Character Trait Entry: Affectionate

Readers have a lot of choice when it comes to books, and they’re looking to spend time with characters who remind them of themselves in a meaningful way. Even if a character is larger-than-life, they should act as a mirror, making mistakes, fearing failure, and facing hardship just as people do. 

This means we need to know the important elements that make up who each character is, then write them authentically—through showing (rather than telling) who they are, avoiding clichés, and making them unique.

We created this thesaurus to help you create and write realistic characters who remind readers of their own struggles and challenges. Below is a sample of one of the traits in this collection. We hope it helps you think about your character’s flaws and attributes—where they came from, what they might look like, and how to make them unique to your character—so you can bring your cast to life on the page.

Affectionate

Definition: displaying fondness or tenderness through action and deed

Characters in Literature:
Diana Barry (Anne of Green Gables); Mrs. Bucket (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory); Romeo and Juliet; Beth (Little Women)

Common Portrayals:
Kindly grandmothers, close sibling relationships, children with their parents; people and their pets; couples in love

Cliches to Avoid:

• The fake affectionate socialite who acts one way in private but another in public,  bestowing air kisses and “Darling” platitudes for show only
• The obsessive affectionate character who tries to win over the love of another, ignoring every rejection signal than comes his way
• ‘Baby talk’ between couples in the honeymoon stage of their relationship

Twists on the Traditional Affectionate Character:  

•  Affectionate characters are energized and fulfilled through giving, loving and being open. Place a character with this trait in a high stake situation that requires the opposite: secretiveness, distance and reserved behavior.
• Affectionate characters tend to go out of their way to not hurt or harm. What if to serve the greater good, this character needed to reject another, and not be gentle about it?
• Place an affectionate character into a situation where they must successfully work alongside someone who has directly hurt someone they deeply care about.

Other Character Trait Thesaurus entries can be found here.

Build a Worthy Protagonist Readers Will Love

This sample, along with the rest of the character trait entries, has been expanded into book form. Together, the bestselling NEGATIVE TRAIT THESAURUS and POSITIVE TRAIT THESAURUS books contain over 200 traits for you to choose from when creating memorable, compelling characters.

Each entry contains possible causes for the trait, as well as positive and negative aspects, traits in supporting characters that may cause conflict, and associated behaviors, attitudes, thoughts, and emotions. For more information on this bestselling book and where it can be found, please visit our bookstore.