User blog comment:Rossker1/Character Development Talk/@comment-25156300-20171228021011

What sort of story do you have for Toru already? I saw some backstory, but nothing on what she's up to in the present day.

The way I expand my own story is by simply letting the characters interact on their own for a bit (roll the snowball downhill and see what it picks up). When I first started with my character Kazō, I had him show up during the Chunin Exam Arc. I began with just him in a minor role like other side characters, until his personality took root. Then I just let my brain run free and see what stuck. Since he now had a rooted way of interacting with the existing world, new plots came up a lot easier that flowed well with his character.

Now when I get stuck, I just go back to that general method, and have him in basic scenarios with other characters in order to refresh my brain on what make him who he is. Just plain, day-to-day scenes of him talking, eating, sleeping, etc. It makes the character feel more real, and thus easier to continue their story. And those day-to-day scenes don't have to actually show up in your story. They're the equivalent of doodling when you can't think what to draw. Eventually a random doodle sparks something.