Readers want to see character growth and change through the course of the story. This is the character arc of your story. Character growth can be as simple as having your heroine realize she doesn’t need a man in her life to be happy, or as complex as overcoming the childhood trauma of abuse.
Here are 5 questions to ask yourself either before you begin to write or during.
- What is my protagonist’s/antagonist’s overall goal in the story?
- What change in my characters do I want to make happen as she/he journeys toward the goal?
- What obstacles can I throw in the way to help my character grow? These can be internal or external.
- What is the character’s goal in this scene?
- How does the conflict in this scene affect change in my character?
As in life, it usually isn’t any one thing, but a combination of happenings that bring about change/growth in our lives. So it is with your story characters. These five questions will get you on your way to creating characters readers can connect with.
I highly recommend Nancy Kress’s book Characters, Emotion & Viewpoint. Check the link to the right for more information (affiliate link).
Debra L. Butterfield © 2013
Great questions, Debra! Thank you.