Using Character Arc to Create a Story
Lately I’ve been writing down and pulling together different approaches to brainstorming and creating stories. Some are more basic and some are more advanced, and some will work better for certain people than others. Today I want to introduce an approach to brainstorming a story that works off character. Well, the character arc (or lack thereof, I guess), specifically.
So if you are one of those writers who tends to favor character over plot (🙋♀️ #GuiltyToAFault #WhatIsPlot), this might be preferable to you. If not, it’s still useful to have at your disposal. Every story needs to address character arc (or the lack thereof, obviously).
Okay, so if you are new to the writing world, you might want to know what I mean by “character arc.” “Character arc” is just a fancy term for how a character grows or changes through because of the story. Most of the time, we are talking about the protagonist, since that is the most important character. (But technically any character can have a character arc.)
And that’s who we are referring to in this post, the protagonist.
First off, not all protagonists arc. Some protagonists remain the same. To be honest, this can get pretty tricky, as like most things in writing, terms aren’t always black and white.
For the sake of this post, I’m going to break down the protagonist options into two categories: “change” vs. “steadfast.” (Because I’ve used this elsewhere and seen it used elsewhere.)
Change Protagonist vs. Steadfast Protagonist
A “change” protagonist will do a more or less a 180, from the beginning of the story to the end of the story.
A great example of this is Scrooge. He starts out miserly and through because of the story, ends up being charitable. Other examples of famous characters:
Harry Potter: Unloved and powerless –> Loved and powerful
Elsa from Frozen: Closed off/isolated –> Open
Jean Valjean: Hard, bitter, cold –> Loving and merciful
Generally speaking, these would be called “positive” character arcs.
But you can also have a protagonist that has a “negative” character arc, such as Anakin’s descent into becoming Darth Vader.
In the other category, we have the “steadfast” protagonist. A steadfast protagonist will be more or less the same from the beginning to the end–however, this doesn’t necessarily mean he or she doesn’t “grow.” (Remember how I said this isn’t necessarily black and white? Yeah … ) Sure, a steadfast character might stay essentially the same from beginning to end (cue classic Superman or 007), but most the time, in modern times, the steadfast protagonist will grow by degree.
Meaning, instead of doing a 180 flip, he or she will gain a greater understanding or a greater ability or greater experience. He or she will become more of something.
This doesn’t necessarily mean the steadfast protagonist never wavers or never has doubts or never meanders the wrong way during the story. He or she just doesn’t do a direct flip.
It’s hard to explain this, because it’s really more of a spectrum (someday, someday, I will write that steadfast protagonist article ✊, but until then …)
Some more examples of famous steadfast characters:
Job from the Old Testament
Jesus from the New Testament
Generally speaking, these steadfast characters offer a “positive” example. Their steadfastness ultimately leads to positive outcomes.
But you can also have a steadfast protagonist that offers a “negative” example. This is what you may find in a tragedy, where the protagonist refuses to change. Their stubbornness ultimately leads to negative outcomes. An example of this may be the grasshopper in the “Ants & the Grasshopper” fable.
(Also, I hesitate to use the word “example,” because it sounds too highbrow or judgy, but it conveys my point.)
Okay, so now that we have those defined, let’s continue.
Considering Your Character
This approach to creating a story is about figuring out how your character is at the beginning of the story and the end of the story, and then filling in the in between stuff.
Because often when you know how your protagonist starts and how your protagonist ends, you can get a better idea for what needs to happen in the narrative. And in a well-told story, the protagonist doesn’t really change or remain steadfast through the story, but because of the story.
Think about your protagonist and how they are at the start of the story. What will they be like at the end of the story? If you aren’t sure, maybe throw around some ideas until you find one that sounds interesting or that rings true.
Worth keeping in mind is that the protagonist’s personal journey will play into the theme topic, so consider if there is a topic or attribute that sounds appealing to you. Do you want to write about love (Harry Potter), isolation (Elsa), hard work (the Little Red Hen), or bravery and kindness (Cinderella)? What defining characteristic does your protagonist have? What defines him in this moment in time? And of course, if you are brainstorming, you can come up with more than one answer.
Just know (I wish I’d known earlier!) that the attributes you choose to highlight in your protagonist will also play into the theme. So in choosing that, you are also influencing the theme. (However, let’s leave creating a story via theme for a future method.)
While some writers prefer to think about how their protagonist is at the starting of the story to figure out the end, others prefer to envision the protagonist at the end, first, and then use that to help them figure out how the protagonist is at the starting.
For example, if I know I want Harry to be loved and powerful at the end, I might realize that I want him to be unloved and weak in the beginning, so his personal journey is more dramatic.
If you are new to writing, I’m gonna let you in on a little secret 🤫: Most people in the writing world will agree that the easiest and most-likely-to-be-successful protagonist option is a positive change protagonist.
Steadfast protagonists tend to be more difficult to write, especially for beginners.
Negative versions of either are more difficult when it comes to pleasing the audience.
Obviously all versions can be and have been done successfully, but it’s good to keep this in mind. And my article aside, you will also find it is more difficult to find resources to help you write the other options, unfortunately. (Come on writing world! Let’s remedy that!)
Okay! So next it’s time to categorize (if you haven’t already).
Is your protagonist a “change” character? Or a “steadfast” character?
Is this “positive” or “negative”?
Arcing the Change Protagonist
If you are writing a change protagonist, the next thing to do is to list out potential challenges, events, or problems that are going to invite (read: force, often by baptism by fire) your protagonist to change. As always if brainstorming, try to come up with more than you think you need. Often the first things that come to mind are cliches, and you gotta dig deeper for the juicy stuff.
Don’t be afraid to be mean. Sometimes character-focused writers are afraid to hit their protagonists hard. But remember, that all stories should be about some type of death–meaning, the stakes should get high enough, that it feels like a life or death situation, even if it isn’t. This means that there will be things that take place that cannot be undone, cannot be reversed–things that are “final.” Also worth noting, is that stakes do more to reveal character than almost anything else (another article I need to write).
Now, if the change is positive, this often means the protagonist starts with a flaw, misbelief, or weakness that needs to be addressed and overcome. In A Christmas Carol, Scrooge is way too miserly! So what is it gonna take to make Scrooge, the most miserly person of miserdom, to change? Well apparently, three supernatural visits, that end in his potential death.
Unfortunately, the average person doesn’t want to make a drastic personal change–it’s hard and uncomfortable! So chances are your protagonist is gonna need some serious crap to happen to kick him out the door.
On the other hand, if you are writing about a protagonist who wants to flip 180, then this is likely a want vs. need issue. As the story progresses, say the protagonist thinks she wants to be rich, but realizes, at the end of the story, she actually needed to be loved. Notice, however, that this is still a “forced” change–because in reality, she went from unloved –> loved. So just keep in mind that what your protagonist is gunning for, may not be the same as what he actually needs. (Sometimes in positive stories like this, once the protagonist gets what she needed, she is then able to get what she wanted, as well, ex. finding out the love of her life is actually rich).
In most “change” novels really, you’ll be dealing with a want vs. need within the protagonist, but let’s stay simple for now.
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