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Monday, May 8, 2017

Writing Immortal/Slow-Aging Characters

Alright! And, we're back, now with even more advice!

There are lots of characters that age slowly, can only be killed in special ways (Thus living for a long time), or are simply immortal. Examples include vampires, Wolverine, most polytheistic gods, jellyfish and lobsters (if you think I'm joking, look it up), and many wizards and/or alchemists. But how do you make these characters relatable? I have some tips.

First off, they have to be human. Not actually human, just characterized with as much depth as you would any other human. Your readers have to see and know them just as well as your other characters.  

Beware of falling into what I call the "Broody trap". (Get it๐Ÿ˜‚?) Sure, your immortal character can be sad or even terrified of losing their friends and family to time and space, but the focus of their character shouldn't be on their laying on their bed staring at the hundreds of portraits and photographs that line their walls. Make them witty, make them stupid, make them rude, make them kind, give them a bunch of cool Earth-saving powers, but please don't make them angsty and moody. You might as well give them a big scar and dye their hair green. 


If your protagonist is immortal, they can still lose. Just don't bother putting them in life-or-death situations; people won't care, because your character will ultimately live. Instead, put them between a rock and a hard place. Maybe have your antagonist give them a choice between, say, saving the world or saving their friend.  

If your antagonist is immortal or at least hard to kill, prepare to be writing for a really long time. The exact book on how to kill your antagonist can't just fall out of the sky and into your MC's lap. Unless you want your antagonist to win, don't make him immortal. He can lose by being knocked out, tied up, and taken to prison, but be prepared for your readers to want a sequel. Bad guys have a tendency to break out of prison.

So those are my tips on writing immortal characters. If you can think of any others, tell me in a comment and I'll make a sequel to this post or something. 

Happy writing!



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