Fun With Character Classification

 So, recently I discovered this thing called the Internet. (This may come as a surprise to you who have been reading my blog for years, but I am not very computer-savvy or modern, despite my youth.) And believe it or not, this Internet-thing has a lot of fun ideas for writers. For example, I've recently discovered two "tools" (the term might be generous) for getting to know your characters better.

The first is the DnD (Dungeons and Dragons) Alignment Chart, which looks like this:

The idea is, everyone falls into one of these squares based on two factors. On the one hand, you could be good (care about others more than yourself), evil (care about yourself more than others), or neutral (it depends on the situation). On the other hand, you could be lawful (you believe in the rules), chaotic (you ignore the rules), or neutral (it depends on the situation).

Look at this chart and think about your characters. I've discovered most of my protagonists fall in the "neutral" range, with a few chaotic outliers. This might say more about your concept of a a hero than it does about your characters.

The second is the Cinnamon Roll Meme, which looks like this:

In this context, "cinnamon roll" means a sweet gentle innocent person, and the idea of the chart is that people are either exactly what they seem or not at all what they seem. It's fun to look at this chart and compare it to one of your stories, trying to find a character who fits in each category. (To be honest, most of my characters fit in the top left square.)

Alright, now that I've enthusiastically shared my Internet findings, y'all are free to go!