12 Types of Characters Featured in Almost All Stories

12 Types of Characters Featured in Almost All Stories 12 Types of Characters Featured in Almost All Stories They say it takes all kinds to make the world go round - and the same is true of stories. Whether you’re writing fantasy, romance, or action-adventure, you’re going to need certain types of characters to keep the plot moving and your readers intrigued!That’s why we’ve put together this handy-dandy guide of 12 character types featured in almost every story: to help you figure out which ones you need, how they relate to one another, and what purposes they can serve. 12 characters featured in almost all stories What are the different types of characters?Most writers have an inherent understanding of how to categorize their characters based on classic, â€Å"comic book-style† labels: heroes, villains, sidekicks, etc.  But in the ever-intricate realm of stories, there are many more nuanced types to consider!Before we explore these types, however, you should know that there are two main ways to classify them: by role, and by quality.RoleCharacter role refers to the part that one plays in the story. As you probably know, the most important role in any story is the protagonist (which we’ll discuss below). This means all other roles stem from their relationship to the protagonist. Basically, these types define how characters interact and affect one another.Types based on role include:ProtagonistAntagonistDeuteragonistTertiaryConfidanteLove interestFoilSome of these roles can overlap. A deuteragonist might be the MC’s confidante. The antagonist might be their foil. Or the an tagonist might eventually become the protagonist’s love interest! (Any fans of the enemies-to-lovers trope up in here?)But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Let’s quickly touch on the second major category of character types.QualityCharacter quality has to do with what kind of character someone is. This doesn’t refer to their temperament, such as being nice or mean, but rather their nature within the story, such as being dynamic or static. Scout Finch - the archetypical child. Image: Universal Pictures11. Symbolic characterAs we mentioned earlier, a symbolic character is used to represent something larger and more important than themselves, which usually ties into the overall message of the book or series. This type must also be used sparingly - or at least subtly, so the reader doesn’t feel like the symbolism is too heavy-handed. As a result, the true nature of a symbolic character may only be fully understood at the very end of a story.Symbolic examples: Aslan (symbolizes God/Jesus in The Chronicles of Narnia), Jonas (symbolizes hope in The Giver), Gregor Samsa (symbolizes the difficulty of change/being different in The Metamorphosis)12. Round characterDon’t get this one confused with Humpty-Dumpty. A round character is very similar to a dynamic one, in that they both typically change throughout their character arc. The key difference is that we as readers can intuit that the round character is nuance d and contains multitudes even before any major change has occurred.The round character has a full backstory (though not always revealed in the narrative), complex emotions, and realistic motivations for what they do. This doesn’t necessarily mean they’re a good person - indeed, many of the best round characters are deeply flawed. But you should still be interested and excited to follow their arc because you can never be quite sure where they’ll be led or how they’ll change. Needless to say, the vast majority of great protagonists are not only dynamic, but also round.Round examples: Amy Dunne, Atticus Finch, Humbert Humbert, Randle McMurphy, Michael Corleone All the best characters are round ðŸÅ'Ž With this wide-ranging arsenal of character types at your disposal, your story might just be the stuff of legends (or bestseller lists). Now go put them to use - if you haven’t already!Which of these types do you have in your story? How do they overlap? Tell us in the comments below.