We’ve all done it as writers… we create a character for a specific story, and then get so into the character that he/she takes over and writes the story themselves, from each line to the next. Suddenly they’re running the show, dragging you along as they fight evil, kill zombies, solve mysteries, find true love or their missing daughter… and we never want him/her to end…

Case in point… for those who don’t know, I write a series of extreme zombie books in the Dying Days series, starring Darlene Bobich. What started as a simple flash fiction piece for an anthology has grown into thousands of words spent on this character. I can toss anything in her way and she reacts. I write. Simple as that.  She tells the story.

Except, the nagging question, especially when writing horror and especially especially when writing zombie fiction is… when/if the main character dies?

If you’ve read any of my work, whether short stories, novellas or flash pieces, you know I have a tendency to kill someone, anyone… especially the main character.

All those years ago, when I read George R.R. Martin’s epic series, I was stunned when main characters died… how could he kill the fucking main character?!?!! I read the rest of the books and looked at each character differently. If he could kill Ned (oh, and others! Just wait for the HBO series to return!), no one was safe, every page might be their last. I loved it.

I decided that was the right way to do it.

Back in my junior high and high school days I was the coolest kid, Prom King, graduated first in my class…

Nope. Actually, I was the long-haired Metal-head who skated by with decent grades and spent most of my waking time playing Dungeons & Dragons.

Campaigns got boring pretty fast when none of the player’s characters died and everyone amassed huge sums of coins and magic weapons. Of course, I ran a few campaigns as Dungeon Master where I killed almost everyone, and that got boring as well.

There’s a fine line there, and something I’m always looking at. Should your main character die? Everyone around him/her? Anyone?

Eventually, Dying Days will have to end. Already I have a full plate with other non-zombie projects, and don’t have set plans for a Dying Days 3 or other Darlene Bobich stories. Not saying I won’t write them.

Hell, I might just kill her off in Dying Days 2 and see how that works.

But that will be the hardest death I ever have to write. Someday she might die… hopefully before she amasses all the coins and magic weapons and people stop caring if she lives or dies.