Avoiding a stereotypical / generic brooding hero

So I'm working on my original thing and I have the beginning protagonist (because the story line follows multiple people) is a 13 year old boy who is very unsocial. He hangs around with two people but mostly keeps to himself for his own reasons. He's a telekinetic in a southern small town. He worries about exposing his, and his father's secret and putting the family in danger. He also has trust issues, and some issues with himself.

I intend him to come across simply as a human being who deep down is learning to accept himself as he is. He still views himself as a brat and an inadequate son to his parents (partly due to the fact that his father was in various states of mental AWOL growing up due to some past baggage of his own, the protagonist fears "not being good enough" and frequently is striving to be a super responsible 40 year old in a teens body...yet not quite reaching because he still has moments where he is what is...a teenager.) He puts all of his worth into how good of a protective brother he is to his little brother.

I want to avoid him coming off as a generic brooding hero , or "badass man with angst and demons". He's a kid and I want the audience to remember that he is still a kid, and capable of vulnerability. He keeps himself a distance from his friends due to trust, fear, and the awareness /belief that he's "not a very good person to have as a close friend". He does turn to snark and sarcasm mostly (sort of like Harry did in Harry Potter) though rarely in a self congratulatory "I'm so witty and clever way" but rather a way to cope. He can be light-hearted, gets flustered, laughs and playfully teases his friends (when he's closer to them) sometimes and doesn't spend the entire time brooding.

Any suggestions on how to avoid the character coming off as just another troubled hero? Or at least just avoiding the annoying traits of brooding heroes?

edited 22nd Sep '13 5:59:37 PM by JewelyJ

Judging from that last paragraph, sounds like you pretty much got it down already. The best way to compromise something like this is to only let him show that inner turmoil when he's alone or when someone asks him about it seriously.

However, from what you've said, it does sound a little like you're giving him these traits for no reason. I mean, yeah, he and his family would probably have to think about this stuff, but a kid his age probably wouldn't make such a big deal out of it unless he's seen a bunch of horrible stuff happening because someone found out.

Well he's had near discoveries, like the time he was sent home after a big argument and lots of debate because some CIT swore that he was making the rocks jump (she was a daughter of a pastor known for being responsible and following rules, pretty much the opposite of the Preacher'sDaughter trope. Whereas most people considered his dad a 'weirdo'.)

Also he had an older sibling who aside being a bully, told him that bad things would happen if people saw his powers. "The last time someone saw our powers a bunch of our kind was put to death by the court" (using scare tactics as a method to "warn" him).

edited 22nd Sep '13 7:26:31 PM by JewelyJ

This may not have anything to do with what you are asking about, but if you are going to have an unsocial, make him an unsocial. Don't describe the character as unsocial and then have him act social or have one or two cute girls with a crush on him for no discernible reason (which happens to unsocial heroes quite often despite being unrealistic; although this can be worked around by having them like the character for other reasons, like Hinata who likes social outcast Naruto for his determination or Sakura and Ino who like the unsocial Sasuke because he's The Ace), and don't make him end up being in the center of the social circle of the few friends he has. Unsocial people often go unnoticed and are on the periphery of any social circle they are a part of.

Another thing to consider is how the character is unsocial. Is he "shy" (want to be social but are afraid of rejection on some level)? Is he "quiet" (can be social, but is not very talkative)? Is he actually perfectly capable of being social but chooses not to be? Or a mixture of the above three?

edited 22nd Sep '13 7:59:02 PM by shiro_okami

I'd say that still feels a little disproportionate as an explanation for his entire personality. You need something a more... extreme to make a kid that young be super-responsible and/or cynical. Not to mention it's easier for an audience to connect with one event in particular than just showing him being bullied or discovered once. It might work, but you'd have to frame it just right. Showing someone he cares about get in trouble, on the other hand, would be a lot more effective for your purposes.

