Building Quote by John Sandford
“When you're building a character, or at least when I'm building a character, you start saying, 'How am I going to make people like him?”
About This Quote
Source Interview: Author Q&A, 2020
Creating a character involves deliberate planning of traits to make them relatable and engaging to audiences.
In simple terms: Plan character traits to make them likable.
Key Takeaway
Design characters with audience appeal.
Themes
character development
audience engagement
storytelling
Mood
thoughtful
instructive
Type
creative
educational
When to use this quote
- novel writing
- screenwriting
- role‑playing games
- marketing personas
Key Concepts
psychology of likability
narrative design
Questions to Reflect On
- What traits make a character authentic?
- How to balance likability with complexity?
A Different Perspective
Focusing solely on likability may sacrifice depth.
![“Gonna rain like a cow pissin' on a flat rock" [drugstore clerk to detective Virgil Flowers] Dark of the Moon, p.7” quote by John Sandford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/887/john-sandford-5843_clerks_gonna-rain-like-a-cow-pissin-on-a-flat-r_12063.jpg)
![“T]he church is not a place. It's not a building. It's not a preaching point. It's not a spiritual service provider. It's a people - the new covenant, blood-bought people of God. That's why Paul said, 'Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her' (Eph. 5:25). He didn't give himself up for a…” quote by Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/7a4/mark-dever-3175_blood_t-he-church-is-not-a-place-it-s-not-a-bu_3297.jpg)
