Jan
Tragedy
Hello Inkers!
Today I’m starting off a little off topic, but it is something that has been filling up the message boards since yesterday afternoon. I’m talking about the death of Heath Ledger.
I was deeply saddened by his death. I loved him in ‘10 Things I Hate About You’, and watched every other movie he was in since then. ‘A Knight’s Tale’ although not historically accurate, is one of my favorite movies. He was amazing in ‘Casanova.’
It is all very sad. From what I read on the news this morning, his autopsy is set for today. So far speculation is that he accidentally overdosed on sleeping pills. From news reports he had been having a lot of trouble sleeping, and reportedly stated he would take two ambien pills and only sleep for an hour.
What a tragedy to see the death of such a young talent who had so much going for him…
So today’s topic is tragedy. How do we create tragedy? You think of what could be the worst thing to happen and then twist it and turn it and make it even worse. We use tragedy often in writing to create emotional pull, to create conflict. As humans we are naturally pulled to tragedy. Just look how many of us have been obsessed with the Cassie Edwards case, Britney Spears, and poor Heath Ledger.
Shakespeare was an excellent writer of tragedy. All those lovers who couldn’t be together, and the only answer was death. Or poor Othello who killed his wife, whom he loved more than life, because he thought she was cheating on him, when she wasn’t.
When I’m creating tragedy in my stories, I really dig in the needle. What will torment the characters? I’m not being a sadist, I’m just trying to figure out what would make them desperate, sad, etc… This usually makes them a stronger person. Makes their relationships with others stronger. It may even pull the h/h together. One may have a solution for the other, or can provide comfort. Or they may run into the other person and meet for the first time.
How do you create tragedy? What makes something tragic to you?
Happy Wednesday!
Eliza
PS. Remember to take a look at the Romantic Inks auction for a good cause!
His death was awful, and at such a young age. It took a while for it to really hit because I couldn’t place him at first, but seeing “A Knight’s Tale” did it. I loved that movie, and now, he’s sadly gone.
Tragedy is a hard aspect to deal with in writing and real life. I haven’t had a lot in my writing, and when I do, it’s been indirect, shaping the characters on hand, rather than in your face like Romeo and Juliet.
In one story, I had the MC’s ex-husband die, but it had been after a decade of absence. It still affected her and her future plans. I guess I don’t write very tragic scenes.
January 23rd, 2008 at 1:51 pmI have to admit that like you, I’ve grown to like throwing a lot at my characters. To the point that just when it probably couldn’t get much worse, my main character gets sued. And another character has a disease that’s making him become erratic to the point of insanity. The important part is making it plausible.
January 23rd, 2008 at 9:59 pmI take real life, twist it and write. And I know several other authors who have done the exact same thing. Something horrific happens and they work through the emotions by writing it. It’s a great way to deal with stress and grief.
Shakespeare is said to have loved a certain woman so much, but she was married (I think it’s what they based the movie Shakespeare in Love off of). So I think his way of coping was to show the loss in many of his plays and writings. He felt like he was lost or had lost and so that’s what he wrote.
**This all based on what I’ve read about him!**
For me, I do much the same. So how do I create it for my stories? I live it. Ok, maybe I don’t live the tragedy I create exactly, but as a writer, I can transform my feelings into a the Black Moment.
Plus, it makes for a great story! All books have the Black Moment…some just aren’t gut-wrenching, nail-biting moments.
As for Heath, I do hope it wasn’t a drug addiction that took him, but instead an accidental OD. In my mind he was above all that. He was a great actor who has been taken from his family and his fans way too soon.
January 23rd, 2008 at 10:28 pmThe hardest kind of tragedy for me to read is the kind brought on through no fault of the character. It is one things when a person sets themselves up for tragedy but I find it heartbreaking when bad things happen to innocent people.
January 23rd, 2008 at 11:01 pmI think tragedy can be written in so many different ways, and really it’s all about your character. What may be tragic to one character may not be so to another. So I suppose you have to find the “best” tragedy for the character you’re writing
January 24th, 2008 at 8:56 amI love getting my heart ripped out when I read. When I write it’s hard to inject tragedy without it seeming like a device. It seems easier to have had the tragedy happen before the story begins so your h/h is still coming to grips with it. I admit, I like the dark, brooding hero.
January 24th, 2008 at 3:42 pm