By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy
Going easy on your characters often results in a plot that no one wants to read.
There are some writers who cringe at the thought of putting their characters into danger. Caring authors who encourage and look after their fictional charges as they send them on their literary ways.
I’m not one of those writers.
I
love to torment my characters. I cackle with glee when I devise something horrible to do to them. Maybe it’s my dark side coming out, I don’t know.
Take the characters in my teen fantasy series,
The Healing Wars. The heroine, Nya, never gets a break from me. First, I kill most of her family (this is before the story opens). Then, I give her an evil “is it a blessing or a curse?” magical ability (she can heal, but only if she shifts pain from one person to another). To add insult to this injury, I give her a little sister who can heal without the nasty drawback and all its nastier side-effects (because ya know, being jealous of your little sister really bites).