Lots of articles exist on the ‘net about good ways to create a rich protagonist in a story, whether they be sleuth or otherwise. So why do I  like “Developing and Introducing The Sleuth in Your Mystery Novel” by Hallie Ephron (Writer’s Digest, March/April 2015, pp. 56-58)?

In simplest explanation, it’s because the article divides the tips into two separate sections — developing the sleuth and introducing the sleuth.

Developing the sleuth takes the reader through the main tips that are common to most articles, or at least the first three of five are common. First and foremost, they start with basic appearance — what do they wear, and what does it say about them? Dowdy clothes or upscale business suit? Fashionably chic or jeans and t-shirt? Nobody would ever mistake Kinsey Millhone, blue-collar PI, with her cousin in the books who’s an upmarket lawyer, even though the two of them look alike. Nor Miss Marple for Jessica Fletcher.

Second, she talks about disequilibrium, although most people would call it motivation (either intrinsic or extrinsic). Separate from the “case”, what in their life do they want to change? Usually this is described as more the character arc that you have in mind for their overall backstory, even though the case might only be a small segment of that journey.… Read the rest