Writing An Engaging Fantasy Character 

"One series i love...wheel of time" we know Daniel

One thing I realised is that I am a very character driven reader, you could have great world building and a great plot but if I don't care about the characters, I won't care about the story.

I think you miss the most important part. A characters voice. Now I don't mean how they sound, but rather how they talk about something. To use an example that everyone probably knows. Who else but Tony Stark could give the "genius, playboy, billionaire, philanthropist" line in the Avengers? No one in the story, but Tony. I good character has a lot of lines that could only be said by them. That's a character voice.

Don't forget, you have to introduce how cool their sword is. *Shad voice.

I saw syl and kaladin in the title card and that’s why I’m here, syl is first because kaladin is her sidekick obviously

The hardest part is just combining character background story with personality and voice😭 I tend to obsess over the little things so much.

"There's grey hair! Things are happening with my body!" I felt that.

I know this is an old video so no ones gonna see this but I wanna talk about it (oh well), one of the best pieces of advice I heard about characters is creating a character for the wrong story. a smart, analytical character in a world of war and fighting or the other way round, a trained killer in a world of politics. the example I know is Ned stark in game of thrones, a character of honour and duty who does things for the right reason in a world of cut throats and characters doing things for themselves. just wanted to add this.

Setting, Character & Plot? If you’re planning to do a good plot video I’d be so interested to see what you have to say about good, interesting & engaging plot.

Give the character a hobby or something they enjoy doing. Simple and good.

This is really cool! In acting school, I was taught that there are 3 sort of fundamental, necessary elements to a really good character, be it as a writer or as a performer. Values, Circumstance, and Objective (or Goal, I think Goal is a little less stuffy). You basically went in depth on circumstances in this video, and how circumstances change from one event to the next. Values are what makes them tick, their likes, their dislikes.... What memes they use, that kinda thing. Values seems flippant, but the more I dig into, the more important this element is. I think A Song of Ice and Fire is like, a masterclass in putting characters with different values into events which challenge those values. Goals is meant to work on both a micro and a macro level. It seems like a lot of modern novelists think of goals in terms of "what is the conflict?" Hello Future Me talks about primary conflict, which is the inner plot, versus secondary conflict, what we actually see, and that those conflicts typically stem from a disparity between what we think we want and what we actually need. Objective drives those conflicts: what do I want right now? How am I getting it? What is my super objective, the long game, the thing I want my life to look like next year? The pursuit of the objective is what brings the character into conflict, so that it doesn't feel like you just laid a structure on top of plastic characters.

Novel is A - B But within A - B, there must be other mini conflicts, story lines and sub plots which ultimately lead to the final objective

The main character in my story seems like she has never had to deal with anything problematic in her life. But as the story progresses it stays to be revealed that she’s been through some shit. Like a LOT. Her mother pretty much treated her as a human experiment. Both her mother and her father get killed when she’s 11. The person who takes her in is also abusive. As a result of this, she creates an alternate personality to deal with all of the trauma. she is also completely unaware that this other personality even exists. The main character of my book is unfortunately immortal. Half way through the book, she wants to die, but she can’t. She’s devoted to keeping her people safe, but to do so she has to use magic. The problem is, is that the more she uses her magic, the longer she will live. If she stops using her magic it will kill her slowly and very painfully. So it sucks either way she goes.

My man Dan putting out videos everyday! I love it

I'm loving this series so far! It really makes me want to try organizing my writing into an actual story. I have not yet read The Name of the Wind, but my impression from other fans is that we're not necessarily supposed to like or trust the main character.

So what aspect of character building is most important to you? Relationships? Plot involvement? Origin? 🤔

Man, you really do a wonderful job. Love your videos and they help me getting inspired to write on my own fantasy novel ;)

Wow your production value has evolved so well to where it is today! Glad to see the growth of your channel :)

Most beautiful thumbnail ever 💕

I often have issues paying attention to others speaking but you really captured my attention! Thank you!

