Do you give your characters heroic qualities?
As a literary agent, Donald Maas says he reads too many proposals with protagonists who are Plain Janes or Average Joes. While the world is filled with such people, readers don’t want to read about them.
So how do we avoid this problem?
Donald Maas’ recommendation:
Think of one of your heroes. Why is this person your hero? What qualities make this person admirable? Boil it down to one defining quality. Find a way to give your character this heroic quality and make it apparent right from the get-go.
My Example:
One of my personal heroes is my pastor. The quality I admire in him is his passion for souls and his passion for truth. He doesn’t shy away from truth, no matter how difficult or unpopular it might be to preach. I admire that about him. So I spent a chunk of time the other day figuring out how I could embed this quality into my heroine. The exercise opened up a whole new avenue of plot possibilities that I never would have explored if I hadn’t gone through the exercise.
Important Note:
Some of you might be saying, “But my MC isn’t a hero.” That’s fine. He or she doesn’t have to be. A lot of average people possess heroic qualities. Your character should too.
Questions to Ponder: Who is your hero? Why is this person your hero?
Ah, yes. It took me a long time to see the truth in this statement — and also the way it transcends just characters and influences the way the whole story comes together in the end.
Thanks for the thoughts, Katie!
These are some great heroes, everybody! I love when you share your thoughts, whether it be about a character in your MC or an actual person in your life. Your comments are a joy to read!
Jeannie – can't wait to read it!!!! I love breakthroughs!
My husband has to make the list and the quality: Faithful–first to God, then to me and finally to our sons. Also, my grandpa. His trait: Truth with Humility. Great post. :]
Great question! I'd say my heroes are the ones who do great things. One of them dropped to his knees and prayed for me the other day. To me that was pretty great.
This picture reminds me of my brother, because he's a firefighter, too! He's a real life hero to me, and I love him SO MUCH! (Tears a flowin'!) He is brave, but his heart is what makes him a hero. He's fiercely loyal, and has such a great sense of humor. Looking forward to more!
So very true. Every character needs something heroic about them. Mine always speaks her mind. She just can't help herself, and while sometimes it gets her in trouble, it's also her greatest strength.
My mom. B/c of all she's overcome and how she's always helped to make me feel loved.
I like thinking about this question for my characters, too.
Mentioned you in my post today. 😀
~ Wendy
In the past, I used to tend to try to make my heroes more perfect that was realistic. Now I try to give them regular, even irritating qualities but really make their good ones shine.
my mc is a hero! he champions children with unfortunate family lives. the crux is that he's having to change careers…which will change how the heroine views him! (this just came to me last night, girl….how to really set the stage for the finale. i can't wait for you to read it!)
My MC's main interest is a hero. I've decided to keep it clear from the beginning and I don't regret it. It makes me fall in love with him al the more 😉 Great advice.
Hey, Katie! Your post really made me think, which I love!
Personally, I'd go with Esther, like Tabitha Bird. Hands down. And Billy Graham. Both of them live their faith. I guess that's where my heros come from: people who believe and stake their lives on that belief.
The protagonist of my book is a hero-in-training. She's far from flawless, but she's smart, independent, brave, hard-working, and she's definitely trying to improve herself. She'll be someone's hero someday.
Any admirable trait can become heroic if sticking to the trait forces the hero to sacrifice something.
The book I just turned in, the hero's trait was trustworthiness. He had to prove to the heroine that he would stick with their plan, even after facing setbacks.
So he did. 🙂
Great thoughts, Katie. It's easy to settle for ordinary with our MC's. The idea is to bring more life out of our characters, making them more real, more likeable, more interesting.
Everyone has heroic qualities in one way or another. I like how you point to that. The trick is for us to discover what quality we want to bring out in our novels early to catch the readers' attention, I guess.
This is a good post for me to think about. I mean, I know the heroic qualities I give my men, but I don't know why I've picked this guy to be my hero. I never broke down my reasoning and I've had people say he's unheroic. Hmmmm… It might be too late to fix in this manuscript but I'll definitely be thinking about it in my next story.
My husband is my hero. He has been through everything with me and still wants to be with me 🙂
Esther, a woman I admire. She has been through rather a lot with me too. And she actually says its a pleasure 🙂
I think the protagonist has got to be extraordinary in some way–either in the situations they find themselves in and how they react to them, or in their personalities themselves. They don't all have to be likable, but they do need to be interesting.
Elizabeth
Mystery Writing is Murder
I agree with Mr. Maass. Why would we want to read a book with a MC that is plain or boring? I read to escape into the stories of strong characters, and I hope I'm making my characters like that.
Corny as it may sound, my parents are my heroes. My mom for her outstanding faith and compassion and my dad for his good humor and ever optimistic heart. They are two of the most amazing people I know.