I made this face yesterday on the way to the comic book store. If you follow me on Twitter, you probably already know what I'm talking about. But for those of you who don't, what had happened wuz (lol) Travis ran a red light and nearly T-boned this chick. (Seriously kids, cell phones and driving do NOT mix. Leave the phone in your damn pocket!) By the time both our cars stopped, there wasn't two feet between us. And I look up, clutching my chest, to see a police car sitting across the street.
But he just waved and shook his head.
Mr. Unknown Officer, if by some chance you ever see this: Thank you! Thank you! THANK YOU! for not ticketing my boyfriend. (And we apologize for running that red light. This isn't a regular occurrence...if that's any consolation.)
The way I see it, he A) saw the terror on my face and figured we'd had enough for one day, B) knew I was going to chew Travis out, so he probably didn't need to, C) was glad he didn't have to fill out an accident report, or D) was actually just a really nice guy. Either way, I'm happy.
I got to thinking as we continued toward Heroes and Dragons--if one of my MCs was in that situation, they would've hit the other car at full speed and the cop probably would've found something illegal that the MC (legitimately) didn't put in the car. Or perhaps the accident would awaken a dormant force within the MC that threatens to consume their soul if they don't learn to control it. I dunno...something horrible would've happened.
Because no one wants to read "we almost hit the other car, but didn't, and the cop across the way just let us keep driving. Then we bought four comics and went home for dinner. It was yummy. The end." That's boring.
As cruel as it seems, we have to put our MCs through hell. We can't let them catch a break. We've got to drive them to their breaking point, then push them a little further. (Holy shit, we're evil!)
But if nothing ever goes right for the MC, it may seem like you're trying too hard to get the reader to sympathize with them. And no one likes a pity monger. So, our MCs are allowed to have tiny strokes of luck.
Really tiny.
I suppose, like most things involved in writing, it's all a matter of finding the right balance. Your main character can't be so lucky that it looks like you're coddling them, but they also shouldn't be so unfortunate that readers roll their eyes.
How often does your MC catch a break?
Has anything incredibly lucky happened to you lately?
HAPPY WRITING, LOVELIES!
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