October 7, 2015. Welcome to the seventh day of my October Blog Challenge on preparing to write your novel. Those who are just arriving, please check out the earlier posts on this challenge, as the exercises/ reflections build on each other. To find out what this challenge is about, read my original post HERE.
Now that you know a fair amount about your protagonist, let's consider your second most significant character, your antagonist. But first, is the obstacle to your protagonist achieving her goal a single individual? It could be a group of individuals (in Hunger Games, it's all the other teens trying to kill Katniss in order to survive) or a force of nature (tornado, meteor, tsunami), or an animal (Jaws), etc.
1. Identify the source of the main obstacle preventing your protagonist from achieving his goal. If it isn't a person, describe what it is, and all the ways you can imagine it obstructing/threatening your protagonist. If it is a person, continue through the following questions.
2. What does your antagonist look like? Sound like? How does he walk, move, gesture? How does she speak? What vocabulary does he use? How does she dress? Does he have any personal mannerisms?
Which of these details is important enough to include in your story?
Interesting antagonists also have strong goals. The problem is, those goals are in direct opposition to the protagonists goal. They can't both win, but they must BOTH be unrelenting and proactive in trying to.
3. What does your antagonist want? What is her compelling goal?
4. Why does he HAVE TO ACHIEVE IT? What are the stakes? What terrible loss will she sustain if unsuccessful?
5. Now list 5-8 adjectives that describe your antagonist's personality. Add a few good ones in with the bad ones. Characters who are entirely bad are also boring, not too mention hard to believe. Creating a little sympathy for your bad guy will make your story much more complex and interesting.
6. What is your antagonist afraid of? Why?
7. What does your antagonist love? Why?
8. What does your antagonist hate? Why?
9. What does your protagonist need? Why?
Did you discover something new about your antagonist? How will today's exercise enrich your story? Are there questions that you used to get to know your antagonist not listed here? See you tomorrow!
Now that you know a fair amount about your protagonist, let's consider your second most significant character, your antagonist. But first, is the obstacle to your protagonist achieving her goal a single individual? It could be a group of individuals (in Hunger Games, it's all the other teens trying to kill Katniss in order to survive) or a force of nature (tornado, meteor, tsunami), or an animal (Jaws), etc.
1. Identify the source of the main obstacle preventing your protagonist from achieving his goal. If it isn't a person, describe what it is, and all the ways you can imagine it obstructing/threatening your protagonist. If it is a person, continue through the following questions.
2. What does your antagonist look like? Sound like? How does he walk, move, gesture? How does she speak? What vocabulary does he use? How does she dress? Does he have any personal mannerisms?
Which of these details is important enough to include in your story?
Interesting antagonists also have strong goals. The problem is, those goals are in direct opposition to the protagonists goal. They can't both win, but they must BOTH be unrelenting and proactive in trying to.
3. What does your antagonist want? What is her compelling goal?
4. Why does he HAVE TO ACHIEVE IT? What are the stakes? What terrible loss will she sustain if unsuccessful?
5. Now list 5-8 adjectives that describe your antagonist's personality. Add a few good ones in with the bad ones. Characters who are entirely bad are also boring, not too mention hard to believe. Creating a little sympathy for your bad guy will make your story much more complex and interesting.
6. What is your antagonist afraid of? Why?
7. What does your antagonist love? Why?
8. What does your antagonist hate? Why?
9. What does your protagonist need? Why?
Did you discover something new about your antagonist? How will today's exercise enrich your story? Are there questions that you used to get to know your antagonist not listed here? See you tomorrow!
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