But I've got a question. How do you work out a backstory without inventing a million more characters and their own backstories until you've woven a history backwards and you might as well have just written the story forwards?

Eventually you decide "OK, that's enough" and stop.

But the reason you might prefer to work the history out as backstory is that details of backstory can be changed, while if a story turns into multiple volumes and (as writers tend to do, not being as wealthy as Solomon) you send the first volume to the publisher (or set it up on CreateSpace or whatever) before you've finished the last volume, you can't make changes to the earliest material that you suddenly find the last volume needs.

This is a fascinating idea; I've always done it, though I've never listed much of it. I've always given my characters detailed backstories. It seemed quite natural for me, to know as much about them as possible.

I just have trouble keeping all that out of the stories, because I love the characters and their lives so much, I want everyone else to know as well! I manage to restrain myself most of the time, though.

Eventually you decide "OK, that's enough" and stop.

Thanks! This will help.

But I've got a question. How do you work out a backstory without inventing a million more characters and their own backstories until you've woven a history backwards and you might as well have just written the story forwards?

For me, a part of this is just saying "I know this character needs this family background, so there you go" and just leaving it at that. I'll come up with a list of different things (this being for a minor character) that may or may not get into the story but which are important to the way a character works, without actually fleshing out the character.

For example:

Maybe I have a carter with a family. He makes carts. He loves his wife and kids and wants them safe. And that's all I know about him.

But what if he joins a revolution? Well, then he needs a reason. He wants his family safe, so why invite war? I might invent one tiny thread of back-story for him--he immigrated to the present country and isn't loyal. Or it's not a contest of loyalty or passion, but the simple fact that he thinks the revolution will win and he wants to be on the victorious side for his family. Once I find something that works and explains what I need, I leave him alone.