Character Conflict: Divided Loyalties

To get through a story writing compelling characters, those characters all must have goals. They have things they want to obtain and people they want to protect. But what happens when those loyalties – those goals – come into conflict with each other?

You get an explosive combination.

As a writer, you give shape to the worlds in your head, but you are not a beneficent god. You throw obstacles in the way of your heroes and you give the villains nearly every advantage. You send your characters through forge them into the people you need them to be.

If giving characters goals is Writing 101, then giving them conflicting goals belongs in the advanced class. It’s something I struggle with. I adore being mean to my characters, but the heartbreak of making them choose between terrible options is tough even for me.

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