Tag Archives: a character in despair

At the Bottom of the Pit

Image Copyright © 2014 Joan Y. Edwards

“At the Bottom of the Pit” by Joan Y. Edwards

There he is. He’s a character in your book. You don’t know  him very well yet. But you will. Everything has gone bad for him in the last 21 days. The more he looks at it like that, it gets even worse. Every which way he turns. He has to fight off negative thinking and he keeps getting in deeper trouble. He used to have simple bills. Now his mortgage is past due. He got fired from his job. His girlfriend is in jail. If he can’t escape from here before the police arrive, he will be in jail, too. Trouble is everywhere in his mind, body, and surroundings.  It’s not yet in his soul. If he doesn’t do something quickly, his soul may be lost, too.

God said, “Ask and you shall receive,.” However, God didn’t say when or what he was sending. The character didn’t get an email or phone call from God yet. His phone didn’t ring. So all he can do is take this on faith that he’ll escape.

He is doing his best. If something bad happens and he is doing his best, then where does he place the blame? Whose fault is it that his life is this way at this particular moment? Whose fault is it that he is in a wonderful human body and his mind is flipping out on him with fright? If all this stress keeps surrounding him,  his wonderful “one hoss shay” that was built for a hundred years may show signs of imperfection. Its flaws may cause it to crumble. Hevneeds soft pillows of  love to heal…pillows of  love come from God and his Universe.

My nerves are shot from trying to control everything that’s spiraling out of my control. I never had control. I just thought I did. My energy is zapped to 1%.

Your character has to arrive at the bottom of a bottomless pit with no hope of being saved before he changes and figures out a way to solve his problems, to accept responsibility, and to get on with his life. To succeed at long last.

Like in real life, he needs an “aha” moment that shows him the answer. He also needs the courage to try a new way. Even if it is not foolproof, he believes this new way has a good chance of working.

Good luck in getting your characters in and out of predicaments in amazing and surprising ways.

Celebrate you.
Never Give Up
Joan Y. Edwards

Copyright © 2014 Joan Y. Edwards