Main Character Energy: Creating the Perfect Protagonist for Your Premise

A strong story concept is only the beginning. The right main character should be the person most tested and transformed by the plot — not simply someone interesting who happens to be caught in the middle of it.

In this lively, practical workshop, Lee Weatherly will show you how to create a protagonist whose wants, needs, flaws and beliefs connect directly to the central pressures of your story. We’ll look at how character and premise can work together to generate conflict, shape the emotional arc and drive the plot forward.

Through discussion and practical exercises, you’ll develop or deepen a main character who feels uniquely suited to your story — and discover how choosing the right protagonist can unlock the story itself.

At the end of the workshop, we'll give you a brief overview of our Finish Your Draft in a Year: Group Mentoring programme works and how it can help you get your novel across the line, and we'll finish up with a Q&A.

About Lee Weatherly

Lee Weatherly (L.A. Weatherly) has written more than 50 books for children and young adults, including the bestselling Angel series. Her books have been published in 20 languages.

Her new YA trilogy begins with Seven Deadly Spells, published by Hachette in November 2026.

Her work has won the Sheffield Children’s Book Award, the Stockport Children’s Book Award and the Leeds Book Award, and has been shortlisted for the Edgar Allan Poe Award and the RoNA Award.

Passionate about nurturing new writing talent, Lee also works as a mentor and writing teacher. For more than 20 years she has taught workshops and residential courses for Arvon and SCBWI, as well as at the Hay, Edinburgh and YALC festivals, and has seen many of her former students go on to successful writing careers of their own.

Originally from Little Rock, Arkansas, Lee now lives with her husband and dog in a rambling Victorian house in the Scottish Borders.

Lee tutors the Finish Your Draft in a Year: Group Mentoring Programme. The next group starts on 7 October 2026.

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