As a writer, you have a lot of power. The world and lives of characters live in the palm of your hand, or really your computer. No matter what genre you write, you may end up needing to kill one of your characters. Killing characters is very difficult and shouldn't be done randomly. When writing the death of a character, you need to make sure the scene has emotion and the character's death is useful. Continue reading for a complete guide on how to successfully kill characters.
Why Should you Kill off Characters?
Writers will kill off their characters for different reasons, but there are a few common reasons to kill off characters. Listed below are reasons why it is beneficial to kill off your characters:
Advances the Plot
Adds Depth to the Story
Evokes Emotion
Creates Realism
Motivates Other Characters
Highlights Important Themes
Although it can be disheartening to write, killing characters can contribute to the success of your story. Killing a character will advance the plot by raising the stakes and creating new moments of tension. Along with moving the plot further, the death of a character is sure to evoke emotions and create realism for the reader. Being able to write about death will be extremely useful as a writer and will help advance your novel.
When Should you not Kill Characters?
As mentioned, there are many good reasons for killing off characters, but there are also some horrible reasons. The death of a character should shock the reader and leave them wallowing in emotion, it shouldn't be for nothing. Listed below are reasons you shouldn't kill a particular character:
To Make a Reader sad for no Reason
To Ressurecate The Character Later
When writing, make sure you have a reason for killing a character. There is no point in killing a character just to make the readers upset or sad. Readers don't appreciate feeling sad for no reason, which is why a random death may lead them to stop reading your book. When done well, bringing characters back from the dead can provide surprise and suspense for readers, but it shouldn't be done without reason. It is important to make sure there is conflict and consequences when reviving a character.
5 tips for Killing off Characters
Consider these five tips when killing off the characters in your novel!
Foreshadow the Death
It isn't necessary to foreshadow a character's death, but foreshadowing is a great way to utilize tension and conflict. Many writers oppose foreshadowing because they fear spoiling the death of a character, but foreshadowing doesn't need to spoil the story! When done correctly foreshadowing the death won't give anything away to the reader, because the death is still a surprise. There are two main types of foreshadowing: obvious clues and subtle clues. Obvious clues are large clues that suggest something will happen to a character and create dread for the reader. As the name implies, subtle clues are clues that subtly leave information to the reader. Foreshadowing can add depth to a novel and create an impactful.
Make Sure to Advance the Plot
The death of a character has to move the plot forward, if the death doesn't affect the plot, reconsider its purpose. Death isn't a trivial event, so death should evoke emotions in the characters and heighten the tension. There are many ways that death could impact the plot of your story. Perhaps a character depended on the deceased person and must now be independent, or a character refuses to engage in the event that killed the character. Death changes stories in different ways, depending on the genre, but this change is vital. Readers want to see how a character's death impacts the world.
Include Emotions
In the real world, death is emotional, which is why it should be emotional in your novel. The death of a character should impact the figures in your novel and readers! Readers should see the characters cope with grief or yell in anger. In some cases, the character's reaction to a death can be more heartbreaking than the actual death. Including emotions in your novel makes the story feel alive and realistic. To evoke emotions, make sure to develop a strong relationship between the character and the reader. Showing the emotions of your characters will help fuel your novel and make it feel real. Don't be afraid to have a character feel destroyed, broken, or just lost.
Incorporate Themes
You can sometimes use death to underscore the themes of your novel and its important points. Well-written novels should have specific themes that are present throughout the novel. A character's death can be used to hone in on these important themes and drive them home. As your write about the death of a character, consider the themes of your story and highlight them in the death scene.
Research!
If you want the death of a character to feel realistic, it is important to research. Whether your character is stabbed, poisoned, or dies from a terminal illness, the death should be accurate. Before writing the death scene, research the mode of death to ensure all the facts are correct. There are many online resources available for writers, including Youtube and Pinterest, but it can also be helpful to consult a doctor or professional.
Whether you write thrillers, realistic fiction, or romance, there may come a time when one of your characters has to die. Killing off a character can be heart-rendering and difficult, but I hope these tips are useful in killing one of your characters.
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