The most important element for a story's protagonist is 'proactivity'!

The protagonist of a story is a special existence to that story. This is because a story
exists to depict that protagonist.
The essence of a story is to depict the protagonist's charm, humanity, experiences, thoughts, ideas, feelings, actions, and way of life.

In creating and depicting this protagonist, there is a very important element for the story's protagonist. That is
'proactivity'. The author believes that the 'pro' in 'protagonist' is the
'pro' in 'proactivity'.

This time, I would like to think about this 'proactivity' that is important for the protagonist.

Between a 'proactive protagonist' and a 'passive and subordinate protagonist,' which story would you rather read?

An element that almost every protagonist in a story must possess is 'proactivity'. Proactivity is
'the quality of having one's own ideas, acting on one's own will and judgment, taking responsibility for oneself, and acting proactively on one's own'. Most protagonists appearing in stories have this proactivity and act proactively.

In contrast, there is a protagonist called the 'dragged-along type'. This protagonist has the following characteristics.

・Never tries to take action on their own.
・Does not act until they are dragged into some event. They wait.
・Even when dragged into an event, they do not act with their own thoughts or will, but always worry about their surroundings, are influenced by their surroundings, and act by being swept along.
・Always acts when told by someone else.
・Does not think for themselves, try and error, or search for things.
・Uses things prepared or given by others. Even when doing something, they follow someone else.
・Does not have their own will, goals, or purposes.
・Does not try to pave their own way.
・Fears failure so much that they do not take on challenges. They do not face difficulties.

In other words, the 'dragged-along type protagonist' can be said to have 'passive, subordinate' characteristics.

Now, if there were two protagonists, a 'protagonist who acts proactively on their own will' and a 'protagonist who is always passive, acts according to others or their surroundings rather than their own will, and just follows others', which one would you want to read a story about?

I find charm and interest in stories about protagonists who act proactively. If there is such a protagonist, I become curious about the outcome of their actions and judgments, feel deep empathy when they hit a wall, fail, or are defeated, and feel like cheering for a protagonist who struggles desperately to make their actions succeed no matter what.

On the other hand, for a 'waiting protagonist' who cannot or will not do anything on their own who is passive, subordinate, and only acts when told or forced by someone else, I feel no charm as a reader, and my heart is not moved. I don't even want to know the outcome of that protagonist's actions. This is because
the protagonist's actions lack their own character, feelings, and will. And that is the same as a
'robot'. Naturally, they will not take any responsibility for their own words or actions.
Therefore, their actions appear sloppy and half-hearted to the reader, and such a protagonist cannot attract the reader's interest. Who would want to read a story about such a protagonist?

As a major premise of a story, if you do not depict the protagonist's 'actions,' you cannot depict the protagonist's charm.

The protagonists of popular works are all 'proactive'!

If you look carefully at protagonists created by professionals, especially those in popular works, you can see that all protagonists have clear wills of their own and take action on their own for the goals they aim for. There is never a character who is forced to act by someone else. A
'waiting protagonist' does not exist in professional works. This is also one of the characteristics of professional works.

Of course, passive or timid characters appear in professional stories as well. However, such characters are limited to
positions other than the protagonist.
The protagonist must not be like that. Such characters are not suited to be protagonists and cannot serve as protagonists. This is because a story would not be interesting with such a protagonist.

If you make a timid person without proactivity the protagonist, the work will fall apart!

If you try to create a story with a passive, dependent, and unproactive character as the protagonist, the author will have a very hard time.
In many cases, the story will not reach completion. Frankly speaking, you will go through hell.
This is because a protagonist who is "passive, unproactive, and dependent" will not try to take action on their ownNo matter how many events or incidents the author creates, the protagonist will not take the initiative to act. Because that is the kind of character they are.
If you try to force such a protagonist to act, their personality will break down (what they say and what they do will diverge, and the character's image will become a mess), and as a result, the entire story will become a lie.
On the other hand, if you respect the character's personality and try to depict a "protagonist who does nothing", then the story will not begin, the protagonist will refuse to take proactive action, the story will not progress, and consequently, the production of the work will come to a halt.
Even so, if you have spent a long time working on the piece trying to make it work, you might not be able to decide to quit halfway because you don't want to waste the time you've already spent, but you also can't move forward, and so you spend 5 or 10 years endlessly tinkering with a single work that has no answer, suffering, and as a result, it is never completed, and the author runs out of steam and the production "stops"...

