would you say I have to read?What’s the worst movie you’ve ever watched?Am I more likely to find you at a MAGA rally or a Human Right Coalition march?What are your thoughts about Harry Potter and superheroes?Star Trek, Star Wars, or neither?Favorite color, and do you wear it, paint with it, have flair pens in that color, or do you just like it?What’s your favorite thing to put on toast?Do you believe in ghosts? What about UFOs?What’s your favorite season, and why?Who is your favorite Muppet, and why is the correct answer Kermit?Christmas, Halloween, or both?Are you religious? Did you grow up that way?Thanksgiving or the Fourth of July?Do you have a guilty pleasure musical artist? TV show? Movie? Who knows about it?We’re going on a road trip. Who’s behind the wheel and where are we going?How many siblings do you have and why are you the best one?What would you bring with you to a deserted island? Would you want to leave?

A reader may need to know a character’s deepest secrets and their motivation for the actions that drive the story, but an author needs to know them even more. Can you even trust a protagonist who won’t answer the above questions? Do you know if he or she is the hero or the villain?

Please, use these questions as you will. Your character will be better known to you and your readers will thank you.

Phillip Davis is the author of Peppermint Lightning, Jack-o-’Lightning, and Justice for the Missing. (Sequel coming in 2023!) He is an elementary school teacher, mental-health advocate, long time NaNoWriMo participant, and member of the Ninja Writer’s community. He writes on the topics of writing, mental health, and self improvement.

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