Writing Excuses 10.8: Q&A on Character

It's time for a Q&A; on characters! The questions for this episode were provided by the attendees at the 2014 Out of Excuses Workshop and Retreat:

* How do you have a character grow in power and/or expertise without needing to ridiculously overpower the villains?

* How do you give a flawed character a growth arc without changing what originally made that character likable?

* When you have a 1st person POV, how do you convey the emotional complexity of the non-POV characters?

* How do you create an interesting an engaging story with a main character who is not the protagonist or hero of the story?

* Is there an easy way to tell when the plot is driving the character instead of the other way around?

* How do you write a character with egregiously offensive views without you, as the author, appearing to espouse or condone those views?

* How do you write a character who has a belief that is different from your own?

* What are some tips for writing a sympathetic antagonist?

Liner Note: The Tumbler to which Mary referred is Diversity Cross-Check.

Note: We offered to take questions on Story Structure during March, but we'll be recording that episode two days from right now. Send us your story structure questions now! Do not delay! If you tweet them to @WritingExcuses they'll pile up in a space where we can quickly find them.