Writing Help my Character Make Friends

[MintiLime]

Um soooo my main character is super wrapped up in themself right now and I want to create a cohesive team.

I have the stage set for a bunch of characters right now (female missionary raised by a gang, greedy merchant, stupid My Father will Hear of This pretty boy noble, circus troupe mystic) and would really like to introduce them, get into backstories more , etc.

My current plot lines kind of follow “arcs.” The one we are in right now is main character + female mercenary. (Fighting ring is currently exploring MC’s internal demons and instability, will lead into female mercenary’s background)

Is it bad writing to have the side characters connect to the MC one by one through such arcs? Will it be too obvious what I’m doing, too monotonous?

Also, tips on how to have MC naturally make friends when they’re naturally an obsessed, insecure, edgelord type? Like, severe character flaws here.


* Before commenting on number of characters, I am aware I introduced them all a bit fast, but I’m new and learning. Writing a novel is hard, who knew Lol

 

[RepresentingEnvy]

Is it bad writing to have the side characters connect to the MC one by one through such arcs?

I don't think it is bad writing. It depends how well it is executed. Episodic writing tends to follow this trend. Though it doesn't have to be episodic to still be good. Even some really great novels do this to an extent.

Will it be too obvious what I’m doing, too monotonous?

It could get monotonous if it becomes too formulaic. Formulaic isn't necessarily bad, but you will lose some suspense if it is always the same. Thinking about it, most novels do this anyways with their arcs. Though, it is usually the villains that are the ones constantly changing. In Naruto, for example, he meets new friends every arc; however, they quickly go away and/or die towards the end of the arc. The only friends remaining a constant are the ones at the Hidden Leaf Village.

Also, tips on how to have MC naturally make friends when they’re naturally an obsessed, insecure, edgelord type?

This personality type attracts strange people. There is no way for them to naturally make a ton of friends without it feeling forced, unless they are faking it. There are really only three ways for them to make friends naturally.

1.) They pretend to be someone they aren't in the hopes of making new friends.

2.) They attract strange people who desire those traits.

3.) They have a trait/quality/item that people would be naturally attracted to. If they are strong, people will be attracted to them for that reason (even if they don't have a desirable personality).

 

[EldritchPotato]

Character growth. If they start off as not likable they have to begin to become more likable. Learn to not be so insecure, obsessive and edgy. Rather than immediately gathering friends they'll need to grow on people, metaphorically preferably.

 

[RepresentingEnvy]

Character growth. If they start off as not likable they have to begin to become more likable. Learn to not be so insecure, obsessive and edgy. Rather than immediately gathering friends they'll need to grow on people, metaphorically preferably.

I suppose this is the forth way for them to make friends. Through growth.

 

[MintiLime]

I suppose this is the forth way for them to make friends. Through growth.

I’ll probably use 3, then 1, then 4

so people want them because of power
MC tries to act in a certain way to gain friends and followers
Mc genuinely changes for the better (this will be hard and probably won’t happen soon)

 

[RepresentingEnvy]

I’ll probably use 3, then 1, then 4

so people want them because of power
MC tries to act in a certain way to gain friends and followers
Mc genuinely changes for the better (this will be hard and probably won’t happen soon)

That's a good idea. Usually by following 1 it can lead to their corruption, but there the whole fake it 'til you make it.

A bit of a conundrum is people who think they are faking being nice, but all they ever do is nice things. Your MC could have an internal struggle with something along those lines. An imposter syndrome, if you will. Often those imposter syndromes people have come from when they changed and grew as a person. Even though they grow into a good person, they still believe they are a bad person.

 

[TotallyHuman]

Honestly, I cannot see how those characters would get together as a team without arcs that would force the circumstances

 

[MintiLime]

That's a good idea. Usually by following 1 it can lead to their corruption, but there the whole fake it 'til you make it.

A bit of a conundrum is people who think they are faking being nice, but all they ever do is nice things. Your MC could have an internal struggle with something along those lines. An imposter syndrome, if you will. Often those imposter syndromes people have come from when they changed and grew as a person. Even though they grow into a good person, they still believe they are a bad person.

Imposter syndrome would work perfectly!

 

[wimbledon]

Put em all on a cart, Skyrim-style

 

[LilRora]

My personal opinion is, doing it arc by arc is completely fine as long as it doesn't get repetitive. You can have two of them start as enemies (maybe in the arena, if not then in other circumstances) but change thatas the plot progresses and makes them bond, but don't reapeat that. The next person can, for example, start off as a senior in a job that your mc grows closer with over time. Or they can start off as an escapee who coincidentally gets the mc tangled in their worries.

My point is, if each arc is significantly different (ideally of differnt length as well) and each character's reason and process of connecting with the mc is different, it won't even be that visible they do it one by one. Plus, they don't have to, like, start traveling with the mc arbitrarily. Even their later cooperation can be more a coincidence than wish to work together.

