I've had something of an epiphany lately. It's not an entirely pleasant one to think about in real life, but it's something incredibly important to consider in creative writing. Everyone you've ever met has a past. Good pasts, bad pasts, pasts we're proud of, pasts we try hard to forget. There are things we do share and things we don't, but all of it contributes to who we are and how we act at any given moment. No two people have the same past. No two people will react the same given the same trial. And so will no two characters.
