In a post on Writers Helping Writers, Becca Puglisi says that failure is an important component of your character’s narrative arc. “Failure is the key to growth,” she says. “When a character makes poor choices, acts impulsively, or lets fear get the better of them, things don’t end well. Failure generates more (and bigger) problems and conflict—which lead to more chances for them to either dig a deeper hole or climb toward the light.”
So, how does failure help?
- Failure Accents the Character’s Flaws. Your character’s flaw is the reason they fail to obtain their story goal. Your character begins your story oblivious to the damage their flaw causes – and maybe to the flaw itself – and so they don’t know what’s holding them back. “Just like real-life self-awareness, this is a slow process for our characters,” Puglisi says. “They may not want to see the truth at first, but as each failure brings their weakness into focus, the character eventually becomes aware of it. This is the first step toward growth, and the only way for the character to get there is to fall on their face multiple times.”
- Failure Highlights the Need for Change. Of course, human beings love to make the same mistakes for the same reasons, over and over. Our characters are no different. “With each conflict that comes along, they’ll stick with their old ways because those are familiar,” Puglisi writes. “But each instance of digging in their heels and refusing to change will create bigger problems—not only for them, but for the important people in their life.”
- Failure Pushes the Character to Embrace New Methods. Once your character experiences multiple defeats, they’ll realize their methods have to change. But, even though they adapt to new ideas, they are still going to make mistakes. “As the story progresses, the character’s plight will worsen until they’re faced with a situation where half-measures just won’t work,” Puglisi explains. “At this point, the character will finally reject their old, ineffectual habits and replace them with new ones that will allow them to become the person they were meant to be.”
