Blog flog

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Title: Doubts
Link: http://blog.laurellkhamilton.org/2006/03/doubts.html
Date: Thursday, March 16 2006

LKH is in italics.

The first part of the blog is going on about spoilers, but eventually it gets back on track to what Merry is starting to demand the same kinda treatment as Anita got.

But I promised Anita that if she truly cared about someone they'd survive. I know why I made the promise to her; my mother's death when I was six. To say it scarred me is an understatement.

All I can say about this is no shit, Sherlock. If you haven't read about it in the AB:VH books, you can get a revised version in the Merry Gentry series. Though, for transparency, look to Anita and how she's never gotten over her childhood trauma. I know it must be a horrible experience - so don't think that I'm insensitive - but surely I'm not the only one thinking OMG PLEASE STOP HARPING ON ABOUT IT! You're...how old now? You've had how many years to try and deal with it? You're now rich enough to afford how many therapists?

People die. People that you care about die. It's a sad, frightening and terrible truth. Wanting to save everyone you care about might be a noble thing to aspire toward, but it's ultimately futile and just because you can do it on paper instead of in real life, doesn't necessarily mean you should.

Read Frankenstein if you don't believe me.

So I promised Anita something I cannot promise myself. How was I to know that she would fall in love with so bloody many men? I was planning on monogamy for her when I made the promise. Who knows, maybe her interest in so many of the other characters is my subconscious's way of keeping everyone safe? Maybe.

You think? Only a 'maybe'? Not to mention there's the whole, is it morally better to have sex with characters rather than kill them argument that she brought up in an earlier blog - I think it's probably safe to say that for everyone out there that's cheering for a cast character to die? It's not going to happen.

I just want to scream at how attached to her characters she is. I can understand loving a few of them to the point where you don't want to let them go, but honestly? This is getting ridiculous. Specially from a Bestselling Author. This is the kind of stuff I expect from a 15 year old badfic writer. Which...I'm kinda convinced LKH really IS, because of a bizarre time-travel accident where present-LKH and teen-LKH switched bodies.

But Merry is pressing for the same promise. I don't think I can give it. I fear for some of the men in this, the last few scenes. She's fighting me, and I can't argue with her. I feel that it is wrong, if I can stop it, if I can save them all, why not? Why not?

Because Merry isn't the boss of you? Or, how about this: the book might have one redeeming feature if LKH had the guts to kill off someone that she, and the readers, care about. And then, you can use the death to flesh out characters and plot and propel them out of 2D cardboard cut-outs into 3D creations that are interesting.

Then again, I know I'm a crazy person for thinking that this is going to happen. It'd be nice to see it happen, but it's not. I have to keep telling myself that it's not.

A woman at the St. Louis signing for MICAH asked when I was going to kill someone off in one of the series. She didn't care who, just someone. She felt that the characters weren't in true jeopardy anymore.

I want to hunt down this woman and hug her. Was it one of you guys?

I'd been wondering the same thing myself for a little while. But who would I sacrifice to make my fictional world more believable? No one. I hold them all precious.

GAH! *headdesk* See? LET THEM GO! It's okay, you can afford therapy. Just...let them go!

Admittedly, eventually, Cel is going to have to die in the Merry series.

Hands up the number of people who didn't see that coming after A Kiss of Shadows? Anyone? Beuller?

I just don't see her as every being safe while he lives. But that's books away, and I don't care about Cel, not in that way.

As someone that's generally a supporter of Team Evil and the Congress of Villainy, I want to punch LKH. Just because she doesn't care about the villain doesn't mean that other people might not. I hate it when authors dumb down the bad guy, or just don't care enough to make him/her/it a character that the hero actually has to work to defeat. I love sympathetic villains - not the ones that whine and yell WOE! for they are evil and if only they had a moment of Twoo Wuv, they'd give up their evil ways - but rather, ones that I can understand their reasons for being villains, ones that under other circumstances could be heroes.

I don't really care about Merry's safety, or that of her men. And from what I've read so far, Cel doesn't seem to be that big a threat to anyone. Just reading those two sentences, my suggestion would be to sit and work on Cel and find something worth caring about, just so he could be a better character.

Again, I'm a crazy person for thinking this will ever happen.

If Merry's series is not 'real' enough for some of the readers is that a good enough reason to pick someone to kill off? No.

GAH! WHY NOT? Inquiring minds want to know.

Though, I'm pretty sure people want characters to die not because the series isn't 'real' enough, it's more so we don't have to make spreadsheets (pardon the pun) to keep track of who and what Merry is sleeping with. What's the current tally? Six? Seven? More?

But what I fear is that the plot itself, of its own weight, is leading us to the loss. It's that fear that keeps Merry reluctant, and my feelings of guilt that help her win the argument. Can we get through this last scene with everyone intact, and should we? I don't know anymore; I just don't know.

Don't give into her! DON'T! YOU CAN DO IT LAURELL! Oh, who am I kidding? She'll cave to peer pressure. Merry and Anita will gang up and guilt trip her so that the other 8934737 men will all live, happy and well hung, FOR EVAH!

*headdesk*