Killing Characters

I recently read a book in which one of the main characters had what doctors suspected was an inoperable brain tumor. Treatment methods were failing, and the character was physically and mentally deteriorating. Death seemed near.

I don’t normally read books where a main character is going to die. At least not knowingly. I also don’t read books where a main character commits adultery, but that’s a story for another day.

The only reason I kept reading this book despite knowing the hero would likely die is that I’d become invested in the character. This book was one in a long series I was reading, and the character had been in each of the other books. Throughout the course of the other books, he was aloof and secretive while also taking dangerous risks, and we never knew why. When he gets his own book, his diagnosis is revealed and now we understand him better. We’ve also become invested in him and have to see this through to the end.

Since I’m not going to reveal the name of the book or the series or even the author, I feel safe in telling you our hero doesn’t die. A groundbreaking treatment abroad becomes available and our hero spends six grueling months participating in a clinical trial that ultimately saves his life.

I know it probably sounds cheesy or like the author took the easy way out. In her defense, the trial wasn’t easy for him and even after it ended, it took even longer for him to regain his physical and mental capacities. He wasn’t back to his old self immediately after the trial ended. We saw the aftermath of his recovery, which I was able to appreciate more since he didn’t die.

As for the author taking the easy way out by letting him live, I’m all for that. There are some deal breakers for me as a reader. Killing a main character is number one for me. It used to bother me when I would read warnings in the blurb in which the author mentioned triggers as well as story themes like death and adultery. It seemed like such a spoiler. Guess what? I’d rather be spoiled so I’m not shocked later on. Reading about the death of a main character is too emotional for me. I actually end up depressed, despite the story being fiction.

Here’s where I have to make a confession. I have actually killed a main character in my novels. My Reader View’s literary award-winning book, Extraordinary Will, is all about the declining health and ultimate death of young adult Will Cooke which happens in the midst of him experiencing his first love. It was such a hard story to write that I contemplated pulling a miracle out of my ass and letting him live. I couldn’t compromise the integrity of the story. In the end, he died, and I cried my eyes out the day I wrote that scene. In other books I’ve written, I’ve also killed off secondary characters and implied the death of one. Since his body was never found, readers always believed he would come back one day. Who knows? Maybe he will.

In the meantime, I am going on record right now as saying I will never kill another main character again. And if I can help it, I’m not going to read any books in which this happens. Let’s just hope the authors are kind enough to give fair warning before killing a main character.

Too Much of a Good Thing

When I first started writing, all of my novels were standalone. It didn’t occur to me to write in a series until readers started reaching out to me asking if certain characters were going to get their own book. That input changed the way I approach writing. Now, when I write a story, I do it with a series in mind.

My shortest series is two books; The Lincoln Bothers. My longest is my six book new adult series, New Beginnings. To date, I’ve released four books in that series with two more on the way. I have a few that are four books and one that’s five.

Recently, I fell down the rabbit hole of reading a series that had sixteen books. Not only that, but it has a spinoff series that currently stands at three books. When I realized there were sixteen books in the series, I was a little overwhelmed. My first thought was that it was a lot of books and that would cost me a lot of money when all was said and done.

I ended up reading all sixteen of those books and am now on the first book in the spinoff series. While each book was a standalone, there were overlapping story arcs and, of course, appearances from characters in prior books. I could have chosen to read only a few of the books, but there would have been some confusing gaps for me.

Reading all of these books got me thinking. Is sixteen books in a single series reasonable? Is there such a thing as a reasonable number of books in a series? Can you have too much of a good thing?

There is no industry standard that dictates how long or short a series should be. Obviously, readers are buying these books. Each one had several reviews and most were positive. I did notice the newer books in the series had fewer reviews, making me wonder if readers had jumped ship. Maybe they got tired of the characters or the story line and decided they’d had enough. Or maybe the readers are still there but they just didn’t dedicate themselves to doing reviews as they did when the earlier books were released. Whatever the reason for the lack of reviews, it’s clear the series has a loyal fan base.

Some authors, me being one of them, know exactly how many books will be in a series before they even write the first book. Often, that is shared with fans in advance in order to increase the buzz for the series. That’s not to say authors are driven by demands of the fans. If the fans want more of a certain series, authors might be likely to deliver because it keeps readers happy.

As an author, I’m not just writing for the happiness of my readers. I’m doing it for my happiness as well. That being said, whether or not sixteen or more books in a series is too much isn’t for me to say. The author is going to write what she wants. The reader has a choice. Either read all the books and get lost in the wonderful world the author has created or pick and choose which booksto read. 

For this series, I’m sticking with it until the end. In this case, that sounds to me like the answer is no. This isn’t too much of a good thing.