What makes your main character different from others? (Novels/Comics)

dollynightmare 2021-04-26 19:44:57 UTC #1

Hello fellow authors & artists!

What makes your main character stand out? Drop a pic or text that describes how your main character differs from others.

dollynightmare 2021-04-26 19:45:56 UTC #2

I will start. I personally strive to make my female leads different in any way I can so I can represent women of all colors, disabilities, cultures, status/class, appearances and personalties. The world is full of diversity and I would like to see it more in media.

My main character that currently stands out to me the most is my female lead Journee from my novel/manga A Troll's Hunger. She is a plus size girl and I'm all for body positivity! She comes from a nontraditional family structure as she is raised by her grandfather and I feel as though people can relate to her.

EncryptedWriting 2021-04-26 19:53:48 UTC #3

Well, my MC, Alice, isn't an oblivious little girl. She loves her mother and would do anything for her, since, technically, that is our motive for the story: save her mother. There's also the little thing that she is dead, like full on dead dead. She uses pure spite to find her way to her murderer, and she is overall a likeable, relatable character that most folks can find themseleves enjoying her narrative and what happens to her.

DiegoPalacios 2021-04-26 19:58:32 UTC #4

What makes Rocky the Rock stand out from other protagonists is that he is an inanimate rock in a shonen parody where he is treated like a mighty and legendary hero by allies and enemies alike.

DualDragons 2021-04-26 19:58:40 UTC #5

Darn, I wish I could show mine yet but he hasn't progressed that far.
But basically, my main character is like a shonen protagonist, looking for his dad. Unlike most shonen protagonists who strive to always become stronger and gain powerups, Andrew at one point has to overcome mental trials and barriers in order to accept himself for who he is.

I think the psychological struggle he will go through due to the dark inner power he discovers is what might set him apart from similar characters, considering he has to live with the consequences of that ability.

jmassat 2021-04-26 19:59:04 UTC #6

In A World where a few Power Rangers-like magical girls/boys/NBs have to defend their city, my MC Olive has no powers and mostly just runs errands while griping about it under their breath.

arxianfall 2021-04-26 20:00:30 UTC #7

Lead character instead of main character:

Lahin 2021-04-26 20:03:31 UTC #8

My little boy Isamu(Main Lead. I have like 8 MC-s) has...way too many faces, way too big dreams and a way too weird friend. He's a complicated fellow, but at the same time, so very simple. Many of the things that define him haven't come to light yet, so please take a look if he's someone who might interest you.

joannekwan 2021-04-26 20:17:23 UTC #9

While Patience grew up ostracised from her peers because of her appearance, she doesn't have the whole 'woe is me' attitude. Instead she's like "fine, I won't be friends with y'all then." So she ends up with very few friends but is quite fine with that.

FafasMcMelt 2021-04-26 21:03:00 UTC #10

Mainly, she's a part of the story, not the center of it. Also, while in a sorta high fantasy setting, she's purely a fighter, has no super powers or magic macguffin, or any way to "cheat" a fight.
While she's by no means the only MC in existence to rely mostly on tactics to defeat foes much more powerful than herself, or the only MC to, while moving the story forward, not be the center of attention of the entire setting, I quite enjoy the combination. And the idea of an MC that doesn't really scale in an action comic.
Also, she has her own worldview and morals that differ significantly from my own, so I find her very interesting to write.

sorible 2021-04-27 00:05:57 UTC #11

I like to think of my MC as pretty straight forward and blunt, which isn't something I usually see in romance. All my characters also have pretty unique character designs:

sarahmassey998 2021-04-27 00:25:39 UTC #12

I think my main characters stand out because they aren't human, they're monsters. Not just have sharp teeth but are still handsome monsters but actual scary, wonder inducing monsters. They appear human while wearing Glamor Engines but even they are relatively unassuming. Mr. Graves is Frankenstein's monster, Mr. Gears is an automaton, and Mr. Lovecraft has "questionable" parentage. I feel like there isn't a lot of middle age, non-gorgeous protagonists but feel free to prove me wrong.

foxnflames 2021-04-27 00:47:26 UTC #13

All of my MCs are BIPOC, so that’s a standout in itself

For this series, Darzsa, My MC, is also gender nonconforming. Here is a pic (pics of him in other outfits are on my insta or my thumbnails under my series)

ivanskilling 2021-04-27 00:54:48 UTC #14

Sandra is a 35-year old washed-up singer. What I like about her (as a main character) is that readers first empathize with her because of her rocky past, and then they start to dislike her because of the terrible mistakes that she start to make in life (including forcing herself on a minor)! It's pretty enjoyable seeing people conflicted about her decisions because they understand why she did it but they don't agree with it.

