No novel would be complete without some important side characters to help your protagonist move the plot forward. In my creation series post about Creating a Cast of Characters, you will know that there are a handful of side characters that you can (and should) add to your story to help advance the plot and make the story more colorful.
Caution: there are spoilers for Lord of the Rings, Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (episode V), Focus (2015), Disney's "Hercules", The Karate Kid (1984), and Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy.
The Deuteragonist (a.k.a. The Sidekick)
What would Batman be without Robin? What would Harry Potter do without Ron and Hermione? How would Frodo destroy the ring without Samwise Gamgee? Could you imagine The Lion King without Timon and Pumbaa? None of our favorite stories would be the same without at least one deuteragonist to keep the protagonist company.
Why do we need deuteragonists/sidekicks?
Your sidekick will likely be the second most important character in your story. Sometimes there is more than one that offers an equally important purpose (e.g. Hermione giving intelligence from her studies and Ron providing wisdom from his years in the wizarding world). Your deuteragonist will likely give something else to the protagonist and fill in where your protagonist falls short. Sometimes, deuteragonists are loved more by your readers than your protagonist is.
Along with adding something to the protagonist, your deuteragonist also adds something to the plot. They may offer a unique perspective to your protagonist as they are usually foil (or opposite) characters. Take "The Great Gatsby" for example. If told from Gatsby's point of view, he may seem like an arrogant and unlikeable protagonist. When told from Nick's point of view, Jay Gatsby turns into this flawed, human character who has everything but love. The deuteragonist may be a way to connect your readers to the protagonist.
Deuteragonists can also fill in another spot on the character list. Your sidekick could be a comedic relief (like Pippin from the Lord of the Rings trilogy) or be a love interest for your protagonist (like Annabeth Chase for Percy Jackson).
Your sidekick also offers another chance for tension and obstacles for your protagonist. We all have best friends, and we all have had at least one conflict with our best friend. In stories, these create obstacles for your protagonist to overcome or create villain backstories. That's right, the deuteragonist can become the antagonist in the blink of an eye. Lando Calrissian was Han Solo's most trusted ally who betrayed him to make a quick buck.
TL;DR Review
A deuteragonist is the second most important character in your story and often poses as a foil to your protagonist.
Deuteragonists can serve another character role later (such as love interest or antagonist).
A sidekick can give a unique perspective of your protagonist and humanize them.
Your deuteragonist is a great place to put more tension and conflict into your story.
The Love Interest
Don't get me wrong, I don't particularly like romance books or movies and refuse to watch Hallmark specials because they are just too cheesy. However, love interests are important characters in a story. No, they are not necessary, but your readers will make people love interests whether you want them to or not. Even if you aren't writing the next great Austenian romance, you should consider a love interest for your protagonist.
What do love interests do?
In romance novels, it's pretty easy. Love interests are the whole point of the novel. They are the goal your protagonist is trying to reach. How can your protagonist win the heart of the love interest? In other stories, their roles are a bit more mutable.
Sometimes a love interest doesn't even appear in the story for a long time but is the whole reason the story takes place. In "Braveheart", William Wallace's wife's death is the catalyst for the story. When she dies, he goes on the warpath to avenge her. There are many stories like this. They could even be a damsel in distress that isn't rescued until the end of the story.
Your love interest is another spot to add tension. We'll talk about love triangles and will-they-won't-they romance in a minute, but they can add tension in terms of conflict and betrayal. No matter how healthy your relationship is with a significant other or spouse, you have conflicts that you have to overcome. In stories like Disney's "Hercules", the love interest may betray the protagonist. Megara is hired by Hades to get close to Hercules to discover what his weakness is for Hades to exploit.
Love interests always complicate things for your protagonist. Just like any character that your protagonist loves, they become a liability. Your antagonist knows all he or she has to do is threaten them and your protagonist will bend to his or her will. In the movie "Focus" all Garriga has to do to get Nicky (played by Will Smith) to spill the beans about betraying him is attack Jess (played by Margot Robbie), who Nicky is in love with.
Your protagonist can end up at odds with another character when they are competing for their love interest or have difficulty deciding which way to go when presented with two love interests. This is another source of conflict for your protagonist. Will-they-won't-they romances and enemies-to-lovers stories are always entertaining for your readers and add plenty of tension to the plot.
TL;DR Review
Love interests aren't necessary to a story but provide more tension and conflict for your protagonist.
Sometimes, love interests are the whole point or reason for the story.
The love interest may betray your protagonist for conflict.