Thank you for all this info. All helpful in creating stories. 😊

I think that while it is good to have a background for your character through things that have happened before the story is good for the personality of the character, it seems to work better if it doesn't just happen right at the beginning of the story but integrated throughout. It usually has a tendency to be "meet blablah, he is this and has done this this and this" and kind of seems like a cop out to form personality, starting with a blank slate actually isn't the worst thing if they are expanded upon through the story. I don't know just a thought.

Love the advice, creating my own fantasy series about the land of Scamagica and the conflict between harmony and disorder.🙂

I'm actually very engaged in your example-story with the nobleman. 😄 Properly because it contains some of my favorite tropes in stories. 😆 Besides that, it's also a very well-explained example. 😊👌

Really enjoyed this video! I have to say with the Lord of the Rings (books and movies) even though it felt like every conflict was solved nicely (from Sauron to the Sackville Baginses) it still didn't feel like a happy ending. In the movies this was maybe a bit stronger due to music etc., but there's something really bittersweet about the end of the Fellowship and some of them leaving for the Undying Lands while others stayed behind. Just as Frodo never really got to enjoy his victory due to all he had been through and was still going through.

I feel the same reference balancing dark vs. light. It is entirely subjective what is the right balance for a particular reader, but I think many people don't enjoy either extreme.

You take someone decked out in their finest Dirt and Farmer Rags, put them through one hell of a journey, and they come out the other end with shiny silver armor, the world's sharpest sword, and glowing blue eyes.

I was thinking about this! I wrote a Fantasy novel this year, from end of February to mid-August, and it tells about the story of a young noble, whom mother is painter and father is astronomer. Her purpose is to become painter, like her mother who teachs her. But one day her aunt, famous general of the army, wants hire her as a soldier to train her and to go to war against a small, unknown and far country, as well as thousands young men and women enlisted by military propaganda. Thus the idea of this novel is to follow this heroin, forced to exchange her paintbrush for a sword, from training to war. She progessively lose her innocence to become someone else, liked by some soldiers, hated by others. My purpose was to describe all aspects of war (mainly tragic ones) in a 'fantasy way' (magic is a current weapon, for example) by the eyes of a young woman which never really leave her natal town before. I tried to make her complex, a grey character and not a true heroin, tugged in several choices. Hence, from my point of view, a well written character must have established origins and relationships, but her/his perspectives, her/his behaviour, and her/his must also evolve following what she/he undergoes throughout. That makes an engagin fantasy character in my opinion :)

Daniel legit made me attached to his hypothetical character. I gotta read his books!

Hey I recommend that you read or listen to the Red Rising trilogy. It's an amazing set of books by Pierce Brown that are really good to get into! Legitamitly great books and I hold it up just below the stormlight archive in my favorite fantasy/ SIFY list.

I think you touch on this a little bit but one thing I love about certain characters (Sanderson does this really well) and that is letting them fail multiple times in a variety of ways. There is a time and place for an OP character but the wonderful thing about storytelling is keeping the reader's tension high at the right moments. When a character could fail at any given moment, it makes the climax(s) of the story that much more engaging.

I want to know because I want to be a writer I kind of writing a book I'm very passionate about but I have a plan for a main character whose honorable and loyal and so on i tell you a little bit of his story but I don't tell his full back story until the third book is that bad or is it good writing

I have to disagree with you about the ending of Return of the King. To me the ending is really a story of how you can not come home again. There is not a single character nor location that is left unaffected. This includes minor characters like Lobelia Sackville-Baggins, her son Lotho, and Fredigger Bolger. Merry, Pippin, and Samwise are at least a couple decades younger than Frodo, who is in middle age when he leaves. Pippin has not attained his majority being a mere 29-30. But upon his return to the Shire, it becomes obvious that he is the next Thain of Tookland and Merry will be the Master of his Hall. Frodo lingers on, but he is a shadow if his former self, for all that he carries on for several years. We see the truth that is hidden because we have Sam's view of his master's declining condition. And as much as Tolkien hated allegory, is there any other metaphor for the final sundering of the party at the Grey Havens? Gandalf, Elrond, Galadriel, Frodo, and Bilbo among others pass as a group leaving a much sadder darker world for their absence. And even Sam's arrival home with the story's final line is indicative of a man having completed the final goodbyes to passing loved ones, as is the inclusion of Merry and Pippin to assist in the mourning of loss and comforting the bereaved. This dark ending makes it my mother's least favorite portion of the story.

