Whether you’re brand new to writing or have been working at it for quite some time, you know how important it is to craft a compelling main character who propels the story forward.
I’ve been working with writers for well over a decade and over that time I’ve seen again and again just how crucial the main character can be to make—or break—a story. After all, readers won’t remember every last detail of a story’s plot, but they’ll remember the characters and they’ll remember how those characters made them feel.
This is why I wanted to take some time today to talk about your main character (i.e. your protagonist) and why they are so important to your writing. In this email, I’ll dive into different facets of character development, so by the end of it, you will know how to craft a unique and engaging main character for your story.
Why Your Main Character Matters
Not everyone recognizes the importance of the main character. Some believe the thing that really matters is the plot and how gripping and interesting the story events are. But the truth is, events are only interesting insofar as they happen to a person.
If we don’t have a character then the story is nothing more than “this happened, then this happened, and then this happened….” Well, that’s not a story—it’s a newsreel. And while newsreels can certainly be interesting, those events take on much deeper meaning when we see how they impact a specific person.
The protagonist of a story provides a lens through which we readers experience that narrative, Without that lens the story falls out of focus. The main character makes the story feel personal, and that, in turn, makes us more invested in it.
Plot and Character Operate in Tandem
Some writing teachers focus on plot more so than character, while other story experts say the opposite and put all their eggs in the character basket. In fact, some people even go so far as to break it down by genre, saying that literary fiction is more character-driven and genre fiction (like thrillers, mysteries, or romance novels) tend to be more plot-driven. Truthfully, I think good storytelling requires both elements.
If you have a character, but nothing interesting happens to them, then there’s little opportunity for conflict and tension. Without conflict or tension the story will be boring. Characters need opportunities to misbehave and create trouble.
On the other hand, if all you have are events buffeting the characters to and fro, then these characters have no agency. Story events need to stem from character choices, not just random things that happen outside of their control. It is far more interesting to see a character make a choice that turns out badly than to have a random event happen for no reason whatsoever.
A good story is not just character or plot in isolation, but the two elements intertwined and working together to create an engaging narrative.
Understanding Character Archetypes
When you understand the type of character that you’re writing, you can craft your narrative around that character, creating story events that will cause conflict or force them into uncomfortable situations. Remember, we can’t just be nice to our characters. We have to cause trouble for them and create bad situations that make them act out. “No one wants to read about happy people in happy-land,” as my friend and colleague James Scott Bell has been known to say. People want to read about characters who are dealing with problems or facing trouble. Conflict is what makes the story world go round.
This is where it can be extremely valuable to understand the type of character you are writing. You see, not all characters are created the same. There are distinct types of characters and each type has particular qualities that will make them behave in specific ways. There are essentially two types of protagonists. Let’s take a closer look at each one.
Relatable Characters
The first type of protagonist is the relatable character. This is a regular person caught in extraordinary circumstances, where they need to rise to the occasion and do something amazing. Examples of this type of character are: Bilbo Baggins from The Hobbit, Luke Skywalker at the beginning of the original Star Wars saga, Anne Elliot from Jane Austen’s Persuasion, and Katniss Everdeen at the start of the Hunger Games trilogy.
Readers love these relatable characters because they can identify with them. Readers see a part of themselves in these characters, making them want to root for them. The goal with a relatable protagonist is to show their potential for greatness. When a relatable character does something extraordinary, the reader thinks: “Wow, if they can do that, maybe I can do something special, too.”
Aspirational Characters
The second type of protagonist is the aspirational character, and this character is almost the polar opposite of their relatable counterparts. Instead of being a regular person caught in extraordinary circumstances, the aspirational character is larger-than-life, almost like a superhero of sorts. With this character, it’s not about making them rise to the occasion and do something great (because they’re already great), but to show their humanity, some hint of vulnerability that makes this superhero-esque character seem more relatable, more human. Examples of this type of character are: Superman, James Bond, Sherlock Holmes, Jay Gatsby from The Great Gatsby, and Elizabeth Bennet from Pride and Prejudice.
Readers love aspirational characters because they show what’s possible. These larger-than-life characters may not reflect readers as they are right now, but they reflect what readers would like to become. The goal with these aspirational characters is to show their potential to be vulnerable, making them seem more human and relatable.
The Opposite Is Possible Theory
I have a theory that in order to show the potential for change and growth in a character, you have to show that it’s possible for the character to be the opposite of what they are. No, this does not mean you’re making your character behave out of character, but it does mean that you give a sense that the opposite is possible. With a relatable character it’s all about showing that hint of greatness while with the aspirational character needs to show some vulnerability or humanity.
If you think about it, relatable and aspirational characters are essentially two ends of the same spectrum. If a relatable character becomes extraordinary enough, they can eventually become aspirational, while the converse is true with an aspirational character.
This Opposite Is Possible Theory works in large part because the potential for change is baked right into the character. And we’ve all heard the writing class cliché that characters should change over the course of the story. This Opposite Is Possible Theory means that the change is woven right into the fabric of the story from the very start.
Think about the character you are writing and try to identify whether they are relatable or aspirational. Your character may not fit neatly into one box versus the other—remember this is a spectrum—but see if you can determine which category best fits.
Some folks object to categorizing characters in this way. “My character is a unique individual,” they say. “I can’t fit them neatly into a box.” Keep in mind, this is not an exact science and a character might be relatable in some respects but aspirational in others. The thing is, if we can fit our character into one of these two broad categories, then it makes it all the more straightforward to figure out how that character should change.
Of course, it’s a little reductive to pile characters into one of two categories, but when we know whether our character is relatable or aspirational, we know what direction their change needs to take. A relatable character will have to rise up and do something extraordinary, while an aspirational character needs to show their humanity. Having an overall sense of which type of character you have will give you an idea for how to craft that character’s emotional journey.
Until next time, keep writing and keep being awesome!
P.S. For more info on Gabriela Pereira, the founder and instigator of DIY MFA, check out her profile page.
