Tag Archives: death

Justifiable character homicide?

Posted on by under One Hundred Days of Blogging

There are few easier ways to really tug at a reader’s heart-strings than by killing off one of their favorite characters. It’s a pretty common practice, and something any fan of Game of Thrones is far too familiar with: the sudden, perhaps unexpected offing of a beloved character, or a not-so-beloved character. The important difference here is that loved or loathed, these now-deceased fictional folks had names and families. Above all else, they had plot relevance, and so such deaths are tailored to have tremendous impact. It could be to push the plot forward, to give a protagonist that extra push towards heroic deeds, a means by which to turn a could-be villain into a fully-fledged monster, or a number of things.

Regardless, there are an awful lot of characters who seem to be marching right into the grave. It raises a curious question for writers, really. When, if at all, is it really necessary to kill off one of your darlings? At what point does such a play cheapen the story instead of strengthening it? Are there worse things for characters than death? Continue reading →

One Hundred Days of Blogging – Day Twenty-Eight

Posted on by under One Hundred Days of Blogging

I feel a hell of a lot better than I did last night, so that means I’ll be able to focus on tonight’s blog entry a little better (in between little kitten keyboard dances). I took a glorious nap after work, which seems a little silly since my initial plans for tonight included a post going into how I need to work on building better writing habits by doing and not doing certain things. Like how I should break my cycle of post-work naps that tend to last far longer than they should. That post will still happen, of course.

Just not on a day I napped for two hours. I’m not that big of a hypocrite, damn it.

Marceline the Kitten Queen is settling into her new home well. She’s learned she can jump very high. It’s very cute when she jumps up to windowsills or joins Brianne or me on the couch. It’s less cute when she keeps hopping up onto the table so she can sample my dinner. Needless to say, it’s a bit difficult to focus now that there is an adorable new kitten here, making a total of three adorable cat-beasts in the house.

That’s why tonight’s post is going to be about murder. Continue reading →