Creating characters that tread the murky waters of moral ambiguity is a part of the craft that can prove a ton of fun for any writer. The inclusion of these morally grey characters, with their questionable choices and complex motivations, adds an undeniable depth by embracing the complexity of a world where right and wrong aren’t always black and white.
Today on the AutoCrit blog, we’re diving into five crucial tips to help craft characters who embody the essence of moral grey areas. To add some extra spice, we’ll cast an eye on examples of morally grey characters from the ever-popular “romantasy” genre—where magic, mythical creatures, and otherworldly settings often shake up moral compasses and blur the lines between traditionally heroic or villainous characters.
So, as always, buckle up… because here we go!
1. Establish a Complex Backstory
The foundation of any morally grey character lies in a rich, complex backstory. This backstory is the soil from which their complexities grow, providing reasons for their morally ambiguous choices. It’s not just about adding drama; it’s about creating a convincing history that shapes their worldview, influencing their actions and decisions.
You need to explore why they make the choices they do. Are their actions driven by trauma, personal ambition, or a sense of survival? Consider how past experiences, such as loss, betrayal, or extreme situations, have forced your character to adapt or adopt certain moral flexibilities.
Their backstory should offer insights, not excuses, for their behavior, making readers question what they would do in similar circumstances. Even when a character makes questionable decisions, complex motivations encourage empathy. While they may not approve, at the least the reader understands why the character chooses a certain path.
A complex backstory also sets the stage for character development. As the story progresses, these past experiences can be revisited, allowing characters to confront their history, evolve, or perhaps further entrench themselves in their ways. Each revelation should add another piece to the puzzle of who they are, adding further dynamics to the narrative and keeping the audience invested as gray areas widen or close in.
How to Do It:
Give Them Painful Choices: Present your character with morally ambiguous situations where both paths have consequences. This always forces internal conflict and helps the reader engage with what drives the character’s decisions.
Show Their Transformation: A morally grey character is rarely static. Show how their past experiences shape their actions and reactions in the present. Over time, their character should evolve, especially in the face of love or relationships.
Consider Their Relationships: Relationships often force characters to confront their beliefs and values. The dynamic between your morally grey character and their love interest can reveal key facets of their personality, whether they’re protective, jealous, or conflicted.
Example: A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
The character of Rhysand in this series embodies the morally grey archetype. He operates with his own set of principles that are often in conflict with what’s considered “good” or “right,” but his motivations stem from past trauma and a deep sense of loyalty to those he loves. His relationship with the protagonist, Feyre, helps reveal his complexity (more on this element later).
2. Challenge Reader Expectations
A hallmark of morally grey characters is their ability to surprise readers with their actions, making choices that are unpredictable yet consistent with their knotty moral compass.
To make these moments stick the landing, consider how your character’s decisions can reveal deeper layers of their personality. Perhaps they show mercy in a situation where vengeance is expected, or they may choose a path that goes against their apparent self-interest. Is someone who appeared ruthless and indiscriminately violent just a few pages ago now protecting the innocent from his compatriots? Why could that be? Again, it’s the dynamics that keep these characters interesting: these surprising actions invite readers to reassess their understanding of the character and what they stand for.
As mentioned previously regarding your character’s backstory, however, it’s important to ensure these surprising actions stem from the character’s established history and values. Behavior shouldn’t be entirely random, lest your audience begin to feel like they have no handle whatsoever on who this person is. The goal is to challenge expectations in a way that furthers connection to the character, not that causes confusion or alienation.
Encouraging readers to question and debate the morality of the character’s actions is a sign of successful engagement. This discussion, whether it takes place in book clubs or online forums, is a testament to the character’s impact and a wonderful thing for any author to see.
How to Do It:
Make Them Take Unconventional Actions: Allow your morally grey character to take actions that seem extreme, but serve a higher purpose. Maybe they betray someone for the greater good or sacrifice their own happiness to protect someone else.
