What Hidden Desire or Fear Drives Your Protagonist Forward?
Midpoint Madness | First Draft November: Day 24
→ This week’s goal: Reach the midpoint twist, escalate pressure from antagonistic forces, and celebrate 50k messy, beautiful words—the bulk of your first draft!
→ Word target: 50k words by the end of the week!
→ Looking for some daily accountability? Join the First Draft November Chat to post your daily word count and connect with your fellow writers.
Hello writers,
We’ve made it to midpoint madness, and the 50k finish line is officially in sight!
Today kicks off the final week of our challenge. Soon, you’ll not only have crossed through your novel’s midpoint, but you’ll also be standing almost at the edge of the Bad Guys Close In beat. The bulk of your first draft will soon be behind you!
Here’s today’s guiding question:
What hidden desire, flaw, or fear will drive your protagonist to keep going?
The midpoint has shifted the game. Your protagonist has experienced a revelation, betrayal, or turning point that has changed their understanding of the world. From here on out, things only get harder. Your character is about to go through it, as I like to say, so get ready to be a little sadistic.
To survive this next stretch, your character needs more than just surface-level goals. They need fuel: something deep within them that pushes them forward, even when all signs say they should give up. One way we can tease out that fuel is by considering a hidden desire, a deep flaw, or a secret fear.
Hidden desire
On the surface, your protagonist has been chasing an external goal. The thing they say they want. But underneath, there’s often a hidden longing that gives that goal its emotional weight. For example, maybe they insist they want independence, but what they really crave is to be loved without conditions. The tension between what they say they want and what they truly long for creates powerful scenes—that’s where the cracks start to show.
Flaw
Characters don’t just push forward because they’re strong. Sometimes, their flaws keep them in motion. Stubbornness, pride, anger, or ambition can make characters double down, even when it hurts. Flaws can also create internal conflict that’s ripe for tension: the very thing helping them move forward may also be sabotaging their relationships or making their situation worse. I love this kind of complexity!
Fear
Fear is one of the most universal drivers. Your protagonist may be terrified of repeating a past mistake, of being powerless again, or of losing someone they love. That fear makes giving up impossible, even when logic says they should. Fear is also deeply relatable, and it keeps your character human even in extraordinary circumstances.
So here’s your task for today: Write a scene where your protagonist’s hidden desire, flaw, or fear shows up, even if they don’t admit it out loud. Let it slip in through their choices, their relationships, or even their mistakes.
Keep going, friends! Happy writing!
P.S. Even though First Draft November is almost over, I’d love to keep writing with you. Starting in January, my six-month small-group program, The Wild Draft, starts up again. This is especially for writers in first or early drafts who want structure, feedback, accountability, and community to help actually finish their novels. You can join the waitlist here!
First Draft November is a free-for-all, month-long challenge for writers who are ready to get that novel they’ve been dreaming of on the page. Write with us!