Heroes. The main character of any story. Any and every story has some kind of hero in it, whether it be an imaginary hero, or one that is very much real. Today I chose two special people to focus on. If you don't know who they are by looking at the picture, then.... Well, you're missing out. The one on the left is the Tenth Doctor from Doctor Who. The one on the right is Sherlock from... Sherlock. Both these characters come off two of BBC's famous shows. They are brilliant, clever and kind of both really gorgeous. However, the reason I chose these two out of every hero out there is their faults and the people that associate and are involved with them.
Sherlock: the drug addicted consulting detective who curbs his addiction by solving crimes.
Tenth Doctor: the depressed Time Lord who is lonely. Now he is saving planet earth because he couldn't save his own planet.
These two men are the heroes of two extraordinary stories. While, the Tenth Doctor is just an incarnation of the Doctor himself, I use him because of who he is portrayed inside the seasons he stars in. He was sensitive, cared deeply, and was very loyal. Sherlock was kind of the opposite. He is arrogant, selfish, hides his feelings deep inside and acts like he doesn't care. The thing that makes both these characters similar is that they are both so broken. They both are the very opposite of "perfect". We have two depressed and broken souls. We have two "junkies". One gets his fix from drugs and solving crimes, and the other gets his fix from traveling the universe and saving people or other aliens. Why? Because they are both harboring untold things.
What makes up the perfect hero? The one that everyone will fall in love with?
Broken, Long Term Emotions
Loneliness
What makes up the perfect hero? The one that everyone will fall in love with?
Broken, Long Term Emotions
Loneliness
Everyone experiences loneliness at one point in time. Someone can be surrounded by dozens of people but still feel lonely. The Doctor is the last of his kind and he soaks it up like bread soaks up gravy. He says it all the time and in such a nonchalant way that people don't see the problem in being the last of the Time Lords. But when no one is looking, there's that look in his eyes, the one that the producer and writer of the show put in there. The look that David Tennant pulled off beautifully: loneliness. And when you look beyond the brown orbs of his eyes you see the loneliness that he feels. You see that it does matter that he is the last of his kind. And he just wants someone to notice.
It happens with Sherlock, too. "You look sad, you know? When you think John isn't looking." -Molly Hooper. Sherlock hides it well. He wants people to not notice, and he buries it deep inside. When he thinks no one is looking, he lets his guard down. The sadness, the loneliness he feels inside. The way his blue eyes seem to visibly frown.
Give your hero the same kind of loss. Something they think they have to hide from everyone. Let the readers see the loneliness every once in a while through subtleness.
Guilt and Regret
Both the Doctor and Sherlock have extraordinary minds. They are brilliant characters. But, being so brilliant and clever makes them see their faults even more. They know when they've messed up big. They know when something can't be taken back, or when something can't be changed.
Your hero doesn't need to be brilliant to see their own faults, though. They could be the most prideful, arrogant brats ever. They could pretend to be perfect. But in reality, your hero probably knows when they've screwed up bad. Guilt and regret is something every single person carries. I've read so many novels where the main character seems to have no regrets or guilt in his/her life. It's like they live a perfect life, or just don't care.
Sherlock acts like he doesn't care about anything, but when he messes up and it hurts someone he loves, he regrets it. He might not say sorry, or act like he cares, but there in lies one of the main reasons he's an addict. He has so much guilt and regret from the past that he has let it consume him. He has an extremely high IQ and seeing life like normal people is just impossible. He carries the regret of past failures. Failures of not solving a case, or hurting someone he loved.
The Doctor has an extreme amount of guilt lying on his shoulders. He fought in a time war that ended bad. He's the last of his kind. Here's the thing that makes the Doctor such a good hero. He never voices his guilt out loud, but when he's alone or says something accidentally out loud about the time war and being the last, he feels like it's his fault. Your hero should have something so great on their shoulders that eventually they don't care if an accident takes their life. Guilt and regret shape your characters.
Your hero doesn't need to be brilliant to see their own faults, though. They could be the most prideful, arrogant brats ever. They could pretend to be perfect. But in reality, your hero probably knows when they've screwed up bad. Guilt and regret is something every single person carries. I've read so many novels where the main character seems to have no regrets or guilt in his/her life. It's like they live a perfect life, or just don't care.
Sherlock acts like he doesn't care about anything, but when he messes up and it hurts someone he loves, he regrets it. He might not say sorry, or act like he cares, but there in lies one of the main reasons he's an addict. He has so much guilt and regret from the past that he has let it consume him. He has an extremely high IQ and seeing life like normal people is just impossible. He carries the regret of past failures. Failures of not solving a case, or hurting someone he loved.
