Things to consider when writing about mentors!!
⊹ Why are they mentoring your protagonist specifically. Did they see potential? Do they owe someone a favor? Are they bored? Trying to redeem themselves through teaching? Were they forced into it?
⊹ What's their teaching style. Strict and traditional? Chaotic and unpredictable? Gentle encouragement? Tough love that borders on cruel? Do they explain things or just throw the student into situations and hope they figure it out
⊹ What's their backstory and how does it affect their mentoring. Were they a prodigy or did they struggle? Did they have a good mentor or a terrible one they're trying not to become? Do they have regrets about their past choices?
⊹ Are they actually good at teaching or just good at the skill itself. Because being talented doesn't mean you can explain how to do the thing. Some mentors are terrible teachers but great at what they do
⊹ What are they hiding. Every good mentor has secrets. Past failures, dark history, the real reason they're helping, doubts about the protagonist's chances, their own declining abilities
⊹ How emotionally available are they. Do they actually care about the student as a person or just as a project? Will they have genuine conversations or deflect everything with cryptic wisdom? Can the protagonist actually talk to them
⊹ What's their relationship with failure. Do they let the student fail and learn? Helicopter parent energy where they interfere too much? Give up on students who don't meet expectations immediately
⊹ Are they preparing the student for something specific or just general training. Is there a test, a battle, a destiny? Or are they just teaching skills and hoping for the best
⊹ What do they refuse to teach and why. Is there forbidden knowledge? Techniques too dangerous? Things they think the student isn't ready for?
⊹ How do they handle the student surpassing them. Proud? Threatened? Jealous? Relieved? A mix of everything? The moment the student becomes better than the teacher is always loaded
⊹ What's their fatal flaw. Arrogance? Cowardice? Living in the past? Alcoholism? Trust issues? Mentors can't be perfect wise beings, they need to be chaotic humans
⊹ Do they have other students or is this protagonist special. If there were others, what happened to them? Dead? Quit? Turned evil? Still around and now there's sibling rivalry?
⊹ What's their endgame. Are they planning to retire after this? Die dramatically to motivate the hero? Stick around? Do they have their own goals beyond teaching
⊹ How much do they actually tell the protagonist vs withhold "for their own good." Because mentors who keep secrets always think they have good reasons but it usually backfires
⊹ What happens if the student rejects their teaching or goes a different path. Do they accept it? Feel betrayed? Try to force them back? Cut them off completely?
⊹ Are they connected to the villain somehow. Former friends, rivals, family, same teacher?
⊹ Do they survive the story. Mentor death is a trope for a reason but also letting them live and deal with what the student becomes is interesting too!!!