Writing the Public, Private and Secret Lives of Your Protagonist
What Makes a Good Protagonist?
To write the most compelling, or even a “good” protagonist, one must follow a few simple rules. As every person has a public life, a private life, and a secret life, so should your protagonist. This part of your character is often overlooked, and can create the feeling of one dimensionality if not attended to.
So, how do I write a compelling protagonist?
If we were writing Hedy Lemarr as a character, we could dissect these three elements:
Public Life: Actress
Private Life: A ‘virtual prisoner’ in a ‘gilded cage’ whilst married to Freidrich Mandl who tried to purchase and destroy all copies of her film Ecstasy.
Secret Life: She escaped disguised as her maid. She became a secret inventor collaborating with George Antheil and together they designed a ‘secrete communication system’.
How does the writer illustrate a secret life whilst writing their public life?
Hedy walks out of her Hollywood studio, grabs her cigarette nervously and looks over her right shoulder. She smiles and waves at the black car awaiting her as usual. The window rolls down slightly, and a mysterious hand cuffed in an expensive suit waves her over. She looks down in her purse and folds the small paper that reads: ‘Tomorrow at 5pm I will be there to save you’. The horn honks impatiently. She closes her clutch and gives the mysterious man a Hollywood smile as she grits her teeth whilst walking toward him. She smiles to herself realizing she has designed a secret communication system that Freidrich will never find.
Public Life: Walking out of the studio in Hollywood (she is an actress).
Private Life: An overbearing, impatient husband with the potential to become jealous.
Secret Life: A clandestine meeting, a plan, and a smile to hide her real intentions.