Every great story needs compelling characters. Today, we’re identifying the protagonists, antagonists, and supporting characters who will bring our novels to life!
Welcome back to Day 7 of Preptober 2026! 🎃✍️
You guys, we’ve officially made it through our first WEEK of Preptober!
Can we just take a moment to celebrate that?! 🎉
Over the past six days, we’ve accomplished quite a bit.
We’ve figured out WHY we’re writing our novels.
We’ve gotten all those messy ideas out of our heads and onto paper.
We’ve started connecting those ideas into an actual story.
We’ve written our one-sentence premises.
And previously, we explored the heart of our stories by identifying themes, emotional journeys, and the deeper meanings we want to explore.
But today?
We’re officially diving into character development! 💕
Because while an exciting plot might capture someone’s attention…
It’s often the characters who make readers fall in love with a story.
And today, we’re figuring out who those characters are!
Why Your Characters Matter
Think about some of your favorite books.
Chances are, you remember more than just the plot.
You remember the characters.
The ones who made you laugh.
The ones who broke your heart.
The ones who made you want to throw your book across the room because they made the WORST possible decision. 😂
And, of course, the ones you still think about long after you’ve finished reading.
That’s what we’re trying to create.
Characters who feel like real people.
Characters with personalities, motivations, flaws, and desires.
Characters whose decisions influence what happens throughout the story.
Because here’s something I really want you to remember:
Your characters shouldn’t just exist to move the plot forward. Their choices should help CREATE the plot.
And before we start filling out detailed character profiles, we need to figure out who’s actually going to be part of our story.
That’s what today’s exercise is all about.
Step 1: Identify Your Protagonist
Let’s start with the most obvious character.
Your protagonist! 📖
Your protagonist is the central character whose journey we’re following throughout the story.
They’re usually the person facing the main conflict and making the decisions that drive the narrative forward.
And here’s the thing…
Your protagonist doesn’t have to be perfect.
In fact, I would argue that they shouldn’t be!
They can be stubborn.
They can be selfish.
They can be afraid.
They can make terrible decisions.
And they can have beliefs about themselves or the world that aren’t necessarily true.
Those imperfections give them room to grow.
For now, I want you to think about a few simple questions:
- Who is my protagonist?
- What do they want?
- What makes them interesting?
- What challenges might they face?
- Why is this THEIR story?
That last question is especially important.
Why are we following this particular character instead of someone else?
What makes their perspective essential to the story you’re trying to tell?
You don’t need to have every answer figured out yet.
Tomorrow, we’re going to dive much deeper into our protagonists and start filling out our character sheets.
For today, we’re simply identifying who they are and what role they’ll play in the novel.
Step 2: Identify Your Antagonist
Now let’s talk about one of my favorite parts of storytelling…
The antagonist! 😈
Because what would a story be without a little conflict?
Your antagonist is the character or force that opposes your protagonist and creates obstacles for them.
And here’s something important to remember:
Your antagonist doesn’t necessarily have to be a villain.
Sometimes, the antagonist is a person with goals that directly conflict with your protagonist’s goals.
Sometimes, it’s a rival.
Sometimes, it’s an institution or a larger system.
And sometimes, the biggest obstacle comes from the protagonist’s own fears, beliefs, or decisions.
For example, in a romance novel, the central conflict might come from two characters who want different things.
Neither person necessarily has to be evil!
They might simply have incompatible goals, opposing beliefs, or emotional wounds that prevent them from understanding each other.
And that’s enough to create compelling conflict.
As you’re identifying your antagonist, ask yourself:
Who or what is standing in the way of my protagonist getting what they want?
And if your story has a traditional villain, here’s another question worth exploring:
What does my antagonist want?
Because even villains should have motivations.
They might believe they’re doing the right thing.
They might be pursuing power, revenge, security, or recognition.
Or they might want something that puts them directly at odds with your protagonist.
The more you understand their motivations, the easier it becomes to create meaningful conflict.
Step 3: Identify Your Supporting Characters
Now we’re getting to the characters who help make our fictional worlds feel alive! 💕
Our supporting cast!
These are the characters who surround our protagonists and influence their journeys.
Maybe they’re friends.
Family members.
Mentors.
Love interests.
Rivals.
Coworkers.
Or the occasional chaotic best friend who makes absolutely everything more complicated. 😂
Supporting characters can serve all kinds of purposes in a novel.
They might challenge your protagonist’s beliefs.
They might offer encouragement or guidance.
They might create additional conflict.
Or they might help reveal a different side of your protagonist’s personality.
And here’s something I want you to think about:
What does each supporting character contribute to the story?
Now, that doesn’t mean every character needs a massive subplot or an elaborate backstory.
But it helps to understand why they’re there.
Maybe one character represents a different perspective on your story’s central theme.
Maybe another character challenges your protagonist’s decisions.
Or maybe someone provides emotional support during the most difficult moments of the story.
The goal is to create a supporting cast that feels purposeful rather than simply filling space.
Let’s Look at an Example: Pride and Prejudice 💕
Since we’ve been using Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice throughout our Preptober E-Guide, let’s look at some of the novel’s key characters.
