How To Liven Up Your Leader Character

  First post of 2017 = first post in my new blog series.
 
   Remember that 'character building' series I told you guys I would be starting up? WELL - I became impatient and decided I would do the first post much earlier in the month than I had planned. xD

   So. Here we are with How To Liven Up Your Leader Character. (there are a few spoilers in the post, so be aware of that)

   Leaders. Can I even pinpoint a story without a leader character, if not multiple leader characters (speaking mostly about the speculative fiction here)? No. I can't.

   A leader is a character who makes the hard choices, gets the other characters going again when all hope seems lost, and is always there to rely on. Stories need these kind of characters.

   Aragorn son of Arathorn, Cinder, Professor Remus Lupin - the list can keep trailing on and on and on. But what separates one leader character from the swarm of other leaders?

1.  Flaws

   A leader character needs a flaw. They cannot be perfect. For example - Aragorn, from the Lord Of The Rings series, is afraid of following the path of his ancestor Isildur and not being able to make the right choice about the Ring when the time comes. He's worried about how Arwen's fate will turn out (not that it's technically wrong for him to be worried for her - but it definitely plays a big role in how he acts). Without flaws, your leader character will come off as being far too perfect.
   Why not make your mentor deathly afraid of being alone? Or perhaps he or she is afraid of the sound of gunfire - I think this would be especially interesting in a dystopian book. To see a leader character fight (and overcome!) their fear can give us a special kind of hope, too.

2. Physical Attributes 

   Physical attributes can definitely play a big part in making your leader character. Professor Lupin, from the Harry Potter series, is a werewolf, so he has to rely on others to help him when the full moon comes around - otherwise he'll turn into a wolf and won't know his own mind until he shape-shifts back. And then there's Cinder, from the Lunar Chronicles, who's part cyborg. This attribute gives her special abilities that the other characters don't have. She can download things into her brain, use her cyborg arm in ways the others can't, and directly view news feeds in her mind, among other things.  But her being a cyborg also means that a lot of people won't accept her.
   Maybe your leader is physically disabled somehow. Perhaps he's a mix of two races that are usually enemies. Physical attributes can be both an asset and an obstacle to your leader character.      

3. Forcing Them To Become The Leader

   Maybe your character never meant to be the leader. Maybe they were kind of forced into that position.
   Let's take Katniss Everdeen, for instance. She didn't want any part in the Hunger Games - but when her sister is chosen to play in the game, she volunteers to take Prim's place because she doesn't want to see her sister killed. And then she becomes the face of the revolution when her and Peeta manage to both come out of the Games alive - it's not a role she chose, but one that she was given. And one that she must keep if she wants to see the world made right again.
   Maybe your character realized they needed to step up after someone they love gets hurt. Or maybe something happened to your leader's home to make them realize they can't stay silent anymore. Show us why your leader has stepped into this role, even if the leader isn't the main character.

4. Their Connection To The Antagonist

   The way that the leader character is connected to the antagonist of your story (whether the leader is the main character or not) can be interesting as well.
   Going back to the Cinder example - Lihn Cinder is the leader of the people who would overthrow Queen Levana. And Queen Levana just happens to be her aunt. Cinder is worried about how being connected to Levana in this way affects her.
   But you don't want your leader to be connected to the antagonist in a cliche way - be careful with this if your leader is also your main character. You don't want to end up with a copy of Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker.
    Perhaps your leader and your antagonist were best friends when they were little (this would be a little less cliche if the leader is not also the main character). Maybe they were lovers. Or maybe the leader is fighting this villain because his or her deceased parents wished to see this villain overthrown? There's tons of stuff you could play with here.

5. Give Them Something To Hold On To And Fight For (that's not just the Quest)

  Yes, of course your leader will be fighting to fulfill whatever the Quest in your book is - whether it be getting Frodo to Mordor or overthrowing President Snow. But it can make your leader character more fully thought out if you give them something else, maybe something more personal, to fight for as well. This could be something that they hold on to and it gives them hope.

   Going back to the example of Aragorn and Arwen. Aragorn is fighting to fulfill the Quest - getting the Ring to Mount Doom and destroying it once and for all. But he's also fighting to save Arwen, the woman he loves. This is a more personal thing he's fighting for.

   Maybe your leader character has been promised something special, which will be given to them if they can fulfill the Quest. Maybe the leader has a family he or she is fighting for? Or maybe they're fighting just to get one glance of the ocean before they die. 

   Whatever you do (whether you take any of my advice or not) make sure to keep your leader unique - set them apart from all the droves of other characters. That's the most important thing of all. 

   So. There's part one of the How To Liven Up Your ______ Character series. Hopefully I gave you guys some helpful information you can try to play with xD. I'll be back in the next couple of weeks with the second installment of this series *nodnod*.

~ Savannah Grace 

What's the name of your leader character? What kind of character should be next in this series? (secondary, villain, etc.)