DasIstWunderblyat 2021-04-27 01:21:39 UTC #15

Of course he is different because he is not the main character of other series .

But if you want to see more why my totally original character donut steel™ stand out amongst your plain janes/joes (facts, don't @ me)

Meek pushover at first, but is revealed to be an emotionally unstable bitch in a sheep clothing drinking kool-aid of traditional propaganda. It is like a yangire tradthot! Such originality!
Mary Sue ass looking eyes being a weird ass human alien. Unlike the other unoriginal alien creators who busted their ass working on their designs, I simply make him human (so original!)
Short because short males are considered subhuman in civilized western world. He is also UGLY, which is a death curse of any fictional characters, so two subhuman points. I meant characters who are not catering to civilized western world's beauty standard is automatically unique, right?
He made bad decisions (and sometimes punished for it, but not harsh because I am a softie)! Just like real teenagers! Presenting reality in fiction is the hallmark of originality, right?
His English is busted. That gives him a unique voice without even me bothering to try. I am so smart and original.

Jokes aside. . .

I myself do not completely believe in a character or being different and unique, because everything you do must have been done before, especially if it is about traits that you find in people in real life. It is also highly subjective. It is nice to see varied characters, and we can subjetively said some are more unique than another, but no character is truly unique for me.

carafox2121 2021-04-27 01:39:22 UTC #16

Hmmm, what an interesting thread!
I think what makes my main character, Samara, different from others is that she's pretty self-reflective not self-deprecating. For instance, she sees a situation for what it is, and rarely misconstrues it. She definitely knows how to see things from a different perspective--possibly because she has visions. Also, for being a super-powerful being, she is pretty humble.

Manyana 2021-04-27 01:41:12 UTC #17

My MC is FLAWED. She's not perfect, she fails- and she fails real bad. People don't accept her for who she is, they point out what's needed to be changed and help her change for the better. People give up on her, they don't stay because she's she. Not because she's the MC, people would flock to her and magically pop out whenever she encounters problems. Yes, she gets help from others but she also helps herself. She pushes herself and picks herself up.
The thing that I'm proud of my character is SHE IS FLAWED. not a damsel in distress, not a i-don't-give-a-fck person, not a i'm-in-my-own-world person, not the save-me-save-me kind of person. She's just a person who has ups and downs in life. A person who doesn't always go victorious, she fails and she learns from those failures. She's flawed and I like a flawed character.
I don't like a character who was molded for the readers to love, I like a character that grows. Unlike other stories. Just saying.
... and she's not OP... and not a useless scum turned OP too... not an average too since she has privileges but definitely not OP

ccrrally 2021-04-27 03:05:25 UTC #18

Luck tends to be a little different as he regains his memories throughout the plot so there's technically two of him. He's also the creator of the world who has lost his powers and really all he can do now is have strange, uncontrollable luck and make an ungodly amount of bad humor.
Present appearance

Past appearance

Kaydreamer 2021-04-27 03:15:03 UTC #19

I think my MC's good humour and guilelessness definitely make him stand out, along with the fact that he's quite clever.

I wrote him with deliberate ADHD traits, though not the ones you typically see in adult male characters. (I can't stand that kind of Happy Gilmore 'idiot man-child' character that people usually picture. That's not reality for most adults with ADHD.) Instead, I leaned into things like hyperfocus and hyperfixations, the tendency to be easily bored, lots of curiosity, kinda messy, and no brain-to-mouth filter.

He's utterly charming. The more I write him, the more I love writing him!

caelinalexis 2021-04-27 03:56:53 UTC #20

LOL my main character IS me

Which is really sad, considering how the story will end. Or, maybe I'll change the ending to my revenge fantasy, who knows...