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Character arcs should be theme based. Let me give an example. In one of my current works, the theme is loyalty/treachery. In this story, I have two characters who unexpectedly betray the same household. Both of them start off seeming very loyal, but along the way, there are certain hints that their ultimate loyalties are to themselves. These aren’t the turning points themselves, but they are the foundations which make the turning points where they commit treachery make sense.
On the other hand, I have one character who remains perfectly loyal throughout the whole story. He does change in some ways, but overall he pretty much stays the same. This guy provides contrast and helps me draw out the theme. He alone, however, does not make a story. If all or most of your characters never change, there is no story. When you have a character who remains pretty much the same, it is important to surround him with characters who do change significantly.
In Pride and Prejudice, the theme is – well, pride and prejudice (and romance). Well, guess what the MC’s character arc is? Prideful and prejudiced > surprised and uncertain > humbled and in love.
In any story, the plot points should be what moves along the character arc.
What makes a good character arc? That’s not an easy question. One big thing is realism. Elizabeth changing over meeting Darcy (those are the right names I hope) makes sense. If she changed over a sister telling her they thought she was being prejudiced, that wouldn’t make as much sense.
Another thing is to be mean. Take your characters on a big character arc. Now this isn’t a perfect rule. There are many books where characters don’t go through huge character arcs and the stories are still spectacular. Still, this is a good rule of thumb.
@kate-flourny. Take it from there.
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Good points, @Daeus. Very good points.
Also, @sarah-h, it’s not so much about showing your character’s response to the arc as it is about showing the arc itself. Let me explain. Say you’re character has a problem with lying. As you progress through the arc, don’t show us the character lying less and less. Show us the changing perspective in the character’s heart that makes them know lying is wrong. Make ’em realize why they shouldn’t lie, not just that they shouldn’t.
And if there is a big moment when the character suddenly realizes something is right and true (as opposed to a gradual acceptance and admittance of the truth) things should get a little awkward as the character struggles to put their new perspective into play. Struggles to remember that this is what they’re supposed to be doing— saying— thinking. Old habits will get in the way. Old ways of thinking will want to take over. And sometimes, you should even allow that as the character is just starting to go right. It’s realistic— people still make mistakes. And then, with every mistake made, every repentance, every turning and turning again to the right path, their conviction will grow a little stronger.And one more point— there’s a single perfect place in the book to give your character the ultimate test in whether or not they’ll stand strong in whatever it is they’ve come to believe. *drumroll*… the climax.
The climax should provide the toughest decisions— am I going to stick to the truth? Am I going to show mercy? Am I going to relinquish ‘my right’ to vengeance? Am I going to sacrifice myself for a greater cause? Do I have the strength?
And in the case of a negative character arc, am I going to turn my back on everyone who loved and trusted me? Am I going to give in to my anger? Am I going to withhold this information, and let thousands of people go to their deaths? Is this really what I want?The beginning of the book is to show the starting point of the arc. The middle of the book is to show the arc’s change. And the climax is to clinch it.
Thanks for explaining all that to me! I finally understand character arcs. 🙂
Uh-oh, it looks like I have more rewriting to do. My major theme is self-sacrifice, being willing do die for what is right. But all 4 of my MCs are already on the right side at the beginning of the story. I don’t want to wreck them all and then slowly piece them back together throughout the story. I suppose I could do that to one of them (the very main one), and use the others to convince her. Especially since she has some friends who could be bad influences. That might work, actually. But this novel spans four or five years. If it takes her that long to make up her mind, that would be annoying and unrealistic. Should I make her arc more complex? Maybe I should have more than one main theme; that way the other MCs would also have character arcs… I’m thinking out loud. Do you have any further advice?As you progress through the arc, don’t show us the character lying less and less. Show us the changing perspective in the character’s heart that makes them know lying is wrong.
Thanks for pointing that out! I probably would have made that mistake otherwise. 🙂
It sounds like plot and character arcs are very dependent on each other. When you write your stories, do you figure out one first, or do you create them both at the same time?
@kate-flournoy said “To use a very simple example, if the message is about overcoming fear by the grace of God, start with a very timid, nervous, stressed-out character who’s afraid of everything, and take it from there.”
I’ve got that as one of my subplots. I like it because I could actually write a one sentence pitch for that plotline without any difficulties.
@sarah-h K. M. Weiland has a whole series on character arcs at helpingwritersbecomeauthors.comWell actually @Sarah-h, in my current novel the MC’s arc spans… eh… one two three four… four? Yes, four years, and it’s not been either annoying or unrealistic. In fact, it’s more realistic to have the character take a long time to make up their mind, because no one really makes snap decisions on that level of importance… specially when they’re trying to just stay alive at the same time! 😛
My further advice to you would be make it subtle but obvious. That may sound like a contradiction, but it’s not really. One of the best ways to do this is to follow the classic rule *rolls eyes* ‘show, don’t tell’. Don’t give us long scenes with nothing but the character sitting and pondering all this (though a few of those, treated carefully, might be in order at some point). Give us live actions scenes that illustrate the arc— first something that makes her realize that whatever she’s doing is not right, then something that makes her realize why it’s not right, and then something that confirms she’s trying to mend it. The progress of her arc should bounce off events in the story.It sounds like plot and character arcs are very dependent on each other. When you write your stories, do you figure out one first, or do you create them both at the same time?
Eh… I don’t even know! My story planning process is a tangled mess of both order and confusion, with confusion having a high majority. 😛 Plot and character arcs are definitely connected, but I would say the first thing I figure out (most of the time) is what the message of the book is going to be, and how I can best use all the other story elements to play into that theme.
I just started reading another book by K.M.Wieland and I made an interesting observation. The first book of hers I read “Dreamlander” was amazing. Now I’m reading “Behold The Dawn”. It is also good, but I would rate it as a four-star book, not a five star. Why? Well, I asked myself that, and it made me realize something I’ve always instinctively thought. The MC in this story is one of those guys with a messed up life in need of redemption. That’s cool in all – those make great stories – but here’s the problem. The character is always lamenting his terrible state of soul. The author tries to make it seem as if he just suppresses these feeling and moves on further down his course with a grim acceptance of his evil destiny, but she falls short. The reason is because the MC just keeps having these thoughts as if he really really wants to change, but he doesn’t act like he wants to change. You can just see him going, “Ok author, I really don’t like the mess of a life you’ve given me, so I’m just going to keep complaining to you until you finally redeem me.”
That’s something that I see as an easy slip we need to watch out for. We do need to represent human struggles, but not such as in which there isn’t much of a fight. Now don’t let me make this book seem like a poor level book. It really is quite good and I would certainly recommend it. Just wanted to use one of its flaws as an illustration.
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Ohhh, I see. It’s not one big decision; it’s many little realizations and choices that slowly lead up to her making the big decision. Thank you for clarifying that.
Don’t give us long scenes with nothing but the character sitting and pondering all this
That’s what I was dreading when I made the “annoying and unrealistic” comment. Action scenes are my forte, and I am very relieved to know that I can use them instead. 🙂
Thanks for helping me understand all this. I really appreciate it.
@Anna-Brie – Thanks! I’ll have to check that out.@Daeus – That’s a good point. In real life, a person’s thoughts usually influence their actions. The same should be true of our characters.
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