Best sort of Protagonist

[Robin]

There is no wrong answer, of course. I always enjoy asking this question of readers and writers.

Gender doesn't matter.

Do you want to read the hero you would A. Become B. Have as a best friend or C. have as a sex partner. (Yes, I know there are other choices!)

For writers: Do you write the hero you A. Wish you were. B. Want as a best friend C. desire as a sex partner. Again, I know there are other choices.

When I look back over the books that have seriously impacted my life, often I find that the character I admire most is one that I wish I could meet and that character would be impressed with me. And we would be great friends from then on.

How about you?

[Anh]

B. definitely (Vlad Taltos, Gerald Tarrant, FitzChivalry Farseer, Phédre nó Delaunay, Peekay) but no, there's little to recommend them being friends with me so i can only admire from afar and hope to account myself half as well given their impossible situations.

[Tyler]

I love me a good redemption arch, I’m a sucker for the gentile giant archetype and I also love a good twisted protagonist or anti hero. I find them ten times more compelling then the every man traditional hero.

[Patricia]

Anti-heroes for the win. Redemption is the name of the game, baby.

[Robin]

Robin wrote: "There is no wrong answer, of course. I always enjoy asking this question of readers and writers.

Gender doesn't matter.

Do you want to read the hero you would A. Become B. Have as a best friend o..."


The answer for me has always been, "I want the protagonist that I'd desire for a friend." So in my earliest fantasy and SF reading, I always dreamed of just hanging out with Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser. I liked Conan, but he seemed a bit sullen. I really wanted to be part of the Seven Walkers in the Lord of the Rings, or be invited to Bilbo's house for tea.

[Ed]

I'm not sure that "wish I was" quite sums it up. I tend to think that I write characters who are a version of some facets of my personality. I once described my writing to my editor as "my walking emotional baggage."

[Jeremy]

As a reader, it's always been B for me. I think the best stories give us A or B, someone to emulate, admire, or relate to. Well-drawn characters give us friends in a real way, too, however disconnected; Fitz and the Fool are my friends, I relate to them and miss them, and picking up a new book is similar to the experience of catching up with someone you haven't seen in awhile.
As an inept and aspiring writer, I'd buttress what Ed McDonald said: my characters are an echo of some facet of myself, working itself out in the story. Enough relatable baggage just makes things more interesting.

[Brian]

I think a hero should possess qualities we would like to see in ourselves. Even a dark anti-hero can do this. Or straightforward heroes like Conan. What guy wouldn't want to be Conan, if only for a little while? Conan rides into town, kills whoever he wants, eats whatever he wants, drinks whatever he wants, has sex with your woman, and there’s nothing you can do about it. Conan leaves town. The end.
But it's more than a simple fantasy about who we would like to be. The heroes who touch us deeply are those who have the potential for growth, and through overcoming adversity, realize that potential.
Most of us feel that there is a hero inside, begging to come out. Someone who can manifest to help us do away with our perceived weaknesses. Fearless by nature, capable, strong, and clever in all the ways we imagine we are not. This hero doesn't necessarily have to be "good". But people love heroes because they possess power we lack. Power to make the world fear, rather than fear the world, as we often do.

[Shae]

I'm not sure that I've ever really wanted to 'be', 'befriend' or 'bonk' the main protagonist in the stories I've read :-)

I enjoy observing their journey from a bit of a distance. I'm intrigued by protagonist's who are flawed in some way (perfection is boring and unrealistic :-) but also embody at least some admirable qualities.

I've sometimes thought that some of the supporting characters would make better friends.

As a child, I thought Frodo was very good and brave in the LotR - but I would of much rather hung out with Merry and Pippin :-)

[Steve]

Absolutely agree, Shea.
To take two Robin Hobb examples that stick in my mind; Kennit the pirate from the Liveship series (flawed but bold and charismatic) and Alise from the Rainwilds (initlally naive women trapped in a loveless marriage). Two heroes that really stick in my mind. But A, B and C don’t link to either of them.
I’m open to admire any character but preferably flawed and learns from his/her experiences. I would find it impossible to accept a hero however that was racist or intolerant unless they are shown to evolve away from those positions. My red lines.....

[Jenny]

I think that I always want to be the protagonist, and ultimately if I just knew in my heart of hearts that I could never pull that off, I would want to be their best friend.

[Mark]

I really just want to be entertained as both a reader and a writer. So I can't answer the question by choosing a category.

I don't think I want to be, befriend, or bed, any of the main characters I have written. But it's an interesting question.

[C.H.]

I would so hump an owlbear.

[Mark]

C.H. wrote: "I would so hump an owlbear."

...random... but if owlbears start showing up in Robin Hobb books we will all know where the market research came from.

[Jessica]

Anh wrote: "B. definitely (Vlad Taltos, Gerald Tarrant, FitzChivalry Farseer, Phédre nó Delaunay, Peekay) but no, there's little to recommend them being friends with me so i can only admire from afar and hope ..."

Much agreed about the twisted protagonist. We all have a dark side and I love it when Characters seem heartless some times. It just makes them more realistic. And honestly the answer to a, b or c really differs from each character. I rarely want to become them though.