What’s a character arc and do I need one?

I’ve recently watched Me Before You(*spoiler alert* a reminder, this is not a romance as there is no happy ever after). At the beginning of the movie, Lou Clark has put all her own dreams or plans of the future on hold as she waits out her life in a teashop. Boom, cue the inciting incident** – she loses her job. What to do? She finds a job taking care of wheelchair bound Will, which leads to the meet cute.** 
 
All of that aside, the Lou we meet at the beginning of the movie is not the same as the Lou by the end. This is the character arc, the development of the character over the course of the events of the novel. Sometimes, the character does not change, and a devastating example of that is in Manchester by the Sea(definitely not a romance). In romance, however, we want and need our character and their love interest to grow over the course of the novel.
 
Key things to remember on writing up your character arc:

1. The change is internal, it’s their own personal growth story. 
2. More often than not this change, is positive. They’ll believe the lie (that they are unworthy of love, for example) and will come to realise the truth (that they are worthy of love). But it can also be negative. 
3. The external obstacles must challenge the character on their personal growth arc, forcing them to accept the new truth. 
4. The growth must be believable – are the changes with this character going to stick or is he/she/they going to fall back into their old ways?
5. The final test of your character’s growth comes at the dark night of the soul**

 
By the end of Me Before You, Lou is no longer the naïve Lou she once was, and has accepted that not everything can be ‘fixed’ But, she has broadened her horizons and is visiting Paris, echoing Will’s footsteps. ​

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