[Gary Wassner]

I am in the middle of the fifth book in my GemQuest series and I was contemplating having one of my favorite characters die. Then I had second thoughts about it. I would miss that person terribly. But, on the other hand, sometimes it's necessary. I know though that if I was reading a long Epic Fantasy series and one of my heroes died, I would be disappointed.

How do you feel about main, seemingly essential characters, good characters, dying before the series is completed?

[Rob B]

Allowing ALL of the essential characters survive through an epic ordeal is often a hard-pill to swallow. I think having essential characters die, when handled properly, is more plausible than having them all survive.

[Priestvyrce]

Having a essential character die gives the story some 'realism' and also if handled properly(no heavy handed speeches and the like) can give the story a renonsance that can lift it from being just "another" fantasy epic.

[Phedre]

I feel so sad if I finish a book and one of my favourite characters died somewehere near the end (of anywhere else). But sad feelings are feelings too. If a book can make you feel like you've been there in person, it's a good book. If I read a good book, but nobody dies and it's all happiness and joy, I tend to forget about that book really quick. A 'struggling' story stays with me longer.

[Holbrook]

Gemquest; I can only speak from my own thoughts on the matter. For a story to grow both good and bad characters, small and main, have to die.

One thing I used to hate about Star Trek... the red shirts alone always died! ;)

In my own effort at writing "high fantasy" (A book I call the monster, which has taken me six years to get to the point I feel it is ready.) I decided that as the main theme was war, then the body count was going to be high. I made an effort to have both the wasteful, usless death as well as "heroic death." But as it turned out even my heroic deaths are painful, because death is, for those that you leave behind...

The death of a main character, in my opinion adds texture and colour to a work. If all are going to survive, then in a way what's the point in reading it, you know the heroes will win, with out loss.

[Gary Wassner]

When it's time for a character to die in my books, then he or she does. I was just curious how readers feel about it when they read it. It's hard for me as an author to give up a character that I am so close to and have lived with through 2600 pages of history. But When the moment comes, it comes.

[magze]

Sometimes you have to kill off a main character to give the story realism,you cant just kill the baddies or else the story just becomes boring and lacks bite.It is heartbreaking at times when a character you have come to know and love dies but sometimes it just has to be.

[ezchaos]

I have no problem with a main character getting killed off, as long as there is a reason for it. Death is part of life and can make for a more realistic story.

When you're finished reading a book, and you don't feel any kind of emotions at the end of the story, then there's something wrong. That is, any kind of emotions other than boredom, disgust, etc. As Phedre said, feeling sad is at least feeling something, and it isn't neccessarily a bad thing.

[Drakonslair]

I agree. I dont mind characters getting killed off. Just look at Martin he kills them off wholesale and it works well

[Literbug]

Fantasy books that contain violence and war, which only effects the orcs and not the heroes, tend not to be believable. Having sympathetic characters die makes a book more powerful for the reader.