Hell, yes. I can’t imagine any author not doing this. I gave them life and molded them into who they are—good or bad. I not only talk to them but feel all the emotions that I give them. When I write those special moments and then lean back and go ‘whew,’ that’s when I know I hit a chord for my readers.
What comes out of a character’s mouth is what most people might say in a similar situation. Sometimes they tend to be from my own experiences and sometimes stem from those subconscious thoughts I would never speak. Having a character to hide behind lends me courage to be outrageous. It must also be why they occasionally tell me, “Go f--- yourself.”