Book Review:

Lauther, Howard.  Creating Characters:  A Writer's Reference t the Personality Traits That Bring Fictional People to Life.  Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Compnay, Inc., Publishers, 1998.

In this book the author carefully states that his intention is not to create a "how to" book, but to provide an exploration of how type can reinforce an author's understanding of characters through the study of real people's personality traits.  In his chapters, he asks such questions as, What are the character's internal traits? External? What does the character want or need? What does she like, dislike?  He goes on to offer how a character would develop some traits over others depending on their religious beliefs, upbringing, careers and self-concepts.  

There are also sections of the book divided into categories, so it is a valuable reference book for a writer who has already written a story and wants to verify her characters are consistent to type or to find ways to flesh out a character and make them more believeable.

The most interesting section in the book is on "Type".  Here Lauther lists all the labels we have for people, many of which are in Keirsey's sixteen types, but Lauther cross references many others with them and gives a more detailed analysis of the type.