At their heart, all great stories are about characters going through change. Characters in fiction will either resist change or fight for change, depending on their function in the story. To build a great story, you have to understand these different character functions and how they interact.
Beyond heroes and villains, what types of characters will fill your world? What character roles does your story need?
This writing article describes the basic types of characters you will see in well-written fiction. Some of the terms refer to character roles, the functions characters serves in a story related to the plot and conflict, while other terms refer to character types, the way a character acts or reacts to the other characters. A character may serve more than one role in a story, but they typically have only one type. You can have a love interest that is also comic relief, but a protagonist cannot be both flat and dynamic.
The Most Important Characters in Fiction
Protagonist (Role) – Out of all the characters in fiction, the most important is the protagonist. The protagonist is the main character of your story. They are the main driving force of the plot, and have the biggest role in solving the story’s conflict. The story follows the protagonist’s journey as they go after their goals and are changed (and/or change others) through the process.
The protagonist’s actions should cause something in the story to change. If the protagonist changes for the better, this is a positive change arc. If the protagonist changes for the worse, this is a negative change arc. If the protagonist does not change at all, this is a flat arc. A protagonist with a flat arc does not change in a significant way, but they should still spark change in others.
It’s important to note that a protagonist does not have to be heroic or even a good person. Many interesting stories have villainous protagonists, such as American Psycho, A Clockwork Orange, Artemis Fowl, and presidential biographies. A protagonist can have evil goals.
While an antagonist doesn’t have to be a person, a protagonist almost always is. Technically, you could write a story where the protagonist is a storm cloud bringing rain to a town suffering from a drought, but a protagonist without any dialogue, thoughts, or goals would be unlikely to keep readers interested.
Things to avoid: A protagonist that isn’t the major driving force of the plot.
When you finish a story draft, if you notice most of the change is being driven by other characters, you may be following the wrong character. If another character is causing more of the change in the plot, your protagonist may feel weak, passive, or ineffectual by comparison. In this case, consider rewriting the story to be from the perspective of the character that is actually driving the change. This will likely result in a more interesting and satisfying story for your readers.
Also, it may avoid some reader criticism. You don’t want people to spend decades claiming that your character “didn’t actually do anything,” like Indiana Jones in The Lost Ark, or the kids in the movie Super 8.
Antagonist (Role) – Next to the protagonist, the second-most important character of fiction is the antagonist. The antagonist is the protagonist’s primary opposition. They are the major source of conflict in the story, as they try to stop the protagonist from reaching his/her goals.
It’s important to note that the antagonist does not have to be a person or a sentient being. The antagonist can be the monster in a horror story, or the weather in a man versus nature story, or even society at large in a “the town outlawed dancing but I just want to boogie” story.
Things to avoid: An antagonist that is “just plain evil.”
An “evil” or “monstrous” antagonist may have little to no motivation for their actions. Characters without any motivation for what they do are generally less interesting to readers, and unlikely to keep them reading for long. Think about the original Star Wars trilogy. Was Darth Vader more interesting in the beginning, when he was just the Emperor’s henchman, or later in the trilogy, after it was revealed that he was Chewbacca’s father? Learning about Vader’s family history gave him the depth and motivation that makes him one of the most beloved characters in fiction of all time.
Secondary Characters in Fiction
Ally (Role) – One of the most common characters in fiction is the ally. The ally supports the protagonist in going after his/her goals. The ally may also serve as a foil or comic relief.
Antihero (Role) – An antihero is a protagonist who does not fit the typical heroic mold. They may go after their goals in an immoral, underhanded, or illegal way. They may have significant negative traits, like an alcoholic detective or a crooked cop.
Antivillain (Role) – An antivillain is an antagonist with strongly sympathetic goals or traits. They may have been forced into doing the wrong thing, or believe that their misdeeds will result in good in the end. They may even believe that they are “the good guy” in the story. A well-written antivillain is truly a compelling character of fiction.
Confidant (Role) – This character listens to the protagonist’s problems and may also provide advice. Including a confidant character allows the protagonist to share his thoughts and plans. These scenes are usually more interesting for readers than just having the protagonist sit alone and brood. The confidant character may also be an ally, sidekick, mentor, or love interest. In some cases, an inanimate object like a journal or a blog may be used as a substitute confidant, such as Carrie in Sex and The City writing her newspaper column, Agent Scully’s field report scenes in The X-Files, and Watson writing about his cases in various Sherlock Holmes stories and adaptations.