Love this video! You're really good at this sort of thing, I (and many, many others, I'm sure) would love it if you returned to making more writing/worldbuilding videos :) And fantasy debate, bring back fantasy debate!

I watched this in 2x speed and couldn't take my eyes off the dancing green snek in the background XD but also great video, thank you

10:43 THAT GREEN THING MOVED BY ITSELF WOT

Feelings, intentions, desires, plan of action, what is seen. Thats roughly always on my mind while writing or seeing a character/story

Hey Dan! I love your videos. I am just wondering, and this is in NO WAY a criticism or me trying to be flippant...you're clearly extremely knowledgeable about all these literary devices including world-building and character development. I'm just wondering when you're going to author a fantasy book/series? I'd be really excited to read that.

Totally agree, its all about the characters, does Daniel Greene do any any fantasy writing?

I realy like your Star Wars laser guns in backgraund.

@Daniel Greene. Good job on the video man. I love this one. Also, I recently subscribed to your channel. Can u do a video on how to build a science fiction world/character in the future? Because I'm planning to write a science fiction novel...

Noticed Hawaii on your shelf. Any thoughts of doing a Michener book review or something in the Historical Fiction genre?

Ah, but I see a way you could have condensed this video. It would have been about 1.5 seconds if you had just said "Kaladin Stormblessed." Great video as always :D

These are great tips thank you... also that furry green thing is dangling in the background XD lol It makes me want to create a furry longtailed creature in my story

A series I read a lot in high school was the Shannara series. At 33 they're still on my bookshelf

I have to say.. I do enjoy reading a book where the character is a farm boy or just no one. I like to watch the hero grow.

Give the reader a feeling that they know how the character will handle or react to any situation they may find themselves in, be it combat, diplomacy, investigation or just inaction. If they’re a warrior, are they a reckless warrior or one who reads their enemy? If they’re a magic user, what kind of magic are they likely to use? Don’t make the character predictable, but give the reader the chance to know them, their motivations and preferred course of action. If you know this as the writer it makes it easier to write for them, as when to subvert expectations based on development. PTSD from a previous attack from a certain enemy type that flares up when that enemy type is faced again for example, or behaviour towards another character.

Honestly, if I dismember one of my characters it's probably because it will make them stronger somehow. Like they get a badass magical prosthetic or something. I also don't really see the fun in making the character age prematurely. If they were made _younger,_ that would be kinda interesting. Like, the guy goes from an adult man to a young boy. I could probably work with that.

DANIEL YOU WOULD HAVE ROASTED YOUR OWN BOOKSHELF SO HARD! I hope you see this dude

You have amazing eyes

you deserve a follow

This was my favorite age of this channel. I miss it :(

Photoshop skills

I haven't read any of the Wheel of Time books yet, but it's on my to-do-list. Which books from that series would you recommend in particular?

Is there a fan or vent near that green ribbon on your shelf cause it's moving. Watch 10.40 to 10.46

I’m trying to be like rick riordan by including funny jokes in my book

What Starless song is it at the beginning?? Sounds just incredible, didn't find it..

I love the introduction of Kelsier. He's funny and uses joy as a form of defying the situation and the Supreme Lord. He's likable because of his clever humour. But he's a gray hero because he left those skaa to deal with a chaos he created, knowing that they would certainly die even if they fight. Nevertheless, we like him because he looks like the cool friend of your big brother. And we get it with half of a chapter.

here's one for the algorithms buddy. Thanks for getting the creative juices flowing for meh

Realm of the Elderlings has the best character development. THE. BEST.

*character loses hand* Daniel: they are now much more touchable

I'm enjoying your videos, thank you. I'm wondering who the character is on the freeze photo/ presentation photo of this video. The man with dark hair and blue eyes. Is he from a game?

Are those Harry Potter books I see on that shelf?

wish i can have that books

That green thing has a mind of its own ...

Can I use this exact same format for fantasy characters for movies ?

