The protagonists are usually also the main characters of the story, the ones that the reader cares about most, but what about the supporting cast of characters? What role do the side characters play in the story? Often they’re a supplemental element of the story to the main character(s) as they help to give depth to the protagonist’s journey. Their contributions to the story, while not necessarily solving the main conflict, are often meant to play a very important part of the resolution be it good or bad. But arguably the most important aspect of side characters is what they contribute to the character development of the protagonists.
What exactly makes a good side character? How does one write them to be a compelling part of the story without necessarily stealing the spotlight? The obvious factor is that, as the reader, we don’t often see the story from their perspective so we don’t necessarily get a direct insight into their thoughts and feelings. The main way their thoughts and feelings are shown to the reader is through their words and their actions and how that affects the main character(s). Prince Tyrus and Ronan in Empire of Night by Kelley Armstrong are great examples of strong side characters. In their own right, they’re interesting and complex enough to be the main characters of their own stories. Their interactions with Ashyn and Moria help them to grow and develop as characters as the sisters persevere through their story. While they are very interesting characters with their own story, they never steal the focus from the main characters.
The classic example of strong side characters is often the group of characters where everyone serves a specific purpose. The dynamic is really well illustrated (both figuratively and literally) as the Five Man Band by Overly Sarcastic Productions. They are amazing and it’s worth checking out. The basic idea is that there’s usually still a central main character or two and then a group of supporting side characters around them that have their own backstories, character arcs, and development alongside the main character(s). But the main thing is each of these side characters serves a more specific purpose that furthers the main story. This is where you get your archetypes of love interest, smart character, the strong but often dumb one, the rogue (lancer as OSP puts it), and many more options depending on the story being written. The Percy Jackson and The Heroes of Olympus series by Rick Riordan are really strong examples of this character dynamic. All of the side characters are there to further the main story and further journey of Percy Jackson and Jason Grace in their respective stories.
What could be a challenging aspect of writing a good side character is making them someone that the readers will care about. Why this is so important is that when the main character(s) care about the side characters, often making them endearing to the reader adds that sense of urgency so when the protagonists are worried about them, the reader will also feel that concern as well. It’s capturing that feeling of genuine concern for the side characters that makes the reader gasp and feel frightened for the sake of the side character’s wellbeing. The thing with this, however, is that it’s quite difficult and subjective as different people find different aspects of characters endearing. What might be the best way to approach it is to consider two aspects. One is to look at examples of characters that people generally find endearing and try to think about why people would find them endearing. It helps immensely to look at characters similar to the one you’re writing as you can consider what to add or change to them. The second thing to consider is what do you find endearing in a side character. What makes you, as a reader, really like and connect with them as a character? Examples for this vary dramatically depending on the kind of person you are, but my favorite are Okame and Daisuke from The Shadow of the Fox series by Julie Kagawa. I found them to be fun and loveable characters that help Yumeko in her harrowing adventure.
Developing strong side characters is vital as they help to enrich the story and contribute to the development of the main characters. They can often help in creating a more interesting and cohesive story. It takes some thought and careful consideration, but writing side characters can be just as important as writing the main character(s).
– Raphael
P.S: Sorry for the delay! It’s been a crazy couple of weeks so thanks for your patience!
Raph's Cozy Musings 