Do you have any tips on how to make a character seem untrustworthy to the reader, but not to the surrounding characters without the character being creepy or shifty??
Yes, and it takes some clever (fun) writing to do it too. I answered an ask like this before here about a character who’s a liar, but there are many other ways to make someone untrustworthy to the reader.
they spread gossip
they can’t keep a secret
they steal, perhaps blatantly and with a smile
they’re incredibly charming and smarmy
there’s often an ulterior motive to their actions
they get up to no-good behind closed doors
they pit different characters against each other
…and on, and on. For all these characteristics, write it so that only the reader sees them doing it. Whether you’re in a POV where you can describe their mindset and inner thoughts, or in 1st Person POV, you can show that a character is not trustworthy.
In 1st POV, your MC can always dismiss, overlook, or excuse certain “shifty” behavior because that’s what we do constantly in real life. The reader, however, if they’re observant, will see that the MC is being played or is blind to the actions of the untrustworthy character. As long as they can understand the MC’s reasons for missing these cues, they can forgive the MC.
Avoiding “creepy/shifty” and the giggling trickster archetype is primarily up to your own finesse as a writer. Leave in just enough shiftiness in their behavior, but not in their personality. Outwardly, they can seem to be an upright gentleperson, an apologetic klutz, or really any personality you want to give them. But when the reader’s the only one to see them, their less endearing side will be on display.
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