Our daughter is married - HURRAH! All went wonderful and I'm exhausted but happy. Well, mostly happy. My favorite uncle passed away the day before our daughter's wedding. It hit my family hard and we are in a sort of mourning despite our happiness for our daughter and son-in-law. It's one of life's quirky ways of reminding us our stay here is fleeting.
This morning our neighbor of many decades called to tell me her husband passed away last night. My husband had already heard since he has coffee every morning with our local funeral director. I was just about to call her. We talked for a few moments, both remembering times passed and even though they are a generation older than we are, they were newly weds at the same time. We talked on how we found enjoyment in the simplest things if our spouse was with us.
So, among our happiness lurks deep sorrow and I wonder how other writers pull these life experiences into their writing. In one of my books a main character passes away and I was devastated for weeks at the loss of one of my own creations. In another book an older character dies and although it is a sorrow, the natural progression of life felt was easier to bear.
For me, writing a tragedy is heart wrenching and draining. Yet it is equally difficult to write something funny - laugh out loud funny. I struggle to get the comedy of the words just right. I'm exhausted mentally, but not drained.
How about you? Is it easier to write comedy over tragedy? If two assignments were offered, one a loss of life, one a funny episode, which would you pick? And why?
Share with us please!
Til next time ~
DL Larson
3 comments:
I'd like to pick funny to keep me from being too depressed, but unfortunately I need to make my characters suffer. That means I must suffer along with them.
Morgan Mandel
http://facebook.com/morgan.mandel
I think it's harder to make someone laugh. Whenever I write something and I hear the reader laugh out loud, I know I hit on something great!
Congratulations on the wedding and I am sorry for your loss.
Take care,
June
Thank you June. I agree comedy is harder to write than sorrow - it's about timing I guess. Isn't it amazing then humor books rarely get the recognition they need, let alone comedy type movies??
What a quirky thing!
DL Larson
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