Avoiding over-complicating characters?

[CelestialDreamer]

So, I'm creating this one character and it feels like every word I write on the character sheet, I confuse myself more and more about who they are... I'm not even sure of their strengths and weaknesses anymore because their story seems to have contradictions and their personality is bleak. I'm not sure what to do, I think I've lost my image of the character and won't know how to roleplay as him when I'm done with creation. How do I simplify my character so he has a defined personality instead of being a mess of contradictions?

For instance, he's a moral activist and travels from town to town trying to make social change but one time he stays in a city for a while and after his protests result in his friend's death he becomes more nomadic and unattached to people... But that doesn't make sense, because how will he make change then, if he doesn't stay in towns longer? Also, what even is his goal? I know I may be asking too much because it is my character after all but I just need help getting out of this bind I put myself in, I'm really confused X_X

 

[Ragenaut]

What is your character's foundation/skeleton? Having a strong base and personality for your character will help a lot with character creation. This will allow you to ask "what would your character do" when you find yourself stuck on something. Basically, person over goal, and if you have a strong person, your person will greatly help guide your goals.

 

[Tellural]

Try scrapping the traditional idea of a 'character sheet' and going for something more simple and easy to comprehend, like a bullet list. Making a list is usually my first step when I'm creating a character so I can just get all of my ideas out there without having to worry about being eloquent or anything like that.

The best thing (in my opinion) about creating characters is that you can put them through all sorts of situations and see how they have evolved - or stayed the same - when they come out. I think your idea has a lot of merit actually. It could lead to a good bit of internal conflict and something for him to surpass as a character in the duration of the plot you have him in.

What I would do if I were in your shoes is, have him be conscious about how nomadic he's becoming since the death of his friend. He's still trying to help people and he does start too but he can't manage to stay in one place long enough to see it through. It could be something that really frustrates him, but no matter how hard he tries to stay in one place the quicker he feels that he needs to move on. Eventually it could peak, and maybe he has no choice but to stay and face his insecurities and other unresolved feelings about the death of his friend. Build it into his personality rather than trying to build his personality around it.

As for goals, think of your goals as a person. In my own experience I have very few solid goals that I want or need to achieve. It's natural to not have a particularly driving force, so there's nothing wrong with building a character that way if it's your intention. Goals can also be discovered, developed, or dropped and forgotten over the course of a story arc.

Hope this helps, even if just a little!

Also, an this is a really interesting post/discussion about personality that I read (and commented on) earlier. Might be some help,and if not then a thought provoking read.
http://www.storytellerscircle.com/threads/why-i-dont-use-personality-sections-anymore.3842/