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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/31803
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

 **You cannot treat the group as a single unit**.

There is no such thing as "the gang is the protagonist". You can have a group (a gang, a party) with individuals, each with their approach to the story and their story arc. Some will be more developed than others.

Every character has an Arc of transformation. They start in a specific situation and with a specific knowledge, they go through events, and they end up with a different situation or knowledge. Every Arc has its own turning points: you can do them individually for each arc, or you can make them coincide. Basically, I think you can draw each character arc exactly like the main character's one.

What is the difference, then?

In a multi-thread or multi-character story, it's not just one hero who carries on the values of the story. Every other characters share part of this function. They have a different way to approach and answer the main question of the story.

Usually they relate to the main character somehow, so they propose an alternative approach or attitude towards the main problem or the main theme. For instance, one protagonist or main character carries the main question of the story, and each character poses a different answer. In other stories they are more independent, and the story is a collection of individuals stories under a general umbrella which is the main theme.

Original score: 5