With the protagonist being the most important person in your story, a ton is riding on his shoulders. Miss this character and your book flops—no matter how beautiful your voice or compelling your tale. The entire novel development revolves around this person, so she has to have traits that draw us in, for she is the one with whom we sign on to travel the course of the story.
What makes a great hero? It depends of course somewhat upon what you’re writing. Different genres require different traits. If a Romance, I always think of the Bonnie Tyler song:
I need a hero, I’m holding out for a hero ’till the end of the night
He’s gotta be strong and he’s gotta be fast
And he’s gotta be fresh from the fight
If a Thriller, we need someone handsome and capable, or beautiful and bright. The Western hero is strong and fast and noble. In Literary or Mainstream, she’s more real, more fallible, but overcomes her weaknesses to save whatever day in a manner in which we can all relate.
But every main character has things in common. First off, we meet him very early on (page one is best, but if a Prologue is used, Chapter One works fine). This signals to your readers that this person is our guy. If you begin with another, the reader gets confused. And a confused reader will quit your story in a flash. Again, if you’re writing say, a Murder Mystery, where you need to begin with the actual murder, your reader will snap to the fact that the murderer is not our hero (again, exceptions exist where that person is the protagonist, but you know that up front as well). The thing is, even after the murder occurs, we need to meet our hero right after. When you begin with your oh-so-compelling main character, your reader grabs the reins and runs with you right out of the starting gate.
Second, we spend about 75% of our time in her viewpoint. Again, she’s the one readers trust to take them through the novel. She’s the one with whom we want to spend our time. And when we’re away from her with secondary-character viewpoints, we should have a semi-nagging sense of wondering and wanting to get back to what she’s doing. The back and forth of that heightens tension, which quickens the pace and moves the tale along.
Third, the Protagonist has the most effect on the story. If not for him, the grail would not be reached, the wrong righted, etc. Your main character simply cannot be one to whom events happen and someone else saves the day. Rather, he directs the plot, the action, changing and growing as events occur, surely, but then he moves the storyline in another direction as he assimilates the pitfalls and learns from them. If someone else finds the Holy Grail, well, we have a whole different set of problems entirely! In effective book development, the plot influences the characters and then the characters drive the plot. The cycle is never ending, until we indeed reach the finale.
And finally, the Protagonist is the one who grows and changes the most. This story is about her. There’s a reason the book exists, and it’s because this compelling person has drawn us into her tale. We go through the tasks and trials along with her, learning as she does. We feel the same fears, longings, hopes, and dreams. The same embarrassments and failures. And ultimately, the same successes as she finally succeeds, at least somewhat, in her quest, whether that quest is saving the planet from invading aliens or stopping drinking in order to raise a child.
And that’s a lot of the point—this identification. Even if we aren’t hobbits, we feel the weight of vast responsibility on our shoulders to save the world from power that can be used for nefarious means. Even if we’re not private investigators or litigators or addicted doctors for that matter, we feel the fear of what will happen if we don’t find or put away the serial killer, or operate successfully on the dying child.
As a novel editor, the goal I teach of great fiction (and narrative nonfiction as well) is for the book to move us, to entertain us, and to make us feel as though we’re a part of the story. To accomplish that, we need a hero who speaks to us. And in doing so, to feel as if we’ve taped into for that short time, as Abraham Lincoln said, the better angels of our nature.
As an award-winning author and editor, since 1993, 50 + of my authors’ books have sold to Traditional publishers. Many have won awards, been made into films, been featured in Publishers Weekly, and become bestsellers. I also love English Labradors, red wine, and write literary fiction and co-authored nonfiction,
Love how you highlighted the traits of viewpoint characters in different genres and how you pointed out how writers should always have readers wanting to get back to the main character when they are briefly pulled away from them.
And that’s it, Kevin, no? We want our readers to be hungry for the main character’s plight!
Excellent post, Susan. Like Kevin, I think it is great that you covered several genres instead of making new writers figure out what might work for the genre in which they write.
Good stuff, but I do have to say how much I hate captcha codes. I have great difficulty reading them, as do many others, and it is often a roll of the dice if I get that blurry sequence of letters right. But I will give it a whirl.
As you know (and have mastered!) so well, Maryann, different genres call for different sort of folks, especially with our heroes.
And I know on the captcha codes. I hate ’em too! But the amount of spam I get is quite amazing, actually. 20-30 a DAY. Wish another way existed.
Love the piece. I love heroes I can relate to, befriend, talk to, advise, warn about what’s coming…
Thanks
Maureen Onuigbo
Isn’t that just the point, Maureen? When we get attached to the hero, we get to participate in the story!
This is a great article, Susan. The protagonist(s) must be liked, loved, or even hated from the first introduction or else
all is lost by the reader. You taught me this, and is something I’m always aware of.
Thank you for your always informative insights!
Randy Mitchell
And that’s what we love about Andy in SONS IN THE CLOUDS, Randy–he draws us in from the get-go!
Such useful advice! This is what novelists need: the nuts-and-bolts craft advice that helps make a story more compelling.
Glad you found it helpful, Nancy! Your characters are SO very compelling. And funny! Which takes you such a long way.
IMHO,the hero in the general or historical fiction genre has to be an imperfect person, almost an anti-hero: vulnerable, caring, even suffering, but always persevering. He/she need to reflect the common traits of the reader so that the reader can feel a kin, and therefore a kind of transference and emotional invonvement. In other words, he/she must be a ordinary and believable person.
You are spot-on, Joe! The more we can relate to the protagonist, the more we get drawn in. And when that happens, the more we like the book!
I enjoyed the article, Susan. Next time I teach a writing workshop, I’ll share the link with my students. I hope you are doing well!
So happy you liked it, Linda! Where are you teaching these days?
Excellent article. Great reminder of the importance of making our characters live through our words.
You hit it, Patricia–causing our characters to live through out words!
Enjoyed your blog very much. You really hit home when you spoke of with your starting gate remark. When I read I have found that those first few words make a big difference as to whether I will continue or not. A good hook is essential. I want to be brought into the character, invested.
Also I like what you said in the paragraph that starts with “Second…” which talks about the reader continuing to be nagged by and desirous of getting back to the protagonist in the story.
Again, I enjoyed this blog very much.
And that’s what really has to happen–to get the reader invested in the character! You hit the gist of it, Janice. And our job of course, as writers, is to do that seamlessly. No easy feat!
Your article is extremely helpful in giving us the 4 traits of a hero. I very much agree with everything you stated. POV is so important in driving your plot and also in identifying with your character. Thanks for the strength to which you wrote this piece. You stated with emphesis how one would achieve their goal!
Glad it was helpful, Tory! And you got that so right about POV being the driving force. It really is the hub around which all the spokes rotate!
This is really selfless service to writers, Susan! Don’t we wish more editors were as generous! Thanks for caring. Thanks for sharing. Best of all, thanks for the HEART.
Thank you, Efiong!