7 Steps to Write the Perfect Protagonist

Ever struggled with creating a protagonist your readers will care about? One that feels like a real person, rather than just a cardboard cutout? In this in-depth guide, we’ll delve into our 7-part checklist to help you shape well-rounded, believable protagonists that not only fit your narrative but also engage your readers. Here's what you'll learn:

1️⃣ *Identity*: Define who your protagonist is in detail.

2️⃣ *Transformation*: Track their change throughout your story.

3️⃣ *Want, Need, and Desire*: Understand the core drives of your character.

4️⃣ *Order and Chaos*: How your protagonist responds to stress.

5️⃣ *Strengths and Weaknesses*: Unveil what your character is exceptionally good and bad at.

6️⃣ *Groups and Status*: Where does your protagonist stand in various social circles?

7️⃣ *Inciting Incident*: What event sets off the entire story?

*🎥 Like this video? Watch these next:*

*🧰 Resources:*
• Masterworks: How and Why to Study the Greatest Writers in History

*👁️ Why Watch?*
• Unlock the secrets of crafting characters that your readers will empathize with.
• Gain insights from 30+ years of writing and editing experience via our founder, Shawn Coyne.
• Equip yourself with tools to create an entire story around your well-defined protagonist.

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[SuperBeanson]

Seriously, this is the best writer-content on YT. No waffle, original content, cogent and precise points. I've seen so many YT Author-tube shizzle; this IS the best

[douglasphillips]

I've been struggling with my protagonist so much that I was thinking of making a more dynamic character the protagonist, and shift them to a support position, but this helped me to clarify the character's arc

[theimaginarium]

This is absolute GOLD. Thanks for this, I'm taking notes. How do you not have a million subscribers??

[mageprometheus]

Another good video. Story Grid is quite opinionated. As a creative, I can't entirely agree with everything, but to be fair, it's impressive. 😄

[tomlewis]

All great info. For both plotters and pantsers. And there may be different ways to approach it. At one extreme, all of this can be nailed down well before you write the first (or any) scene. At the other extreme, you may have a 'general' idea going in about all (or most of) these things, and some of them you may only have a subconscious idea about. Some of the answers might not really materialize for you until later drafts. Or this can work at any point on that spectrum.

When I was a newbie, a talented person in my writing group presented his first scene in his WIP, which was a very well-done action scene—a Scooby gang of 5 people being chased through an apocalyptic landscape. But it didn't work for me, even though brilliantly written. Why? I didn't know who these characters were, so I had no empathy (yet) for them. We realized together that this would work really well in a chapter 2 or a chapter 3, but it would not work until the reader was bonded to the characters.

So my first goal in storytelling is to get the reader bonded to the character. Structure and order are my biggest weaknesses, so I work the hardest on getting that right. From a very basic POV, I think these are the questions needed to be answered and typically in this order: Who, what, where, when (those two can be reversed), why, and how. And that's just a wider view of looking at what you're saying. But it's nice to look at the specifics, as you have shown us here.

So I guess my point is that all 7 of the things on that checklist are important, for sure. And they should probably be presented not only in that order, but fairly early if possible ('How' is mostly an Act II thing). But when during the story-writing and revising process you figure certain of them out is actually pretty malleable.

[litabrooker]

The draft is already written. I'm revising. This episode is an excellent resource as I edit.

[Thegrayhairedwriter]

10 steps to hero by Sacha Black is also a great help for this

[kasiako]

Wow, great tips, thank you so much! 🙏

[gigartina]

Thank you so much for this video! Despite being short, there’s a ton of deep information packed in. I come back to this video whenever i’m starting a new story to remind myself of all the different angles to look at my characters - including antagonists.

[litabrooker]

Knowing the Protagonist means knowing the kind of plot they need to challenge and change them.

[LaserLady]

❤‍🔥Just finished outlining, this is wildly important info as I dive into my 1st draft. PS: It would be great to have a worksheet to follow along with this video.

[dreiacosta]

Are those D&D dice on your shirt?? 🤩

[DrMadlenFellmeth]

Thanks Tim for this great video. I am working on my first fiction book after the big idea book. Curious what will come out :) See you next year in the training. Madlen

[alexsiGeo]

Love your content, one day i will be a famous writer and i will make your channel viral because you are the best !

[tarquinnff]

Great video. I do have one question though. What do I do when I can't figure out which character is my protagonist?

[gazsot]

So glad you're making these videos dude!

[stgr]

Looking at the mentioned Sherlock Holmes: We don't learn much about his background, his wants and needs. He also doesn't grow or change much over the course of the story. Are detective figures like him really the protagonist?

Or is in fact the killer the protagonist? He is the one who is sent on a journey by an inciting incident and we, the readers, want to find out all these interesting points about him, right up to his identity.

So is Sherlock Holmes actually the antagonist?

[ComicPower]

Some protagonist don't change. But they are Central to others change. For example Forrest Gump

[Arvidkattsmatte]

awesome video, it helped so much, in regards of what the antagonistic force will be, that it is determined by the change I want to see in my protagonist. THANK YOU!

[Lolie.h]

Great great content and info, thank you 🙏
I hope you millions of subscribers you deserve it, this is quality content