My other characters are more interesting and alive than my protagonist

[Adina]

Hey guys, sorry if this has been asked before (if yes,please link me, I'm sort of new to groups on GR and I haven't fully learned my way around them).

So I'm writing a fantasy novel, and I have my plot fairly fleshed out, and I have my main players, my world is built, and now I've started to really flesh out my characters more. The only problem is, I've already fleshed out about 5 of my secondary characters, and it's really starting to feel like my main character pales in comparison. I'm not quite sure what to do.

For the purpose of the book and the plot, the main character the way I've imagined her, is a shy and unsure girl who is actually quite determined. She's thrown into a new world she doesn't really know much about (as YA protagonists frequently are, y'know...), where she kind of feels inadequate and out of place (obviously). I want her arc to be that pf overcoming her own self-doubt and fear, and doing the things she needs to do in spite of her fear. Only, I feel like everytime I put her next to my other characters, she comes across as annoyingly shy and mousy. She's more of a secondary character than my secondary characters, and at this point the way I feel about her is, if I read a book with a character like this, I would hate the hell out of it. I think this is because she's not fleshed out enough but I just don't know how to build her up while keeping her personality consistent.

I feel quite stuck and I was wondering what tools/ideas/techniques/things you guys use/do that could help me see her in a different light?

Thanks! ^_^

[R.]

Adina wrote: "Hey guys, sorry if this has been asked before (if yes,please link me, I'm sort of new to groups on GR and I haven't fully learned my way around them).

So I'm writing a fantasy novel, and I have my..."

Ok... so, from what I can glean from your description of your main character is that she's a shy girl outside, but internally is a very driven person.

And when you put her next to other people, she immediately becomes withdrawn and shy (I presume). You can certainly keep her personality consistent - but why not try having her be a shy girl who shows her determination through her actions instead of her words.

If that doesn't work, try having one or more of your side characters spur her in some way to get out of her comfort zone and come out of her shell!

Hope this helped!
~Rae

[Catalina]

Maybe she works better when she's alone? Perhaps you could give her some lone missions that she excels at, but with others she just clams up.

How the others treat her can be a good lead. Do they dismiss her? Overlook her? Treat her like the little pet that must be looked after? Is she the mysterious one? Aloof? Are they constantly underestimating her? You tell us!

[Dwayne]

Your comment is almost three years old, so I am guessing you've either finished the book by now or given up on it completely. I'll respond, in case anyone else is having a similar issue.

If I understand, you first imagined the character as shy and mousy. Now you don't like her for those reasons, yet you're afraid to change the character as you don't want to ruin your initial vision of the character, nor do you want to veer from what you thought would be the point of the book.

The answer is simple. IT'S YOUR BOOK. You are in control. If the character annoys you, change her or scrap her and bring in a new one. The character is not in control, you are, or should be. Don't settle so stubbornly on your initial vision if you now see it's not working out. That means you've matured. That means the book is maturing. That means it may be outgrowing what you thought it was going to be. Everything I write is very different from my initial vision, because as I work through it, I see the flaws in my original plan and look for better ways of doing things. That includes changing or scrapping characters that aren't working out.