“First person allows deeper insight into the protagonist's character. It allows the reader to identify more fully with the protagonist and to share her world quite intimately. So it suits a story focused on one character's personal journey. However, first person shuts out insights into other characters.” WorldFirstsPersonsCharacterStoriesJourneyShareReaderDeeperInsightFocusedSuitsFirst PersonProtagonistsPersonal Journey Author:Juliet Marillier
“To me there's no difference between writing YA and adult except that in YA I make the book a little shorter and the protagonists are teens. The difference is in the readers.” WritingLittlesBookDifferencesReaderAdultsTeensProtagonists Author:Charles de Lint
“Fiction is about human beings, first and foremost. (It's not impossible to write fiction with no human protagonists, but it's very hard to keep the reader interested ...)” WritingFirstsHumansHardHuman BeingsFictionImpossibleReaderProtagonists Author:Charles Stross
“Every novel deals with social problems. It can't help it because the protagonist must come in conflict with his group. So the author has to offer an analysis of how the group and the protagonist fit. Otherwise, the reader will just say, "This makes no sense," and will put it away.” HelpingProblemSocialDealsNovelGroupsReaderFitOffersConflictAnalysisProtagonistsSocial Problems Author:Jane Smiley
“Since I hold no judgments against my characters, no matter how heinous they might seem, I present them as real people with their own moral centers. We might feel those moral centers are mis-calibrated, but they are there and are the rudders that propel them. This makes reading my work a visceral roller coaster, 'cause the reader must embark on the journey of the protagonist equipped only with his or her own moral center.” PeopleFeelsRealMatterCharacterSeemsMightReadingCausesMoralJourneyReaderJudgmentProtagonistsRoller CoasterCoastersVisceralRudders Author:Chris Abani
“I believe young children in particular enjoy witnessing the survival of youthful protagonists against terrible odds. I think it's gratifying to the reader when you give young characters that kind of agency.” ThinkingGivingBelieveKindChildrenCharacterYoungI BelieveEnjoyParticularReaderTerribleSurvivalAgencyOddsYoung ChildrenProtagonists Author:Robert Paul Weston
“It's pretty easy to think of the idea of a story, and maybe even to write a scene or two, but understanding the ebb and flow of a narrative, where to leave the little clues your protagonist (and reader) need, while playing fair, takes a lot more skill and patience than you might think.” ThinkingNeedsWritingLittlesTwoIdeasStoriesMightEasyUnderstandingReaderSceneSkillsFairsFlowNarrativeClueProtagonistsEbb And Flow Author:Dennis Green