Killing off a character (especially a protagonist or antagonist) is a challenge that many authors encounter. When you’re writing a story, you must fully develop each character in a way that makes readers feel connected to them. Determining who, if anyone, should die during a story can be a tricky process. You must also leave room (in some cases) to revive a character, such as letting readers think someone has died, only to discover by the end (or in a future book in a series) that he or she was not dead after all. There have been numerous best-selling novels that have featured memorable deaths.
There are many ways to kill a character. Novels often include illness, war, crime and violence, sudden disappearance and other issues that make it easier to incorporate the death of a character. It’s always a good idea to think ahead before “bringing down the axe,” however. Will you need this character again later? Will readers be “okay” with the death? Will the death affect other characters or situations that will become unresolvable if he or she is absent? Never let a character die without thinking it through.
Novels with deaths readers never forget
If you haven’t read the novels included in the following list, doing so is a great way to learn more about how to kill-off a character in a memorable way:
- Lennie Small, in “Of Mice and Men,” by John Steinbeck
- John Coffey, in “The Green Mile,” by Stephen King
- Boromir, in “The Two Towers,” by J.R.R. Tolkien
- Bruno and Shmuel, in “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas,” by John Boyne
- Bubba, in “Forrest Gump,” by Winston Groom
Most of these stories include elements of human suffering and tragedy. Anyone who has ever read one of the novels, even if they don’t recall all the details, will no doubt remember the deaths of these characters.
Why should a character die?
As an author, you must determine whether a character or characters should die in the novels you write. Remember, readers are investing time and emotional energy into your stories. You can’t (or shouldn’t) start killing off characters for no good reason. Here are several issues that might make “death of a character” a logical outcome:
- It makes your story more realistic and relatable to readers.
- One character’s death sparks motivation and action in other characters.
- The death compels a change-of-heart in someone.
- Death would be a likely outcome in real life (such as a long-fought battle with cancer).
- The character in question is no longer needed to keep the plot moving forward.
If you’re unsure whether a specific death scene is fitting for a story, ask an editor or beta reader to review it before submitting your manuscript to a publisher. Always ask yourself why you’re considering killing off a character to make sure the death would not seem arbitrary or unnecessary to readers. While it’s possible to write novels that don’t include death (or even suffering, for that matter), there are times when allowing readers to experience a character’s death serves a purpose and takes a story to the next level.
