Been doing some writing tonight and realized my main character may have two goals.
My main character, EMMA, is a teenage girl and the last human on a planet dominated by magical beings.
Personal goal: Although she has never gone without material things Emma does not feel part of her community and as she and her friends grew older and they took on careers and husbands, her uniqueness has made her a loner. She now spends every free moment secretly searching for the answer to why humans mysteriously vanished and why she was the only one left. Why her mother abandoned her. (most jobs/careers on this planet require a magical user so she gets stuck with mundane jobs. There is also an aging difference between her and the other two species that could offer her a partner.) Her life is becoming lonely.
This goal is achieved by the end of the First Act. She finds her own kind in a dystopian world where they are slaves. So now she has what she wanted but has lost all her material wealth, her safety and her freedom. She sees the best in mankind and the worst that makes her wonder if she's left everything behind for nothing. Without magic working she can't return to her old planet but would she want to if she could? Maybe not a goal throughout but certainly some conflict.
Goal: Restore magic
Problem: the beings in this world rely heavily on magic for survival. It has never failed them before so they have never devised any other method for healing, travel etc besides magic. So when magic begins to suddenly fade away for seemingly no reason, daily life becomes difficult for them. Some are having to face losing their powers all together and the future returning to being primitive. Magic purifies water to drink, they have no other way. Emma's own community are the oldest race on the planet, created by a God and they need it to live. They are beginning to grow weak and die. This problem continues throughout the novel as Emma realizes that not only does her old planet need magic, but saving magic could also save mankind from enslavement. So her goal becomes discovering what's happening to magic.
Should I try and connect the two goals or keep them separate? Is finding humans her internal goal and saving magic her external goal? I'd like to try and conflict her goals just not sure how yet. I really need some advice. Which goal should be the main focus?
Thank you
My main character, EMMA, is a teenage girl and the last human on a planet dominated by magical beings.
Personal goal: Although she has never gone without material things Emma does not feel part of her community and as she and her friends grew older and they took on careers and husbands, her uniqueness has made her a loner. She now spends every free moment secretly searching for the answer to why humans mysteriously vanished and why she was the only one left. Why her mother abandoned her. (most jobs/careers on this planet require a magical user so she gets stuck with mundane jobs. There is also an aging difference between her and the other two species that could offer her a partner.) Her life is becoming lonely.
This goal is achieved by the end of the First Act. She finds her own kind in a dystopian world where they are slaves. So now she has what she wanted but has lost all her material wealth, her safety and her freedom. She sees the best in mankind and the worst that makes her wonder if she's left everything behind for nothing. Without magic working she can't return to her old planet but would she want to if she could? Maybe not a goal throughout but certainly some conflict.
Goal: Restore magic
Problem: the beings in this world rely heavily on magic for survival. It has never failed them before so they have never devised any other method for healing, travel etc besides magic. So when magic begins to suddenly fade away for seemingly no reason, daily life becomes difficult for them. Some are having to face losing their powers all together and the future returning to being primitive. Magic purifies water to drink, they have no other way. Emma's own community are the oldest race on the planet, created by a God and they need it to live. They are beginning to grow weak and die. This problem continues throughout the novel as Emma realizes that not only does her old planet need magic, but saving magic could also save mankind from enslavement. So her goal becomes discovering what's happening to magic.
Should I try and connect the two goals or keep them separate? Is finding humans her internal goal and saving magic her external goal? I'd like to try and conflict her goals just not sure how yet. I really need some advice. Which goal should be the main focus?
Thank you