Catalyst (Role) – A catalyst character sparks a major change in the story. They may be part of the inciting incident that gets the story going or part of a major turning point later in the story. They can cause change intentionally, such as by throwing the protagonist in jail, or unintentionally, such as by getting kidnapped or getting eaten by sewer rats.
Love interests are often used as catalysts, serving to motivate the protagonist to get involved with the story’s conflict. When writing a catalyst love interest, be sure to develop their personality and background, and give them their own story goals. Always make sure the love interest has at least one conversation that isn’t about the protagonist!
Comic Relief (Role) – The comic relief character provides moments of humor in an otherwise serious story. They may be a type of foil, serving to provide contrast with a relatively serious character. Serious and gruff action hero characters often have a sidekick or love interest to provide contrast by cracking jokes.
Comic relief characters in fiction also serve to release dramatic tension after a frightening or conflict-heavy scene. Moments of humor can serve as a good bridge between fast-paced action scenes and slower-paced dialogue scenes.
Things to avoid: Ruining the moment
Out of all the characters in fiction, the comic relief character can be the most annoying. Pay close attention to your comedy relief character’s dialogue. During moments that are supposed to be dramatic or tense, your comedy relief character should be frightened or intimidated, or just keeping their big mouth shut. Unless you’re writing a comedy or farce, they shouldn’t ruin the antagonist’s dramatic monologue with a quip. It’s usually better to wait until later in the scene, when you want to give readers a moment to relax before the next tense moment.
Deuteragonist (Role) – This is the story’s secondary main character. The deuteragonist can play essentially any role in the story. They can be an ally, a love interest, or even a well-developed antagonist. This is not a commonly-used term, but it may be helpful to add to your outline or notes to remind yourself that a character is important.
Dynamic Character (Type) – This is a character that changes over the course of the story. This is the opposite of a static or flat character.
Foil (Role) – A foil is a character whose primary role is to highlight another character’s qualities by providing contrast. Where one character is brave, the foil is cowardly. Where one character is shy and reserved, the foil is exuberant and wild.
A foil may be a secondary hero, such as a superhero’s sidekick or a starship captain’s first officer. The foil can be used to emphasize the hero’s intelligence or kindness by being a little less clever or a little more selfish. Having the foil fail at a challenge will make the hero’s accomplishment look more significant when he/she succeeds.
A foil may also be a secondary villain, such as the thug who gets his hands dirty so the evil CEO can look innocent, or the vampire’s familiar who guards over Dracula’s coffin while he sleeps. A villainous foil might be vicious and violent to emphasize that the antagonist is clever enough to restrain himself and wait for the right time to strike. In other stories, the foil might be the restrained one, and spend the story horrified at her employer’s evil actions. This second dynamic makes for a particularly frightening villain. If even the other villains are scared of this antagonist, he/she must be truly evil indeed!
Foils might be neutral instead, neither a hero nor a villain. In a romance, the foil may simply be a rude date, to emphasize the kindness of the romantic lead.
The Innocent (Type) – The innocent is a character that symbolizes purity or vulnerability in the story. They may serve in a tragic figure or a catalyst role, with their innocence being corrupted or destroyed to highlight the story’s stakes and move the plot forward.
Love Interest (Role) – The love interest is the protagonist’s romantic partner such as a boyfriend, girlfriend, or a spouse, or a prospective romantic partner like a crush. The love interest often provides greater emotional depth to the story, serving to remind the protagonist of the story’s thematic truth. The love interest may also serve as a foil or comic relief. They could also be a mentor, but as mentors are often in a position of power over their mentees, this risks getting into territory that may make readers uncomfortable.
Things to avoid: Love interests with no goals.
A love interest should have their own goals and motivations, and not simply serve to motivate the protagonist to achieve his/her goals. For example, some love interests have been criticized as “manic pixie dream girls,” a quirky, outgoing character with no goals of their own, whose only role in the story is to give the downer male protagonist the kick in the pants they need to cheer up, embrace life, and grow.
One of the worst things you can do with a love interest is “fridging” them, introducing a poorly developed love interest just to kill them off, so your protagonist can go off on a mission of bloody revenge. The more developed a character is, the more the readers will have to fall in love with, and the more tragic their death will be. Show readers why this character will be missed, and your readers will miss them, too.