What's the trilogy boxset at the top of your shelf?

Ahhhh the classy intro

Ummm... did anyone else notice the green rope thing hanging on the shelf behind him moving? Is there a fan or something? Not seeing any other comments about it. Around 8min in you can really see it moving around.

Suggestion on video editing - it would be nice if there was a little more space between your clips, to have natural pauses like ordinary speech. Having no pauses at all is harder to listen to, especially to home in on the important points. (I see many RU-vidrs who do this “no-gap” editing, so you aren’t alone.). Eg listen to good audio books or documentary narration. They incorporate pauses effectively.

You can feel the 2018 daniel smell out of the opening

I like when characters in a group contrast each other

I think that the hallmark of a good character is a character who allowed to be a person. I often find that if an author wants to write a serious book, they will never let their main character laugh. It just feels weird, because even when you are stressed or in a tense situation, you try to have a sense of humor. I'm not sure how effective this might be, but in my own writing, I allow my characters to laugh and joke and have lighthearted interactions with one another, as well as just talk to their friends like you would talk to a friend. It's good for your character to take serious things seriously, but let them have an off switch. Maybe I just haven't read enough good books, but the dialogue in some of these novels feels a bit weird sometimes because the characters say what they have to say in order to support the plot. Conversations never deviate from the starting focus, people never make jokes or say things that are so morbid or weird they are instantly humiliated. It's possible to have meaningful, entertaining dialogue without making your characters into plot props. It's also good to let a character be the opposite of their defining character trait once in a while. An irreverent character may have reverence for one specific thing, which adds intrigue and fleshes them out. A gentle character may have moments where they want to punch someone's teeth out, making them feel more relatable.

Wait.... Neil Patrick Harris... but somehow..... CUTER?!?!!!

Are you saying "vassal" or "vessel"?

11:00 that’s the George R R Martian option? I don’t even think anything like that happens in the actual books.

Is it better to flesh out characters in third perspective or first view?

Thanks

Some of the suggestions you made me remember about Berserk a manga series. How griffon a noble* not mind the agentive* soldier who sacrificed his men to get more power.

Can I have a main character that is a pure-evil douchebag I like villains more than heroes I feel like having a main-character who is a "dick" but people would say that would get boring and people would put the book down should I try it? There isn't a back story for this character. Would that still work?.

"I'm not a fan of grimdark" hahahahahahahahahahaha XD If only back then you knew the future lololol

I really appreciated the video Dan! Do you think you could put a link to worldbuilding video as well? I'd like to check that out also

"feel shallow, and hollow ..." random shot of Vin. Hmm, are you saying something, Daniel?

Your photoshop skills are better than the Warner bros CGI team

Did you ever thought about adding an exclusive 2 hours soundtrack together with your book? Contact me to compose it.

Really scared that people will really hate my character! I'm trying really hard too make a good one.

"That wizard who healed his hand" - what the book is this?

Daniel do you havd an email where fans can bring up things to you that I think you would be extremely interested in?

If the character is unlikable, not even a great world can save it. I hated prince of thorns but loved the setting after I read the red queens war.

Anyone else terrified by the moving green snake in the background?

So my the story starts with the protagonist at 10 years old... kind of hard for him to not be a blank slate lol... but that's the fun of it in my opinion, we grow with him from basically the beginning =]

Please read Neuromancer I know you have a huge TBR backlog, but i think you need to read this book to really understand staples of today to really understand the change in scifi this book had on the world.

I totally agree that the characters are the lifeblood of a story! You do need a good world, but without good characters, you might as well not write it.

I never noticed before but in certain lights Daniel looks a lot like Neil Patrick Harris

Are you suppose to write to satisfy yourself or bend to the will of the reader?

How emotion-based magic affects personality and vice versa.

Hey , Im 17 And am writing a fantasy book 📚called: "9 Souls " on Wattpad.I take notes 📝, make sketches, create maps , creatures. Love the tips thank you 😊

Luke Skywalker came with a pretty interesting backstory before he started on his journey.

I'm too distracted by the moving green thing in the background to listen to what he's saying.

10:30 taken out of context