CREATIVE WRITING BUILDING BLOCKS
THE BUILDING BLOCK OF CHARACTER: PART FOUR
Everyone in your stories needs a reason for being there, says author and tutor Ian Ayris, as he shines a light on the role played by secondary characters
So far in this series we have mentioned the existence of four distinct character types:
• Main Character
• Antagonist / Nemesis
• Secondary Character
• Secondary Secondary Character
We have also looked at how these character types reveal themselves to the reader – and each other – through action, dialogue, thought and relationship. We have demonstrated this using a story I wrote several years ago called ‘Sundays’. You can read it here: www.writers-online.co.uk/how-to-write/sundaysa-short-story-by-ian-ayris/
The characters in ‘Sundays’ are:
Main Character – Unnamed Boy
Antagonist / Nemesis – Dad
Secondary character -Mum
Secondary Secondary Characters – Auntie Cheryl and Uncle Pete
In Part Three of this series, we looked in detail at the Main Character (the Unnamed Boy). In this article we will first look at the Secondary Character (Mum) and then the Secondary Secondary Characters (Auntie Cheryl and Uncle Pete).
Secondary Characters
Secondary Characters - or however you want to refer to them - do not drive the story. That is the job of the Main Character and the Main Character’s relationship with the Antagonist. They do, however, play an important part in fleshing out the Main Character, allowing the reader an insight into the Main Character’s central relationships. Secondary Characters differ from Secondary Secondary Characters as their speech and actions directly affect either the story or the Main Character (or both). Secondary Characters are often friends of the Main Character – such as Hermione and Ron in the Harry Potter books – or, as in the case of ‘Sundays’, family.