Old character featuring in multi-author narrative (5)
I believe the answer is:
thorn
'old character' is the definition.
(letter used in Old English)
'in multi-author narrative' is the wordplay.
'in' indicates the answer is hidden within the clue.
'THORN' is hidden in the letters of 'multi author narrative'.
'featuring' is the link.
(Other definitions for thorn that I've seen before include "pain in one's side" , "problematic point" , "Sharp point on, eg, rose" , "Sharp-pointed stem-tip" , "Source of irritation" .)