{"id":107851,"date":"2016-03-28T16:19:08","date_gmt":"2016-03-28T16:19:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/2016\/03\/28\/how-to-make-a-characters-death-sadder-3\/"},"modified":"2016-03-28T16:19:08","modified_gmt":"2016-03-28T16:19:08","slug":"how-to-make-a-characters-death-sadder-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/2016\/03\/28\/how-to-make-a-characters-death-sadder-3\/","title":{"rendered":"How to make a character’s death sadder"},"content":{"rendered":"

fucktheg0ds<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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the-enderlady<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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how-to-art<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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generic-heroine<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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bobby-phantom<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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sundownwinter<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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asbehsam<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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socialjusticeprincesses<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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peachdoxie<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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thehellspawnhero<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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shuttle-fly-blogs<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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iceb0x<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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stevraybro<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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the-right-writing<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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  1. \u00a0Don\u2019t have them die of old age after a long, fulfilling life. Many people don\u2019t even think of this as sad (note that this can still work if you have enough of the other factors).<\/li>\n
  2. \u00a0Leave one of their major goals unfinished. The more enthusiastic they are about completing the goal, the sadder.<\/li>\n
  3. \u00a0Give them strong relationships with other characters.<\/li>\n
  4. \u00a0Make them fight against whatever is causing their death. Their ultimate loss is sadder if they struggle.<\/li>\n
  5. \u00a0Kill them in the middle of their character arc.<\/li>\n
  6. \u00a0Don\u2019t describe their funeral in detail. Maybe it\u2019s just me, but I find that long descriptions of funerals kill the sadness.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/blockquote>\n

    That\u2019s enough Satan\u2019s publisher\u2026<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

    >B)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

    7. If possible, try to kill them off in the middle of the story, so we had time to like them and we will have time to let the loss settle in.<\/p>\n

    8. Also, place surviving characters in a situation where having the deceased person there would help them get out. You can choose whether you will point this fact out or if you want the audience to make the connection themselves.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

    <\/figure>\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

    9. Make them die by sacrificing themselves to save someone they love from a danger created by the antagonist.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

    based on a few deaths that made me blub like a baby\u2026<\/p>\n

    10. have their loved one, broken hearted, tell the team to stop fighting because \u201cits over.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

    11. have their pet come looking for them.\u00a0<\/p>\n

    12. have their loved one perform a popular song at their funeral so it makes the fans cry whenever it\u2019s played.<\/p>\n

    13. family witnessing the death and\/or blaming themselves.<\/p>\n

    ~ Mulan<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

    so\u2026 let\u2019s add some frustration<\/i> to your dear readers\u2019 sadness, shall we?<\/b><\/p>\n

    14. kill the character in the middle of making a joke, smiling, or expressing\/experiencing joy\/happiness.<\/p>\n

    15. make the character\u2019s death slow and painful, but make them unable to call out for help even though they can literally see<\/i> the other characters nearby.<\/p>\n

    16. after killing the character, have others think the character had betrayed them so they\u2019d always hate them and remember them as traitors and never say nice things about them\u2026 Give your readers no chance to have group-therapy with other characters by making them the only ones who know the truth.<\/p>\n

    17. right before their death, show a side of them nobody has seen. (someone who is always tough and brave being genuinely scared of dying alone; someone who is always laughing being in tears before dying, etc.)<\/p>\n

    18. make them the only person who knows a big important secret that would help other characters in the story.<\/p>\n

    19. have them being lied to before dying. (thinking they\u2019ve been betrayed; thinking they weren\u2019t loved; thinking they\u2019ve lost their loved ones, etc)<\/p>\n

    20. make the character very enthusiastic\/passionate about a certain goal, constantly put stress on their goal, have them die unexpectedly before they can reach their goal.\u00a0<\/p>\n

    and the best one\u2026<\/b><\/p>\n

    21. have another beloved character kill them\u2013better be a close friend to your character, one that absolutely nobody suspects, one that everyone can\u2019t help but love, one who is always enthusiastic about things and encourages your character. THEN<\/p>\n