They can’t all be stars. Some of your story’s characters will warrant only a line or two of dialogue and the barest description. The challenge is to make them memorable while ensuring they don’t overshadow your MCs. You don’t want your reader to infer your walk-on characters are more important than they are.
That’s a fine line: unique but not too interesting, vividly drawn but without too many words. In a post on Writer Unboxed, Dave King offers his suggestions for accomplishing this tricky task for your story’s cashiers, waiters, and taxi drivers.
One way is to combine characters or have your walk-ons walk on more than once. If your MC likes a certain restaurant, have the same waiter serve their table. If you have a handful of minor characters pop in and out during your novel, consider whether two or more roles can be combined, which can give you room and an excuse to flesh them out.
You can also make your minor characters memorable. Give them a unique look or distinct features. Have them stand out from the crowd. You can give your reader a vivid image in a few words without letting a minor character take up too much space.
King suggests observing people in the real world for ideas. Noticing what’s interesting about the people around you can help you bring minor characters to life on the page.
