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Do You Write Dead People?
Let me start by saying this is my second blog of the day. To all those who commented on my earlier attempt, thank you. But I decided I didn't want to keep that one up.
From my title I’m sure you can figure out our topic for today – dead characters. Now, I do not mean characters who are deceased when the story begins. Nor do I mean all those hapless victims in Romantic Suspense. I mean killing off characters that are established in the story. Writing deaths by accidents, natural causes, or some other medical reason.
In my WIP, I do have a character that dies about half way in. I say about because I haven't gotten there yet, so I'm not sure exactly when the event will occur. But I do know this character will die and I'll be honest and say I have a very good reason for the death. It's a major turning point in both the story and in the life of one of my characters. It throws this character into another gear, forces them to deal with things they've long buried and hopefully, serves to bring this character closer to my other character.
Am I being vague enough here?
Anyhoo, we've all heard never to kill the pet. That's pretty much a given. But what's the rule on other characters. In Sugar Daddy by Lisa Kleypas, a somewhat main character was killed off and I'll admit, I never saw it coming. But I think that character had to die for the same reason I mention above. It's a major turning point in the story, forces the main character to grow up, and brings that character closer to someone else. Plus, it makes the main character's life all that more difficult.
What's your take on killing off characters? We're not talking the hero or heroine, but what about the trusted sidekick? Or the mentor? We all know HP will come up right here. If you've killed off a character in a non-RS novel, how did you do it? What books have you read that included a death that took you by surprise?
Books by the Crew
36 comments:
When J.K. Rowling does it, it's fine. When Nicholas Sparks does it, it's cliched and annoying. Candace Camp did it in Heirloom--and it wasn't like it was unexpected, the character had cancer, but it still HURT when it happened.
It was needed in Sugar Daddy--and I was totally expecting it. *LOL*
The only character I've killed off in a novel was the heroine, but then I brought her back. It was necessary for the hero's growth. *coughs*
Gosh, I killed the dog, a brother, the father,who needed to be killed in the worst way-he was disemboweled (very therapeutic), a young girl, hmmm sounds more like a horror story, not a historical romance novel.
I've haven't killed off a main character, but if it works and it needs to be done, then do so.
Renee
You do love to push that envelope. LOL! How did you kill her, anyway? And I suppose it helps to bring them back when God is actually a character in the book...
Renee - You killed the dog?! No! Say it ain't so! You can't kill the dog. LOL! And holy heck you disemboweled a guy? How graphic did you get with that? Is this in the Hellion story because I guess that would really fit with that time period.
Yeah, it's in my Hellion's story. I wouldn't have killed the dog, if Dog-yeah that's his name-hadn't been loyal to her father. Hellion's Haven is dark, but the time period was dark. I couldn't justifiably right fluff when terror was so much a part of their lives.
Renee
I have no plans to kill off a character in my books, but in each book in the trilogy characters who die before the book opens are important to the book.
Anne Gracie killed the dog in The Lost Princess, and her fans forgave her. :)(By the way, her latest His Captive Lady is wonderful. If you haven't read it, find a copy ASAP!)
I wept at all the deaths in the HP series, but I was prepared for them. On the other hand, I stopped reading Elizabeth George when she killed Helen Lynley and her unborn child in With No One as Witness. I think George has the right to do as she pleases with her characters. I also think the reader has the right to say "She crossed the line for me. No more." I exercised my reader's rights.
Renee - good point. I'm sure the dog had it coming. LOL!
Janga - you bring up something else. What about killing off a baby? I know Eloisa did it. (And I cried and cried and cried...but forgave her.) I don't really mind if a character dies as that's just life and it adds angst so I'm there. But I still hate the Disney always has to kill one of the parents. I mean, come on, WHY did Bambi's mother have to die?!?!
I killed off the father in mine and I still feel guilty! I have this guilt complex because I love my own father dearly.
