How to Keep Your Favorite Character From Ruining Your Story
The first step to fixing a candied character is recognizing them.
Latest in Likability
Episode 344: Jerkass Characters
Oh boy do writers love to get this wrong.
Q&A: How Do I Portray an Ambitious Character?
Submitted by Thomas,
answered
Q&A: Can Audiences Sympathize With My Honorable Character?
Submitted by Dave L,
answered
Do Characters Need to Be Likable?
It's complicated, but yes.
Five Ways to Make a Selfish Character Likable
Creating a selfish main character is tricky but not impossible.
How to Get Readers to Feel Those Emotional Twists
Every bit of triumph or heartache has to be built up by the storyteller.
Nine Jerkass Traits That Aren’t Toxic or Abusive
Characters can be grating without being abusive.
Seven Ways Jokes Can Sabotage Your Story
Many storytellers have sacrificed their stories on the altar of comedy.
Seven Common Reasons Protagonists Are Unlikable
Audiences won't get far in your story if they can't stand your main character.
A Breakdown of Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog: Act I
How does the movie's opening set up the story that follows?
Making Sympathetic Antagonists (And Why Thanos Wasn’t One)
Do you want a story where the villain isn’t a mustache-twirling baddie who does terrible things just “for the evulz”?
Five Surprisingly Successful Characters and Why They Work
Believe it or not, we occasionally run into characters that impress us.
Seven More Characters With Too Much Candy
Candy and spinach are important concepts because they describe two critical elements of character likability.
Accounting for Character Identification
Most principles of character likability work for a broad audience.
Peter Schaefer