Characters who choose and change

Word	What it means
Main character	The character the story follows, whose problem it is. Also called the protagonist.
Minor character	A character who matters less, often there to help, block or change the main one.
Motivation	The reason behind a character's choice. There can be a surface reason and a deeper one.
Character change	How a character is different at the end, and what caused it. One who changes is dynamic; one who does not is static.
Conflict	The problem that drives the story. External: against another character, nature or society. Internal: inside a character's own mind.
Exposition / rising action	The opening situation / the events that make the conflict harder, or raise the stakes.
Climax	The turning point, where the conflict is decided. Not always the loudest moment.
Falling action / resolution	What follows from the climax, and how things settle.
Compare / contrast	To say how two things are alike / how they differ.

Tessa signed up to volunteer at the seniors' lodge for one reason: the school required twenty hours, and she planned to finish them as fast as possible. Her first job was reading the newspaper aloud to Mr. Okafor, who had lost most of his sight. He argued with every article. By her third visit she was bringing the sports section early so they would have time to argue about the Oilers. In June, with her twenty hours long finished, she was still going every Thursday.

	Tessa's motive	The evidence
At the start	To get the hours done	“as fast as possible”
What changes it	Mr. Okafor treats her as worth arguing with	“He argued with every article.”
At the end	She enjoys his company	She comes early, and keeps going after her hours are done

The change in one sentence: at first Tessa volunteers only to finish her hours, but because Mr. Okafor argues with her like an equal, she ends up going because she wants to. The pattern at first … but because … she ends up … forces you to name the cause, which most answers leave out. The proof is the last sentence: the hours are done, so the old motive is gone, and she still goes.

Main and minor. The story follows Tessa, and she changes. Mr. Okafor is a minor character — we never see inside his head — yet the change happens because of him. Ask what a minor character is for.

Liam had talked his cousin Aria into paddling across the lake to the island campsite, and he had promised his mom they would be careful. Halfway across, the wind came up. Whitecaps slapped over the bow, and Aria shouted that they had come too far to turn back. Liam's arms were burning, and turning back meant admitting the trip had been his idea, and a bad one. He turned the canoe toward shore anyway and told her the truth: he was scared. On the beach, Aria admitted she had been scared too. The next morning they crossed in water as flat as glass.

Part	In Liam's story
Exposition	The crossing is Liam's idea, and he has promised to be careful.
Rising action	The wind rises, Aria wants to push on, his arms burn. Going on gets more dangerous; turning back gets more embarrassing.
Climax	He turns for shore and admits he is scared.
Falling action	Aria was scared too, so his choice cost him nothing he feared.
Resolution	They cross the next morning, the safe way.

Which conflict? There are three: Liam against the wind (nature), against Aria (another character) and against his own pride (internal). The wind is the loudest, but nobody beats it; it just dies down. The climax decides the internal conflict — look brave, or be safe — which is why the quiet moment he admits he is scared is the turning point, not the whitecaps.

Story A. On his first day at a new school, Sam ate lunch in the band room so nobody would see him eating alone. On the third day the music teacher found him there and, instead of sending him out, handed him a trombone. By November Sam had a seat in the band and a table to eat at.

Story B. When Priya's family moved to Grande Prairie, she decided she would not need anyone; in two years she would be back in Toronto. She answered every question with one word. It took a three-day power outage, and a neighbour with a camp stove and far too much soup, for Priya to admit she had been lonely.

Point	Sam	Priya
Main character	Wants to belong, but is afraid	Tells herself she does not want to belong
Conflict	Internal: fear of being seen alone	Internal: pride
Turning point	A teacher gives him a way in	A neighbour's kindness gets past her guard
Main idea	Belonging can grow out of something you do together	You can be lonely without admitting it

Both stories are about someone new who ends up less alone because another person reaches out. The difference is what stands in the way. Sam wants to belong and is only afraid, so a trombone is all he needs. Priya has decided she does not want to belong at all, so her story is not about finding a way in but about admitting she wanted one.

A good comparison names a similarity that matters, then the difference. “Both main characters are new” is true and says almost nothing.

• A motive that explains one action and ignores the rest.
• Describing a change without its cause.
• Calling the most dramatic event the climax when the conflict that matters is decided somewhere else.
• Retelling one story, then the other, instead of comparing them point by point.
• A similarity so general it would fit any two stories.