Drone about character, say (3)
I believe the answer is:
bee
'drone' is the definition.
(drone is a type of bee)
'character say' is the wordplay.
'character' becomes 'b'.
'say' shows a homophone (sound like).
'b' sounds like 'BEE'.
'about' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for bee that I've seen before include "Hive insect" , "Stinging insect" , "In one's bonnet, it's a persistent idea" , "Insect that bumbles?" , "Buzzing insect" .)