Heroes or Anti-Heroes? Which of the two would you prefer writing and why?

[simplykit]

how bout a hero who turns into an anti-hero:grin:

makes a more interesting story

kinda like what superman is going through now

[TJSchongar]

YESSSSS! That journey works both ways - hero to anti, anti to hero. The possibilities are ENDLESS!

[simplykit]

awright! now that hero turns out to be joker

[RiidDisBuk]

Not what I meant by 4D, but I guess you have a point xD. I'm talking about character background and psychology. But Ok xP

[RiidDisBuk]

DAMN STRAIGHT!!! I'll tell you this much, I have a character in the works who is in the pic below who I'm dying to write. He is a character in my story I'm building up that (SPOILERS) will be an anti-hero who breaks and mocks the established laws and norm to fufill good on an astronomical level. It'll take me a while to get to him, but I CANNOT wait to write this character

[simplykit]

cool, when will this char be introduced?

[RiidDisBuk]

He already has in the form of a spirit. He won't be among the living until an unforgettably HEAVY tragedy takes place.

[simplykit]

uh oh that "heavy tragedy" sounds serious

[RiidDisBuk]

Stay tuned indeed

[RiidDisBuk]

OOPS WRONG PERSON XD.

I would be so arrogant as to say you have no idea, but that's something I leave to you to judge

[ratscout]

Oh, I think I definitely prefer writing heroes to anti-heroes. My creative writing teacher said it's pretty difficult to write an anti-hero, and I'd have to agree with him--mostly because you have to be ready to make that character do morally questionable things but you also have to find a way to make them likable or at the very_least_ understandable which is a difficult thing to pull off, I think. And what can I say? I'm a goody-two-shoes. I like genuinely nice people who try to do the right thing.

[RiidDisBuk]

The biggest factor to an anti-hero is sympathy. I understand that they can be difficult to write at times, but basically they would do whatever it takes to accomplish the good whether it's morally just or evil. They have to be sympathetic on a clearly visible scale to understand why they do the way they do.

Let me just say that I cannot wait to write my anti-hero. One that I've been planning for 2+ years. Some in my story would dare to call him a hero, while others call him a villain.

[vfinnigan]

Antiheroes aren't just people who do good with unconventional methods and a small problem with authority. Their moral alignment ranges from true to chaotic neutral at best, and for the most part devoted only to themselves. Consequently, I don't particularly enjoy writing them as protagonists unless they have an arc that eventually settles them at least on the edge of neutral/chaotic good territory. (This may be why I'm not a big fan of spaghetti westerns or the Godfather movies.)

Now as sidekicks or nemeses serving as social critics, I love antiheroes.

Heroes, on the other hand, are easy and enjoyable because they are good people. I don't feel icky getting into their heads, writing their thoughts. And even when they do bad things, the quest to make things right can itself make a good story.

[RiidDisBuk]

I agree on everything you said on anti-heroes. Problem with heroes are that they are too easy to write. Especially when they discipline themselves mostly to what the law has established. I understand their ethics can be challenged, but we know they put up and shut up at the end of the day.

I like writing anti heroes more because they are more complex than that of an ordinary hero. They even establish something important that the heroes and the authority lack that they just don't listen to.

[RiidDisBuk]

That's understandable xD. Anti-heroes don't have to be questionable. They just need a few key things;

1. Sympathy. Arguably the most important factor to an anti-hero is feeling sorry for them on a visible level. Otherwise, they are straight up a villain

2. A strong motivation. Whether it's vengeance in honor of a late loved one, protecting/saving someone he/she cherishes, or anything that motivates them to do what they do. It must be something truly motivating in order to break lawful boundaries to do the right thing.

3. A present morality. They can do morally questionable things, yes. But they must acknowledge whatever they do is right or wrong.

I'm sure it's you're aware of, but these are the things I believe that make a great anti-hero.

[pendogion]

Anti-heroes are fun to write, since they are generally less constrained to the general stereotype of what a hero is. Heroes are easy to write, but hard to write well. I personally like writing heroes as a challenge. Someone with unwavering belief that he is doing what is "good" and will defeat what is "bad" for "justice" can turn sour real quickly. There can be a fine line in what defines a hero and a villain. The hero can also be challenged with his unflexibility and the suffering that having a fixed sense of "right" and "wrong" causes. If anything heroes are flawed in a very interesting and specific way, and that's a great thing to explore.

[vfinnigan]

Heroes can be complex, though. The problem is that too many don't write them as human beings. Also, people confuse morality with upholding the law, which history shows isn't the case. (Also, the RPG moral alignments show one can be lawful and neutral or even evil, but I digress.) Heroes are good human beings (lawful or neutral good, doesn't matter), but nevertheless human. That's the challenge. Too many times, people write heroes as unwaveringly perfect and bland, when there is no basis for that in reality.

And all the good heroic journeys start out with the heroes being not exactly the nicest of people. Luke Skywalker started off as whiny and immature - and that was intentional.

As I've heard said, saints aren't perfect. Just recovering sinners.

The important thing is to make a hero likeable, and you won't find that in some rigid, one note character.

[RiidDisBuk]

My character isn't human that's for sure

But hey, what you brought up is a good defintion of character development.

[indagold]

Well all my heroes are anti heroes so I guess thats what I choose. They're much more interesting than a hero because they have no real charisma a hero would have and makes it harder to make them appealing to the reader. A reader wants someone loyal and stoic and its a compelling twist to make someone who is none of that but somehow still works.

[RiidDisBuk]

I'd actually argue that a good anti-hero can have more charisma than a good hero. But I guess it's up to what the reader sees.

But yeah, I guess they can be more compelling than a hero. Especially those like Batman in their early days.