How to Develop a Fantasy Hero

When I begin thinking of a fantasy novel, I come to the conclusion that my hero or heroine has to really say something unique, act in the right or wrong way and be just-plain-interesting. How does one develop the fantasy hero? Let's make it fun and say there is no right or wrong way. But there are a few ways to make it work and a few ways to make it sell to your readers.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Computer
• Books on mythology, like "The Hero with a Thousand Faces" by Joseph Campbell.
• Screenwriting books, like "Story" by Robert Mckee.

1. The hero should be like you. Many writing books will offer you all the characteristics of a good hero, the talent with a blade and the vice of doing this or that. Some will even tell you the characters should be like you. First, we need to understand ourselves in order to understand a character. When Stephen King pens tales of alcoholic writers battling horrors, do you think he drew inspiration from his own life? Second, we must see scenes in our lives, how they changed us, and how they could change the hero. Lastly, there is a point where the character will have to make a big choice, where a writer asks a question to themselves, "What would I do?"

2. 
    

   The hero needs a vice. He can be a beat detective in a crime-noir world like "Sin City" who smokes a lot of cigarettes and beats up suspects but never ends a life. He can like girls or boys too much, like Val Kilmer's womanizing character in George Lucas' "Willow." There needs to be something that brings the hero down to earth and that makes them fun, which the readers can relate to.

3. 
    

   The hero needs a talisman. A good book that offers a good sense of what a hero needs in all aspects is "Power Screenwriting" by Michael Chase Walker. According to Walker, a hero needs some sort of talisman from humble origins which propels the story. Note humble, because many stories move away from that. Arthur pulled the sword from the storm. Skywalker chose the force over the dark side (at least Luke did). But it can be humble: a small stone, a card, a book, a pen; many things can be humble in origin.

4. 
    
   Superman's main nemesis, Lex Luthor, is a villain who is tough to kill because of his intelligence. Image courtesy DC Comics.

   You need a villain who is bad, evil and smart. What we are missing so far may be the most crucial part of your fantasy hero, that person who he conflicts with. The villain needs to be fun, not necessarily a direct opposite of the hero. The villain can be insane, like Batman's nemesis The Joker, or he can be an alien wishing to conquer the world, like hundreds of tales. Something draws these two characters together in a major fight for the world. Ask yourself a few questions. How does this villain see humanity? Does he value life? Is he willing to kill? Is he smarter than the hero? He can be good at one point, like Darth Vader. Perhaps he values life. And maybe she is a smarter character than the hero, which makes it all the more fun to write.

5. Each scene should have something to say. When setting up a scene, consider how it affects the hero, what she would do and how it changes them. The old boring story: every scene needs to say something about her, every scene must change her. However, this isn't always the case. As long as there is some epiphany in the scene, you are doing fine. Just try to see each scene as a way of saying something about the hero.

Tips & Warnings

• Write out every scene with the idea you must find something to say about the hero.
• The basic hero fighting evil comes from mythology. Study mythological books like "Bulfinch's Mythology."
• These ideas can work for novels, short stories, screenplays and even comic books. A hero is a hero.
• Reading fantasy novels can be dangerous, mainly because one can lift ideas from other authors.