Stop using the chosen one trope as a crutch for weak protagonists

I've noticed so many prompts lately where the hero is just 'the chosen one' with zero explanation for why they're special. Honestly, it kills the story before it starts. I learned this the hard way after beta reading a 300 page novel where the main character never earned anything, everything was handed to them by prophecy. How do you build a protagonist who feels earned without falling back on destiny?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_jennifer1d ago

Gotta be honest, I kinda disagree here. A well done chosen one story can work if the prophecy is more like a calling than a free pass, like they still have to bleed and struggle to live up to it. Hard to earn something when the whole world's odds are stacked against you from the start, and being chosen just means you get to try.

avery_jackson1d ago

Totally feel you on this one. I've dropped books before because the hero gets handed power for no good reason. It's like the writer didn't want to bother building a real character with flaws and limits. I remember one story where the MC was just born with perfect skills and never failed at anything, got boring fast.