10 BEST TIPS FOR KILLING OFF CHARACTERS

hello everybody today in the spirit of halloween we're talking about killing fictionally speaking that is a lot of writers get super excited to kill off their characters so excited that they get way overzealous and mess it all up before you hack away at your entire cast i've got 10 tips for killing off characters so you make sure you do it right first off a huge thank you to skillshare who has sponsored today's video skillshare is my favorite online learning platform because it's geared toward creators they've got thousands of classes in a wide variety of topics including graphic design business music and creative writing i myself have two marketing classes for writers on skillshare one is all about how to build an author platform the other is a step-by-step guide for launching a book and i may or may not have a third class on the way skillshare is great because they have classes for creators at all levels whether you're brand new to the gig or you've been around the block plus their classes are divided into bite-sized chunks so they're super easy to fit into your schedule skillshare's got a special deal just for you guys stick around until the end of this video to find out more you definitely want to find out more trust me but first we're going to kill some characters just as the writing gods intended if you want more writing tips be sure to subscribe to my channel and ring that bell i give tons of writing business and publishing tips plus sometimes i dress up like a droog which is fun and speaking of killing be sure to pick up a copy of my number one best-selling dark fantasy novel the savior's sister especially if you like seeing characters get the axe cause a whole bunch of people die in this book so you know buy it you'll enjoy it and now here are my 10 tips for killing off characters in three two one go number one you're not reinventing the wheel i'm gonna suck the wind out of your sails for a second ever since game of thrones hit hbo we've seen an explosion of newbie writers who pride themselves on how many characters they kill off they think killing off characters is edgy that it makes them a special ruthless writer it doesn't death is probably the most popular conflict in fiction i struggle to think of a single book that i've read that doesn't at least mention death that's because death is a common conflict in life we all at some point will know someone who's died writing about death does not make you unique it is not impressive we're all doing it i'm not saying this to kick you in the dick i'm saying this because this mentality can get writers into trouble they kill a few characters and think i did it i wrote the next great american novel that's not gonna cut it death is a dime a dozen you're gonna need more than that to make your book stand out number two make it matter a lot of writers get upset when people say this but i'm gonna say it anyway every death in your story needs to serve a purpose but jenna shut up you big baby let the adults speak every death in your story should serve a purpose because every plot point in your story should serve a purpose that's how books work every action should move the story forward all of it additionally just because a kill has to serve a purpose doesn't mean it needs to be a monumental purpose i'm not saying to make every kill dramatic and scene stealing i'm just saying that you should be able to point to every single kill in your book and explain how it moves the story forward even if it's just an inch in the savior's champion one of the earliest kills serves a very simple purpose establishing the villain kaleo makes his first kill and thus everyone knows he is someone you don't want to with on the flip side one of the later kills is very dramatic and emotional and serves to instigate the main character's breaking point these are very different kills with very different purposes but here's the kicker they both matter if you can't think of a reason that your kill enhances the plot then it's just gorporn number three consider the audience i once read a book that featured a sexual assault followed by a graphic murder this wouldn't be surprising if it weren't for the fact that this was a middle grade book written for 10 year olds what before you kill off your characters consider your target audience that means age range and genre the younger your audience the less graphic your kills should be middle grade kills should be quick and painless figuratively speaking adult kills can be as graphic as you please and young adult should be somewhere in between next consider the expectations of your genre if you're writing any sort of dark fiction like horror thriller dystopian or dark fantasy you can get graphic with your kills but readers don't dive into contemporary romance expecting detailed descriptions of decapitation take into account what your readers are anticipating before you start slicing and dicing your characters number four know your emotional goal no one kills off characters hoping it goes unnoticed by readers if you're giving someone the axe it's because you want a reaction out of readers and it's important to determine what kind of reaction you're going for not all kills are created equal some are written to scare readers some are written to make them cry some are written to make them rage the easiest way to determine your emotional goal is to figure out how this kill affects the main character say for example the villain is dying what would be going on in the character's mind are they feeling relieved or victorious do they have mixed feelings maybe they're feeling inexplicable guilt over their role in the villain's death your main character's feelings are going to hinge on two things their personality as well as their relationship with the deceased nail down these elements and it'll dictate the proper emotional tone for the scene number five it's all in the details once you've figured out the emotional tone you're gonna need to pay close attention to the details of your scene your word choice is going to do a bulk of the emoting it's going to set the mood for the character's death which means it can make or break the scene entirely say for example the main character's mother was murdered and they are overcome with grief if you spend the whole scene listing the grotesque details of how this woman was butchered that's not going to make readers sad it's going to make them disgusted instead describe the grey cast of the mother's skin the emptiness of her eyes the limpness of her lifeless body words like gray empty limp and lifeless have a depressing feel to them thus they set a sad tone for the scene number six kill appropriately there are roughly a bazillion ways to kill off a character which is both a blessing and a curse it's great to have options but just because a particular kill seems fun doesn't mean it's a good idea think about your genre and world building when deciding how to kill a character with a contemporary setting you're looking at realistic deaths like car accidents or health complications in fantasy sci-fi or any kind of action adventure