This may be a very silly question but it is one I have been thinking about a lot recently.

My two main characters in my historical novel are two guys and I worry that they have very similar characters; yet I am struggling to make them different because somehow they just fall back to being how they were.

How can I work on their characters to make them very different?

When you are developing characters how do you differ their speech and manners and not fall into making them very similar?

I need them to rub off on each other and fit like a good pair, they are my main detectives in the story and I don't want people to become easily bored with them.

I'm finding it very easy with the female characters to make them different I seem to be struggling more with my male characters.

Thank you and I hope it is ok for me to post this as it is for my novel that is not fantasy, but it is about character development and I could also struggle with this in my fantasy stories.

One way is to make them opposites. To generalize in the extreme, one could be fat and jolly, while the other could be skinny and grim. Their differences would probably annoy each other and at the same time make them a good team, since they would balance each other out.

Thank you Jon! You have made me realise that I have made them too alike in looks as well! Not totally but same build etc. Maybe if I change one completely I will find it easier to change his character as well. Thanks!

I recommend Myers-Briggs and the Lauser Fractalling System Those will make you really think about your character and give you an opportunity to differentiate between their personalities.

eruheran

Thank you Andrew!

No problem

eru