So a friend of mine asked me the other day how I learned my characters without using an outline or doing those character sheets. I was puzzled. I really don't forget my characters eye colors, quirks, likes and dislikes. But they come up while I'm writing, so are stuck in my head well.

"Yes, but what about voice? Or how do you know how a character will react to certain things?"

Ha! And the answer found me. I write by what I call a dot-to-dot method. Usually my first scenes in a new WIP are scenes that contain conflict and are the major turning points in the book.

Put any person in a stressful situation and their true colors will shine through. You learn them well. Are they a coward? Strong willed, a fighter, determined. Do they give up easily? Can they keep their sense of humor under stress, or do they turn rabid?

I use the snowflake method to plan my books, but only use the first step which creates a short blurb. In this sense, I can create an entire book from one sentence. If you've never used it, I must say his method is amazing. Having the ability to tailor it to your own creativity is such a blessing.

But for me, turning points are written first and then all I have to do is work my way to each goal point.

We all know combining techniques is sometimes the best way to get things done. So, how do you learn your characters?