As for how to make friends, probably the best way is circumstances. If you can insert emotional growth alongside then even better, but it's just enough if they initially work together because of circumstances, then work together because they know each other. It doesn't have to be some grand reason, and making friends is often, similarly, pretty spontaneous. If two people spend an extended period of time together, they'll most likely either become friends or enemies.

Another way would be aligning interests. I don't think I need to explain that one - two dumbasses find something thwy both like and bond over it. That's it, generally, and the details such as if their opinions are the same or different in some matters hardly matters unless you want some emotional growth or something.

 

[Alfir]

It is an amateur's advice (or an aspiring writer's if you can be generous,) so take it with a grain of salt.
If possible, turn it into a romantic encounter. It rarely fails, and if it does fail, you will have enough cushion not to cause outrage to your readers who didn't like the development. I say the best device to make characters grow closer is to throw them into a conflict... Now, that never fails. There is a reason why most movies end with a kissing scene after the protagonist wins the odds with his heroine beside him. By having shared adversity, characters can become closer. This has been a shared formula by many writers... Of course, this is not limited between a hero and the heroine. this also works for strengthening friendship and comradeship. The Walking Dead sure brought the characters together through struggle after struggle. Even enemies can become friends.
Your MC is an obsessed, insecure, edge lord type. That's good to know. I suggest giving him principles and play around with them on how he will react in certain situations. Is he righteous? Wicked? Deadpool comedic? You can play with his morality too as if he is a real human being, create assumptions, test the scenarios in your head, and if it clicks, write that.
Writing is fun because you feel like God, lol. But seriously, for me, that is why it is fun. No god-complex though...
That aside, I say likes attract likes. Despite the differences and how wrapped up your other characters are, there will surely be a few things they will be similar with. The similarity can even be as mundane as likeness for sweets. Two people encounter themselves in a bakery, they bump, maybe even get into an argument, it escalates, more things happen, gets embroiled in a plot, shortly after, the characters begin to trust each other as they tussle, get suspicious of each other, and then... overcome odds together.
In fact, the relationship between characters can grow as long as they share 'screen time' together. That is what I call it 'screen-time', but I necessarily mean that as the characters share the same setting the longer and the more they engage with each other, the more their relationships improve for the better or worse.
To surmise, just write more where the characters are put in the same stage.

 

[ElliePorter]

Its better if the my father will hear of this noble boy has this camera pan whenever he is angry

 

[J_Chemist]

Hello fren, VSauce here.

Episodic/Arc writing isn't a bad thing and is a rather easy function of plot development that allows you to break up your character growth and plot movement into chunks/pieces, with it all coming together at the end of your novel in one big climax. Essentially putting all of the puzzle pieces together once you have them set in place. It's not a bad choice and certainly isn't wrong, it's also the simplest way to focus yourself and set up your story for later. Writing in arcs allows you to focus on one thing at a time without plot points getting convoluted or forgotten.

For character development and inter-story relationships, it's even easier if you keep them Arc-based. Like you already have, introducing them one character at a time helps you ease the new character into the party/Main Cast and establish their role. It also helps you go into detail about their history a little bit and flesh them out one by one. Each character gets ample screentime when they show up, the reader learns plenty about them, and you move on with the plot.

However- it can get stale. Especially if you have a large party. Now you have to force in a repetitive cycle over and over again in order to develop these characters and install them to your party. It almost turns into a bunch of fetch quests for the reader as they run around, nabbing new faces. Thus, there is the alternative of melding them together with your story at more random points, developing their faces naturally, and then having them stick around.

For example; in your first arc, you establish your MC and as they're doing their thing, they come across Side Character A and Side Character B. Maybe they have a conversation, maybe the MC hears about them, maybe the MC just sees them in passing. Boom, you've established their existence. MC continues with plot and comes across SC-A again during the plot and sees some more of SC-B but not a whole lot. By the end of the arc, SC-A has multiple encounters with the MC to the point they're in or almost in the party, SC-B is a known individual, and you've even shown SC-C (or have provided the foundation to get there). In the next arc, you bring in SC-A, B, and even potentially C if things go correct while setting up for additionals.

It's easy to do this with central/standard meeting locations. Like in schools you have lunch rooms, libraries, classrooms, sport teams. In RPGs you can use taverns, Guild Halls, Raids, or have the MC notice others while they're out adventuring. In romance novels, maybe SC-A is far more extroverted and knows a lot of people, so they introduce the MC to others at parties or social functions.

Like Envy mentioned, you do need to take into consideration your MC's personality and the Side Characters must reflect. Unless the SC is a bit twisted or is covering up some "true" personality behind a mask, they'll likely bring in people similar to them.

Hope this helps!