Okay! Long post here I come 
(I’ll just be answering with a numbered answer)
Answers
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Personally, I plan my story by writing it out as a novel in a google doc. It’s tedious, but I’ve found that it creates for a logical and well put together plot. If I’m struggling with certain chapters, sometimes I’ll simply just write a bulleted list that gives general goals for what I want to happen in the chapter. That way, there’s always a mini-subplot for every chapter.
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All of my characters are based upon people I know in real life. While I may mix and match personalities to appearances occasionally, a good 95% of all characters I write are either friends, family, or people I’m well acquainted with. I do, however, make sure I ask their permission before I write anything just to make sure they’re OK with it.
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I usually plan to fully develop the main character, and all of the supporting characters. In the case of the story “The Florist,” I plan to develop 8 characters altogether. I feel like this allows for proper and good representation (which is extremely important to me). Each character has their own arc… and while some may be more apparent than others, each character is unique, has a purpose, and will morph and change into a better version of who they were.
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I usually only have one main character and about 7 supporting characters in the form of love interests, friends, enemies, and family. I firmly believe it is important to develop all of them because, as previously stated, it allows for good representation. It also gives the reader multiple chances to connect with the story and to engage them. A variety of well developed characters creates a more personable story and give purpose to every single scene and every last piece of dialogue. This usually allows for a really explosive ending!
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I struggle more with narration, honestly. Dialogue comes naturally as I usually speak out each scene with my girlfriend to give a more natural flow. While I’m great with descriptions… narration can be tricky because I never know what is too much and whether or not the narration even fits.
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Finding where the characters live and travel to is tricky, but I find that it’s best to find a place that you have already visited or have done some pretty deep research on. For me, I’ve done lots of traveling and have extensive knowledge on Eastern and Central Europe, Latin Countries, and U.S.A. Pick a place where you know the colloquialisms and different aspects of day-to-day life. It provides a more realistic experience and can really indulge the reader.
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I tend to use pros and flaws. Nothing is truly negative about any character. Everyone can improve, mature, and move past their flaws. Using pros and flaws allows for more flexible character development IMO. One of my characters really is a jerk, but there is so much more to him than just that. He is deeply hurt but has also shown signs of compassion. So while he is compassion, his flaw is that he is easily hurt. He can improve and learn to express that he’s hurt without anger and ruining the relationships around him. I feel like if I made that a negative trait, I’d be placing him in a box and not allowing him to improve later on.
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Besides personality, I’d really focus on the character’s back story. What was their childhood like? What kind of people are they drawn to? What is their self image and why is it like that? What are their mannerisms? How do they treat the people around them? etc.
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I honestly prefer when a characters looks are described very little through character dialogue. Narration can quickly get cringey and become too much. While it’s great to have aesthetically pleasing characters, long narration about their appearance reduces them to “something pretty to look at.” It gives me very little information about who the character is and their role in the story. IDK, I’m just picky on that part. Usually when an author gives a long introductive narration describing what the character looks like, I exit out. I already know what they look like… now tell who they are and why they’re here.
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Writing foreign characters can be extremely difficult at times. To write them, you should honestly do extensive research. Misrepresenting a foreign culture can be very insulting and very damaging. Reach out to people who are a part of that culture and ask for advice. It’s usually good to include different aspects of what that character does to celebrate their culture. It adds to their development and really personalizes them. While that information is never truly necessary, it would be a good thing to add in order to avoid forced diversity and 2D characters.
I really hope this helps you in some way!!