mysterious protagonist?

[writeshiek33]

i have this concept in vein of Arabian nights. the setting of the world basically the golden age of Islam type world the concept is supposed to be a trilogy. the protagonist is not reveled till third book but his actions and his subordinates of on three to four networks basically the protagonist works in the shadow and who they are and description will happen in third book to the surprise of the final main protagonist his age and position is a surprise. each book will delve into an aspect of the character through different jobs my question is this done ?

 

[Aegrus]

I think you may be confusing the meaning of protagonist. If he or she is not revealed until the third book, who will be the main character in books one and two?

 

[Xanados]

The protagonist is, indeed, the main character of the book(s). Aegrus shares my question...

 

[writeshiek33]

thats why i assked i am not confused because they there in background but the story told throufgh some his servants but it the the protagonist story

 

[Xanados]

Writeshiek, this is one of the rare times that I would say this, but have you fully developed your English well enough to write a book? I understand that it is not my place to judge anyone, and I'm sorry if I have offended you. I'm just wondering if you feel you are capable enough. Are you writing in your native langauge, perhaps?

 

[writeshiek33]

maybe the idea is way too far outrages , English my only language but i have dyslexia it does not effect my reading but the way express myself and i am reworking on my craft haven't written in 10-15 years so my dyslexia is really acting up (it only shows in my writing)i am, practicing to improve my writing skills

 

[Xanados]

maybe the idea is way too far outrages , English my only language but i have dyslexia it does not effect my reading but the way express myself and i am reworking on my craft haven't written in 10-15 years so my dyslexia is really acting up (it only shows in my writing)i am, practicing to improve my writing skills

Ah, I assumed because your location reads "Dubai" that your native langaunge would be Arabic.

 

[Ulutar]

I think the current level of writing skill you have would make it difficult to properly convey your ideas, this is not a reflection personally on you, I understand the difficulties you are having. Like Xanados, I'm not trying to offend you. Also, the idea really does sound confusing, this character cannot really be the protagonist if the story for the main part is told through his servant(s). I think his unveiling in the third book will simply be the addition of another main or a secondary main. You can always start writing from his point of view once he has been introduced without dropping the servant who has told us the story thus far.

Good luck!

 

[ThinkerX]

In a sense, this is like Peake's "Gormenghast'. The story is about the prince of an ancient castle, but being an infant, the prince doesn't really do anything during the first book; the action is all on the part of other characters.

A more contemporary example would be 'Charlies Angels' - the 'Angels' never meet Charlie, yet he is the one who takes the various cases, provides info, ect.

That said, I do find the premise in your story a tad confusing. Is the protagonist a total unknown? - *nobody* knowing who he is in any guise? Or is he something of a legend - the one character who managed such and such an impossible quest, talked about all over, but in reality hardly anybody has ever seen him?

 

[Joanna]

I was wondering about something similar to what the author of the thread was asking. I had an idea for a story about an alien invasion (more sci-fi genre I guess), where you could have a trilogy, but written in such a way that descriptions of the invaders are vague or ommited, and it could be assumed that it's humans trying to colonize a planet, while in fact it's the other way around - and that only gets revealed at the end of the trilogy. A bit like the ending of the Planet of the apes book if I recall correctly.

 

[Voldermort]

I see what you're trying to do.

Look into the structure of Star Wars Episodes I, II, III where Palpatine is the puppet master but only revealed in the third story.

You can also look into Harry Potter, where the main antagonist is substituted in each story but the last with sub-antagonists.

You'll need to switch the antagonist in the above two examples with the protagonist. But it will involve you manipulating plot and structure adeptly.

You can also look at Harry Potter from Severus Snape's POV, where you could position him as the hero but not revealed until the end.

See what I mean.

 

[writeshiek33]

what i meant is that the protagonist present is there but he is hidden with no physical description of them or gender until the final book as not to give away identity which includes age they there occasionally to receive reports and issue orders the reason why i have the idea to this is to surprise the reader as well as the antagonist they has one major job but three two three responsibilities, spy, assassin and thief it a simple description of the protagonist but i think if i can do this right it would be a great story

 

[Taytortots]

You have to remember, one of the main things that keeps a reader reading is their connection to the main character. If you're not even going to introduce him, I wonder how much this would effect the book. Readers like the empathize with the main character, by not introducing him you'll be taking a chance.
Best of luck with whatever you do. If you can do it right, I'm sure it would make for an interesting read.

 

[quenchy]

Yes, you can do this with finesse but you can't create a large work, because as Taytortots said, your readers will lose the connection to the character. You need a level of storytelling mastery to emphasize on the qualities of the character to actually add her in your book - if you tell too much stories through the point-of-view of other characters, you build-up a mythical figure, wihch you will have difficulties to introduce later on as a main character.

This doesn't have anything to do with epicness - your support cast could be all beggars or thieves, telling the stories of the best thief in the city, but still you will have to create the entire story structure before telling it, or you risk adding some random story twist that actually introduces the main character.

About dyslexia - I have a friend who CREATES poetry and he's blind, he uses a recorder and then gives the recordings to his wife, who writes them down. Go ahead, mate, I wish you a good luck!

 

[writeshiek33]

i see the point thanks yes i need work some things