Getting the reader to care about your protagonist is important to the success of your novel or memoir. Yes, the action of the story is important, but if the reader doesn’t care what happens to your protagonist, the story falls flat.
People care about people or any thinking creature you create. But they need a reason to care. Lots of things can happen in a story. We as writers need to make the story personal by telling the tale of one specific person. The reader needs to see how what happens in the story affects one particular character. Make the story specific to someone the reader cares about.
But how do we do that? How do we get someone who doesn’t know our characters the way we do, care about what happens to them? Now I’m not saying that I have all the answers. Wouldn’t that be nice? I wouldn’t need to struggle to get my own stories down on paper if this were simple.
Let’s start by asking a few questions.
Who was this protagonist before the inciting incident, before the story present? There’s a broad question. Rein it in and try and think of answers, or scenes, that relate to your story situation or problem, both internal and external. What type of family or friend relationships did she have? Were these relationships important to her? Why?
Think about your protagonist’s profession before the story began. Why did she choose that profession? What were her beliefs at that time? Why did these things matter to her?
Whatever the internal problem is in the story, how did the protagonist come to deal with that problem? What happened in the first place to make her believe in this internal problem?
And most importantly, how did those around the protagonist feed that internal problem?
If we look at my college memoir, how did Victoria go from having trouble in third grade to not going to college?
Think in scenes or summary:
Victoria struggled throughout elementary school.
Victoria did better in middle school and wanted to sign up for college prep in high school.
Victoria’s father didn’t think she was capable of college work just because she was on the honor roll by middle school.
Victoria took secretarial courses in high school to be a secretary like Mom and friends.
Victoria’s siblings did not go to college either.
How did Victoria meet her husband? Where did she work after high school? Did she consider going to college after getting married?
No. She still believed she was that girl her father claimed was “not college material.”
How about after having a few children? Did she consider college then?
Nope! She was knee deep in babies and running the home to consider college.
Didn’t Victoria struggle with her inferiority before attending college as an adult?
All the time. She saw herself in her learning-disabled first born. Victoria struggled to help her daughter with her education and therefore her younger children as well. But she felt totally inferior to those college-educated people in the public education system.
There are more questions to ask to explain to the reader who Victoria was; how she got that way; and why it matters in her life. When I started writing my manuscript, I didn’t believe these questions were pertinent to my college journey, my memoir story. But they are!
As a writer, you are looking for personal information about your character to answer these questions. Readers are inquisitive. They want to know what makes your protagonist tick. Why she believes and acts the way she does in the story present. Good things, bad things. The reader wants to cheer for your protagonist as the story moves forward. We want readers to care what happens to her. Win or lose. Readers want to care about someone specific.
Please ask any questions about my college memoir and share any insight you may have in the comments section of Adventures in Writing about how you get readers to care about your characters. Thanks so much!
And thank you for visiting Adventures in Writing. Please follow my blog if you haven’t already and connect with me online. Leave your blog link in the comment so I can be sure to do the same for you. To continue hopping through more amazing blogs or to join our Author Toolbox blog hop, click here.
That is a great list! Most of it will never end up in the story, but it gives us a good sense of who the character is and a list of clues we can insert for the reader.
Great list of ideas and brainstorming.
So true that we have to care about the protagonist to get into a story. You have a lot of great questions that can help us all know our main character better.
Backstory is something I sometimes end up light on, and it's definitely something I need to work on. I think I want it to happen organically, but in every other way, I'm more of a plotter, so why am I making excuses for myself and backstory? 🙂
Forgot my link…https://raimeygallant.com/2020/04/14/howtofillmotivationholes/
An excellent list for any writer. Thanks, Victoria!
I agree it is key to draw in the readers with a character they can relate to. Thanks for the information.
Anna from elements of emaginette
Always appreciate a brainstorming session, thank you Victoria!
Great post! I love thinking about characters backstories, and I've put down so many books because I couldn't connect with the MC. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
I'm reading Plot Versus Character by Jeff Gerke. He says the same as you have above. Thanks again for posting.
A great guide to building characters. Thank you
Hi Victoria – that was thorough … we all go through challenges and special times in life that could so easily be teased out to help with fleshing out any characters we write … we also need to let the reader build a bit of their own into the character. Well done – great reminder on how we need to bring caring for our characters into our writing – take care and all the best – Hilary
Yes it does, Alex. Thank you so much for sharing your insight here at Adventures in Writing. Have a beautiful weekend! Be safe!
