Creating Characters That Cry, Heal, and Haunt - Part One – Creating a Protagonist Readers Cry For

When someone watches a movie, they engage in a time-limited activity full of visuals, sounds, and performances. They are easily engaged by music, lighting, facial expressions, and cinematography that create an immediate emotional impact.

When someone reads a book, they engage in active imagination. They are building a world in their mind based on the words in front of them. It is a deep dive into a character's head, allowing for internal monologue, rich backstory, and a slow-burning development. The emotional arc is more nuanced and reflective. And it's personal; every reader's version can be slightly different.

In short, Movies show you the story. Books let you live inside them.

As an author, I want to carefully craft words on the page that will transport readers into my characters' lives. What emotions do I want to create in my readers that will keep them engaged in this exercise of active imagination? What emotions will allow them to connect with my characters so much that they will step into their shoes and walk with them through their journey?

 If you have been to one of my author talks or writing classes, you know that I am very passionate about creating characters who are intriguing, deep, relatable, and worth the readers' time. Typically, I present the class with the question: What is the most essential emotion I want to evoke in a reader to keep them engaged in my characters?

The answer is: Empathy. But is empathy the only emotion we want to create? No.

We want to include different emotions in our manuscript for the protagonist, antagonist, and villain.

This blog is part one of a three-part series on creating characters that matter. Today, we will discuss the protagonist, and in parts two and three, we will explore the emotions readers should experience to build an authentic relationship with the antagonist and the villain.

The Protagonist! Let them walk in their shoes. Create empathy, not sympathy!

Sympathy is a feeling for someone. You recognize their pain but stay emotionally distant from it.

Empathy is feeling with someone. You emotionally connect, imagining what it's like to be in their shoes. 

With empathy, a reader begins to feel what the character feels. It's deeper, more vulnerable. They might begin to mirror the protagonist's emotions, creating intimacy and trust.

Sympathy = Sidewalk. You stand beside someone.

Empathy = Shoes. You step into their experience. I want my readers to step into my manuscript and experience it.

How Can I Create Empathy?

For me, as an author, I like to use real characters, actual stories, people that I have interviewed. When I deep-dive into their lives and begin to understand their struggle, I can walk in their shoes, which makes it easier for me to create that world on the page.

Here are a few ways that authors can build that emotional bridge:

Give Them a Relatable Struggle 

Readers connect most deeply when they see echoes of their own fears, hopes, or wounds.

  - Grief over a lost loved one 

  - Fear of failure or rejection 

  - Desire to belong or be seen

Even if the setting is fantastical, the emotions should feel real.

Show Vulnerability Early 

Let readers see the cracks before the strength.

  - A quiet moment of doubt or shame 

  - A failed attempt at something they care about 

  - A scene where they're emotionally exposed — even if they try to hide it

Vulnerability invites trust. It says, "I'm human, too."

Use Internal Monologue 

Let us hear their thoughts — especially the ones they don't say out loud.

  - "I should've known better." 

  - "If I fail again, I don't know who I'll be." 

  - "She smiled, but I saw the sadness behind it."

This builds intimacy and emotional depth.

Give Them Flaws — and Growth 

Perfect characters are complex to care about. Flawed ones who try? We root for them.

  - A protagonist who's impulsive but learns patience 

  - One who avoids conflict but must speak up 

  - One who lies to protect someone — and faces the fallout

Empathy grows when we see someone change, stumble, and try again.

Let Them Reflect Us 

Build emotional resonance by tapping into universal themes.

Themes that evoke empathy: forgiveness, identity, loss and renewal, and courage in quiet moments.  

The more your protagonist reflects the reader's emotional truth, the deeper the connection.

Join me in our next blog as we explore the emotion we want to create to make our antagonist just that — antagonizing.