Having some trouble with character motivation

scribbledoutname · Mar 28, 2012

Right now, the series I'm trying to write is kind of hazy in my head, but I'm certain I want it to be a modern-day adventure with magical elements. Magic aside, I'm having trouble giving my main character a realistic motivation for repeatedly going on 'adventures'.

In keeping with the tone I have in my head, I want him to have a fairly positive outlook on life. I'd like him to go on these adventures for the sake of adventure, to the point where he's willing to go up against people who try to kill him to achieve the things he sets out to do. He needs to do this repeatedly throughout a series, and so I need a strong reason that isn't circumstancial -- something deep inside him that encourages him to go out and do these things. It's really difficult to come up with something like this :/

So this question is less to do with the specifics of my plot than the kind of reasoning that would make someone do this stuff. For example, a person who doesn't trust others may have been tricked or mistreated by someone else in the past. What exactly might motivate a person to seek adventure? What exactly would encourage a person to put their life on the line for this sort of thing?

It's insanely hard to think up a motivation, especially when my main character is seventeen ><

lbender · Mar 28, 2012

For a teenager, it might be something as simple as boredom, combined with hearing his uncle describing wonderful adventures he had (without the blood and suffering, of course). Later on, his motivations could, and probably will, change, as life changes him.

robjvargas · Mar 28, 2012

Peter Parker. Spiderman. Remember why he became a superhero? With great power comes great responsibility.

His power doesn't have to be the magic. It could be he solves puzzles. No one is a better archer. Whatever.

When tragedy strikes home, some people shut down. Others...

Or, he leaves every now and again because sometimes home just reminds him too much of "her," if you know what I mean.

kaitie · Mar 28, 2012

I have a couple of thoughts. One, you definitely have had people who were explorers in the past who did it because they loved adventure, risk taking, and you have to admit, it must be an amazing feeling to do something no one has done before.

Second, most seventeen year olds still have an immortality complex. Is that an official psychological term or is that just the informal name for it? But anyway, most kids that age don't really think anything bad will happen to them. It's why you see a lot more risk taking behavior among that age group. After awhile, they start to realize that they can really be hurt or killed and that changes.

I could see a really adventurous kid with an immortality complex being interesting, particularly if you see a lot of development occurring. Maybe he gets hurt or almost killed or loses or almost loses someone close to him and starts to realize the danger of what he's doing. I'd find that sort of thing really interesting, actually.

RichardGarfinkle · Mar 28, 2012

There are people who do things like this for the rush. If you think if adventure as an extreme sport, it's not so hard to think of someone doing it for that.

If you want a deeper motivation, the character could have a sense that there is more to life than can be found in their home ground. They might think that somewhere out there is a deep secret waiting to be found. They don't have to be right about this, but it can still push them along.

Also, how fantasy is your fantasy world? Can the character have some sort of magical awareness or magical need for or divine knack for exploration. Can it be a calling?

DocBrown · Mar 28, 2012

Since you have magic, the drive to do such things could be a curse on his family driving the members into dangerous situations. The point of the curse being to wipe the family out.

I'm pretty sure I've never read any motivation like that, though someone probably has done it before.

kaitie · Mar 28, 2012

Doc, I have to say that's awesome. And now I wish I'd thought of it first. :tongue

GingerGunlock · Mar 28, 2012

Some people are driven to explore and quest simply for the sake of it. They have a vision, or a notion, or get an itch, and do things like climb Mount Everest "because it's there". Somebody with magic would not be excluded from such urges, seventeen or no. Or those urges might be made stronger by merit of his age. Granted, he could also be just plain ornery.

Or you could go with DocBrown's idea, which is pretty rad.

cbenoi1 · Mar 29, 2012

Let's say those quests should have been performed by the realm's prince if things had been normal.

The obvious ones:

The MC competes with the prince for the love of a princess.
The MC is secretly paid by the prince.
The MC wants to save the prince from certain death (because the whole palace is corrupt but him)
The MC wants to become a prince himself. That's just how it works in this kingdom.

You can also take the unbvious route.

The prince is the MC in the future, so the MC knows no harm will ever come his way before he becomes prince.

The MC wants to prove the prince is not fit for the throne by doing the jobs himself

The MC is secretly seeking other treasures (say, a powerful orb scattered across the land) and doing these quests allow him to move about unhindered.

The MC has been shown the future by a mage and nobody believes him. The quests are in fact events that preludes the end of the world and by doing them, the MC is trying to prevent a cataclysm.

The MC view quests as stunts that end up in a magical YouOrb every kid is linked to.