Thank you so much, Anne. I truly appreciate your note here at Adventures in Writing. Have a beautiful weekend! And be safe!
I believe the protagonist is the heart of the story, Natalie. Thank you so much for your kind words. I truly appreciate them. And thanks for your note here at Adventures in Writing. Have a beautiful weekend!
Backstory needs to unfold when the protagonist would be thinking, or connecting, something that is happening in the present to what happened in the past. You are right, Raimey. It needs to happen organically in the story. But it truly is difficult to do.
It's always a pleasure seeing you here at Adventures in Writing. Thanks so much for your note. Enjoy your weekend!
Thanks, Angel! Luckily, I can always find you on the web. I truly appreciate when you wonderful followers/commenters leave a link in your comments. It helps me find you to read your blogs.
Thank you so much for your kind words, Joylene. I truly appreciate them. And thanks for your note here at Adventures in Writing. Have a beautiful weekend!
My pleasure, Anna. Thanks for your comment here at Adventures in Writing. Have a beautiful weekend! And be safe!
Thank you, S.E.! And thanks for your note here at Adventures in Writing. Have a beautiful weekend! Be safe!
And we don't need to have the same background as the MC to be able to connect with them. We just need to see the humanity in them.
Thank you so much for your kind words, Charity. I really appreciate them. And thanks for your comment here at Adventures in Writing. Have a beautiful weekend!
Interesting, Dawn! I'll have to check out his book. Thank you so much for sharing this with the followers of Adventures in Writing. Have a beautiful weekend! And be safe!
Hello and welcome to Adventures in Writing! Thank you so much for your kind words here at Adventures in Writing. I truly appreciate them. If you can, please leave a link where I can find you on the web. Enjoy your weekend!
Thank you so much for sharing your insight here at Adventures in Writing, Hilary. And you are right. It helps connect the reader to the protagonist if the writer allows for some personal connection between their character and the reader. Have a beautiful weekend! Be safe!
You always make good points, Victoria. The result is that I often question my own memoir as I realize I might not have dug deep enough based on your suggestions and knowledge. 🙂 You are definitely putting way more thought, practice, and prep work into your college memoir than I ever did in my travel memoir, which doesn’t seem to go anywhere at the moment… Have a nice weekend!
Thank you, Liesbet. God, I hope this college memoir goes some place. I’m spending so much money on getting it right. Only time will tell.
As for your travel memoir, it definitely has substance. We may need to look for the through thread, that’s all. But it is truly interesting. Never lose sight of that, my friend. It's always a pleasure seeing you here at Adventures in Writing. Be safe and have a great weekend.
The above article is nice and interesting, thank you willing to share! Greetings success of admin Cetak Buku Murah
wish you deign to visit my website, thank you 🙂
Hello and welcome to Adventures in Writing, Yumaidar! Thank you so much for your comment here at Adventures in Writing. I'll check out your website. Enjoy your weekend!
The above article is nice and interesting, thank you willing to share! Greetings success of admin jasa fotocopy 24 jam wish you deign to visit my website, thank you 🙂
Great Article helfull information
Invite all travelers coming to yala srilanka
Hello and welcome to Adventures in Writing, Uda! I'm so glad you stopped by and left a note. It's greatly appreciated. Thank you for your kind words.
I'll check out your website. Thanks again for your note here at Adventures in Writing. All best to you!
Hello and welcome to Adventures in Writing! I'm so glad you stopped by and left a note. It's greatly appreciated. Thank you for your kind words.
I'll check out your website. Thanks again for your note here at Adventures in Writing. All best to you!
Yes, Victoria! Thanks for sharing this post.
This post resonated with me. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you so much for your kind words here at Adventures in Writing. They are truly appreciated. All best to you!
I'm so glad. It's my pleasure to assist fellow writers. Thank you so much for your kind words here at Adventures in Writing. All best to you!
The above article is nice and interesting, thank you willing to share! Greetings success of admin jasa fotocopy 24 jam wish you deign to visit my website, thank you 🙂
Hello and welcome to Adventures in Writing! I'm so glad you stopped by and left a note. It's greatly appreciated. Thank you for your kind words. Have a beautiful day!