Every single action your character takes has a motivation behind it. To impress someone, avoid failure, reach their goals, or get justice.
An unusual―and rather crude―example is Denji, the protagonist of Chainsaw Man who stated that his goal in life was to touch a woman’s breast. Motivated by this, he goes on dangerous missions, risking his life, in exchange for sexual favours. As Denji grows mentally, we see his motivations change to become more substantial and meaningful. Still, there were moments in the anime when Denji would do anything to cop a feel.
The point is that whatever the motivation is, there must be one. Does your reader understand these motivations? Do you, as the author, understand these motivations?
When character motivations are clarified, they add to the flavour of your story.
(Screenshot from the Comprehensive Writing Dashboard.)
How to write character motivations
Identify both internal and external motivations for your character. Internal motivations often involve personal desires, fears, or values. External motivations are tied to the plot or the characters around them.
When you align the internal and external motivations of your character, you create coherence and character consistency.
One of the best examples I’ve seen is in “Visions of Death”, a novel written by J. D Robb (Nora Roberts’ alias). In this novel, the main character, Lieutenant Eve Dallas, is confronted by a serial killer who sexually assaults his victims before brutally murdering them. Eve is motivated by a desire to bring the killer to justice. This is her job. She seeks closure for the victims and the people affected by the murders. Her actions drive the plot and the eventual revelation of the murderer.
This is the external motivation.
Internally, however, another struggle is taking place. Eve was sexually assaulted as a child. This is her backstory and acts as a personal motivation for her. With every new victim, Eve is confronted with her hideous past. Nora Roberts does an excellent job of showing us how every new development affects her relationship with her husband and her partner. When the serial killer personally taunts Eve, the internal struggle is taken up a notch. And we see how that is reflected in the intensity of the investigation.
Like that, we seesaw between the external and internal motivations until we have a complete and balanced narrative.
What not to do with your character's motivations
Very simple. Don’t give your characters inconsistent and vague motivations. Characters must have clear and believable reasons for their actions. Readers should be able to state what drives your characters.
Summary
Character motivations (internal and external) must be clear and align with the character’s personality. Vague and inconsistent motivations will confuse readers and weaken the overall narrative.
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