How to Write a Strong Protagonist

[@anitagwinn9501]

Quite a bit to consider in my storyline. This session helped me realize weak spots in novel. Thanks!

[@Reedsy]

Glad it helped :)

[@colleenwillard7502]

me too. . . I wondered why my MC was feeling stretched and. . . not into the story. .. she's not the right role for the MC. Who then?

[@wrightfamily7381]

Wright family

[@cavalrycome]

Shaelin, you appear to use 'narrator' and 'protagonist' interchangeably in this video but they needn't be the same person in every case. Think about the film The Shawshank Redemption for example, which is narrated by the Morgan Freeman character as a witness to the actions of the Tim Robbins character, who I think it would be more appropriate to call the protagonist. Also, what do you think about whether the protagonist is a stand-in for the audience (someone the audience would like to be) versus someone they merely empathize with?

[@Reedsy]

That's very true, it's just in most cases that they're the same! (or interlinked, like in a 3rd person story) There are certainly cases where anything is right for the story, but I'd say that usually a protagonist should be something we are interested in rather than just someone we want to be. That can lead to a character who is lacking flaws and this type of character can often fall pretty flat as a result.

[@edrodpr1114]

Thank you. This helped me. :)

[@booksandauthorsindependenttv]

Shalin, is there any chance you can do a video on dual points of view? And how best to write them and how the milestones work together?

[@Reedsy]

We've got a video on multiple storylines that might be helpful!

[@booksandauthorsindependenttv]

@@Reedsy Thank you, I'll try to find it. If I can't I'll ask for the link. Cheers.

[@toby-we3zj]

Your body language is great, Your channel is great! I can't wait to get started on my book!

[@ce7899]

rn im struggling on my protagonist personality

[@dark_natas_666]

Great vid. Thanks. :)

[@UnknownWorldMusic2]

Every story is about change/character development. And by “competent” I think she means a character needs to change, so they should be a fish out of water at first.

[@georgepalmer5497]

One of my favorite protagonists is Bilbo Baggins. His small stature forces him to use wiles and tricks to get through every situation. It also adds a flavor to the story of this diminutive creature who is forced to outsmart his circumstances. He scrapes by Gollum. He outsmarts Smog, the dragon. And it is all for the greater good. He is very demure about his successes because, if the truth were told, he would rather be at his house in Bag End drinking hot tea and eating crumpets.

[@EeeEee-bm5gx]

Interesting take. Bilbo is probably my favourite character too. But not primarily because of what he does, but rather because of what he thinks as he does it. Besides, out of all of Tolkien's writing Bilbo is one of the few characters that feels like a person. I think Tolkien put a lot of his own thoughts and experiences into Bilbo. Other characters have those too, but as glimpses instead of consistently.

[@EeeEee-bm5gx]

Bilbo just wants to get home and have a cup of tea. I empathize with that every single work day 😅

[@georgepalmer5497]

Also, Bilbo was the only ring bearer to voluntarily give up the ring.

[@camerondavidso3860]

Some of my favorite protagonist drove the plot by thier weakness

[@codysearsmusic]

One of my classic chosen stories focuses on one of the chosen, as well as his sister. The protagonist is a sibling of the chosen, and is trying to stop the prophecy.

[@codysearsmusic]

Antagonist not the protagonist. Haha

[@matthewbowen8254]

The only problem with this video is that there’s no examples. Because newer writers don’t want to info dump, but they don’t know how to exactly show these qualities in a character. Is it through thoughts, dialogue, something they do?

[@maximilianotorres8971]

I'm sorry, I cannot concentrate. her voice is too cute

[@bepiqedvevacuru6196]

"Ana Rudolf... I have... many leather bound books"

[@adams8849]

How do I create a protagonist who is socially weak like a person from a middle class working background in a locality full of thugs and goons. he is too weak to fight them physically so uses his mind to win over situations. this is a drama and not a comedy The closest I see in English movies are Penguin from the TV series Gotham and maybe e that character from the untouchables

[@tokiomitohsaka7770]

100% agree on the active protagonist being essential for a good story. This is what made Journey of Elaina so boring, she is a talented and intelligent witch, but she is too reactive, she never does anything, never takes initiative.

[@awesomebird7172]

I think arcee from transformers prime series is a well written deep and strong character, she was flawed relatable and had good development, what you think of her?

[@BlazerK1914]

I really like that version of Arcee. She is a pretty cool Autobot and capable warrior, but she has vulnerabilities. She also has relations with plenty of characters like Jack and Airachnid. Arcee in Transformers Prime is definitely the best version.

[@milestrombley1466]

And stop making Mary Sues.

[@KeikoMushi]

I think that this was covered by "Competency is interesting in a character, but so is struggle". The same can be said for a character that is repeatedly crapped on. The latter is one of the big issues that I have with a lot of Korean "romance" webtoons. Seeing some "wins" for a character balances things out and cuts down on the exhaustion factor for the reader. (I believe this latter point was covered in a recent Reedsy video.) I'd also put forward the common issue of "convenient solutions". If the solution to a problem is made convenient, then there is less of a payoff when the problem is solved. And this is something that we often see tied to Mary Sue characters.

[@linked7835]

Yea i agree

[@johnjordan211]

The morons have come up in the comment sections

[@johnjordan211]

​@@KeikoMushieverything you say is stupid.

[@johnjordan211]

A person who isn't a writer and will never write just made youtube comment.

[@juliesit5344]

How far should I develop a minor character if all the character does is just being a waiter? Should I make a character profile for him?

[@Reedsy]

Develop each character as much as you feel you need to to write them accurately! Personally, I probably wouldn't put much (if any) time into developing a waiter who is only in a scene or two, but if this character is important to the story you might want to develop him more.

[@dcle944]

Harry Potter doesn’t do much in most of the story. Only once Dobby died that he took charge.

[@georgepalmer5497]

I wrote a short story where the protagonist is pretty much an anti-hero. I don't know if I made him interesting enough.

[@IntrovertDominic]

God of highschool was a rushed coolness over plot, story and characters, it needs a remake and i dont mind if mappa created it again with or without Crunchyroll's help and make the story a 8/10 instead of a 6.5 out of 10(tower of god gets a pass)

[@ايمنشريبط-خ4ذ]

I did not understand anything of your beauty