You Don't Treat Me Right

Sometimes, the plot I envision at the start of a novel forces me to do things to my characters that I do not enjoy. Although it can sometimes be fun to write a scene where a character is embarrassed or involved in a conflict, emotionally scarring them for life is not pleasant for me as a writer.

Other writers I know love putting their characters in tragic situations. "There!" they say. "That serves you right for giving me writer's block. That's what you get for ruining my plot and running off with that side-character. You deserve this for being so difficult to write about." Yeah, it can be satisfying to get a little revenge on your characters once in a while. Personally, it's hard for me to get through tragic events, especially if they involve love. I hate breaking up couples, even if they will later be reunited. I have no such reservations when I kill off side characters for the greater good, strangely enough.

I'm at the angstiest part of The Witch's Daughter at the moment, and I'm finding it hard to write. It calls for Rapunzel to do something that hurts Ailynn, my narrator. I'm not going to give away any more spoilers, but Ailynn ends up heartbroken for a little while, although they do live happily ever after in the end. I don't like seeing my narrator, whom I have grown to admire, in so much pain.

Like dissonance and resolution in music, people enjoy conflict followed by peace and harmony. Pain and sadness are necessary to fully appreciate and experience true happiness. But you don't want your characters to swing too far one way or the other. If you keep your characters happy all of the time, your story will probably be boring. If you torture them endlessly, the reader will eventually get bored, sad, or both. Strike a balance (although I prefer for my own stories to swing towards the happy side, especially at the end).