Mentor-mentee relationships in fiction can be a crucial dynamic, providing protagonists with the key tools they need to succeed on their journey.

From Frodo and Gandalf to Katniss and Haymitch, when written authentically, this duo can do more than give and absorb advice.

In today’s post, we’ll discuss how to write believable mentor-mentee relationships that influence the plot, provide tension and enhance character development for both characters.

Your main character doesn’t have all of the answers, and they shouldn’t!

A flawed protagonist struggling with their internal conflict and set to be challenged by numerous external obstacles will need guidance (even if they won’t admit it).

Enter the mentor!

Whether they’re reluctant, flawed or the grandfather next door variety of Dumbledore and Gandalf, these characters take on the role of a guide or teacher.

Take a look at this article, which highlights 30 mentors in film. Watching some of these is a great way to research your mentor’s storyline.

Mentors often hold wisdom and experience that the protagonist lacks. 

And that’s where many narratives stop.

The mentor teaches the protagonist the skills and knowledge they need to succeed, yet their backstory and internal struggle is limited if demonstrated at all.

Give your mentor space to develop as well, and you provide readers with more than a surface-level tension. 

A mentor can be a wise teacher, even if they haven’t figured it all out. They can be flawed, uncertain and even learn something from the protagonist from time to time.

When developed throughout the story, this give-and-take dynamic infuses your narrative with the foundations of a realistic relationship rather than the mentor-on-a-pedestal type.

Will your mentor and mentee have a developed relationship before the opening of your story?

If so, map out key events in their past that demonstrate:

• Why they connected (family ties, coach or teacher, etc.)
• How the mentor came to guide the mentee (free will, paid work, fate, etc.)
• Points of tension (past arguments, clashing viewpoints, etc.)
• Key events that led them to where they are now (working amicably together, having a falling out, etc.)

If they’re strangers at the outset of your story, you’ll also want to plant some similar groundwork:

• How do they meet?
• Is the mentorship intentional or accidental?
• Why does the mentor care?
• Similarities and Differences (do they have shared experiences that bond them, etc.)

Before a mutual trust and understanding can occur (and even afterwards), a realistic mentor-mentee relationship will be ripe with challenges.

Their differences can craft obvious misunderstandings.

A mentee with a chip on their shoulder may disregard their mentor’s advice, only to discover that it was folly.

Differences can breed disagreements and biases that need to be resolved.

Starting the mentorship on a rocky platform fuels your plot with opportunity for mutual learning.

A mentor with flaws, misbeliefs, and an unresolved past allows the mentee to wear the mentor’s hat on occasion.

The mentee might challenge the mentor intentionally, causing them to resolve their hangups.

Or the mentor could discover insights through witnessing the mentee’s evolution.

Avoiding a one-dimensional mentor crafts engaging character development.

This back-and-forth schtick forces growth upon both characters.

A mentor who does nothing more than teach your MC to fight is boring.

Consider how the mentee will change under their guidance.

• Does a rash hero gain patience? 
• What mindset or perspectives shift for them?
• How does this influence any mindset blocks that initially halted them from achieving their goals?

This decision drives the protagonist forward, sometimes with revenge and at other times with confidence that they have learned enough to survive independently.

This ending doesn’t always need to be the case.

Your mentor can make it to the end of the story!

But whatever you choose should have a key influence on the protagonist’s plot. It’s your main storyline after all.

By the end of your story (or your mentor’s end), they matter deeply to your main character, and so there should be a semblance of emotional stakes in this relationship.

They might argue all day long, yet when faced with the impending loss of the mentor, the protagonist digs in to save them.

There are so many ways to infuse the mentor’s journey with influential plot lines.

So ask yourself:

• Will the mentor die? 
• Will they betray the mentee?
• Will they be separated?
• Will the mentor pass on his role to the mentee? 
• Why? How does your choice serve the story?

Play out your mentor’s evolution in a few different ways and determine what makes sense. 

Remember to ensure that it links back to your protagonist’s plot, as every narrative point should serve their development.

For more information on developing authentic relationships in fiction, check out this blog post, which highlights six key tips, including relationship building through dialogue, power dynamics, and subtext.

Use those in your mentor-mentee storyline.

Mentor-mentee relationships are multifaceted. They come with struggles and transformation for both characters.

In the end, when both the mentor and mentee have experienced change through their relationship, you have crafted an authentic dynamic that your readers will believe.

Have a favourite mentor-mentee relationship in fiction? Share it in the comments!

What makes them so memorable?

Talk soon!

Julia