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Tragedy
Jun 21, 2011 21:52:05 GMT -6
Post by MDPthatsme on Jun 21, 2011 21:52:05 GMT -6
You know you're going to have to do it. It just has to be done. It doesn't matter how much you like them or how much the readers will hate you. You know that one of the characters must die. How do you prepare for it? When it comes to killing off characters, what do you think is the best strategy?
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Tragedy
Jun 21, 2011 22:49:59 GMT -6
Post by jennifer on Jun 21, 2011 22:49:59 GMT -6
I've never killed off a character before, how boring am I. lol I guess if I were going to do it or when the time came I'd want to build up the suspense a little. Drop hints here and there through out the previous chapters. A few blogs I follow have no problems killing off some of their characters. They do a great job of leading up to the time of when the character gets killed too, and not to mention the actual killing of the character.
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Tragedy
Jun 22, 2011 18:42:28 GMT -6
Post by dinuriel on Jun 22, 2011 18:42:28 GMT -6
Heheh... I kill characters all the time XD I guess how I handle it depends on the character. Major characters usually get some buildup (unless I want it to be a shocker), the actual death post, and then an aftermath. Minor characters might get some of that if their death serves a purpose, but if they get killed by my Random Death Dates of Doom (which I use for Naroni just because I have so many extras and relatives and it's just easier that way), then they might be lucky to get a mention. But all in all, it depends on the story, the writer, and the character. You find the ways that work
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Tragedy
Jun 22, 2011 21:25:19 GMT -6
Post by simslia on Jun 22, 2011 21:25:19 GMT -6
I've only ever killed off one character. She was very important to me, I was emotionally connected to her in some way -- and after she died, the book stopped. Literally. Not one more word was written.
So I guess I don't handle it, at all . Maybe one day I'll continue the story.
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Tragedy
Jun 23, 2011 8:38:00 GMT -6
Post by MDPthatsme on Jun 23, 2011 8:38:00 GMT -6
jennifer: 13pumpkin doesn't like killing either...she likes everything sugar coated. I prefer violence. YAY VIOLENCE! dinuriel: I'm the same way. I kill'em all the time...not many in my Sim stories though...that'll have to change. simslia: that's sad. I'm sure it was a great story. I hope you continue it when you're ready. I've really only ever written one tragedy, which was Christine's Story...that temporally has been taken off of my sites. It, like your story simslia, stopped after the death. However, I did have operations to make a 2nd and a 3rd piece to it, but my computer crashed. It definitely wasn't meant to be. I still like the story though even if the pictures were amateur-ish and the quality somewhat dull.
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Tragedy
Jul 10, 2011 9:18:56 GMT -6
Post by lilymayrose on Jul 10, 2011 9:18:56 GMT -6
I don't *do* tragedy, and can't bear the thought of killing off a character that I like, for the sake of a story. Sims or otherwise.
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Tragedy
Jul 13, 2011 11:45:10 GMT -6
Post by hrootbeer on Jul 13, 2011 11:45:10 GMT -6
I had a college professor once say that if you're going to kill someone in a story, make the death meaningful. It should have a larger impact on the whole of the story than just a death scene. I try to hold true to this advice if I'm going to have a tragic death. For example, I killed Orrin, the son of Mickey Fields, in my Ditft Legacy, to provide the impetus for his renewed alcoholism and his wife's near suicide. Orrin's death also fueled the next generation's heir to have so many children (the family generation). It was hard as heck to kill off a sim baby, but that death had to occur for the story to work.
That same professor also said that if you're going to kill of a character and the death isn't the important factor, then you have to give your reader something to connect to with the character or their death won't be emotionally important to the reader. For example, I recently killed a character who was the partner of my main character's twin sister. Although I didn't spend a lot of time developing the emotional connection to Sunwon, I did (I hope) show enough of Glenna's feelings for Sunwon to give my readers a reason to feel horrified, shocked, and saddened that she died. I also wanted my readers to be angry at the killer (Glenna's sister and her husband).
So, on the subject of tragedy and killing of characters, remember to make the death important to the plot, and to create an emotional connect to the deceased so the reader feels something when they die.
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Rad
New Member
Posts: 68
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Tragedy
Jul 13, 2011 17:44:43 GMT -6
Post by Rad on Jul 13, 2011 17:44:43 GMT -6
I don't know if I have a plan to kill off anyone in Taken - though that doesn't mean everyone will get a happy ending. Plenty of tragic situations ahead - I am a little nervous how some people's stories are going to be received, I know everyone wants all of them to have a happy ending...
I will almost certainly be killing people in Kingsfield (the hood I want to start this year at some point... although I have no idea when any more) and that will be an interesting challenge. But I think I'll be able to do it when the time comes. I hope!
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Tragedy
Jul 14, 2011 10:45:29 GMT -6
Post by MDPthatsme on Jul 14, 2011 10:45:29 GMT -6
lilymayrose: It's all right. We don't say you have to kill off characters. There's a lot of stories that don't and they may be some of the best stories out there. hrootbeer: Really good advice. Thanks for sharing. Rad: I try not to make every story of mine have a "happy ending" because I like variety. Mostly [echo: mostly] I like to have open endings, meaning that the story could continue on or there are questions to what the future could hold for the surviving characters, like in Alternate Universe. It didn't have a "definite" ending. There was still conflict and some unanswered questions as to the relationship status of Vaiden and Tatiana. And, what some of the more minor characters did afterwards. [shrug] I'll just let everyone keep guessing. ;D
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Tragedy
Jul 15, 2011 21:18:49 GMT -6
Post by simslia on Jul 15, 2011 21:18:49 GMT -6
Rad: Taken is one of my favourite stories, if not my favourite. @hroot: loved that advice @lily: there are plenty of amazing stories/books/novels/novellas/short stories/sims blogs where nobody dies. That's the beauty of creative writing It's not like life, death isn't a necessary part of it.
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