If you think that's a lie, try writing a "story with an unproactive protagonist," and you will feel it painfully. Of course, I don't recommend it...

There is, after all, a way to move a passive and unproactive protagonist.
That is the method of "introducing another character who has proactivity and initiative and having that person advance the story."
This will make the story progress, but... that story is no longer "the story of the original protagonist," but rather "a story to depict the other character who appeared later". You might be able to make it work as a buddy story or a love story, but it will still be weak as a work, so it is better to avoid it if possible.

Some might ask, "Then what about the unproactive protagonists that appear in light novels and the like?"
Actually, the protagonists often seen in light novels have a certain "trick" applied to them. Let's look at the content of that trick.

The protagonists of light novels and the like are not "the type who gets dragged into things," but "a protagonist who seems to be dragged into things at first glance, but actually exercises proactivity and begins to act"!

When I write that a protagonist must be proactive and not the type who gets dragged into things, "No, no, aren't there 'protagonists who get dragged into incidents' even in popular light novels?" some people might say.

However, I want you to look closely at those protagonists.
It is true that light novel protagonists are often depicted at the beginning as people who have no motivation, no ambition, are conflict-averse, lazy, do not try to act on their own, and are negative about everything.
However, when some incident or event occurs, they should have their own goals and have begun to act proactively.
They almost never act because they were told to by someone, were swept along, or followed someone else.
That is the fundamental difference between a "protagonist who gets dragged into things" and the "protagonist who seems to be dragged into things at first glance, but actually exercises proactivity and begins to act" that often appears in light novels.

For example, the protagonist "Chihiro" in "Spirited Away" is initially passive, listless, and feels like a typical modern child, but she wanders into a mysterious world, and although she initially tries to escape because she cannot accept the reality in front of her, she meets a kind young man named Haku and friends who help her, and in order to save her parents who have turned into pigs, she heads to the terrifying witch of her own will and wins a labor contract.
After that, she gradually demonstrates proactivity, faces numerous difficulties and challenges, and in the end, she heads to the other witch on her own, disregarding danger, to save a dear friend.

Even when the protagonist is in a situation where they have been dragged into something, they are by no means passive or dependent; they may be flustered at first because they don't know their left from their right, but if there is someone suffering in front of them, or if something terrible is about to happen because they are caught up in something strange, they think about what they should do, make judgments, have goals and objectives, and exercise proactivity to start acting on their own.

The opinion that light novel protagonists are "passive characters" is merely the reader's opinion and impression.
This is because the author has worked hard to 'make them look that way'.

However, those on the creator's side know from experience that you cannot create an interesting story with a passive character.
In other words, a typical light novel protagonist is "a character who actually has proactivity and can act on their own, but was created to look 'passive, negative, and lazy at first glance' in order to gather reader empathy".
This is the "trick" applied to light novel protagonists.

Whether in general literature or light novels, the protagonist shines when they act proactively.
We find more charm in a character who takes the initiative, paves their own way, and never shows it off, rather than one who does things reluctantly when told by others.
We empathize more with a character who tries desperately even if they get covered in mud, rather than one who acts cool and doesn't give their all or can't get serious.

In any story, "proactivity" and "acting proactively" are the most important elements in creating and depicting a charming protagonist who draws in the reader.

Make "a character who acts" or "a character who must act" your protagonist!

From what has been stated so far, it is clear that the key to a story is to make the protagonist a 'person who acts' or a 'person who must act'. Regardless of whether the reason they must act is
'possessed from the beginning' or 'gained during the story', a 'person who has a need to act' is the person who should be depicted as the protagonist. This is because a story is what depicts that 'action'. If there is a need to act, they will start acting proactively on their own, not because someone told them to. That is exactly what a
'protagonist' is.

The protagonist has a 'purpose or goal' they can give their all for, and a 'motive' they must desperately pursue!

