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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/48176
License name: CC BY-SA 4.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

My protagonist lives with a deep lie that causes internal conflict and pain throughout the story but it basically cannot fuel any struggle to the external plot. This subconsciously motivates the character to leave a safe home and is somewhat prevalent later on.

I also introduced a flaw to the same protagonist (that is more like a wound but also can be seen as second lie) that causes external things to fail and makes things harder. They are both connected (they developed from the same event).

The flaw is overcome at the end of the second act, while the lie is overcome in the climax. Both the deep unconscious lie and the conscious flaw contribute to defeating the antagonist; the protagonist cannot accomplish that without learning both truths.

Can that double lie in one arc work? Or it is just too convoluted and confusing to the reader? I want that deep lie to convey the true theme—"moral imperative"—but it won't make protagonist fail in action. While the second flaw contributes to more direct tension perfectly, it's too weak to be the true core of the book.

Original score: 1