Our protagonist: Elizabeth Bennet
Elizabeth is intelligent, witty, independent, and quick to form opinions.
She’s also proud of her ability to judge people’s character, which becomes an important part of her emotional journey.
Her choices, assumptions, and relationships drive much of the story.
Our central romantic counterpart: Mr. Darcy
Darcy is one of the most important characters in Elizabeth’s journey.
Their initial misunderstandings and opposing judgments create significant conflict.
And as the story progresses, both characters are forced to reconsider their assumptions about one another.
Our antagonistic influences: Lady Catherine de Bourgh, Wickham, and societal expectations
Lady Catherine attempts to interfere with Elizabeth’s choices and reinforces the social hierarchy surrounding marriage.
Wickham’s behavior and misleading accounts contribute to Elizabeth’s mistaken judgments.
And the expectations surrounding class, wealth, and marriage create obstacles throughout the novel.
Notice how there isn’t just one simple source of conflict?
That’s something worth remembering when planning your own story!
Our supporting cast: Jane Bennet, Mr. Bingley, Charlotte Lucas, and the Bennet family
Each of these characters contributes something different.
Jane and Bingley’s relationship provides an important contrast to Elizabeth and Darcy’s romance.
Charlotte Lucas offers a different perspective on marriage and financial security.
And Elizabeth’s family creates both emotional connections and social complications.
Together, these characters help bring the story’s themes and conflicts to life.
And that’s exactly what we want from our own casts!
Step 4: Think About Character Relationships
Now that we’ve started identifying our key players, let’s think about how they connect.
Because one of my favorite things about character development is exploring relationships.
Friendships.
Romances.
Family dynamics.
Rivalries.
And all those wonderfully complicated relationships that don’t fit neatly into one category. 😂
Ask yourself:
How do these characters feel about one another?
Do they trust each other?
Are they hiding secrets?
Do they have conflicting goals?
Does one character challenge something another character believes?
And how might those relationships change throughout the novel?
You don’t need to map out every relationship today.
But identifying a few important connections can help you understand where your story’s emotional tension might come from.
And sometimes, the most interesting character dynamics are the ones that create both conflict AND growth.
Step 5: Don’t Create Characters Just to Fill Space
Here’s something else I want you to keep in mind.
You don’t need an enormous cast of characters to write a compelling novel.
Sometimes, a smaller cast allows you to explore relationships more deeply.
Other stories genuinely need a larger ensemble.
Neither approach is inherently better.
What matters is that your characters serve the story you’re trying to tell.
And if you discover halfway through planning that two supporting characters are serving almost identical purposes?
You might decide to combine them.
If you realize a character isn’t contributing much to the story?
You might remove them.
And if a character you originally imagined as a minor supporting player becomes incredibly interesting?
You might decide to give them a bigger role!
That’s part of the creative process.
Your cast is allowed to evolve as your story develops.
So don’t feel pressured to have everyone figured out today.
We’re just identifying the key players.
We’ll get to know them better as we continue planning.
Today’s Preptober Assignment ✍️
Grab your free Preptober 2026 E-Guide and turn to the Your Characters section.
Today, I want you to start identifying the important people in your novel.
Focus on three main categories:
💕 Your protagonist: Who is the central character, and why is this their story?
😈 Your antagonist: Who or what creates the central opposition to your protagonist’s goal?
📖 Your supporting cast: Who are the important friends, family members, love interests, mentors, or rivals who influence the story?
For each character, write down their name (if you have one!), their role in the story, and one or two things you already know about them.
And if you don’t have names for everyone yet?
That’s okay!
You can use placeholders.
You can come back and change things later.
The goal is simply to identify the characters who will help bring your story to life.
Follow Along With Preptober 2026! 🎃📖
If you’re just joining us, welcome!
Throughout October, I’m sharing 31 daily YouTube videos to help writers plan their novels and prepare for Novel November.
We’re working through my free Preptober 2026 E-Guide, one section at a time.
And whether you’re a dedicated plotter, a proud pantser, or somewhere in between, you’re welcome to join us!
You don’t need to have every character figured out.
You don’t need detailed backstories for everyone.
And you definitely don’t need to spend three hours deciding what your protagonist’s favorite breakfast food is. 😂
Unless, of course, that’s important to your story!
We’re keeping things simple, practical, and focused on helping you actually write your novel.
Coming Up: Build Your Protagonist 💕
Next, we’re moving on to Day 8 of Preptober 2026, and we’re diving deeper into our main characters!
We’re going to start filling out our protagonist character sheets, exploring their personalities, values, motivations, flaws, and the things that make them feel like real people.
And don’t worry!
You don’t have to know everything about your protagonist just yet.
We’re going to figure it out together.
Before you go, I’d love to hear from you:
Which character in your novel are you MOST excited to write? 👀💕
Is it your protagonist?
Your antagonist?
A love interest?
Or that chaotic supporting character who’s already threatening to steal the entire story? 😂
Tell me in the comments!
We’ve got a novel to plan. 🎃✍️
