What do you look for in your protagonists?

[VanEaston011]

I'm just curious:

- What do you guys [whether as readers or writers] look for in your horror fiction protagonists?
- What kinds of quirks/ticks/traits do you find most interesting or think would be interesting if it has yet to be explored?
- Also, who are some of your favorite or most remembered protagonists in horror fiction, and why?

[TheBossInTheWall]

I do not look for anything specific. I like to enjoy a variety of things.
However, in looking for protagonists I enjoyed the first name that came to mind was Felix Castor. Great character. Sarcastic, a good fighter, gets beaten badly all the time. Everyone's after him all the time. Its almost comical, but it doesn't come across as such. A very well written hard boiled detective with ghosts/zombies/etc. all around.

There's also Roland Deschain, but I do not consider The Dark Tower series horror.

Otherwise protagonists do not matter to me very much, if a story is well written that is all that matters to me.

[Roiffalo]

Sometimes depends on what kind of protagonist we're talking about. If monster then appearance actually does make a difference. The more believable the design, the more drawn in you'll be and more disturbing the movie. If a hobo with over sized canines, you're not going to be as drawn in because it's harder to take such a silly appearance seriously.
It's apples and oranges.

Personal preferences in slasher or human in general killers though I really don't know. I like the tall, dark, silent types like Micheal Myers and Jason Voorhees. But I also like the sophisticated, silk tongue of Hannibal Lecter... And cannibals in general intrigue me. So do lunatics. Crazies are fun cause never know to expect.