My nephew pointed out my fiction has no stakes anymore

Was helping my 14-year-old nephew with a school story last weekend. He asked why my hero always wins easily. Said it felt like watching a tutorial video. Got me thinking about every prompt I've answered lately. All my characters just coast through problems. No real danger or loss. Even the villains are just mildly annoying. Has anyone else noticed their stories got too safe? What do you do to actually threaten your characters?

2 comments

2 Comments

blair_davis507d ago

Yeah but have you tried killing someone off? Nothing raises stakes like a body count.

karen_sanchez106d ago

Actually, I think killing characters just for shock value can backfire. It can feel cheap if there's no real build-up or meaning behind it.