A few things I've been learning from my creative writing course:
A reactive character is driven primarily by outside forces: events happen to them, and their story arc is shaped by how they respond to pressures, conflicts, or surprises they didn’t initiate. Think like:
-Frodo Baggins from The Lord of the Rings, who is thrust into danger and must react to threats.
-Bella Swan- She’s pulled into the supernatural world by others’ choices. Much of her arc is shaped by reacting to Edward, the Cullens, and the dangers surrounding them.
-Devon Izara from Shadowlord, who begins with a proactive potential, but the story ultimately reduces her to a reactive, passive role. She reacts to escalating danger, to Maul’s manipulation and external circumstances, and finally once she is forced to a emotional breaking point she relent to Maul in the end.
-She does resist and tries to escape, but her resistance never meaningfully changes outcomes.
-Maul always resets control, so her actions don’t matter long-term, and if not, then external circumstances force her into situations with Maul to work with him.
-Her biggest potential turning points (almost killing Maul and her rejecting Maul repeatedly, calling him a murderer and escaping him) gets undone because of external circumstances or Maul himself, not self-driven character.
-Her final decision (joining him and "choosing" to be his apprentice after Daki's death) comes from Maul’s success in his manipulation that culminated into Devon’s emotional collapse, not Devon’s clear, self-driven agency.
The only way I can describe her character is: Maul wants an apprentice, so he got one in the end. (And then moves on to other apprentices like clockwork, according to the canon timeline.)
A proactive character, by contrast, pushes the plot forward through their own goals, decisions, and desires, they make things happen rather than waiting for things to happen to them. In practice, reactive characters often feel swept up in circumstances, while proactive characters create circumstances. Think:
-Tony Stark, whose inventions, decisions, and ego-driven actions constantly create new plot turns.
-Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games, who repeatedly chooses to volunteer for Prim, her bold actions escalate the conflict.
-Zuko from Last Airbender who is reactive early on (chasing the Avatar because of external pressure), but becomes deeply proactive once he chooses his own path. His decisions reshape the entire narrative.
Anakin Skywalker who initiates most conflicts in the main series. He repeatedly takes bold, emotionally charged actions that reshape the world around him. Even when fear and the subtle manipulation of Sidious influences him, he doesn’t simply endure events, he acts, often dramatically, and those actions drive the rise of Darth Vader and the fall of the Republic.
-Darth Maul who is pure forward motion. His missions, obsessions, and relentless pursuit of targets drive the plot; he forces conflict rather than waiting for it.
