My Sassy Character

I mentioned my new WIP, Prisoners of the Wailing Tower. The MC, Alemin, is part of a minstrel band who are all performers but also secretly mages. They work to help the oppressed people of Skaythe. In the first novella, Keilos is a singer, and in the second, Tisha is a dancer. Meven, in the third novella, is a puppeteer. In each case, their performance art is integral to their magic, and that continues here, as well. Alemin’s art is to juggle, along with his younger brother, Berisan. He draws energy from the rhythm and movement of his art.

This was all in my plan, but I’m learning a lot as I begin the actual writing. And Alemin is surprising me! Even though he’s going to be held in fairly miserable conditions, instead of being scared as I was expecting, Alemin wants to… laugh.

He laughs in order to release tension. To cheer up people around him.To lighten the burden of their mutual captivity. The Minstrels are all about easing the suffering of others, after all. Who is more miserable than a bunch of prisoners in a dungeon?

Unfortunately for Alemin, most of his fellow prisoners are not accustomed to being cheered up. They are going to take his humor as bizarre, even insane. The prison wardens and guards will feel mocked and insulted. They will think he’s being sassy, in other words.

I have to admit, I feel conflicted about taking this approach. Would it really make sense that someone laugh under such a circumstance? Maybe it’s too random and bizarre. At the same time, having Alemin be morose and scared is exactly what people would expect. I don’t like to be so predictable.

So I plan to write it out with Alemin laughing, at least for now. If it doesn’t work the way I want it to, then that’s what revision is for. It should be interesting, anyway.

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