The Doctor has an extreme amount of guilt lying on his shoulders. He fought in a time war that ended bad. He's the last of his kind. Here's the thing that makes the Doctor such a good hero. He never voices his guilt out loud, but when he's alone or says something accidentally out loud about the time war and being the last, he feels like it's his fault. Your hero should have something so great on their shoulders that eventually they don't care if an accident takes their life. Guilt and regret shape your characters.
Relationships that Shape Your Hero
Friends
Everyone needs a best friend, especially the hero in your story. Not every single person that comes around has to be perceived as the love interest. The Doctor had Donna. Well, honestly the Tenth Doctor had many friends. He called them companions. Each had their special place in his hearts (plurality is intentional). Donna happened to be his best friend. She was just what he needed in his time of grief. The time where he seemed to be the most lonely. What you have to be careful of is the dues ex machina. Don't make someone come out of nowhere just to save them from something that needed to happen. Have them come after the effect.
My other hero, Sherlock, had John. Oh sweet John. Broken, lonely and wanting nothing more than to touch death and danger just like when he did in the military. He fit Sherlock so perfectly. He was able to put up with Sherlock's arrogance and obnoxious behavior. John came at a time in Sherlock's life when Sherlock was just about to break. No one ever spoke of Sherlock's addiction. Ultimately, John was able to save Sherlock, just as Donna was able to save the Doctor. They came at the perfect times. They came when the heroes were just about to give up and they gave hope.
A Love Interest
I to think love interests were stupid. I have never been a romance novel person. I don't read romance or write it. But as I matured in my writing life a little more, I realized the importance of some kind of love interest. Not only does hinting at love interests get your readers shipping characters, but it will also add personality and character to you hero.
If I got back to my hero examples of the Tenth Doctor and Sherlock, we can look at their love interest. Both of them have someone they love. Both of them have someone they care about more than anyone else in the world. And both never mention it out loud. If you've seen Doctor Who, you already know who his love interest is. Rose, right? It's pretty obvious. It's a sweet kind of love. Not overwhelming or gross. The Doctor and Rose form a strong friendship that leads to deeper feelings. And the Doctor never says "I love you" to Rose. Not out loud.
Sherlock, on the other hand, tries to deny his feelings. He acts like he doesn't care, like he doesn't notice. I'm going to use Molly Hooper as his love interest. We could argue that maybe it is Irene Adler, but taking her out of the picture, Sherlock has a better relationship with Molly. She loves Sherlock and it's obvious. And she notices his sadness. She notices that he tries to hide all his feelings. In the end, Sherlock knows Molly likes him, and he likes her back.
Giving your hero a subtle love interest helps him/her be more realistic and gives them something to fight for. Also, readers like being able to ship characters.
If I got back to my hero examples of the Tenth Doctor and Sherlock, we can look at their love interest. Both of them have someone they love. Both of them have someone they care about more than anyone else in the world. And both never mention it out loud. If you've seen Doctor Who, you already know who his love interest is. Rose, right? It's pretty obvious. It's a sweet kind of love. Not overwhelming or gross. The Doctor and Rose form a strong friendship that leads to deeper feelings. And the Doctor never says "I love you" to Rose. Not out loud.
Sherlock, on the other hand, tries to deny his feelings. He acts like he doesn't care, like he doesn't notice. I'm going to use Molly Hooper as his love interest. We could argue that maybe it is Irene Adler, but taking her out of the picture, Sherlock has a better relationship with Molly. She loves Sherlock and it's obvious. And she notices his sadness. She notices that he tries to hide all his feelings. In the end, Sherlock knows Molly likes him, and he likes her back.
Giving your hero a subtle love interest helps him/her be more realistic and gives them something to fight for. Also, readers like being able to ship characters.
A Challenger
Adding a challenger to your novel will improve your hero's development by a lot. This challenger doesn't necessarily have to be the same person as the villain. In fact, I encourage you to have the challenger be someone else besides the villain. This challenger will give climatic moments and more conflict. The more the conflict that your hero has to face, the more he will develop character.
The Doctor had the Master to be his challenger. The Master wasn't necessarily his villain at the time, but he definitely threw the Doctor for a loop. The Master caused pain, heartache; death, and devastation. Yet, through it all, the Doctor never lost site of what was important. Here was another Time Lord. Here was another one of his kind. He wasn't the last one after all. The Doctor didn't want to kill the Master. He didn't wish harm on the Master. He only wanted to cure him, to help him. The Doctor wanted to heal the Master's wounds. But the Master wanted none of it. We see through the confrontations between the two Time Lords that the Doctor has an overwhelmingly compassionate heart, and that he misses his people. We see through the Master that the Doctor is broken, that he himself isn't healed.