I really can't stand when the mentor or sidekick or good friend is killed off tho. I don't like having that type of connection to a character. I say kill the bad guys or kill the character that I haven't gotten to know. But that's my own personal preference and I can see how others would feel it's needed in their novel. To each their own! :)
Don't feel guilty, Steph. I'm sure there was nothing subconscious about it. And that's fair if you don't like when the sidekicks die. Sometimes I just don't want to be that depressed when I'm reading for fun.
Terri: I shoved her in front of a car. Very unexpected.
Annie Gracie's newest book is out? *makes note to stalk every bookstore until she finds it*
I think the type of book you're writing contributes to whether you can have death or not. Historicals, esp darker ones, are easy to work deaths into. But romantic comedies less so.*LOL*
That's very funny since you definitely write comedy and you're always killing people. Or shooting them when you're not shoving them in front of cars. LOL!
Damn. Now I'm curious about what was up before. Mattycakes did something like this to me this weekend.
"Did you see that?"
I looked up from the laptop and pulled my headphones out of my ears. "SEE what?"
"Good."
I blinked several times. What the hell! "What was it?"
"Something you'd like."
I might have growled. I'm not sure. "How do you know?"
"Because I know you'd like it more than that writing stuff you do."
"So what was it?"
Mattycakes went back to watching TV. "I'm not going to tell you because then you'll want to do it and spend money."
____________________
I know all kinds of ways to kill of characters. Mattycakes doesn't realize he stars more often than not in my dead characters on page.
I love to kill of characters. It's probably one of my favorite things to do while writing. One of my heroines surivives a car accident that kills her entire family. Of course, she has no memory of it. That makes it even more fun. This one isn't an RS. This one is a para.
Another one of my heroines, her twin sister was murdered and then her father dies, and I'm thinking about killing off her brother (who she's really close to) and her mother. This one is an RS.
I'll have to think about books where death has surprised me. Usually I'm that reader who is begging for someone to be axed off. Maybe KH's fifth book. One of her main characters took a dive that I didn't see coming. I mean, I wasn't heartbroken over it, but I know it caused a HUGE uproar among her fans.
Oh, yeah, I did shoot Ben, didn't I? I'm still working on the edits and still haven't gotten to that part. Right now they're arguing on the side of a road and not getting anywhere.
That shooting is going to come out of nowhere. *LOL*
Captain - See, that's what I like. When you read or watch something and can honestly say, "I didn't see that coming." LOL! Sounds perfect!
Sin - you do realize you will have a special place in heaven just for dealing with Mattycakes? I'm guessing you might even reach sainthood. LOL!
I know you love to kill them off. And I'm guessing I might enjoy the writing of it. But then I love anything that tears you up inside. There's something great about really moving people and death is the perfect opportunity to do that. And I'm guessing for you it's quite therapeutic. LOL!
I've got a special place here to deal with Mattycakes. Just no one knows of it but me. *wg*
*LOL* Mattycakes will be so proud you were talking about boxes again today, Sin. God knows he doesn't think we talk about them enough.
LMAO. He's so clueless.
Boxes? Did we mention boxes? I'm so confused...LOL!
Sin mentioned boxes. Sorta. Okay, I interpreted to mean "boxes" because I have a somewhat dirty mind. I'm very linear, perhaps, but the most obvious way to deal with a man...by use of a special place, would be The Box. *LOL* From what I've been given to understand, so long as they want access to play in the box, they'll behave themselves. To some degree.
Is it wrong of me that upon learning that my GXB's most hated word is "cock", I spent the rest of the evening using it as much as possible in his presence? Holly and I even made up a song.
OH! I so should have gotten that. LOL! More evidence that I'm losing my mind.
First Hi all! I know I've been MIA but life keeps kicking me in the butt and I make a point in kicking back. Or try to.
Now as for authors offing characters: please feel free to do so. AS LONG AS THEY AREN'T MY FAV CHARACTERS!!!!!! As a reader, I don't mind characters death if I am not too much invested in them. (OKay it might not be the right way to say what I mean but I'm too lazy to reach for the dictionary.) But if I am, and they die, I feel totally betrayed by the author. They make me care about them and then off them??? That's just mean. And cruel.
