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  • (ReacTor) Your Protagonist Is a Terrible Person

    From James Nicoll@3:633/10 to All on Thu Jul 30 14:16:57 2026
    Your Protagonist Is a Terrible Person. Can They Still Be Likable?

    Sure, they're utterly reprehensible -- but you still want readers to
    root for them.

    https://reactormag.com/your-protagonist-is-a-terrible-person-can-they-still-be-likable/
    --
    My reviews can be found at http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/
    My tor pieces at https://www.tor.com/author/james-davis-nicoll/
    My Dreamwidth at https://james-davis-nicoll.dreamwidth.org/
    My patreon is at https://www.patreon.com/jamesdnicoll

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.19
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)
  • From Lawrence D?Oliveiro@3:633/10 to All on Fri Jul 31 23:09:29 2026
    On Thu, 30 Jul 2026 14:16:57 -0000 (UTC), James Nicoll wrote:

    Your Protagonist Is a Terrible Person. Can They Still Be Likable?

    Sure, they're utterly reprehensible -- but you still want readers to
    root for them.

    Or maybe not. Just been reading Frederik Pohl?s novelette ?The
    Children Of Night?, where the first-person protagonist is a top
    hot-shot with a PR company, sent to sway a local election in favour of
    a candidate who wants to accept a joint-venture business deal with an
    alien race that has only recently been fighting a horrendous war with
    Earth. And not only that, but they were committing all kinds of
    biological experiments on captured human prisoners, including
    children.

    Does he find a way to bring about a satisfying ending?

    <https://archive.org/details/Galaxy_v23n01_1964-10>

    --- PyGate Linux v1.5.19
    * Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)