Hoidwithaspaceship - Spaceship Spaceship Spaceship

Nah you gotta become me first

Kelsier fucking dies!?!??? I was right!! He is that dramatic bitch!!!!!

Empathy. Motivation. Progress.

The secret to making your readers care about a character lies in these 3 sliding scales, according to Brandon Sanderson.

Show throughout the story the answers to the following bullets:

Empathy (likability)

How relatable are they?

Are they kind or sympathetic to others?

How do other characters treat them?

Motivation (proactivity)

Are the character’s motivations interesting?

Can the character have what they desire? Do they initially avoid what motivates them?

How do a character’s motivations conflict with their flaws, and/or tie to the plot?

What steps is the character taking to get what they want?

People have many things that motivate them. Sometimes they can never have something they desire, sometimes they don’t want the thing they actually need at first. Motivations can conflict with each other, the plot, and a character’s morality.

Progress (competence)

What flaws does the character need to face in order to progress?

Does the character overcome their flaws, fail, step around them, etc.?

Will the character fulfill their promise(s)?

Motivation and progress often go hand-in-hand. Progression should be hard, to keep characters in check.

These sliding scales work just as well for protagonists as they do for villains, and everyone else in between.

Remember, the scales shouldn’t be maxed out. A character perfect at all three sliding scales is difficult to care about, and your characters are your story’s lifeblood.

Brandon Sanderson’s free 2020 lectures on YT

I will never reveal my secrets.

Started reading Yumi and the Nightmare Painter. Every time Hoid narrates a story I just assume he's got Kaladin cornered somewhere and refuses to let him go.

Knives in both hands

One thing that I think is really missing from the Lirin Discourse (from all directions!) is that Kaladin absolutely did want to be a surgeon. He genuinely wanted it. There were times where he wanted to be a soldier more, but by the time the recruiters came he had decided that he wouldn't join the army after all! In fact, the tragedy of the whole thing is that Roshone's cruelty forced Kaladin into a path he didn't want anymore.

I want to follow more Elder Scrolls blogs so if you post Elder Scrolls stuff (exclusively or not), give this a reblog or comment or something and I'll follow you if I'm not already following you :)