The first thing to consider when writing a novel or story are the characters. Even more then the plot, your characters will decide where the story goes. If you try to manipulate them to do what you want your story will crash, but if you let your characters lead they will practically write your story for you. There are two types of characters, flat and round.
Flat characters don t change throughout the story.
They are just for background purposes and so will not be very complex. They don t have to be very specific, but if you want to give them a little life, assign each one specific personality trait that he will exhibit throughout the whole story or novel. You can have the deskman be very grave and serious every time anyone comes into the hotel. For your round or main characters you will want to give them more in-depth characteristics. When you decide on the features of your character you can not change them unless that occurs naturally from your plot, such as when the shy character learns to take a stand and feels he must address a group of people and so overcomes his comfort zone.