Developing Your Protagonist and Antagonist:

Have you ever read a story where the characters felt predictable, one-sided, and flatter than Flat Stanley?

You’re not alone.

However, you don’t have to be part of the problem.

When you learn how to craft characters that feel real, messy, and human (especially in our AI dominated age) readers can feel a sense of connection to them that won’t exist otherwise.

So how do you create characters that feel three-dimensional?

Download or print a copy of the character creation cheatsheet to get started.

Here are some questions to get you started.

• What are the key attributes we need to know about each?

• Physical characteristics?

• What are some elements of their personalities?

• Their backstories?

• What led them to this point?

• What type of journey are they going to be on for this book? This series?

• What will they learn about themselves and each other?

• What other information can you write about these two?

When thinking about your protagonist, there are some key things to consider.

• They MUST have something special about them. (i.e. special skill, unique ability, unconquerable determination, etc.)

• They must have conflicting characteristics.

• Need something to lose.

• Be proactive vs. reaction. They are the driver of the story and MUST take action in one way or another.

• Likable or redeemable

• Conflicting Traits.
  • Main character will have 3-4 personality traits (3 positive, 1 negative) that range from a 5-7 in level of intensity, except when triggered. Then trait will go 10+
  • Secondary character will have 2-3 personality traits (2 positive, 1 negative) with an intensity level of 3-10.

Ways to gain empathy for your hero/heroine:

• Must have a difficult problem/situation to solve.

• Something worthy or desirable to gain

• An interesting flaw (fatal flaws)

• Terrible secret

• Compelling enemy

• What is the lie they are telling themselves?

• Likable

• Powerful/good at what they do

• Funny

• Terrible situation

• Character Creation

• Keep their traits/characteristics specific and only for that character. (I.e. Harry Potter has a lightning shaped scar)

• Keep traits with them at all times.

• Reveal these traits and other facts about the character line upon line.

What is the journey your character is on and what is the trajectory of their arc?

• Positive arc

• Negative arc

• Flat arc

 Be sure to set your hero up to struggle, fall, and get back up again. This give them a level of humanity not achieved any other way.

How to develop your character

 Consider the growth and setbacks your character will face during each of the major milestones. To learn more about story milestones, check this out.

• Backstory

• Inciting Incident

• Slap 1 – D&S

• Slap 2 – D&S

• Climax – D&S

• Resolution – Explore growth experienced during the book

Another tool I like to use is Maslow’s Heirarchy of Needs. This can help you really see what struggles and challenges you can throw at your character when you figure out where they are in this diagram.

Deficiency needs (the bottom four categories on the next page) can be highly motivating for a character, especially as the duration of the deficiency continues. (i.e. lack of food = increased hunger).

Growth needs are more focused on personal growth. We can survive without these categories, but our life will feel meaningless if we don’t achieve some level of the growth needs.

Things to note: all needs don’t have to be 100% satisfied before someone starts working on upper tiers. A person can also shift up or down depending on the situation. Most behavior is multi-motivated. Also, if a deficiency need wasn’t met in childhood, then as adults that person will put more emphasis on those particular needs for their own children.

With these considerations in mind, where do your protagonist and antagonist fall on the pyramid? What are they working toward? what are they lacking?

The BIGGEST thing I want you to make sure of when writing your Protagonist and Antagonist is that they MUST be proactive. They must choose and act and take the lead. These are the reasons why we follow their stories.

To learn more about this topic, you can check out this episode from The Writer’s Toolshed podcast.