Should Your Main Character Be Likeable?

Spoiler: Not Really

One of the most common things I see with authors — whether they’re my clients or authors whose books I happen to analyze over a cup of coffee — is an obsession with making their main characters “likeable.” They walk a moral tightrope. They say the right things. Their mistakes are so minor you need a magnifying glass to spot them. They’re basically saints… with abs.

But here’s a wild thought: do we actually cheer for perfect people?

Not really. Maybe only in fairy tales. That’s because perfection is not relatable at all — on the contrary, it's quite intimidating.

The Myth of “Likeability”

Writers often believe that if their protagonist isn’t instantly likeable, readers will throw the book out of the window (or worse—leave a 1-star review). But human psychology doesn’t work that way. We don’t connect with people because they’re perfect; we connect with them because they’re real.

In psychoanalytic terms, we’re all walking contradictions. Carl Jung, the father of analytical psychology, would look at these flawless characters and politely cough: “Where’s their shadow self?” According to Jung, the “shadow” is the unconscious part of ourselves where we hide all the bits we’d rather not admit—our flaws, insecurities, and forbidden desires. When a character shows those imperfections, readers instinctively connect because they recognize their own shadow staring back at them. It’s a bit like holding up a mirror, except this mirror isn’t afraid to show us when we’re being messy humans.

Why Readers Don’t Care About “Nice” People

Let’s be honest: reading is a selfish act. Every story we pick up is, on some level, about us. We read to explore ourselves through someone else’s mess. This is called Narrative Transportation Theory—the more we emotionally identify with a character, the more immersed we become in the story world. And guess what? That immersive connection doesn’t happen with perfect paper dolls. It happens with people who remind us of… well, ourselves.

There’s also good old empirical science to back this up. Research by Raymond Mar and colleagues found that readers form stronger emotional bonds with characters who are vulnerable and flawed. Perfection, on the other hand, actually reduces engagement because readers can’t see themselves in a walking Pinterest board of virtues.

Likeable? Not Necessarily. Compelling? Absolutely.

The conclusion is: your character doesn’t need to be a villain (unless that’s your genre vibe), but they definitely shouldn’t be a robot. Give them contradictions, let them make bad calls.

The goal isn’t to make readers like your character. The goal is to make them feel something about your character. Interest, frustration, compassion, even a touch of “I hate them, but I can’t stop reading.”

References:

Jung, C.G. (1959). The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious.
Mar, R.A., Oatley, K., & Peterson, J.B. (2009). Exploring the link between reading fiction and empathy: Rationale and preliminary findings. Social Cognition, 28(1), 1-21.Green, M.C., & Brock, T.C. (2000). The role of transportation in the persuasiveness of public narratives. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 79(5), 701-721.