A love interest may be threatened by the villain to get the protagonist to do what he or she wants.
Will-they-won't-they and enemies-to-lovers romance create tension and drama for your readers.
The Mentor
In some stories, it makes sense to have a mentor for your protagonist. This is an important character that needs to be done right to become a beloved character in your story. Mentor characters tend to be overused in fantasy stories, but there are fun ways to flip them on their heads. Remember the tropes are tropes for a reason, but that doesn't mean you can't reinvent them.
What should a mentor do?
The mentor character is one that will guide your protagonist or even your main group of characters. Typically, mentors are older and wiser but they just need to be a source of useful information for your protagonist. In some ways, Ron and Hermione were mentors to Harry to teach him magic and about the wizarding world. However, the true mentor/mentors of that story are Dumbledore and other adults that guided Harry and his friends (like Professor McGonagall).
That being said, your mentor should not have all the answers. The most important aspect to a mentor is that they aren't afraid to challenge their mentees. Think about Mr. Miyagi in "The Karate Kid" (1984). When he has Danny doing the seemingly useless chores, he never reveals that Danny is learning important techniques for karate despite Danny's whining. It's eventually revealed to Danny, but it was important for him to learn it on his own. Mr. Miyagi also never teaches the crane kick that eventually ends up winning him the tournament, but Danny learned it from watching Mr. Miyagi.
When it comes to the mentor character, they often have their own challenges they are trying to overcome. These can be directly related to the protagonist or have nothing to do with them. Sticking with the Mr. Miyagi example, in the second Karate Kid movie, he is faced with going back home and learning to cooperate with a karate opponent of his own and reconcile with his past.
Mentors can also keep your protagonist in check. Whenever Danny started to get too big for his britches, Mr. Miyagi made sure to keep him humble. While mentors are great sources of wisdom, they also know that there is always someone better out there. Don't let your protagonist get too arrogant with the mentor around.
TL;DR Review
Your mentor should guide and advise your character throughout the story.
The mentor character is often the oldest and wisest character in the story but may just have select knowledge the protagonist needs.
When writing the mentor, he or she should not have all the answers or not give them all away to challenge the protagonist.
Often, a mentor character will have their own struggles that they wrestle with in the story.
Mentors should keep their protagonists' egos in check.
The Confidant
While it is often an overlooked character, your story still needs someone that your protagonist trusts with their life as well as their secrets. Without someone to "share the load" with—as Samwise may say—your protagonist may become overwhelmed with the burden they have to bear throughout the story.
What is the purpose of a confidant?
This is the most trusted person to your protagonist who they will tell everything with. It could be a love interest, mentor, or just a deuteragonist. Whoever it is should be fully trusted by your protagonist. Even if they end up being the antagonist in the end, your protagonist needs to trust them for them to fulfill this role. They may just be the protagonist's parents.
Think about it, would you tell your worst enemy or the town gossip all your deepest darkest secrets? Probably not. So, it isn't going to make sense if you make an untrustworthy character your protagonist's confidant unless he or she doesn't know that character is untrustworthy but your readers do.
Confidants should be close in proximity as well as close to your character. If they aren't close, your protagonist should be able to reach them easily. Be sure to give your confidant more than just the confidant role to make them more alive. Siblings and friends make great confidants while also being major points of conflict for your protagonist. Think about Alfred for Batman. While he serves as his butler, Alfred gives some of the best advice and almost works as a mentor while keeping all of Batman's secrets.
TL;DR Review
The confidant needs to be a character that is trusted by your protagonist.
Keep your confidant close in proximity or easy to reach for your protagonist.
Confidants should work as sounding boards to give advice to your protagonist.
Give your confidant more than one role to keep them from falling flat.
Tertiary Characters
Every story has some other characters that help to fill in the blanks and pop up here and there. Luna, Neville, and the rest of the Weasley clan would be some examples of tertiary characters to the Harry Potter series. We know them by name and they crop up here and there (sometimes with important roles or things to say) but don't spend a lot of time with our protagonist. You will need a few of these with some unique and memorable characteristics to keep your story dazzling with plenty of distinguishable characters.
As you can see, there is a whole host of characters that you can (and should) add to your novel to help give it more depth. Your protagonist and antagonist are strong enough to carry the story, but readers love those side characters that truly bring the story to life. Make sure to make them more than their role so your readers will enjoy reading about them. Each character should be able to stand on his or her own aside from the way they impact the protagonist.
Until Next Time,
Ally Mac
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