Balancing Characters

[AuraSoul93]

I have two characters of the main cast that get alot of focus in my story (their love interests is acted upon more, their strength is much higher than the others', their personalities are more diverse than those around them, etc.). And while I get that it's important to signify who the story is mainly about I think I give them too much & not enough to the other main cast members. There are times when the other main cast members might as well be side characters & I don't like that. Not to mention that the side characters are hardly characters themselves, just commenting on what the main ones do & serving as fodder for enemies that will be beaten by the main cast later on. I wanna keep a main cast of 4 people w/ side characters coming in & out of their adventures but wanting to make things interesting & balanced. Is there a way I can distribute importance between these 4 main people & others?

 

[Kyuuketsuki]

It seems like the problem you're referring to can be solved by simply introducing plot lines to the story. If you have 4 or more characters, just give each of them 4-5 chapters for them to expand their character through personal stories, and the other characters will be tagging along for that part. For supporting characters, you can just give them a moment to establish their personality; it doesn't even have to relate to the plot.

 

[jasonwolf]

Kyu sounds about right. there is nothign wrong with focusing in on certain characters in a story, but going ahead and giving each a chance to shine is a great idea. I cna think of two examples.

The percy jackson series. obviously the main character is Percy Jackson, but through the books certain other characters get more importance. book four really helps develop one of my favorite characters Nico. The reason he is so well developed is because he is key to solving one of the issues happening in that book. mostly what I read is adventure and action, so the idea that these characters have skills that set them apart and make them worthy team members is very important.

The other beign similar to the first is actually a video game. Sly cooper 3. in the game you play as Sly, but you have to organize a team of thieves to pull of the biggest heist ever. missions through out the game requrie you to use multiple characters whether you like them or not. In the end though its each skill that makes them worth while.