Imagine yourself sailing on a boat in the middle of the sea at night. You’ll probably notice first how calm the ocean is, how peaceful it is to be alone, and how the stars in the sky match the ocean you are in. But suddenly, the second thought will come to your mind. How did you end up there? How can you survive on the raging waves and cold sea breeze at night? What if a large and unknown creature carries you down until both of you reach the ocean floor and drown you. Is imagining good? Yes, it is. Imagining things that would not likely happen is a form of sad art.
Use yourself as an example of that imaginary story we’ve had. What would you do if that really happened to you? That would be tragic, right? So your story would definitely be classified as a tragic story. Now, what is a tragic story? A tragic story is when the main character dies at the end of the story, or someone who has a vital role foreshadowed death in his dream. Tragic stories are wonderful to read because they can destroy you on the inside as if they really happened to you in real life.
When you think about it, reading seems a lot easier than writing a compelling, tragic book, isn’t it? What if you were given a chance to write a tragic book? Would you grab it? Given these examples of tragic books like Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, and Macbeth, all work of the famous writer William Shakespeare.
But what are the things you need to consider before writing your own masterpiece? Here are some helpful tips on how to write compelling content for a tragic book.
Tap to Your Inner Emotion
If your characteristics best suit the main protagonist of your story, better check in internally because it may help. Remember that you are writing a tragic fiction book. There’s no space in some humorous acts or whatnot because all you need to do is tap into your own emotions and translate those feelings as your character’s.
Adding Backstories to the Events
Do you want your story to become more tragic? Then add some complex backstories and a sad outcome. Some writers like to break readers’ hearts by using backstories to foreshadow sad events that will eventually happen in the future. The background of the main protagonist is significant as it builds the emotional factor for the readers.
Unexpected Events Must Occur
There’s no denying that tear jerkers in stories are a form of sad art that are surprisingly beautiful when executed well. Unexpected events likely occur to create an emotional attachment to readers. A good example of this is when an important character dies before the story ends. The feeling of someone dying is like leaving a space in your soul with the question, “Why did such a thing happen?” It can turn the reader’s feeling upside down and, of course, cause shock. But not all tragic stories resort to a particular figure to die. Some tragic stories, mainly romance ones, have characters who end up breaking apart. By having these unexpected events in a tragic story, surely the character development of everyone will rise.
Create a Roller Coaster Ride of Emotions
Are the readers comfortable with the storyline of the book they’re reading? Try to mix things or spice things up. It would be best if you add excitement, exhilaration, disappointment, and desperation that will make your story interesting to read. If you successfully executed these four, readers would feel the emptiness in their hearts and truly empathize with the characters. And that, my friend, is an effective style of writing.
Is it Really Tragic, Though?
After all, is your book focused on being tragic? It is important to deliver the right message to your readers that the story was meant to be tragic. For it to be a tragic story, you need, of course, to prove that the book they’re reading is a tragic story. Give them some foreshadowing of the story and let them answer if it’s tragic by themselves. Also, you should set the mood according to the story’s settings. The plot is the turnover of all. Make sure that it is focused and unique.
Final Takeaway
Not everyone likes a tragic story because it is technically a sad and, to others, a boring story. But some readers prefer this genre because this is where they get the tranquility and self-comfort for themselves. Writing a compelling, tragic story is easier than it looks. You just need to tap into your inner self to create and produce sad art.
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