Avoid Cliché Motivations: Instead of relying on the trope of a misunderstood villain, give your character nuanced reasons for their actions. It could be love, loyalty, ambition, or even fear.
Create Moments of Conflict: The best part of writing morally grey characters is exploring their inner turmoil. Let them experience moments of doubt, regret, or reflection on their choices, especially when their decisions affect those they care about.
Example: The Wrath & the Dawn by Renée Ahdieh
In this novel, the character of Khalid initially appears as a villain, having executed numerous brides before the story begins. However, as the plot unfolds, the reasons behind his actions—driven by loss and a sense of duty—are revealed, making him a morally grey character who challenges readers’ expectations of what constitutes good and evil.
3. Humanize Their Flaws and Virtues
At the heart of every morally grey character is a blend of flaws and virtues that humanize them. These characters are not mere villains with a redeeming quality nor heroes with a dark streak; they are individuals whose actions reflect a realistic mix of strengths and weaknesses. This balance is crucial for creating relatable and compelling characters.
Exploring both the admirable and the questionable aspects of your character’s nature invites readers to see themselves in the story. It’s essential to portray their virtues and flaws with equal depth, showing how these elements influence their choices. A character might be driven by love but also prone to jealousy, or they may be incredibly brave yet struggle with arrogance.
Think of how flaws can feed from the virtues, or how the two can sit as the opposite side of a coin—and remember that these are two different approaches. A self-awareness of one’s own bravery may beget arrogance. The “coin” approach, however, could formulate a character who’s brave against physical challenges, but quickly retreats from emotional conflict.
As with all great character work, this nuanced approach opens the door for moments of reflection and growth. Characters may actively strive to overcome their flaws or learn to embrace them as part of who they are, keeping readers rooting for them despite, or perhaps because of, their imperfections.
How to Do It:
Give Them Moments of Vulnerability: Show the softer side of your character. Maybe they struggle with trust, guilt, or self-doubt. These humanizing moments will make them feel more authentic and relatable.
Balance Their Morality: Allow your character to do bad things for good reasons or good things for bad reasons. This balance creates intrigue and ensures they aren’t easily pigeonholed as a “hero” or “villain.”
Make Them Self-Aware: Let your morally grey character understand the consequences of their actions. Their awareness of their flaws makes them more complex, especially if they try to justify their actions or come to terms with their mistakes. And remember: they’re able to find justification for those choices—whether kind or callous—because of what they’ve experienced in the past.
Example: Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
Kaz Brekker is a classic example of a morally grey character. As a criminal mastermind, Kaz commits acts that are certainly not heroic, but his loyalty to his crew and his desire for justice in a corrupt world make him a sympathetic character. His flaws—ruthlessness, emotional detachment—are as important as his virtues, creating a character who is both compelling and conflicted.
4. Use Romance to Reveal Their Inner Struggles
In stories where love plays a central role, romance can be a powerful lens through which to explore a character’s inner struggles. Through their romantic relationships, morally grey characters often reveal vulnerabilities, desires, and conflicts that might otherwise remain hidden. This intimacy can offer profound insights into their motivations and fears.
When integrating romance into your narrative, consider how love challenges or complements your character’s moral ambiguities. A romantic interest might inspire them to strive for better, or conversely, highlight their darker tendencies. The dynamics of their relationship can serve as a battleground for their internal conflicts, making the romance a crucial element of character development. This is used to particularly great effect to humanize Vincent D’Onofrio’s Wilson Fisk, aka. Kingpin, in the Daredevil TV series.
Romantic connections should feel genuine, with each partner influencing the other’s growth and choices. With all its challenges and rewards, love is a universal experience that can transform the most morally ambiguous individuals, not to mention garner sympathy for even the most heinous choices made in its service.
How to Do It:
Romantic Tension: Use the romantic relationship to create tension. A morally grey character might be afraid of letting their guard down or might struggle with whether they deserve love. Their fears and insecurities can make for a more compelling romance.