Sin already mentioned it: KH killed one of her main characters in her fifth book. He was my fav one after Rachel. I cried buckets. On a park bench. Talk about feeling stupid. And I haven't been able to read the next one in the series because of it. And I haven't been able to reread the previous books either.
Authors can kill the bad guys. Kill characters that I haven't learned to like and care for. But if they kill the ones I like, I will probably lose interest in the story. Or give up on the book/series altogether.
Oh, Stef, I feel like I should say I'm sorry for your loss. But in most books I've seen the author do this, kill off a somewhat beloved character, they almost always bring them back later in the series. Jo Beverly did it and Lora Leigh did it. Do you think that might be the case with KH?
At first I didn't want to read it because of it (I had read spoilers) Sin told me he wasn't really dead. I believed her. (yeah yeah I know) I thought that something would happen that would make me feel good. Or at least leave me with some kind of hope. Yeah right. It would be like believing in Santa Claus or fairy tales...
Plus KH said she wouldn't bring him back so......
Sin I hate you! LOL
Well now that just sucks the big one. Now I'm kind of happy I don't read those!
Hi all!
I was at the zoo this morning and missed the conversation.
I kill off two people on stage in my story. But, they're bad, so it's ok. I haven't killed anyone off who anyone would have cared much for.
That said, I don't mind when people die off as long as it serves a purpose to the story. Gratuitous deaths is a no good for me.
I cried when people died in HP too.
Oh, Terrio! I guess there must be something wrong with me. Perhaps it's just the pirate blood pumping in me veins. But I do so LOVE to kill off people in me stories. Huahuahuahua!! :-D
Don't forget Disney has it down to a fine art. "Kill them and they will come." :-)
Honestly, Stef, the way it worked out I really thought he wasn't dead. I mean, if I was her, I'd use it against Rachel later on in the series. How great would it be if he was the undead that bit her and then he came back to her and she had to choose against Marshall (whom I don't like YET) and Kist? That would make for one helluva story.
PS. Stef.... I wwwwuv you. *batting eyelashes flirtaously* You know you don't hate me. How can you hate me when I'm fluttering my eyelashes like this?
*instinctively ducks at Sin's fluttering eye lashes* *wg*
I can't keep up with all this action. :?
The universe was created in about 3 mins according to theory.
I reckon Terri's blog took less time to be recreated. :?
Hellion, your heroine came back from death as a spirit? and the hero grew for her? :?
I'm getting very confused!
Back to topic:
I think that death can have the most dramatic emotional impact through its finality and irreversibility (except perhaps in a Hellion novel *g*). I think that it can be used very effectively in the romance novel.
At the moment for example I'm reading Anne Gracie's 'the Perfect Kiss'. Revelation of the death of the hero's mother has brought the hero and heroine together as lovers and the heroine's best friend's father is currently on his death bed but desperately trying to force his daughter to marry the hero, against her wishes, for financial reasons.
Fabulous story! :D
That's it, Q - the finality of it. Perfect way to put it. I think with characters always dieing in movies and even video games, people don't understand the finality of it anymore. But if written well in a book, you get that punch of emotion that really moves the reader.
And sorry about the change of topic. But I appreciated what you said this morning. :)
I had no idea what you were talking about when I first read this blog. I thought I'd hit upon one of the first blogs you wrote as a pirate!
Dead characters? Hmmm, can't say as I've read any. I have just started reading romantic suspense but they generally don't kill of characters you've come to know in the book, just hapless victims. But that'd be a kick in the gut, if they did that.
Would I ever write one? Probably not but never say never as they say.
Oh, how could I have been so dense! What about Beth from Little Women? That was gut wrenching. Just when you thought it may be the father who never comes back, she's the one who doesn't survive.
And now that I'm thinking of it, how about Cold Mountain? I mean - COME. ON. I know it wasn't a romance but Jeez Louise, it became a wallbanger on the last sentence!
Wow, it's amazing what comes to mind when you take a minute here!
I've gotta go get Anne Gracie's new book. *makes a post-it note*
Yoo-hoo... Q.. *batting eyelashes* You can't get away from these suckers.
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