Character Development: Creating the Illusion of Flesh and Blood on the Page

July 19, 2025 @ 9:30AM Pacific Time

presented by Martin Lastrapes

From Luke Skywalker’s hero’s journey to the Joker’s moral chaos, compelling characters are the heartbeat of great stories. This presentation breaks down the essentials of great character creation, revealing how to craft layered backstories, distinct physical and emotional traits, and transformative arcs. Whether you’re writing heroes, villains, or antiheroes, you’ll learn how to turn abstract ideas into living, breathing characters that make stories unforgettable.

Martin Lastrapes is an acclaimed author and indie publisher known for his imaginative storytelling and signature humor. His works often explore unconventional characters, such as teenage cannibals, unicorn-killing superheroes, and fireproof college professors. His self-published works have earned numerous literary accolades, including the Grand Prize at the Paris Book Festival and the Gold Prize at the Self-Publishing Review Book Awards. A native of the Inland Empire in California (where he earned a Bachelor's degree in English and a Master's degree in Composition) he now calls Las Vegas home.

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