Why Did You Kill that Character?

The writer’s life does not take place in a vacuum. Especially if your work is published.

Suddenly, there is a community of readers who have questions about the story and why did certain things happen.

Why Did You Kill Old Thomas

A frequent question I’ve received is why, in Journey to Riverbend, did I kill Old Thomas.

Old Thomas is the Native American scout on the posse. During the course of the story, Old Thomas and Michael Archer form a spiritual bond. The scout’s culture and belief system adds to Michael’s own understanding of his own faith and his walk with God.

As the posse closed in on the kidnapper, Old Thomas is shot and killed in an ambush. Apparently, a lot of readers like this character and are upset when he leaves the story so violently.

I Didn’t Kill Him

I Found Him Dead

In answering this question with book clubs and readers, I’ve often quoted Jerry B. Jenkins—I didn’t kill him. I was just writing along and I found him dead.

And this is mostly true. When I look at my original outlines and notes for the book, Old Thomas’ death was not planned or anticipated.

When I reached that point in the story, I went off the outline and killed Old Thomas. I surprised myself when this happened. And Michael Archer wasn’t too happy with me either.

I’ve studied other writers and discovered many did the same thing. And my reaction was similar to what I heard from readers—“How could you do that?”

I examined other writers and the scene of Old Thomas’ death in my novel. What struck me is how the rest of my novel flows from it. I know now Old Thomas died for the sake of the story. As a storyteller, I needed to raise the stakes. I wanted to give Michael more stress, to make things worse for him. I wanted the moral choice Michael makes at the end of Journey to Riverbend as clear as possible. He needed to wrestle with his inner demons in order to conquer them.

Please share any other questions you have about Journey to Riverbend or any of the characters. Or any questions about the writing process. I will answer them all.