Oh it's really cool to see the before and after. Your newer designs seem more mature and realistic. When first starting out, I think it's common to fall for common tropes (like cool features, random clothes and skimpy clothes for the girls), but as you grow as an artist your designs will get better.
(Love the flip flops though 
)
I create characters on a whim, but I guess I have a few steps I follow.
First question: what is their occupation? Are they a high school student, a merchant, a fire mage, a traveler?
This one is actually the main, after that you are just thinking it through.
Second: what is their personality? Here comes the color palette, choice of details.
Third: what is their background? Things like if the clothes are new, how their wardrobe is limited, if they have some special items with them.
I made some design changes for a few characters after thinking them through a bit, like Washuu here is a priestess and a daugher of a noble family, so her having such plain clothes in the beginning had a little sense. Instead she looks much more flashy and out of place (as she should), has clothes and items suited for a gal of her status. This will change too as time goes on and she loses this sheen, so this before-after will basically switch places =)
Along with art and story development, the design also develops. You might won't like design you made 1 year ago and it might not fit with your current story/art.
Most notable thing I change his physical appearance. It is because the decision to make the story more realistic and a village boy won't have access to bleach and purple hair dye while keeping his skin pale while working in the fields under the mountain sun.
Note these are fancy clothes he probably wear once a year. I changed his outer-vest thingy because it looks weird and replace them with jewelry instead. The headdress is revised. I kept the gloves overall shape. I also developed the patterns.
The lizard was made into soup in the chapter 2 of the series 
He also got more new outfits!
I´m illustrating the book of my brother right now and it plays in our hometown in a medieval setting.
I take the inspiration for the clothes from different painting from that time and from prints from that time.
A famous printmaker lived in my hometown in the medieval times, that´s perfect reference for authentic clothes, hairstyles etc
I studied animation in college, so I have a very cartoony style. For me, it all starts with basic shapes.
Seems like a logical process to start with their occupation followed by their personality and background. Really nice art also, it's so fun to see the before and after and hear your thought process!
I love that you've put so much thought detail into the clothes, really cool design! It makes me want to know more about the history and culture of that world!
@Puck It's really nice to take inspiration from real life and history, I think it makes the design more unique (instead of just basing it on the same media your designing it for)
@cassidybueter I also like thinking about the simple shapes a lot. Circles for cute and bubbly characters, aggressive characters are more "pointy" etc.
Well what I normally do is come up with a rough image and personality for my character, then create a mood board of various reference images that help serve as influence/inspiration for my design.
After that I start sketching thumbnail concepts for my character until I come up with a character design that I like.
Ohh a mood board is a really good idea for getting more inspiration! I want to try that myself and see how it goes!
I design mine through their personality and/or aesthetics that fits them as a whole.That, and some experimenting with different clothes designs and what not.
Best of luck with that @cookyroach.
Can't wait to see what you'll come up with
My process is definitely experimental. I pick a color pallet I think goes with their personality. Then I do a bunch of doodles and basic sketches before I pick one I like. Even then I’m willing to change things slightly as time goes by in my comic. It’s not unusual for people to get different haircuts or change up their clothes in real life. So I don’t set things like that in stone forever.
Things I consider when designing a character are mostly where they live, what they do and how they want people to see them. Sometimes I create characters based on an aesthetic, so I kinda have an image of them before I even start fleshing out the details about their lives.
Then I do sketches to experiment with colors and such... Finding the best colors is the most challenging part for me ;u;
@Golden_Acorn yes it's fun to let characters change with time. For me it also takes the pressure off, because it doesn't have to be perfect from the start, I can always fix a design later if I don't like it.
@AkaneHayashi Yep colors are hard... sometimes I spend so long thinking about what colors to use, then remind myself my comic is in greyscale
Their histories, their 'job', their 'aura'.
And no, I do not think too much about it.
Character A is supposed to be 'younger', 'light-easy going', 'not too mature'
Character B is supposed to be 'wise', 'mature', 'calm'.
I have to be aware of the expressions they make throughout the story to fit their character.
I usually think about the world the characters will be in first, and what type of surroundings the character lives in. I would look at references from different cultures, draw ones I find fitting a few times, mix and match them to match their personality, especially if the culture isn't a culture we have in the real world. Fantasy reflects reality.
Most of my characters formed from a random sketch or doodle, and a personality kinda just grew on them. Their fashion taste tends to grow with the character as I get to know them better (at least that's how it's been with my main comic, since it's my first serious comic).
Though as of late I try to think more critically, like: what's their role in the story? Would they want to stick out? Would they want to blend in? What's their monetary status (would they wear nicer brands? or thrifty? do they make their own clothes?) What's their feature (what's the first thing the average person notices about them? Height? Eyes? Hair? A big nose?)What's the setting of the world? (fantasy, sci-fi, modern day...etc) If I had to call them a trope, what trope would that be? (I find this makes it so easy cause you can go full blown tropey, and then peel away the layers you don't like)
I find character designing to be pleasant and relaxing, and these are the things I think of the most when I am being purposeful.
Though sometimes my entire goal is: I want them to look super cool. 
