Writing a Good Protagonist

For more information, please read the Writing Guide.

A good protagonist is the central character of a story who engages and captivates the reader's attention. The protagonist should be someone the reader can root for, empathize with, and care about. Here are some tips on how to create a good protagonist:

1. **Give the protagonist a clear goal**: The protagonist should have a clear and specific goal that they are trying to achieve. This goal should be something that the reader can easily understand and relate to.
2. **Create a character arc / character development**: The protagonist should experience growth and change throughout the story. They should start out with flaws and weaknesses, and through their journey, they should overcome these flaws and become a better person.
3. **Make the protagonist relatable**: The protagonist should be someone the reader can relate to, someone with whom the reader can empathize. They should have flaws and imperfections that make them human and realistic.
4. **Give the protagonist agency**: The protagonist should be an active participant in the story, not just someone who is acted upon. They should make decisions and take actions that drive the plot forward.
5. **Create obstacles and challenges**: The protagonist should face obstacles and challenges that test their strength and resolve. These obstacles should be difficult but not impossible to overcome.
6. **Show the protagonist's vulnerabilities**: The protagonist should not be invincible. They should have vulnerabilities and weaknesses that make them vulnerable and human.
7. **Make the protagonist likable**: The protagonist should be someone the reader can like and root for. They should have qualities that make them likable, such as kindness, humor, or bravery.
8. **Create a unique and memorable character**: The protagonist should be a unique and memorable character that stands out from other characters in the story. They should have a distinct personality and voice that makes them memorable.

### Examples

First, we're gonna be going over two God Characters on the Multiverse of Disassembly Wiki. These two Gods are listed down below as:

Walmter Nelson (Work in Progress)

Serial Designation [DEFECT] (Rewrite in Progress)

We'll be comparing these two and seeing what makes them great. You see, take a good look and read these two pages. Do you notice anything off about Walmter Nelson's page? Well, for one, there's a few grammar mistakes to his opening paragraph. Those mistakes are highlighted in bold.

`"Walmter (Alt name: Walter) is an incredibly powerful nigh-omnipotent self-insert OC/Being with a hatred towards anyone who attempts to power-scale. **Walter is a being who is attempting to find happiness and a person who can scale up to him in a fair way instead of instantaneously scaling over him. As what most people would do.** Walter is an Alarian, meaning as he ages, he gets stronger and stronger until he reaches a certain point **where it stops**, a perfect balance at where it is near impossible to scale over an Alarian. His species has existed in the █████████ for several septillion years. Walter attempts to bring power-balance to most inhabitants of several cyberverses, not having evil intentions unlike other self-insert god **OC's**. Which only seek to have an insane power tantrum due to an edgelord backstory. **Walter is now in an Adult Alarian Stage. Meaning he has more access to the variety of abilities he has**."`

It is important to ensure that the opening paragraph of a character's page is well-written and free of punctuation errors. While Walter Nelson's page is a work in progress, it's essential to make sure that the initial description of him is polished and engaging. Unfortunately, at present, Walter Nelson's characterization lacks depth and nuance, as he appears to be strong simply for the sake of being strong. It's crucial to develop a character's personality, motivations, and flaws to make them more compelling and relatable to readers. A work in progress provides an excellent opportunity to refine and improve a character's profile and backstory, so it's worth taking the time to do so.

Now, let's compare that to Serial Designation [DEFECT]'s opening paragraph to his character.

`The backstory of [DEFECT], a character in Monster's Sketchbook, is shrouded in mystery. He is primarily known as a representation of Judgement and assists Lake Quiller in his missions. The reason [DEFECT] was used as a representation of Judgement was that Lake Quiller was supposed to represent Death, thus [DEFECT] and Quiller would contain philosophical meanings that would be implanted into the story later on. [DEFECT] is often used as a last resort when Quiller faces insurmountable challenges. However, there are hints that [DEFECT] may possess more empathy towards others than he lets on. Unfortunately, due to Quiller's manipulation, any sense of remorse [DEFECT] may have had has been nearly extinguished`

[DEFECT]'s partnership with Lake Quiller holds a deeper philosophical meaning as Lake Quiller represents Death, and [DEFECT] represents Judgement. This adds more depth to [DEFECT]'s character. Additionally, [DEFECT]'s backstory is more unique compared to other God Characters on the wiki.