The key to creating a proactive protagonist and making them act proactively lies in the 'purpose, goal, wish, or motive' that the protagonist possesses. This is
'one of the most important elements' deeply related to the protagonist's character and personality when creating them.

As I stated in my book 'Scene-Writing Story Idea Notebook', a protagonist cannot act without a purpose or motive. And, if they cannot act, the protagonist cannot exist in the world of the story.

When we humans proactively take action on our own, there is always a powerful 'motive' that encourages that action. In other words, for a protagonist to act proactively, it is important to
give the protagonist a purpose or goal they want to achieve at all costs, a wish, a motive they must pursue no matter what, or an important reason.

For example, in sports manga, almost every protagonist has the following motives.

・They have a powerful goal or purpose: 'I want to win the match, I want to win the tournament.'
・Furthermore, a motive or reason for why they want to win or for whom they want to win is also set.
・To that end, the protagonist thinks for themselves about what is necessary and what actions they must take, makes judgments, proactively begins the actions they should take, and pushes forward on the path they believe in.

In a sports manga, if the protagonist is a character who says, 'It doesn't really matter if I win or lose the match,' the appeal of the work would be halved. If the protagonist cannot get fired up, the reader will never get fired up either.

Also, even in mystery protagonists, they still have the following motives.

・A 'special circumstance, reason, or powerful motive' is set, such as having to solve a mystery and resolve a case (e.g., to save someone, they must solve the mystery).
・They are in a 'profession where they must solve mysteries,' such as a detective or investigator.
・They are often placed in a 'situation where they must solve the mystery,' such as losing something important, suffering great damage, or losing their life if they do not solve it.

For example, if a close friend is about to be arrested for a crime they didn't commit, the protagonist would surely want to solve the mystery of the case and catch the real culprit at all costs to save that friend. Even in mysteries,
a reason or motive is necessary for the protagonist to desperately want to solve the mystery and to proactively try to solve it themselves.

Therefore, if the protagonist in your work is not acting proactively, do not force them to move according to the predetermined path of the story, but first check if 'the protagonist has a purpose or goal they want to achieve at all costs, or a motive or reason why they must desperately take that action'. If they do not have such a motive, try giving one to the protagonist. Then, like a fish taking to water, the protagonist will
start moving on their own. This is the state that professionals often call
'the character moves on their own'.

The story is always a blank slate, and the protagonist's actions become the story!

One of the most important points in story creation is 'creating the story through the protagonist's actions'. A story is 'always a blank slate''. You must not try to
'move' the characters as the author wishes. How they move is something 'the character decides'.

The author sets the protagonist's character, purpose, and wishes, decides the type of actions, and after causing the situation or incident the protagonist is placed in, the rest is to 'think from the protagonist's perspective about what specific actions they would try to take'. This is the most important thing in story creation.

In a story, always depict the protagonist with proactivity so that they can act and judge for themselves!

There is a major point to keep in mind when depicting a protagonist acting proactively. That is to always depict the protagonist as making their own judgments and taking action proactively in response to events that occur within the story. In other words, this means
improving developments where 'the protagonist moves because someone told them to'. The author must
check whether the protagonist is acting passively or subordinately because someone told them to, and if that is the case, it needs to be improved. Even if a protagonist has a purpose or motivation, if the author is not careful,
there is a tendency for the consciousness to emerge of wanting to make the protagonist act according to the author's will because someone told them to, treating them as a pawn in the story. However, you must not do that. If you do, the protagonist's proactivity will be gradually lost. Therefore, if there is a scene where they do something because someone told them to, try changing it to a scene where the protagonist thinks and acts spontaneously
. Also, even if other characters approach the protagonist or make requests or pleas, depict it so that the protagonist thinks and decides for themselves whether to accept the request, whether to listen to the plea, and specifically what to do about what they were asked
. If there is someone in trouble, it is the protagonist who decides whether to help, and even if they do help,
it is also the protagonist who decides how to help and what actions to take. Try to depict the protagonist doing everything spontaneously and with proactivity as much as possible.

---

In the following text, we explain in detail about 'purpose, goals, desires, and motivations', which are the source of a protagonist's proactivity, in order to create an attractive protagonist with proactivity and to depict the protagonist proactively. If you are interested, please feel free to read it.