Sherlock had Moriarty. A man of equal intelligence/ A man of evil intentions and a wicked smile. Moriarty just wanted to play with Sherlock. "Watch him dance" as Moriarty said. The thing with this is, we see that Sherlock wanted so bad to be with someone his equal. He loved the games that Moriarty sent him on. He got a fix out of it all. Of course, there is the fact that he strapped a bomb to John and almost killed innocent children. Sherlock wanted to stop the madness, but he didn't want to completely stop Moriarty. Sherlock was bored, he was desperate. When a challenger came along, we see a different side of Sherlock.
The Doctor had the Master to be his challenger. The Master wasn't necessarily his villain at the time, but he definitely threw the Doctor for a loop. The Master caused pain, heartache; death, and devastation. Yet, through it all, the Doctor never lost site of what was important. Here was another Time Lord. Here was another one of his kind. He wasn't the last one after all. The Doctor didn't want to kill the Master. He didn't wish harm on the Master. He only wanted to cure him, to help him. The Doctor wanted to heal the Master's wounds. But the Master wanted none of it. We see through the confrontations between the two Time Lords that the Doctor has an overwhelmingly compassionate heart, and that he misses his people. We see through the Master that the Doctor is broken, that he himself isn't healed.
Sherlock had Moriarty. A man of equal intelligence/ A man of evil intentions and a wicked smile. Moriarty just wanted to play with Sherlock. "Watch him dance" as Moriarty said. The thing with this is, we see that Sherlock wanted so bad to be with someone his equal. He loved the games that Moriarty sent him on. He got a fix out of it all. Of course, there is the fact that he strapped a bomb to John and almost killed innocent children. Sherlock wanted to stop the madness, but he didn't want to completely stop Moriarty. Sherlock was bored, he was desperate. When a challenger came along, we see a different side of Sherlock.
A Carer
"Every night, I'll be watching for you," Wilfred said.
"You can't ever tell her," the Doctor argues.
"No. But I will be watching out for you," Wilfred replied.
At this point in time, rain starts pouring down on the Doctor, mingling with the obvious sadness in the Doctor's eyes. It's heart wrenching, really. Wilfred promises to be there for the Doctor. To watch out for him. Wilfred cared about the Doctor deeply, as if the Doctor was his own son. Wilfred ended up being there for the Doctor. He never stopped watching or caring for the Doctor.
"I met someone today," John says. "He... um... said he was your arch-nemesis. Do people have arch nemesis?"
"Did he offer you money to spy on me?" Sherlock asks.
"Yeah he did. Um... Who is he?"
"Never mind that. You should have excepted his offer. We could have split the money. Think it through next time."
Here is where we first meet the "carer" of Sherlock. It's not his best friend, it's not a lover, but it's Mycroft. He wanted to know about Sherlock's welfare. He wanted to make sure Sherlock didn't get himself into any trouble and that he didn't get himself hurt or killed. Mycroft shows an extreme amount of caring for his brother throughout the show.
When you add someone to care about your hero, it adds emotional character and also tension. Especially if the hero doesn't want to be cared for. But Sherlock and the Doctor liked the idea that someone actually cared. Just cared about their safety and well being. Does your hero have a carer?
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The Conclusion
In conclusion, I wanted to show you that you can spend as much time as you want on character development. You can give them detailed backstories, and you can give them MBTI personality types. You can spend hours and hours figuring out their childhood and why they are the way they are. There is nothing wrong with any of that. But what about the people in their lives right now? What about the things that are going on right now? The people in our lives shape our character. The people and hardships they cause for us shape who we are. So why shouldn't our characters be the same? How does a best friend effect your hero? How do challengers make them feel? What about enemies and loneliness? What about the guilt and regret they are feeling because of the people in their past? And what about their love interest? Their crush or perhaps their soulmate?
Not only is their personality type, their childhood traumas and backstory important, but so is the people and emotions going on in their life right now. I know it seems like all you're doing is adding a bunch of side characters and emotions, but it will keep your story going and keep the character on his "toes". Having all these extras will help with development of both your hero and your story.
{CALL TO ACTION. NOW IT'S YOUR TURN, MY FRIEND.} What about you? What sort of people and long term emotions shape your hero or other characters? What are your thoughts on character development? I'd love to hear from you. Comment and share. (y'know, if you want.)
Photos: BBC
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