Characters Articles

Engage Readers by Giving Your Characters Unfulfilled Motivations

By Lindsi McIntyre Without motivations, protagonists will be awkward observers to the happenings around them. They will be unable to drive the plot and capture readers' hearts. Although you can sometimes get away with giving side characters smaller, more attainable...

Three Mistakes to Avoid When Crafting Character Motivations

You did it. You've sketched out a great cast of protagonists, a detailed plot, and a genuinely scary villain (the last part was a cinch after an entire month of articles on the subject here at KP). You begin writing furiously while your excitement's fresh, but after...

Three Reasons to Make Your Villain Sympathetic (and Two Dangers to Avoid)

A villain rounds out your story’s conflict by opposing the hero’s every move. But, like heroes, villains are busy people, and they have more purposes than wreaking havoc. You’ve probably heard that they need to be “sympathetic” and “relatable.” Maybe the source you...

Four Lessons Loki Can Teach You About Writing Villains

By Sierra RetNovember heralds the approach of Thanksgiving, holiday-flavored Starbucks beverages, and (for loyal Marvel fans at least) the theatrical release of Thor: Ragnarok. Since Kingdom Pen's topic for October is villains, it seemed appropriate to write a piece...

Four Keys to Writing Compelling Character Dynamics

Four Keys to Writing Compelling Character Dynamics

Apr 13, 2021 | Characters

By Jodi ClarkThey grab your attention. Their dialogue is both hilarious and sometimes cutting. These characters jump...

Four Failsafe Techniques to Employ When Scripting Secondary Characters

Four Failsafe Techniques to Employ When Scripting Secondary Characters

Mar 1, 2021 | Characters

By Grace King-MatchettWe all know how a story with poorly written secondary characters feels. They stumble...

Beyond Banter: 4 Tips for Writing Hilarious Dialogue

Beyond Banter: 4 Tips for Writing Hilarious Dialogue

Jan 25, 2021 | Characters

By L.E. Williams Writing humorous dialogue is hard. Hang on—I can pare that down a bit. “Writing dialogue is hard.”...

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