Experienced people, who know a lot. People who scheme and manipulate and trick others. Something like the clan elders from Reverend Insanity. or gods from LOTM
Still writing so not too sure how well it comes across to the audience, but in my opinion, the biggest differentiator between those who are experienced and manipulative and those who are naive and gullible is their thought patterns. For example, if the story is third-person omniscient then I might do a few thought-flow paragraphs or POV chapters. Alternatively, if you don't want to be too omniscient / you're writing in third-person limited, then I might attach a less important side character for the experienced person to react to in such a way that reveals their thought patterns and/or scheming personality. If first-person, you can describe the character from the MC's POV, but that could always be flawed, so it could be a lot more subtle. etc.
The thing is, I'm a newbie, so I'm certain that I would mess up such a narrative and end up lowering the IQ of all the supporting characters, much like the majority of Chinese novels.
shhh. imma newbie too. ive just decided that this is a loss im willing to take until i can figure out a better way. but also i feel like lowering the IQ of a supporting character would make sense, as it serves as a convenient foil for the "smart" person another method im thinking of is to make the supporting character also rly scheme-y but loyal to the MC so that they scheme together and are very open to each other
There are several ways to write characters like this here are a few ways: 1) Straight up steal them from someone else's work. Do you want characters like the clan elders from RI? Just make one exactly the same with a different name or even the exact same name. Chances are no one will even be able to tell the source. 2) Hang out with older people and listen to what they talk about. 3) Listen to your own friends talk about things they are doing and then modify their BS into something that works for your own story. Brad just dumped Sally to get with Karen? That could translate into Elder Ma tossing aside his Wife in favor of the new beautiful disciple, etc!
As I am older and older year by year, I have to say that old and smart people are really very hard to write. What makes them hard to write is that you barely know anything about them. The only thing you can know from them is through their words or their achievements and past deeds. My advice to you: _ Read more biographies: very famous people leave behind legacies and there are several things that you can learn from them: thinking processes, principles, dilemmas they have faced, their charisma, and lessons they learned themselves. _ Smart people have a logical sequence of action to perform their amazing feat. They don't perform extraordinary things out of thin air like using cheat or magic. This is an exercise that any writer has to go through. Creating a character that can come up with a solution that can make you the author have a flash bub in your head is really hard, but if you can pull it out, the readers will feel the same as you when reading this character. Example: Lellouch from Code Geass is considered a genius tactician acknowledged by the fans for his signature strategy, defeating the whole army by collapsing the whole battle terrain. To show that he is a genius but not an omnipotent being who can perform magic, the show creators had to show the process of how he managed to achieve that. First, he needed time to prepare (really important element because in many situations, intelligence shines when people prepare for things, not when people do in the heat of moment, that is for gamblers, not tacticians). He surveyed the terrains beforehand. Next, he had to come up with a method how to achieve it. Different settings demand different methods to achieve the same stunt. Then, he had to properly instruct the units to wait at appointed positions. When the battle occurred, he had to wait for the right moment to trigger the trap to have the biggest effect. This is a long example, just to tell you that to properly show a character being smart, don't skip his/her process to pull out their signature skill. Even if it's just a short mention, you have to list out the important actions for the character to do their stunts. _ Watch youtube video that can help enhance your intelligence. History channels are highly recommended.
The advice with the biographies sounds quite interesting. Never really thought of it that way. Might look into searching for biographies written by people themselves and start reading them. Thanks for giving the advice.
When crafting mature characters, focus on their life experiences, wisdom, and challenges they've overcome. Develop their unique voices and perspectives. Consider hiring book writing services to ensure authenticity and depth in portraying older characters, adding richness to your story.