I recently stumbled across a thread on another forum where a particular book was being discussed. One of the posters in said thread complained that they never grew attached to the main character, largely because they judged him to have a flavorless personality. 'Flavorless' is actually my own word, but several other adjectives would work just as well. He was unremarkable. Dull. Another poster then explained (countered?) that the main character had been intentionally designed to be an 'everyman.' Someone without a distinctive personality so that more readers could relate to him. This got me thinking, would I intentionally do this? The benefit seems clear, but so does the risk. What are your thoughts about an everyman/everywoman MC? If you were determined to have one POV your story, would you have any specific concerns to keep in mind as you wrote it?
Thats part of the reason why a lot of books that have main character's on the cover are showed from behind or have something obscuring their faces (or the top of their face is cropped out)... So that they can become an "everyman/woman" for readers to see themselves in. I personally dont care if i can relate to the character im reading about or not... And its not something i think about in my writing, either (should i?)
It's one of those things you have to weigh up depending upon the perspective you use and the readers you want, I think. I mean, Harry Potter was intentionally designed to be as much of a blank slate (personality-wise) as possible because JK Rowling said she wanted every little boy who read it to imagine being Harry Potter themselves. So she intentionally poured all the interesting stuff into Hermione and Ron so the reader instantly had two best mates who were fun and stood out. If you believe your story will be best served by the reader taking the place of the protagonist in their head, (say James Bond as well) then it's probably a good way to go. I don't know how true this is, it's only a guess, but I imagine these days it's probably edging towards more being used on that level by YA because as folks get older they want more interesting characters? That is ONLY a guess though. (Edit - One that already seems edging towards being wrong based on @J.T. Woody 's first reaction, hehe) The risk of having a blank slate protagonist in an adult novel isn't one I would ever take, but only because I'm writing what I want to read. I like interesting MCs.
I must admit, this is an issue I've struggled with. On the one hand it's good to have a relatable character whom you can easily imagine being. On the other hand, it's good to have an interesting character with unusual qualities and quirks. I think the one you choose will depend on what your story is about. If it's a coming-of-age type story of personal development, an interesting character would be essential, otherwise the reader may mot care if he/she succeeds or not. In the Harry Potter books, the stories are about the wizarding world and Voldemort's attempted returns. Harry plays the part of observer and occasional antagonist to Voldemort. Lord of the Rings is essentially a story about the ring, the effect it has on people and how they react to it. Frodo is more of a witness to this. Sam is often a reader's favorite character and he's an 'everyman'. He does have an extra ordinary quality though, he's extremely loyal. Anyone can be loyal or could picture themselves being so. This, I think, is the idea. Have your MC be an ordinary person with unusual qualities which anyone can have, and which everyone could easily imagine having.
