What is character development? How do I develop a character?

Character development is the foundation of role-play. To develop a character requires some planning to start out, but how much planning is entirely up to you. At the very least, decide on a starting point for your character, have an idea of your character's past, appearance, and a few personality traits. If you want, you can plan your character more in-depth; many great role-players approach character planning differently and the approach you take in this regard doesn't matter as long as you come up with something believable.

After you have planned your character all you need to do is role-play realistically. A lot of people think "realism" is a bad word associated with "elitism" but that isn't the case; fun and realism can co-exist and role-playing realistically is not rocket science. Role-playing realistically does not require extensive research; stick to your character, use common sense, don't do anything blatantly stupid, and you can consider yourself a realistic role-player. Unrealistic role-play usually happens when someone brings OOC motives into their role-play, so avoid doing this at all costs. Another common myth surrounding realism is that it makes role-play mundane; this is actually the opposite of the truth. If you take everything IC and role-play realistically, you will create more role-play opportunities for yourself and others.

Once you have started your new character you need to be conscious of what your character's motives are, what your character is/isn't capable of, how your character thinks, and how your character talks. Again, don't have any preconceived goals or motives on an OOC level when starting a new character; be consistent with your character and embrace each role-play scenario you come across in-game. If you are committed to doing all of this each time you log in-game, the character development aspect will take care of itself. Character development isn't anything you need to force or overthink; let in-character events shape your character. Adapt your character's motives, capabilities, mindset, and any other attributes naturally over time based on IC events and role-playing realistically. Of course, you can explore different aspects of your character and add quirks/changes over time, but be realistic about it and don't stray outside the bounds of your character.

Another key ingredient to finding enjoyment for yourself is to stop obsessing over the screenshot game. Character development is not about posting screenshots of you role-playing by yourself. Role-play realistically, let IC events shape your character, and post some screenshots if you want, but don't get too caught up in trying to show off that you are developing your character. Role-playing realistically and enjoying your role-play need to be your top priorities; screenshots or anything else is secondary.