I am writing a short story and I want to kill my main character at the end. The death can be ironic, but it is not meant to be comic. What would you consider to be the most surprising, or original way to kill off a character?
2007-03-15 08:58:52 · 8 answers · asked by Whiskey Tango Foxtrot 4 in Arts & Humanities ➔ Books & Authors
Circus peanuts.
No one ever suspects the circus peanuts, with their Orange #5, and their wee li'l dimples...
2007-03-15 14:30:53 · answer #1 · answered by Deuce 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Whether or not it would be ironic depends on what's happened in the rest of the story, so the question is a little hard to answer.
Keep in mind that the more surprising/original the mode of death is, the likelier it is to come off as funny in and of itself. (Smothered by pillow? Not very funny or very original. Drowned in hummingbird feeder syrup? Very original, but also ridiculous.)
Here's one idea, though, be it good or bad - have him killed somehow by a bullet fired decades ago.
2007-03-15 21:59:46 · answer #2 · answered by cgwynross 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well, surprising could be anything.
Let's say your character has to accomplish a goal, and they are on their way to it, let's say while driving in a car. They get to a stop downtown in a city and get car-jacked and shot. That'd come out of left field, and it'd certainly be surprising. But would it be satisfying? That depends on your story.
Sometimes you need to sacrifice suspense or originality for satisfaction, nobody likes a bad ending, happy or sad.
2007-03-16 05:04:10 · answer #3 · answered by Dan A 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Its hard do give an answer since I dont know anything about your caracter. If I knew something about him or her I would recomend to let dem die doing something unexpected. Something the reader can say: Wow! Anything but that! Lets say that you have a caracter that get panic when anyone mention the word horse or show a picture of a horse. Wouldnt it be very surprising to find that person dead in a stable? Johan
2007-03-15 16:55:28 · answer #4 · answered by Johan from Sweden 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I love eating peanut butter and one night I thought that if I ever became a killer I might use peanut butter. It was very original and I think that it would be very suprising.
2007-03-15 16:45:17 · answer #5 · answered by tigerbaby 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Have his soul (or spirit, life essence, whatever you want to call it) slowly disappear due to all of the people reading your story and learning so much about him. When your readers think about him, he's OK, but when they forget about him, he's gone.
2007-03-15 23:01:13 · answer #6 · answered by jczippay 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Can we assume that you've already seen the recent Will Farrell movie "Stranger Than Fiction"? If not, go get it! ;)
2007-03-15 16:31:32 · answer #7 · answered by no_good_names_left_17 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
how about, he never existed. ooooooh. I'm good.
2007-03-16 12:49:54 · answer #8 · answered by tmreturns 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