you're going to have more options particularly combat related options and world related options arrow wounds laser fights gunned down by the enemy in horror comedy you can be a lot campier the kills should be outlandish and silly that's the whole point this may sound obvious but so many writers get caught up in the thrill of fictional murder they overkill pun intended if it's not the right fit for the genre it's going to stand out for all the wrong reasons number 7 variety is the spice of life some books require a hell of a lot more killing which is both fun and complicated the more characters you kill the less impactful it will become which means you need to find new ways to keep your readers on their toes the easiest way to do this is by varying the kills if every character dies in a sword fight that's not exciting readers will notice the pattern and see it coming it's also not exciting if only background characters die we'll understand that the key players have plot armor to keep things unexpected vary not only the cause of death but the types of characters who die even if all the deaths are similar say combat related there are still different kinds of combat a character can be bludgeoned to death they can be stabbed or strangled they could be blown to pieces and of course this means some of the main cast has gotta get the boot it'll be painful but so so worth it number eight consider the implications kills usually create a reaction in readers that's kind of what you want what you don't want is readers walking away from the kill thinking you're a bigoted there are a lot of offensive cliches surrounding character deaths the three most obvious ones are the black guy dies first bury your gaze and fridging a woman black eye dice first is exactly what it sounds like there's only one person of color in your book and they die first of course barrier gaze is similar there's only one lgbtq plus character in the book or there's only one lgbtq plus couple and they're the only ones who die freaking a woman is when a female character exists solely to die that way a male character can become motivated by her death and turn into a hero or vigilante these cliches among others are offensive because of the implications whether you intended it or not readers are going to assume that you don't value the life of anyone who is not a cis white male this doesn't mean you can't kill off characters who are female lgbtq plus or people of color it just means that if they are the only ones who die or if their death is just a tool to motivate some white knight people are gonna be pissed and rightfully so number nine shock value is okay sometimes we can all think of fictional kills that caught us off guard they're often some of the best kills out there they can also be some of the most despised kills in fiction and that usually comes down to poor taste and poor planning it's okay for a kill to have shock value but if that's the only purpose it serves there's a high probability it's going to come off as nonsensical and cheap say in your contemporary novel your main character's father suddenly dies from a heart attack this is shocking but it makes sense heart attacks are sudden plus they're really common among middle-aged men it can also serve a greater purpose in the story maybe it instigates the main character reconnecting with their love interest at the funeral but if the main character's father is suddenly gunned down by the mafia out of nowhere that's not shocking it's just stupid you want readers thinking i didn't see that coming not where the hell did that come from remember not all shocking kills are good kills and not all kills need to be shocking a slow drawn out death that we see coming a mile away can be just as impactful as a shocking death and number 10 think long and hard before killing off the big guys a lot of writers want to surprise their readers so they kill off a main character or a fan favorite sometimes this works other times it backfires in a big way you really need to think long and hard about which camp your story fits into some things to consider are genre and audience a happily ever after is a qualifier for the romance genre so if you kill off one of your main characters you've just broken a vital genre rule and readers are gonna be pissed on the flip side if you're writing horror this wouldn't be an issue at all readers expect tragedy you should also consider thematic statements and story building if your character's death goes against all of their past choices as well as the message of your story then it's going to come up as a cheap shock value tactic but one of the most important things to consider is the longevity of your story especially if you're writing a series killing off the mc or a fan fave can spark two kinds of rage in readers either they become desperate to finish the series and find out if their beloved was avenged or they decide to abandon the series entirely after all their favorite's dead so why keep reading think long and hard about the potential consequences of killing off a key player it may just be fiction but it could make or break your reader's overall satisfaction with your novel so that's all i got for you today a huge thank you to skillshare for sponsoring today's video if you'd like to check them out i highly recommend it especially if you're looking to learn any new skills or if you want to check out my classes skillshare is super affordable an annual subscription is less than 10 bucks a month however the first 1000 people who use the link in my description will get a free trial of skillshare premium membership that's access to thousands of classes including my classes for free so get on it click the link don't forget to subscribe to my channel i post new videos on wednesdays and if you want to be alerted as soon as i upload ring that bell the save your sister is available in ebook paperback and hardback at all major retailers so if you like to see characters die but you also want romance and fantasy definitely check it out i've got the links listed below and be sure to follow me on social media i'm on instagram tumblr facebook and of course you can tweet me at jennaressie bye this is vrondy's why the haven't you subscribed to jenna's channel do you really want to face me if you don't do it you know what will happen i'll rip out your tongue torture you then leave your rotten corpse out for the birds to feast on it now press the goddamn button and the bell too

Channel: Writing with Jenna Moreci

Views: 30,093

Rating: 4.9592571 out of 5

Keywords: write, writer, writing, read, reader, reading, book, books, ebook, publish, publishing, novel, author, writing tips, writing advice, writing motivation, writing inspiration, Jenna Moreci, bestseller, bestselling writer, bestselling author, authortube, booktube, the savior's champion, the savior's sister, the savior's series, skillshare, how to write, tips for writing, how to write a book, tips for writing a book, killing off characters, killing characters, how to kill characters, fiction

Id: kprs0vL_FOo

Length: 13min 41sec (821 seconds)

Published: Wed Oct 07 2020