Redemption Arc: If your morally grey character has a darker past, love can act as a catalyst for their redemption. They may begin to change, driven by their feelings for their love interest, but this change should be gradual and earned.
Complicate Their Choices: Love can complicate a morally grey character’s decisions. Do they choose their own desires, or do they act in a way that benefits their partner or others? This conflict can make the romance feel intense and emotionally charged.
Example: Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin
Lou, the protagonist, is a witch who has been hiding her identity while battling against a dangerous group of witch hunters. Her relationship with Reid, a witch hunter, forces both characters to confront their beliefs and feelings about what’s right and wrong. Their love story is filled with tension, internal struggle, and emotional growth, making it a perfect example of how romance can reveal a morally grey character’s transformation.
5. Avoid Dealing in Absolutes
A strong morally grey character isn’t wholly good or evil, so steer clear of painting them as such. Characters in this realm thrive on ambiguity and a consistent flow of questions about morality. The aforementioned Kaz Brekker is not just a criminal mastermind—he’s also driven by deeply personal motives that sometimes align with what one might consider ‘good.’ This duality makes him, and characters like him, ethically complex and fascinating, even as they take morally questionable actions.
In other realms of storytelling, characters such as Jay Gatsby or Jack Sparrow navigate their worlds in similar shades of grey. Gatsby’s relentless pursuit of love and Sparrow’s unpredictable moral compass showcase how their decisions are influenced by a mix of virtuous and less-than-virtuous motivations. This refusal to adhere to absolutes in their moral choices mirrors real human complexity, inviting the audience in instead of pushing them away. Jack Sparrow’s instinctive drive for self-preservation at all costs makes him a hilarious vagabond, yet his moral code won’t let him abandon friends and colleagues. The result is that (well, more often than not, anyway) he can be trusted to return in grand form to try and save the day, even if he initially fled the scene in a whirlwind of selfishness.
Avoiding absolutes also allows for greater exploration of internal conflicts, which are crucial for character development. A hero and villain can both exhibit redeeming qualities and flaws, challenging readers to empathize with all sides of a conflict. The greatest dramatic scenes, in fact, stem from two people arguing about a problem from their own perspectives—and both of them are right, in their own way.
How to Do It:
Take Risks with Consequences: Show that the outcomes of a character’s actions may be damaging or helpful regardless of their intent. This demonstrates the moral ambiguity of their choices and avoids simplifying them as purely heroic or villainous.
Emphasize Conflicting Loyalties: Create situations where the character’s moral decisions arise from clashing obligations, such as choosing between personal desires and societal duties. This complexity makes their actions less about “right” or “wrong” and more about navigating competing values. Neither is “wrong” per se, but one must win out.
Set Preachiness Aside: Make the character’s decisions stem from relatable fears, desires, or weaknesses rather than an expression of purely moral or immoral principles. This ensures their choices feel nuanced and believable, such as a King who aligns with dangerous forces out of a desire to secure his throne and protect his kingdom, even if it risks alienating his love interest and unleashing chaos. Treading the line between noble sacrifice and dangerous self-interest often makes for strong examples of morally grey characters.
In Conclusion: Writing Morally Grey Characters (Or Morally Gray Characters)
Hopefully, these tips will come in handy when crafting morally ambiguous characters that help reflect the true complexity of human nature.
Remember: complex motivations, a solid mix of flaws and virtues, plus a surprising amount of mischief all make for a character that’s hard for audiences to resist.
From pretty much the entire cast of A Song of Ice and Fire (and the entire Game of Thrones series) to standout characters in film & TV, like Colin Farrell’s Oz Cobb in The Penguin, George Clooney’s anti-heroic Seth Gecko in From Dusk Till Dawn, or the now iconic Walter White in Breaking Bad, it’s the flawed characters—those who feel like real human beings—that delight us in their moral dilemmas and unending shades of grey.
So go on… instead of straight up hero and villain, why not blur the lines and try some moral ambiguity on for size?
You might find it fits just right.