Mentor (Role) – The mentor is a character who provides advice or training to help the protagonist grow and achieve their goals. In many stories, the mentor will die or otherwise be taken out of their role to force the protagonist into further growth, to the point where they are finally able to tackle their problems on their own.
Rival (Role) – The rival is a character who competes with the protagonist, serving as a catalyst for the protagonist to grow. The rival and the protagonist may compete over the main story’s goal, or their competition may come earlier, in the hero’s “training” phase.
The rival may be a primary or secondary antagonist, but the rivalry does not have to be antagonistic. They may also serve as a foil, showing who the protagonist could be if he/she tried a little harder, was a little more skilled, or was a little more devious in going after his/her goals.
Round Character (Type) – This is a character that is particularly complex and well-developed. A “round” character has a well-developed backstory and motivations, and typically changes and grows throughout the story.
Sidekick (Role) – The sidekick is the protagonist’s companion, coworker, or friend. In most stories, the sidekick is an ally, but they do not have to be. A sidekick may avoid the story’s main conflict, or only participate reluctantly.
A sidekick is a very flexible character of fiction, and can take on a variety of different roles. They may serve as comic relief, a foil, a love interest, or a confidant. They may even be an antagonist, changing sides partway through the story, or secretly plotting against the protagonist from the beginning.
Static Character (Type) – A static or flat character does not change significantly over the course of the story. This is the opposite of a dynamic character.
As cartoons often have little to no continuity between episodes, animated characters are often static or flat. Wile E. Coyote will continue chasing the Road Runner forever, never learning his lesson, no matter how many times he falls off a cliff.
Things to avoid: A lack of change.
A static or flat protagonist can still be an interesting and vibrant character, but if your protagonist doesn’t change, your secondary characters should. A story where none of the characters change is generally unsatisfying to readers.
A static or flat protagonist should be a catalyst for change in others. For example, an unchanging protagonist makes sense in a story about social change. The protagonist is already on “the right side” of social reform. He/she doesn’t need to change because they have already accepted the truth of the story and are passing the truth on to others.
Like all writing advice, this is a general guideline, not a rule. There are exceptions, such as a farce about characters refusing to learn their lessons and grow, or a slasher story where the killer is undefeated and the “Final Girl” is going to keep running away in the sequel.
Stock Character (Type) – A stock character is a character type that has appeared in many stories before, such as “The Chosen One” in fantasy stories or “The Final Girl” in horror stories. The term “stock character” is often thought of as a negative, and used to criticize writers who include generic or poorly developed characters in their stories.
Things to avoid: Using stock characters in fiction as-is.
A stock character should never be given a major role in the story, unless they are well developed enough or different enough to make them interesting and unique. Stock character types can be used as a starting point when writing a character, but consider ways you can change or contradict the standard character type. For example, perhaps your fantasy story’s “Chosen One” was actually chosen by mistake, and it was a totally different John Smith who was supposed to save the kingdom. Or your “Final Girl” might actually be more evil than the villain she defeated.
Tragic Figure (Type) – The tragic figure reminds readers of the story’s stakes by showing what could happen to the protagonist if they fail. The tragic figure may fail at a challenge, suffer a major loss, or go through a corruption arc (negative change). They may also be a catalyst character.
Tritagonist (Role) – This is the third main character of a story, after the protagonist and deuteragonist. Just like the deuteragonist, the tritagonist can play essentially any role in the story. Again, this is not a commonly-used term, but it may be helpful to add to your outline or notes to remind yourself that a character is important.
Did I miss any important types of characters in fiction? Leave a comment below and let me know.
Character Archetypes Resources:
Character archetypes are a bit like stock characters, in that they are types of characters seen over and over. Like stock characters, never use archetypal characters in fiction “as is,” but as a starting point. You should always add a unique backstory, personality, and goals to make the archetype your own.
Character Personality Type Resources:
Personality tests and personality type descriptions can be useful for creating characters in fiction, as they give you a rough idea of what kinds of personality traits seem like they logically fit together, and how to write character dialogue. They can give your characters greater verisimilitude, the appearance of truth or realism.
However, personality tests are basically astrology for business majors. Like astrology or palm reading, they should not be used to guide your real life decisions.
