"More Human: The Delicate Art of Writing Effective Protagonists" with Sara Kocek

“Sorry. I just didn’t connect with the main character.”

A flat, unlikable, or unrealistic protagonist marks the kiss of death for most agents and editors, not to mention the general reading public. But if you’ve ever been on the receiving-end of this criticism, you know how baffling it can feel. After all, isn’t it a matter of subjectivity whether a particular reader “connects” with your main character? Yes and no. Regardless of your protagonist’s gender, age, personality, orientation, disposition, and moral compass, there are steps you can take to make him or her more compelling, more relatable, more complex—more human.

In this tightly packed half-day workshop, we’ll map out your protagonist’s strengths, flaws, secrets, goals, and long-term dreams. We’ll cover techniques to strike the right balance and avoid cliche “Mary Sue” characters. We’ll discuss how to shape your plot around your protagonist’s emotional growth to create powerful endings that satisfy on both a logistical and emotional level. In the end, you’ll walk away knowing your protagonist better than you know yourself!

You should attend this workshop if:

You are a beginner or intermediate-level fiction writer.
Your writing tends to be plot-driven and you need help with character development.
You are working on a novel and can’t seem figure out “the missing piece.”
Friends have told you your protagonist is hard to relate to.
Agents or editors have passed on your manuscript citing the reason that they just didn’t “connect” with the characters.
You are attempting to write a novel with an unreliable or unlikable protagonist.