Each successful quest pisses off some old dragon and it's the only way to pull it out of its lair and burn down some forrest and fields so they can grow stronger again. It's a natural life cycle in that world and some pauper has got to do it.

Hope this helps.

-cb

scribbledoutname · Mar 30, 2012

kaitie said:
Maybe he gets hurt or almost killed or loses or almost loses someone close to him and starts to realize the danger of what he's doing. I'd find that sort of thing really interesting, actually.

I really want to avoid that xD I kind of want the feel of a story like One Piece (the manga) where the MCs go from one adventure to another and the world builds from there. That there are dark moments, but overall the whole thing is cheerful and... I guess, epic. The focus is more on exploration and awe than the main character himself. But it's easier daydreamed than done... LOL!

I might come up with some obscure goal that they'll need to travel all over the world to achieve, a la One Piece fashion. Becoming Pokemon Master? (Haha, kidding). So far I'm toying with the idea of a mythical magical library rumoured to contain every kind of magic, but it feels a bit bland.

RichardGarfinkle said:
There are people who do things like this for the rush. If you think if adventure as an extreme sport, it's not so hard to think of someone doing it for that.

If you want a deeper motivation, the character could have a sense that there is more to life than can be found in their home ground. They might think that somewhere out there is a deep secret waiting to be found. They don't have to be right about this, but it can still push them along.

Also, how fantasy is your fantasy world? Can the character have some sort of magical awareness or magical need for or divine knack for exploration. Can it be a calling?

This is a really good idea! Maybe because this is actually how I feel about the world. Thanks!! I think maybe this feeling makes my MC discontent. I'll probably combine it with not wanting to work and take the 'normal' route through life...

Hopefully that'll be a realistic enough motivation for him to risk his life to seek out some huge dream. I'm toying with the idea of some backstory where someone close to him died a really pathetic death (in his eyes) after a boring/uneventful life, and he really, really doesn't want to meet that kind of death -- he'd rather die out doing something big than die forgotten, with nothing to show that he was ever there.

DocBrown said:
Since you have magic, the drive to do such things could be a curse on his family driving the members into dangerous situations. The point of the curse being to wipe the family out.

I'm pretty sure I've never read any motivation like that, though someone probably has done it before.

Funny enough, this is the reason I already have xD My MC's bloodline is cursed with bad luck, and wherever they go they hurt themselves and others and generally cause chaos. Each family member's curse feeds on their misery and gets stronger with time until it finally causes their death. So none of my MC's family lives very long, though the kids have it (relatively) easy. I thought it was too dark for the whole whimsy/adventure tone I was going for and so that's why I've been looking for other reasons :S I also didn't think it was sustainable; I really, really want to write a long-running series and a story like this just screams that the main conflict be my MC breaking the curse. It would probably make people mad if I dragged this out for 12-ish books >< I need something that can work for that long, which is why I'm going for something internal rather than external

With that, I don't need to twist the plot to send my MCs out on whatever adveture I want

So maybe I'm just being lazy?

DocBrown · Mar 30, 2012

Of course, if they're cursed with bad luck, why would they seek out dangerous situations? :Shrug:

As you said, their top priority would be to remove the curse.

If the curse were an over-adventurous nature, a thrill seeker, part of the curse could simply be to seek out more and more thrilling adventures and not fully realize/accept the danger involved. Then there's no reason for them to desire to remove the curse, as they are desirous of greater and greater thrills.

It also provides you a foil for in between adventures. Your MC could become enamored with something similar to a rubber band and seek a way to use a big one to bungee jump. Other things like that for short humorous flashbacks.

Of course, you could have a book later on in the series where his companions talk him into going on a dangerous quest and not tell him/her the point is to remove the curse. (Naturally, they fail in some way.)

mtrenteseau · Mar 30, 2012

I'm thinking "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe," where "real life" is far too restrictive for the MCs' intellect and powers, and the opportunity to use their skills presents itself.

Of course, if you have your MC meet a faun by a lamppost in the middle of the woods, we'll know you got the idea from me.

Having some trouble with character motivation

scribbledoutname

Nobody said I couldn't.

lbender

robjvargas

kaitie

With great power comes

RichardGarfinkle

Second Edition and Second Laughter

DocBrown

Hopes to one day write for food.

kaitie

With great power comes

GingerGunlock

paralibrarian

cbenoi1

scribbledoutname

Nobody said I couldn't.

DocBrown

Hopes to one day write for food.

mtrenteseau

Mild-mannered accountant by day...