Character-Driven

A few chapters ago, we had the theme-driven plot. This chapter does something similar, but now your plot is driven by character. The idea remains equally simple.

• Invent a character. Give them traits, beliefs, backstory, really know who they are.
• Throw some event at them that challenges their character as much as possible.
• From now on, in every scene, ask yourself “what choice would this character make?” Then simply write that as your plot!

Some writers naturally focus more on character. They’ll find this challenge very easy to do: get inside the head of your hero, make the decision they’d make (all the time).

Others, whose talents lie elsewhere, will severely struggle with this. You have to turn off any other “rules” of plot, any narrative structures, any ideas about “oh no we need to have a climax now” or “oh no we need a bad guy”. You have to focus entirely on your hero and let them do whatever feels logical for them to do.

Most successful stories are a middle-ground. Yes, great (and consistent) characters are necessary to get audiences really invested. But good plot is equally necessary to hook them and take them on a fun journey. Just watching a character sit around, thinking, having some disagreements, for a whole story is not exciting.

An example

Let’s say my hero, a young woman,

• Loves food and everything related to it
• Heavily values romantic relationships, to the point of always trying to be in one
• Hates it when people abuse power and doesn’t want anything to do with it. (As such, she does not care one tiny bit about her own reputation.)

What’s a first scene that would challenge her? Maybe her current partner breaks up with them. Maybe she is suddenly thrust into a position of power, where upholding reputation is important, for which she wasn’t prepared. Maybe she discovers some health issue that means she can’t eat as much food as she used to. (Maybe all of them with one event, if you feel up to the task.)

Once you have it, you’re off to the races.

Let’s pick the first one. The hero lost her (romantic) relationship, and now they feel lost and lonely. What would she decide to do? Immediately, perhaps obsessively, seek out a new partner. She decides to try dating apps.

She meets someone on such an app. They propose to meet up in real life. What does the hero decide? Obviously, she says yes, and she picks a fancy and expensive restaurant with the best food.

While on that date, a very powerful person (maybe the major of the city) also dines there. She overhears their squabbling about power and reputation. Maybe she discovers a lie they’re telling everyone to cover up a terrible situation, just to maintain their reputation. What does the hero decide? She is infuriated and challenges them immediately, embarrassing herself and basically everyone there.

Her date, whom she liked quite a lot, is upset by this and leaves. What does she decide to do?

The cycle goes on and on. At every point, consider the traits and flaws of your character, then let them do the thing that feels most logical and true.

Now write!

Write a completely character-driven story. You need a strong idea of who your character is, but there’s no reason to be extremely detailed. (As you saw in the example above, just a few bullet points can be enough.)

It’s not allowed to invent plot for any other reason than “this is what the character would do or decide”! (If you add multiple characters, do the same for the other characters. Whenever reasonable, have them influence the plot by making a choice that’s logical for them.)

If you’re not used to really considering characters while plotting, this might be an eye-opening experiment.