Some advice on Character building

So many writers are fantastic on plot but suck at characters. And vice versa. Here are a few things I do to build a solid character--one that I feel I know as I write about them in the story.

Imagine you are interviewing them. Write down questions and have them answer. Or you can do it as a questionairre.

Name:
Sex:
Age:
Race:
Hair/eyes/height
Zodiac sign:
Marital Status:
Education:
Dialect/Region:
Career:
Relations: (Large family? Small? Orphan?)
Ambitions/Goals:
Hobbies:
Talents:
Pets:
Flaws:
Fears:
Joys:
Strengths:
Religion:
Politics:
Fav Foods/drinks:
Fav Music:
Activities:
Civic Groups:
Possessions:

You can add to the list.

Another thing I do is to make a list of adjectives that describe a person. Cut them in strips and place them in a small box and pull out three or four and assign them to a character.
An example of adjectives:

Calm
Shy
Adventurous
Educated
Silly
Dry
Angry
Shrewd

and so on... use a dictionary if you need to.

Here's an idea that I just came up with, but haven't tried. These online quizes... why not have your character fill them out and see what they say about them. If you do these quizes as a character, don't answer them as yourself. To find quizes, do an "online quiz" search on google or yahoo.

Those are just some examples. Hope they help.

One last thing... these examples apply to all characters--major and minor. Doesn't matter if the character doesn't have a line, say...it's the barmaid... but if you have a detailed image of her and know her as if she's a relative or a friend, it will be easier to write her in the story. Knowing all your characters intimately might not show up in the story but at least you'll know them and it will give a depth to your writing that only an author can experience.