Balancing character levity in a serious narrative
I am looking for examples of authors who manage to have sarcastic/funny characters exist in a very serious, end of the world type of scenario.
The issue I am trying to resolve is when I write character dialogue several are quite sarcastic, and rarely serious but find themselves in dire situations...how do I balance the levity and the plot line without detracting from the seriousness of the situation?
This post was sourced from https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/9783. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
1 answer
Why is it an issue? Don't you know anyone with a black sense of humor? People crack jokes, particularly sarcastic ones, in the darkest of hours. I wouldn't find it problematic, particularly if you've established that the sarcastic character is a wiseass who uses humor to deflect or to ratchet down emotionally intense situations as a character trait.
I'd read true-life cop stories or military memoirs for something like this. First responders develop "gallows humor" to help cope with the stress of the job. Try the BBC documentary series Inside Afghanistan.
0 comment threads
0 comment threads