Alida, Kathryn, and Matt talk about ways to identify and develop your protagonist. Sometimes writers build a world before they identify the story they want to tell.
Show Notes:
What is a protagonist, and does your story need one? What are the stakes your protagonist needs? Who is the right person to tell your story? And how is a protagonist different from a point of view character? And ultimately, do you have to discover one thing before another in your pre-writing process?
What we talked about:
What does it mean to be a protagonist and does your story need one? (2:10)
What kind of stakes does a protagonist need? (4:13)
Who has to tell the story? (5:22)
How is protagonist different from point of view? (7:50)
How can your point of view affect your protagonist? (9:25)
But how do I find the character who has the most at stake? (10:35)
Can you find your antagonist first? (12:35)
Does it matter what story elements you develop first? (15:37)
Things we mentioned:
SWRT 9: Story Ideas
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Aeronaut’s Windlass by Jim Butcher