This is NaNo number 6 for me, and I haven't yet had to kill a character. At least, I don't think I've killed any characters in the previous five novels (I don't exactly remember some of them too well).
My story is split into three parts.
I've known for ages that, in my story, I'm going to have to kill a crucial character at the end of part two. Part three can't happen without his being dead, without his will.
I realised today, I really have to kill another character at the end of Part One. This character was never going to be in the story after Part One, so that doesn't change the plot horribly ... but I have to kill them. The natural progression of this story is for his funeral to end part one.
Yikes!
How do you kill characters, anyway? When the fact that they die has to be part of the story, but how they die doesn't have to be?
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..... Aaaaaaarrgggh!
18,550 / 50,000
Nov 10, 2007 - 02 35
I'm going to be killing off a character too. While it's not a vital part to the story, it's important to get across some of the psychology of the story, and is going to be a rather dramatic moment.
If the mode of death isn't important, perhaps you could have characters talk about it in the past tense ie: an exposition where they're talking to the police/at the funeral/mourning him, but you don't get to "see" the body or go through the blow by blow physical activity of the death.
Does that make sense?
50,844 / 50,000
Nov 10, 2007 - 03 58
I've just killed 9 charcaters in one foul swoop. I had to thin the cast a bit. 19 characters were too many to juggle.
Phil
2,000 / 50,000
Nov 10, 2007 - 06 17
I realised today, I really have to kill another character at the end of Part One. This character was never going to be in the story after Part One, so that doesn't change the plot horribly ... but I have to kill them. The natural progression of this story is for his funeral to end part one.
I think that there's a difference between 'killing a character' and 'having a character die'.
The first is somewhat like an actual homicide - it's premeditated (and therefore part of the plot) and there's a reason for it.
The seond, just, well, happens. It needs to ahppen in such a way, though, that doesn't cause other characters to run off loking for the murderer.
Can you work in some terminal illness, retconned, so that the rest of your cast, while upset and shocked, aren't really surprised? or maybe some utterly random accident.
I guess it depends on your genre whether a "car crash" would be accepted as such or considered the result of some dark conspiracy.
101,717 / 50,000
Nov 10, 2007 - 11 16
Mostly I worry that a car crash will be over-cliched in this case. I think it could work. I'm going to have to think on it for a bit - so I'll just skip that part for now and come back to it later.
The main problem is, I LIKE these characters!
Thanks guys, some useful suggestions. I knew you'd have some!
20,000 / 50,000
Nov 12, 2007 - 22 52
I intend of killing one or two or three of my characters near the end.
52,129 / 50,000
Nov 21, 2007 - 02 56
Over the last few days I have regretfully come to the conclusion that one of my main characters will die. We'll he's not totally the main character, but he is the one my whole story is pretty much based around.
50,015 / 50,000
Nov 21, 2007 - 16 41
In my last novel I killed off millions of people, and included several characters in those purges. Sometimes I do it quickly without drama, although one time I had a guy fall off a mile high building firing rockets at the enemy the whole way down.
51,042 / 50,000
Nov 29, 2007 - 01 12
Hehe, I just killed the King. Now Macy really will have to become Queen.
Here's the end of the scene...the first guy is the King.
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His eyes started making some things out. Now he could see more than just silhouettes against the bright windows. Each of the three trolls were all dressed in the same uniform except for a long flowing red cape on the centre man.
"Gromig," he said quietly as he blinked a few more times.
With one step forward and a lunge from his side, Gromig pushed his sword deep into King Jamie's side, just below his ribcage. The sword sliced through the King's robes, his skin and various organs, out of the other side and stuck into the wooden edge of the billiard table.
"What have we done to deserve this?" King Jamie asked as he held onto the blade of the sword with both hands. He passed out due to the intense pain streaming up from his middle and shooting through all of his veins.
Gromig stepped back one more time pulling and releasing the sword from both the table and the King's more fleshy side.
With that, the King collapsed forward and landed on the floor face down.
The green carpet which was covering the games room floor started turning red.