Writing Characters



Overview

Strong, believable characters are the backbone of good fiction – they are the factor that will bring a story to life for the reader and keep them wanting to return to your fictional world. But how do we define a strong character, and how do we create one? 

This course is for people who want to work on building compelling characters, whether they've written a huge amount of fiction or none at all.

We will look in detail at the different aspects of characterisation, from backstory to voice, from motive to physicality. In every session you will discuss these ideas and start writing character sketches, which over the course of 10 weeks will grow into your own fully realised character, ready to step into their story. 

This course is suitable for people who have a story in mind or simply want to develop their writing skills. 

Programme details

Course starts Tuesday 30 September 2025

This is an in-person course which requires your attendance at the weekly meetings in Oxford on Tuesdays, 10.30am-12.30pm.

Week 1: What makes a compelling character?

Week 2: Traits and flawed beliefs

Week 3: Backstory

Week 4: Motive and desire

Week 5: Being in the body

Week 6: Voice – dialogue

Week 7: Voice – narration

Week 8: Protagonists and antagonists

Week 9: What’s going to change?

Week 10: Life within and beyond the story

Digital Certification

Academic credit

Credit Accumulation Transfer Scheme (CATS Points)

Please note, students who do not register for assessment and accreditation during the enrolment process will not be able to do so after the course has begun. If you wish to gain credit from completing this course you must register to do so before the course starts.

Only those who have registered for assessment and accreditation will be awarded CATS points for completing work to the required standard. Please note that assignments are not graded but are marked either pass or fail.

Learn more about the Credit Accumulation Transfer Scheme.

If you are enrolled on the Certificate of Higher Education at the Department you need to indicate this on the enrolment form but there is no additional registration fee for assessment and accreditation.

Digital certificate of completion 

Students who are registered for assessment and accreditation and pass their final assignment will also be eligible for a digital Certificate of Completion. Information on how to access the digital certificate will be emailed to you after the end of the course. The certificate will show your name, the course title and the dates of the course attended. You will be able to download the certificate and share it on social media if you choose to do so.

Fees

Description Costs
Course fee (with no assessment) £300.00
Assessment and Accreditation fee £60.00

Funding

If you are in receipt of a UK state benefit, you are a full-time student in the UK or a student on a low income, you may be eligible for a reduction of 50% of tuition fees. See details of our concessionary fees for short courses.

 

Tutor

Ms Lucy Ayrton

Lucy Ayrton is a novelist and performance poet, and a Departmental Lecturer at the Department for Continuing Education, Oxford University. She has two novels, One More Chance (2018) and Things We Lose In Waves (2023) published with Dialogue Books, and a third will be released in 2027. She wrote and performed two full-length spoken word shows at the Edinburgh Festival, which were respectively turned into a poetry pamphlet and a radio play. She also competed as a national finalist at the UK Poetry Slam.

Course aims

  • To provide students with the skills they need to create and develop rich, fully formed and compelling characters for use in a variety of literary forms, primarily prose fiction. 
  • To foster students' ability to recognise what makes a compelling character in their own and other people's work.
  • To demonstrate various techniques in building and writing characters and how these can be used in combination.
  • To encourage the use of these techniques and the consideration of strong characterisation as part of a foundation for further fiction writing.

Teaching methods

In each session we will introduce an aspect of character creation or development, which we will discuss as a group. We will then put the learning into practice with short writing exercises and peer feedback, both in a group and pairs. 

There will always be opportunities to ask questions and clarify the learning, as well as to try out new techniques and approaches in a supportive and positive environment.

Learning outcomes

  • Write a short piece of prose fiction featuring a clearly presented and well-realised character.
  • Explain the decisions they made in creating this character and the intended effect on the reader.
  • Be able to give feedback on the effectiveness of the characterisation in a peer's writing.

Assessment methods

Only those students who have registered for assessment and accreditation, in advance of the course start date, can submit coursework/assignments for assessment.

Assessment

This course will be assessed through one final piece of prose writing (1,500 words).

There will also be the opportunity to share a 500-word piece of writing with the group, which will not be assessed.

Application

How to enrol

Please use the 'Book now' button on this page. Alternatively, please complete an enrolment form.

How to register for accreditation and assessment

To be able to submit coursework and to earn credit (CATS points) for this course, if you wish to do so, you will need to register and pay an additional £60 fee. You can do this by ticking the relevant box at the bottom of the enrolment form or when enrolling online. 

Students who do not register for CATS points during the enrolment process will not be able to do so after the course has begun.

If you are enrolled on the Certificate of Higher Education at the Department you need to indicate this on the enrolment form but there is no additional registration fee.

Level and demands

The Department's Weekly Classes are taught at FHEQ Level 4, ie first year undergraduate level, and you will be expected to engage in a significant amount of private study in preparation for the classes. This may take the form, for instance, of reading and analysing set texts, responding to questions or tasks, or preparing work to present in class.

Terms & conditions for applicants and students

Information on financial support