And like what shiro okami said, you should probably hammer out how he's unsocial if you're going down that route. I would recommend steering away from unsocial personalities that are unconcerned with others and/or easily angered, as those would probably only draw the ire of your audience. On the other hand, you could just drop the unsocial thing altogether and portray him as a Sad Clown or an otherwise nice guy that just has difficulty letting go or forgetting about his problems in normal conversation. Maybe he needs a minute to himself every now and then to calm down.

My take on this; if you want to avoid the stereotypes associated with the brooding hero, don't make him antisocial. Have him know how to be social but not enjoy it.

A good many people I've met who are troubled and remain troubled are very skilled at putting a mask over their problems; they're very friendly, but distant. They're only troubled in private, and that's because when someone really has problems, part of that is they don't want the world to know it...and the best way to make sure that stays true is to be charming, extroverted and friendly towards everyone they meet. In essence, their public life is a performance.

They just do their crying and angsting in private where no one can see them.

Don't know if this helps, but there's my two pennies.

edited 22nd Sep '13 9:05:23 PM by drunkscriblerian

Yeah, I guess the thing is that people who are withdrawn do not necessarily have to have issues and people with issues do not necessarily have to be withdrawn. I think you might need to think about that part more, if you're doing it just because you're assuming that's how he should be or if that's a part of his personality.

I don't know, I guess I may be having the same problem. How do you know when a character is getting too broody?

edited 22nd Sep '13 9:16:52 PM by ohsointocats

^^ The drunken one speaks truth. Listen to the man.

Also, at the OP: When I see a teenage character who "only" has two friends, I see Conservation of Detail, not a loner. But maybe that's just me.

Thanks maddie.

To further expound...people who brood in public are people who want attention. They want their pain to be seen so that someone will come along and validate it. Public brooding is basically attention-whoring, because it is so damn obvious. I present as an example the behavior of the average emo kid. It's basically bullshit, which is why people roll their eyes at characters in books or movies which pull that crap. Especially when said characters are cast as old enough to know better.

Now, those who have real emotional issues both do and don't want people to know...they do, because they want help, but they don't because they're ashamed of their problems and don't want to be judged. So, they do the "life of the party" thing...which is basically a far more subtle cry for attention and help. The truly damaged are often better at social interaction than most other people, because their entire life is a performance. They get a good deal of practice due to that fact.

Pull that dichotomy off in fiction, and you'll have a character which resonates.

edited 23rd Sep '13 1:00:04 AM by drunkscriblerian

I think, DS, you've successfully described me in my earlier days when I had a lot of issues and used to mask it by being hale and hearty in public and then bawling myself to sleep in private.

Ok, now I'll quibble a bit. With this, specifically:

Often this is true. But sometimes it's not. Sometimes the hurting is so deep and encompassing that the person in pain no longer cares if they're in public or not. They simply don't have the ability to hide it anymore.

BUT.

Even in cases like that, they aren't flaunting it, or making a show of it. They're simply not hiding it anymore.

Like I said, a quibble.

edited 23rd Sep '13 1:14:25 AM by Madrugada

@Mads: that's a fair quibble...on occasion that does happen. I've been there myself. on occasion.

There are far more people who fake that "I just can't take it anymore" shit than there are those who legitimately are in that place, and since legitimate examples are so rare in reality - yet so common in fiction, to the point of cliche - it's better for a writer to go with what I just described. Both because it is more common in reality and less common in fiction. :D

Also, generally people who find themselves brooding in public are still trying to hide it...they've just reached a place where their coping skills are insufficient to the task.

edited 23rd Sep '13 1:27:58 AM by drunkscriblerian

True. That's why I called it a quibble. I've been in that place myself a few times. And here's where the big difference between Real Life and Fiction lies: When I realized I was in that place, I did my damnedest to get somewhere private where I wasn't inflicting that pain on everyone around me as soon as I could. I didn't walk around keeping it on display. I call it "being toxic" — I'm poisoning the atmosphere around me with my pain.

Exactly. And if a writer wants to put that kind of situation in their story and have it resonate, that's the kind of thinking they should remember...people in that position (at least, people who have a chance of sympathetically resonating with an audience) need to be thinking of others, even when they're in the blackest depths of their own personal hell.

