In keeping with the October Halloween theme, I’m including one of my favorite TV shows in today’s post.
Can you guess which show I’m referring to?
Here are my top five lessons in writing that I’ve picked up from watching AMC’s Walking Dead.
- Great writing includes Characters we love.
- Great writing includes Characters we love to hate.
- Great writing includes sacrificing the Characters we love.
- Great writing includes a weak Character’s metamorphosis into a strong Character.
- Great writing includes allowing the enemy to (almost) have a complete victory.
I’m not sure who was my favorite character in the earlier seasons. I felt for Rick, the main character of the series, but at the same time felt he never made the right decisions. Carl, Rick’s son, of course is just a kid and you want him to make it.
Lori, Rick’s wife and mother to Carl, is the character I found myself hating. That is until she sacrificed herself for her unborn baby, Judith.
Carol, a battered wife who loses both husband and daughter, was the character that struggled so much through the first couple of seasons to have courage. And when she found it, you wondered if she has lost all reason and compassion.
Every season a new enemy is introduced. The enemy kills, steals, destroys, and seems to have everything while this group of survivors barely make it. But, in the end, they always do just that, survive.
I’ve learned one other thing while watching Walking Dead. You may not agree with me and you may even judge me for watching such a violent graphic show. But I’ve learn about tenacity. This band of survivors, well, they never give up. They plan ahead for victory at the threshold of defeat. I’ll take that lesson as well and implement it into my writing career. I’m planning for success, victory, and I’ll go down fighting for my day when I see my name scrolled across a book cover.
I’m not giving up. How about you?
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