Fiction writers must sometimes combine two characters into one, said BRP editor Helen Ginger in a recent post . That was such a juicy little aside to her main point that I couldn’t let it rest. Why might an editor suggest you combine characters? Here’s my take on it: Characters aren’t really people. Characters represent different ways of looking at things, and we choose them for this reason. Adopting this perception will take you far towards internalizing the most basic premise of storytelling: Story is conflict. Events worthy of story inclusion are driven by a protagonist’s motivation to overcome obstacles that stand between him and a deeply desired outcome. Just as the journey from motivation to goal creates your protagonist’s story arc, each of your other main characters must also establish a character arc, by acting from his own motivation toward his own goal. If your cast of characters is well orchestrated, their desires will intersect with the protagonist’s arc often,...