Writing realistic injuries - The title is pretty self-explanatory: while writing about an injury, take a look at this useful website;
One Stop for Writers - You guys… this website has literally everything we need: a) Description thesaurus collection, b) Character builder, c) Story maps, d) Scene maps & timelines, e) World building surveys, f) Worksheets, f) Tutorials, and much more! Although it has a paid plan ($90/year | $50/6 months | $9/month), you can still get a 2-week FREE trial;
One Stop for Writers Roadmap - It has many tips for you, divided into three different topics: a) How to plan a story, b) How to write a story, c) How to revise a story. The best thing about this? It’s FREE!
Story Structure Database - The Story Structure Database is an archive of books and movies, recording all their major plot points;
Crime Reads - Get inspired before writing a crime scene;
The Creative Academy for Writers - “Writers helping writers along every step of the path to publication.” It’s FREE and has ZOOM writing rooms;
Reedsy - “A trusted place to learn how to successfully publish your book” It has many tips, and tools (generators), contests, prompts lists, etc. FREE;
QueryTracker - Find agents for your books (personally, I’ve never used this before, but I thought I should feature it here);
Pacemaker - Track your goals (example: Write 50K words - then, everytime you write, you track the number of the words, and it will make a graphic for you with your progress). It’s FREE but has a paid plan;
Save the Cat! - The blog of the most known storytelling method. You can find posts, sheets, a software (student discount - 70%), and other things;
None of these are required, but if you’re still debating the purpose of a character or want to add a new one— here are some archetypes to consider that can strength your theme and the story you are trying to tell! There will be a part two as the list continues!
It can also be a really neat exercise to dissect your favorite books to see which archetypes appear in there! The Hero might be easy to pinpoint, but a character archetype like The Guardian might be harder to find.
1) The Hero
The main protagonist, the focus of the story. The person we follow as they adventure out into the unknown and learn new things, meet new people. It’s vital that this character develops on their journey and the audience should want the hero to achieve their goals.
This is Katniss Everdeen, Harry Potter, Neo from the Matrix.
2) The Mentor
The mentor teaches the hero important skills that they will need to survive on their adventure and in the new world they’re emerging into. Typically, the mentor is very prominent in the early stages of the book, but will fade away as the plot progresses and the hero becomes adept and ready to take on their own obstacles.
There can be multiple mentors for different stages of the characters journey, but I would put a limit on it. For example, Hagrid leads Harry into the wizarding world and introduces him to the basics of being a wizard, but Dumbledore is the one who mainly councils Harry throughout the story.
This is Haymitch and Cena, Dumbledore and Hagrid, Morpheus.
3) The Ally
The trustful friend of the hero, one who listens and supports them. They can be used as an outlet for your character to share plans, thoughts and secrets to— thus revealing them to the audience at the same time.
The ally can be really strong as an opposite of your hero. If your hero is impulsive, the ally could be cautious and tentative. Or if your hero is reserved, the ally could be bold and loud. This can be great for balancing the story as both characters make up for the others shortcomings. There can be more than one ally.
This is Peeta and Rue, Ron and Hermione, Trinity.
4) The Innocent
Typically the innocent is a child, but regardless of their age, they see the world as rainbow and sunshine. Something occurs that will change their perspective and as they go throughout the story, they learn lessons and are forced to do some growing up.
This is Hermione, this is Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz.
5) The Herald
This one is really interesting that I just discovered by reading the source article for this post. The Herald is the person who brings the invitation into the new world or the threat that rockets the hero out of their everyday live and into the adventure.
The Herald doesn’t have to be a character, but can be a physical letter or form of message. If the herald is a character, they usually never appear in the story again— UNLESS, they fill one of the other rolls.
This is Effie Trinkett who officially brings the Reaping to District 12 and pulls the names from the bowl, this is Hagrid who tells Harry Potter that he is a wizard and Trinity who introduces the Matrix to Neo.
6) The Rebel
The character who will not settle for how things are, who wants a change and will make it happen. They have an immense sense for justice but this doesn’t make them a hero/good guy all the time, sometimes they can be an anti-hero and do bad things in order to achieve justice.
This is Han Solo in Star Wars, this is Katniss, this is Robin Hood.
7) The Trickster
The trickster can bring comedic value to the story and lighten the mood, while at the same time bringing light to serious issues. They will make you laugh but also raise very significant and important questions.
This is Haymitch who makes us laugh but also shows us a dark side of winning the Hunger Games. This is Hagrid who represents the prejudice against half-bloods, while also offering comedic relief along the story.
8) The Shapeshifter
The shapeshifter has a few different routes you can take. But ultimately, they betray the hero at one point or another.
• An ally who is revealed to be a secret betrayer— but wait! In the hero’s time of need, this shapeshifter ends up helping the hero— sometimes resulting in their own downfall or death.
• An ally who outright betrays the hero.
• An antagonistic force who helps the hero in the end.
This is Seneca Crane who is an antagonistic force against Katniss but also allows for her and Peeta to win the games— resulting in his death. This is professor Snape who is falsely portrayed as a villain, but has secretly been aiding Harry through the story. This is Cypher who outright betrays Neo and the group, having pretended to be an ally for the majority of the movie.
9) The Guardian
Not the main antagonist, but a huge obstacle in the way of the hero’s goal. The hero must get past the guardian in order to get closer their goal. The guardian does not have to be a character, but can be creatures or physical obstacles.
This is the modified beasts who Katniss most overcome before her interaction with Cato, this is Harry Potter’s uncle who is always trying to sabotage Harry’s connecting to the wizarding world.
10) The Shadow
The main opponent of the hero, the antagonist. The Shadow tries stopping the hero from achieving their goals in many different ways. The antagonistic force typically does not lighten up or give mercy to the hero.
This is Snow, this is Voldemort, this is Agent Smith.
Part 2 with more character archetypes — Coming Soon.
A hate-able character, for this post, is more of a side villain than the main antagonist—something like a school bully. However, some of these points can still be applied to the main ant., too!
constantly seeks to harass the people around them
most of their friendships (if they have any) are usually out of fear/respect for their power or people who genuinely have moral issues
let them be the one in power—the one who wields the most influence—so they can have things their way most of the time
if people stand up to them, they use the most self-centered excuses to shut down criticisms
make them prejudiced. not just against the main character(s) or the “good guys,” but also groups of people (minorities, typically)
give them annoying, distinguishable traits (ex. eye-rolling, smirking, pretending to be polite)
lacks gratitude (not thankful for what they have & don’t thank people who help them).
brushes off other people’s emotions if it doesn’t concern themself
i. names ii. scooters iii. ex iv. festival / county fair v. succession vi. internal screaming vii. cocoa viii. hens ix. polo x. bible verse xi. actors xii. masked xiii. railway xiv. brook xv. open up xvi. abbey xvii. venetian xviii. whole milk xix. on the tip of one’s tongue xx. folio xxi. angry children xxii. sturgeon moon xxiii. late summer confession xxiv. dauphin xxv. exploit xxvi. romanticized colonialism xxvii. cumulonimbus xxviii. what we learned this year xxix. do you still love them xxx. porpoise xxxi. darker days