`1997`

`In the late '90s, a top-secret government program known as the *Bestowal Educational System* was created to develop powerful humans who would become the perfect soldiers. This was all made so that the government could have power over other countries. One of the products was Mike Will, who would soon become a mechanic working with JcJenson in the near future. Unfortunately, during the program, Mike wasn't the best in the Elites. The Bestowal Educational System could potentially kill fully trained adults and children, meaning surviving it would be nearly impossible.`

`Somehow, Mike managed to do so but as a cost: he saw how dark the world really was. After many years, Mike soon became a full-grown adult, growing smarter and smarter. Soon, he was hired to become a test-subject for a JcJenson experiment. Despite being shown how cruel the world was, Mike shrugged it off and decided to give the experiment a try, becoming one of the many volunteers to be working under the company.`

`However, he would soon find himself to be place inside a machine's body, killing him instantly. But then, the demon came. It came to him. Out of everyone else, it struck him a deal. The beast spoke like a dragon, answering the human. Slowly, Mike started moving, faster and faster. Until... he stopped. He had reached the point of breakthroughs, scattering throughout the walls of the facility.`

`His brain was moving quicker. His mind was growing faster. Suddenly, JcJenson units burst into the room, getting into a battle formation. They aimed their guns and fired. The bullets sank into Mike's body, hitting his patella and head. Mike's machine roared in agony and pain before leaping towards the agents, tearing them apart. It let out a roar once more, this time in anger and frustration. The demon was taking control of him. "Surely you don't want it to end here, right?" it said.`

`"I know you. You wanted to be more powerful than the Elites." Mike ignored it and ran outside and into a hallway. More agents were coming soon. He quickly hid in the bathroom, nervously hearing the sound of multiple footsteps run by him. He let out a sigh of relief before heading over to the mirror. He looked at himself. He wasn't human anymore. "You made the contract," the parasite explained. "And you got what you wanted." Mike just looked at himself and then his hands. He didn't have a family. No friends. Nothing. He had nothing. "You've become more powerful. Why not try to find someone you can trust?"`

`"No."`

`"Why not?"`

`"A person you can really trust is someone that comes to you, not someone you create."`

`"You're a wise man, huh?"`

`"If you say so..."`

`The rest of [DEFECT]'s backstory during the 1997's is left unknown. However, it is hinted in the series that he used to be an oil trader secretly, helping Worker Drones who were still a work in progress, thinking that they were also to be treated as humans.`

`2001`

`Knowing that Copper 9 wasn't a safe place, [DEFECT] attempted to shift his location to a more civil plane. So, he transcended the infinite dimensions and eventually broke through existence, coming face to face with the Branches. [DEFECT] thought about choosing the Hope Branch, but decided against it as it was still open to attacks. Creation wasn't going to be much habitable, even for gods. The more [DEFECT] searched for a safe environment, the more undetermined he became. Until suddenly, he spotted something - something that the other gods couldn't see: The Writer Branch. [DEFECT] leapt up, determined to find a safe place for him to stay. But no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't reach it.`

`So, [DEFECT] made a book to document his findings and how he could get there. He called the book *The Mythology Guide: The Writer Branch*. Every day, he would conduct experiments using his omnipotence in hopes of eventually bypassing the fabric of creation, something the gods needed to function their abilities.`

There are some flaws in his backstory, but it does get you hooked. For one, Mike wasn't born perfect. He was born as a victim of an experiment known as the *Bestowal Educational System.* You'd think that I would say [DEFECT] was the best in this program as it would make him more powerful, right? Well, no, that's not how it went down. Instead, Mike was barely even a good Elite, and although he survived, he wasn't even that powerful. And it was only with the help of the Parasite that [DEFECT] was able to become a god-like character even though he never wanted to.

But what choice did he have? After all, he had nothing to lose and he couldn't refuse the contracts of the demon. He didn't even have any family, friends, or anything like that. But instead of going down the generic "edgelord backstory" trope, [DEFECT] decides to create a new life for himself on Copper 9 before transcending the infinite dimensions and reaching the Outerspatial. And he was still faced with challenges such as finding a good home for himself.

You see, God Character or not, in order to make a good storyline you must come up with a good challenge for your main protagonist. Don't make them perfect, too. Sometimes the main character can actually be an evil person or has done awful things to others. Keep in mind that Serial Designation [DEFECT]'s backstory was completely IN-REWRITE and it still managed to add more depth to his character than Walmter Nelson, which was all about someone being strong and powerful.

**That doesn't mean Walmter Nelson is a bad character, though. He'd probably be one of the most special God Characters on the entire wiki itself. So before you go butcher him with criticism, please remember that there shall always be a person behind the keyboard or screen.**