Dear Authors.... Death

WHERE TO FIND ME:

[sb]

"Just so they can say: 'There's stakes in my story!' But I ate no steak. The steak was raw, worthless. Send it back." ~ Merphy Napier, 2022

[muhammadsaiful]

"Death is what completes a person" - Kaido

Yeah, truly i always remember Going Merry, WB, and Ace, it is impactful if a character dead
I'm happy that author makes a good death scene that makes me crying like a baby

[xXSamirXx]

I've actually kind of changed my mind about resurrections recently. Most of the time I still hate them and think they take away stakes. But if a fantasy or sci-fi setting establishes early on "These are the methods we can use to resurrect people" it's just another part of the magic system to me. In these scenarios there's also usually a way around it, which keeps some stakes. If resurrection is introduced late in a story or series with no precedent I agree that it sucks.

[booklanerecommendations]

Some specific things I like in death scenes that weren't mentioned in this video:

1. 'Wait WHO did I just kill?!?'
I love twists where a character commits a murder they believe is for the best, then realizes everything is not what it seems and they have just killed someone they loved. Three examples immediately spring to mind: two from fantasy, one from a Gothic novel.

2. The right amount of closure in the dying character's arc
Large amounts closure are fine if it's meant to be a peaceful death, but in many other cases, it can make a character death feel predictable, unrealistic or not shocking/sad enough: e.g. complete character arc before death, lengthy goodbyes to all loved ones, character feels completely ready to die. A little bit of closure, however, can help make a death scene feel more meaningful, such as an important step in the character arc before or during death.

3. Unique but realistic last words
In one of my favorite death scenes, the dying character remarks how beautiful the ceiling is. In another of my favorites, the dying character asks if they've done a good job (closure in their arc) but alternates this with whimpering about the pain. These are examples of what I was trying to say in point 2: these last words are touching without being cliché or unrealistic.

4. Attempts to keep the character alive
I like when the other characters don't give up instantly once a character is mortally wounded, but first attempt to heal/revive/stabilize them. This feels realistic and also adds more suspense and emotion to the scene.

5. It is clear that the character is dead
Two of my LEAST favorite death scenes involve a character dying in an unusual magic-related way, without any visible bodily remains/evidence that shows this character is actually dead. This is so frustrating because it feels like either it'll be a fake-out death or the other characters will find evidence later and instead nothing happens and we're just supposed to accept and mourn this death. I don't know why this bothers me so much but I really want to see the body or some other form of evidence. Or else establish BEFOREHAND that this magical thing is lethal instead of saying afterwards 'oh yeah, they're dead now'.

[harveyweir]

Jade City is a great example of death done incredibly well IMO. As one commenter in the vid mentioned, the story fundamentally changes when the death happens

[swimmyswim]

I feel like resurrection can work in a story as long as it’s thematically consistent with the rest of the story, doesn’t negatively impact the weight of the plot, and comes with an appropriate cost/risk.

One of the best portrayals I’ve seen involves a character trying to bring her dead husband back. This is in a world of magic where there are cases of people being successfully resurrected, but it’s so insanely difficult and improbable that she runs the risk of ruining her mental health even more unless she gives up and accepts the grief.

[zackwalker]

I think my favorite kinds of deaths in stories are when they die "off screen" and its revealed to characters afterwards, cause that's usually how you find out someone died irl. It's just a very real feeling moment. This happened in Looking For Alaska, and although it's not a book it happened in Scrubs, and I love it in Scrubs bc its secretly revealed, where it's made to seem as though it was some random patient we don't know at all and we keep seeing the dead character throughout the episode bc their friend is imagining him there to cope with it until its fully revealed that he's been dead

[zofiabochenska]

The Expanse show did it suprisingly well - they changed a plot fromt he books, somebody quite important dies, and the characters keep remembering them. They have those little moments, where something reminds them of that person and there is either a moment of silence, or sharing a little memory, or something. In a sense, the dead character is still very much present, and I love it.

[lexibroadbent]

I think that Teresa’s death in The Maze Runner was an amazing and awful death scene.
Amazing because she was coming to the end of her character arc, she sacrificed herself and because her last words were a realistic length, but awful because she was the main love interest in the series and she died in… 2 paragraphs. And then the book ended.

[kathrine]

I think my favourite type of death is a meaningful sacrifice, where the character has had or completes its character arc with their death. It can certainly be overdone, but my favourite story did this so well, and it's stuck with me since. It was also the type of death to shift the whole plot moving forwards, as well as having an immense impact on the characters that knew them. All in one heartwrenching package. :')

[pamelatarajcak]

Because fiction often doesn't focus on people of a certain age, I feel very touched after a character dies after a long and fulfilling life or as a relief after a long illness.

[shaggycrow]

I would like your take on a series like Re:zero the main premise is about time reversal so the author get to have his cake and eat it too, he can kill any character get characters real raw reaction and then reverse it but since our main character remembers it he lives with the guilt and ptsd of his own deaths. It creates a situation where the main stakes of the series is the main characters mind and soul as he tries to endure alone.

[pippaschroeder]

I think using death to progress and change character motivation is very important and sometimes underutilized. Also I want to see more cultural views on death

[trevorelliott]

Speaking of Malazan, I'm finally getting around to it and am a third of the way through book one and I believe what you say. This world feels terrifying and alien but the characters in it and how they react to their experiences in this world feels real. I'm already hooked in deep

[sapsap]

Death needs to have consequences. Emotionally, or figuratively or literally. The reason why death or loss matters so much is that you LOSE something from it. And when you lose something, it makes you value it that much more and it hurts that much more. There has to be something on the line for something to matter.

On a separate note, that’s why 9 times out of 10 resurrections feel so shallow because the character comes back and acts as if dying doesn’t mean something. If a character were to be revived have SOMETHING be taken away, (or perhaps something unwanted given to them) some examples would be PTSD, loss of innocence, change in who they are or how they act, grief over what happened to them and the person they used to be, or maybe just plain old fear of the thought of being dead.

Death isn’t quite as simple, and taking account of different elements like grief, loss, emotions and action makes it that much more rich… Even if it rips out your heart and stomps on it with glee.

[TheNeojanus]

One thing I feel should be mentioned that I've been thinking about lately. Brennen Lee Mulligan said that death is not funny or necessarily a punch line, but it is a perfect set up. Example

You're at a wake, and you are getting condolences from everyone. People are walking up and telling you that they're sorry for your loss. People are weepy, teary eyed. There an enormous melancholy in the whole house and no one has had any time to understand and process what recently just happened. And then you look at your watch and then you tell everyone, "hey it's six and we have a reservation at Olive garden so we need to head out". And so everyone collects their stuff and goes to eat Bread sticks and salad.

[ToniOkami]

I’m not going to name names, but we all know there’s a certain manga author who is very fond of fake out deaths (yes, we’re looking at you man who shall remain nameless). What I love about HxH is that Togashi does a great job of having us feel attached to characters and having their deaths mean something and serve a purpose

[charlesmartin]

SIgh, I was hoping it was when a main character of a story/novel was Death (incarnations of Immortality, Discworld, that kind of thing.)

[colburn]

I love the tidbits of love we get for Malazan lol I need to get back to that dang series! Finished book 5 and was just sort of empty and burned out. Every time I think about it though it fills me with feels and love. I need to reread and start it up again.

[tunesmelodia]

Merphy makes Monday mornings better :) thanks for another great video!