How to Write Likable Characters Readers Actually Connect With

Want to write characters readers can’t stop thinking about? Learn 3 essential strategies for making your protagonist likable, relatable, and unforgettable—in any genre.

Whether you’re writing fiction or creative nonfiction, one of your top priorities should be creating characters your audience connects with. They don’t have to be perfect. They don’t even have to be morally good. But they do have to be likable—which in writing means relatable, emotionally compelling, and worth following.

Readers don’t just engage with your plot. They engage with the people living in it. If the character doesn’t resonate, they won’t care what happens to them. And that means they’ll stop turning pages.

So how do you make sure your protagonist feels real, raw, and rooted in the reader’s heart? Here are three techniques that can help you create characters readers will invest in and remember long after the final chapter.

1. Build Sympathy

Let the reader feel sorry for your character first.

One of the easiest ways to build a bridge between your character and your reader is to highlight their struggles early on. If readers can see what your character is up against, they’ll be more inclined to stick around and root for them.

This doesn't have to mean tragedy. It could be:

- A humiliating moment (e.g., job interview gone wrong)

- A relatable hardship (e.g., struggling to pay rent, facing family expectations)

- An unjust situation (e.g., being overlooked, underestimated, or betrayed).

How to use this in your story:

Introduce your character with an obstacle. Show them trying—and failing—or having to navigate something difficult. The more human they feel, the easier it is for your reader to see themselves in that moment.

How it helps:

This creates instant emotional investment. Readers like underdogs, awkward moments, and people trying their best in impossible situations. Sympathy lays the groundwork for deeper connection.

2. Build Empathy

Don’t just show us what they’re going through—make us feel it.

Sympathy opens the door. Empathy brings us inside. Once a reader feels bad for a character, your job is to help them feel with them. This is where "show, don’t tell" becomes critical. When your character is grieving, don’t just say they’re sad. Make us hear the silence in their house. Let us feel the tightness in their chest. Let us taste the bitterness of coffee they made out of habit for someone no longer there. Use sensory language, internal monologue, and deep POV to immerse readers in your character’s body, mind, and experience.

How to use this in your story:

During emotional moments—whether joyful or devastating—slow down and let us sit in it. Use the five senses to build a scene, not just describe it. Let your character react, not just move on.

How it helps:

Empathy turns your character into someone the reader doesn’t just watch—they become. It makes every decision, mistake, and success more powerful.

3. Inspire Envy

Make your reader want to be this character—even for a moment.

This may sound strange, but one of the most effective ways to make readers like a character… is to make them a little jealous.

When readers envy your character’s charm, genius, confidence, beauty, or talent—they’re drawn to them. This is why we fall in love with “book baes” in romance, or root for bold heroines in dystopian stories. There’s something magnetic about watching someone we wish we could be.This doesn’t mean your character has to be perfect. But give them something aspirational—an enviable love story, a rare ability, a sharp wit, a killer wardrobe, a calling, a powerful family legacy, or an almost-magical confidence.

How to use this in your story:

Ask yourself: “What would make someone want to be this character—even if just for a chapter?” Then, lean into that trait in your descriptions, dialogue, or relationships.

How it helps:

Envy makes your character magnetic. It keeps readers intrigued. And when paired with sympathy and empathy, it makes them irresistible.

Conclusion

Writing likable characters isn’t about making them flawless—it’s about making them feel real. When you combine sympathy, empathy, and even a touch of envy, you invite readers to see themselves in your characters, not just observe them. These elements deepen emotional investment, elevate your storytelling, and transform your characters from good ideas into unforgettable people. Whether you’re writing romance, memoir, sci-fi, or anything in between, using these techniques can take your story from good to great.

Want to Make Sure Your Character Hits All Three?

Crafting a compelling, likable character takes more than just a backstory and a few quirks. It’s about emotional structure. That’s what I help writers uncover through my Draft 2 Done™ evaluation service.

With Draft 2 Done™, I’ll analyze your manuscript for character arc, emotional connection, and how readers are likely to respond to your protagonist. You’ll receive detailed, actionable feedback to help you revise with confidence.

Book your Draft 2 Done™ Evaluation today at www.JosephEditorialServices.com/draft2done

Don’t just write a story. Write a character we’ll follow anywhere.