It's the same motivator which causes the "life of the party" phenomenon I talked about earlier...the idea that "no one wants to hear about this, so I'm gonna maintain and pretend everything's all right". The conscious brain says "just get on with it" while the lizard brain says "I want attention and people who care, dammit".

"Life of the party" may be taking it too far in many cases. But certainly "pleasant and nice to be around; good company" isn't.

Again, a quibble.

edited 23rd Sep '13 1:54:12 AM by Madrugada

I've been running into a conundrum like yours as well, but what I've been trying to do so far is relying on Deconstruction to keep it believable. So yeah, sure he's a Snark Knight and can be pretty callous to people, but there are multiple points where he's called out on it and is forced to eat a bit of humble pie.

Well the reason I made him avoident of other people is because he doesn't trust himself or others to get close for well reasons relating mostly to his abilities and issues. I didn't do that on purpose to make him the dark and angsty type he just turned out the way he was because it was part of his personality. I guess I just worried that it was getting close to the whole "brooding hero" thing.

I wouldn't have him obviously angsting in public. He keeps to himself. To a few people at his school , it appears that he may think he's better than people because his father is wealthy. He's sometimes socially clumsy. At some time when he was younger he got basically pushed off the soccer team (his teammates confronting him in a somewhat cruel way giving him a list of things they "couldn't stand " about him). Deep down he had a motivation for not wanting to let people get to him and make him vulnerable , he was bullied by a half sibling as a young child and the half sibling (who was going through a major 'being a dick" phase) teased him for ,among other things, being too sensitive and 'weak'.

Basically he's meant to be someone who's afraid of being hurt by others and trying to be "strong" by not getting close to anyone.

That might be true sometimes, but the inverse is also true. Some people can't cope at all and are too afraid or ashamed to seek any attention at all, and often end up being the absolute worst at social interaction. It depends on the person; what you described is more of how an extroverted person with emotional problems copes, while what I described is more of the reaction of a shy and introverted person.

This works. It's a very real way for it to happen. I would still stay away from making him unsocial, though; make him distant and reluctant to engage with anyone else on anything but the most casual terms.

One of the reasons The Loner Hero is difficult to do well is that someone who doesn't engage at all with others is moving in front of the setting and the other characters, as though they were a backdrop; rather than moving through and around them and interacting with them in a meaningful way.

One could always try adding a big heaping of PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder). That in the very least will make the brooding, anti-social type considerably more beliveable. Given that younger individuals are more vulnerable to developing it as the result of certain traumas than adults who are exposed to the same traumas, it adds yet more beliveability.

There's also the small amount of life-long friends approach, which is compatible with the "due to trust issues" scenario.

Well he has a phobia of crowds for a reason related to that. Sorta. That's probably why he's prone to avoiding large gatherings and is not a party person.

Yeah that sounds a lot more like him than 'never associates with people'.

edited 24th Sep '13 8:43:56 AM by JewelyJ

Alternatively, it could have been something really innocuous.

Kids are vulnerable. You don't need the Dysfunctional Family Platter Combo to develop a bit of anxiety and social detachment, especially at thirteen. Hell, you don't even need intentional bullying.

Of course, depending on how you write it, that might come off as Wangst. It's best to either have the character admit that it's a silly reason to become brooding ("Look, I know the cancellation is a silly reason to become depressed, but Firefly was excellent, man!") or make it such a ridiculous reason that the audience knows he's overreacting, and that that's what you're going for ("I'll never forget that cold winter morning seven years ago...it was first grade, and I...I called Ms. Jordan, "Mom." I've woken up screaming every night since then. I'm not afraid of Hell anymore, Jimmy. Hell can not compare.")

The reason is apart of another plotline, so it's kind of important. There are some issues that are tied to deeper things but others that are just there.

Also Skye's issues with his idolization of his Dad and his believing that he's never a good enough son aren't because his parents are abusive. He is a perfectionist and always pushes himself to be what he thinks he should be. Sure he was bullied some but otherwise it's in his personality.