Harry Potter and the book that started it all
In my opinion, one of the most difficult things to write is a child protagonist in a book that isn’t made for children. It’s difficult for adults to relate to the child and many adults find them annoying. As we age, we tend to forget what the child mentality and emotional instability of that age was. So, we groan and complain about the crying, tantrums, foolish acts, and faulty logic. Yet, there are authors that get it right like Harry Potter. Fellow author and blogger Gwen Bristol did an excellent job in her book The Night Ones Legacy.
I take on an understanding thought process with child protagonists. I know they won’t be making decisions the way adults do. In fact, I hate it when these characters are ‘wise beyond their years’ and are nothing more than tiny adults. There has to be a reason for that and they can’t all be Ender Wiggin. A child protagonist should be immature and have the weaknesses that a child would have. This makes them believable. Yet, I wouldn’t bother with one that is immature to the point where they’re a spoiled brat or as useful as hangnail. Balance is needed because I want to believe that the character is a child and I want to believe they can save the day. You need the moment of maturity too where they realize it’s time to grow up. I think that’s the main reason to use a child protagonist because they can’t stay the same if you put them through a real story.
So, what do you look for in a child protagonist? Do you avoid them completely?
9:45
Legends of Windemere 
It’s a simple concept of never allowing your character to react with information they don’t have, works the same with adult characters, you just have to remember that there’s a lot more information that kids don’t have than adults–well… some adults, anyway. Some of us do it better because we have clear memory of being a kid, while others have to cheat a little and watch their kids reactions to life (or possibly even asking their kids what they would do in the given scenario). With Harry Potter, it was easy enough because JK wrote so much history on her characters that she had no reason to ever forget what the character’s life had or hadn’t taught them so far.
LikeLike
Excellent point. I think authors have to remember that kids react differently too. That’s where I see a lot of faltering. Children can be brave and scared when you least expect it.
LikeLike
I’m not really too sure because the only true children’s story I’ve read as an adult is “The Hobbit” (Lord of the Rings is an Adult tale) I have re read Aesop’s Fables but again these are for a more mature audience in my opinion… when writing for children, children need to be able to relate and identify with the principal characters.
LikeLike
I was talking more about the main character being a child than the target audience. Examples would be Ender’s Game, Harry Potter, and Hunger Games. So, I guess the big question would be how can an author get a child hero to relate to an adult reader.
LikeLike
In that case I am in that boat with my story at present…my two main characters are very young, the male is pre pubescent and the female is adolescent, but there are other things which make my story a little more difficult as it takes place before language and I am still trying to figure out the evolution of emotion in my characters…or at least their understanding of emotions…
LikeLike
Facial expressions and tantrums might be the way to go. Maybe think about how toddlers act before language. A lot if physical cues like pointing, noises with tone, and touching like hugs or pushes.
LikeLike
Children at any age have more emotional responses than adults. Sometimes when I read child fiction, the children seem like miniature adults because authors don’t always take this into account. I feel it helps to add realism, like in Ellespeth’s story yesterday where she did have a temper tantrum after behaving so maturely. Having childlike emotion adds realism.
LikeLike
I think some authors push for the child in danger suspense, but they don’t bother looking into child responses. Maybe they fear going too far with tantrums or immaturity. Kids are typically immature. That’s how it is.
LikeLike
I think you have to leave a level of immaturity with the child protagonist, but to face them with events that helps them grow and mature. Since Harry Potter is usually the perfect example, I always find it interesting going back and reading the early books. Ron and Harry don’t even like Hermione in the beginning. It seems like Harry’s life is more about friends and dealing with bullies the first several books. He can barely comprehend what Voldemort even means. Then as he ages, problems become more complex. Like another commenter mentioned, it’s more emotional reactions than logical ones. But he keeps changing until he crosses that threshold of maturity and is able to face death head on—certainly nothing 11-yr-old Harry could have done.
So in answering your question, I don’t mind a kid who’s bratty or overly emotional as long as he or she arcs toward change, even if slowly. That was one of the things I didn’t like about Prince of Thorns. Kind of like what you said, a small adult, not really a kid in any respect.
LikeLike
I agree. The growth arc can make a bratty beginning work. I’m remembering the main characters in The Red Pyramid and the sister was so bratty throughout the book. I don’t remember her evolving, which could be another issue with this character type. If they stay bratty for too long then changes might not even be noticed.
LikeLike
This is an interesting question. Children as protagonists are hard for me because I was the “little adult” in my own “real” life. I think I was wiser in my choices and actions as a child than I was as an adult struggling with addictions! lol I tend to avoid children in my books and stick to high school aged as the youngest.
LikeLike
I’m sure there are very mature kids, but I think there is always something childish that has to be in a fictional character. Once the reader forgets that they are a child, you’ve done something wrong.
LikeLike
You are exactly right! That’s why I’d stink writing a child character. Although, I could just write in my very childish moments that I’ve done as an adult! lol
LikeLike
Not everyone can do. I don’t even try.
LikeLike
The child protagonists are always fun to read because they have a unique way of looking at things. They are quite childish but they think a lot. Those thoughts are what become the basis of the story according to me.
J.K. Rowling did her work cleverly and created such believable characters which grew up to become responsible adults by the end of the series. The best example was the third book, The Prisoner of Azkaban, where the characters are not yet grown but also, they are no longer kids.
I agree with you that the mature child protagonists may take the fun-part out of the story.
LikeLike
The unique insight is a major factor. I love reading about those things because you have that moment of ‘only a child would think that’ and it makes them more believable.
LikeLike
I think it’s a matter of recalling events from your childhood and how you reacted to them. If you find it difficult to recall your childhood and you have a child then you can do a character study under your own roof 🙂 It always takes me back to my own childhood (the innocence, the wonder at the smallest things) when I watch my children. You have to strip away the knowledge that you’ve gained over the years of how the world works so that something like a figure of speech is taken literally. As a child there’s so much you hadn’t been exposed to that would shape your worldviews, cloud your judgment or lead to prejudices. I think children can see the beauty in the simple things where adults have become jaded. Good topic, Charles.
LikeLike
Great points. The reader needs to slightly demature if I’m reading you correctly.
LikeLike