tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post1336165054356212040..comments2023-11-22T06:35:25.251-05:00Comments on POE'S DEADLY DAUGHTERS: Time flies...or crawls...in a seriesJulia Buckleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270211923343731659noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-41345992585588819462010-07-23T11:04:15.104-04:002010-07-23T11:04:15.104-04:00I had to start the Marge Christensen Mystery Serie...I had to start the Marge Christensen Mystery Series in the late 90's, because Marge charges to the airline gate without a ticket, and her contribution to her IRA as a non-working spouse was $250 a year. At the same time, I wanted her to be in her forties, because life begins at 40 doesn't it? But if she isn't going to fall across a dead body every few weeks, and since I want the Pat Battahttp://patriciabatta.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-81714820083422540742010-07-23T01:06:06.444-04:002010-07-23T01:06:06.444-04:00I agree with Diane Vallere. It's a natural thi...I agree with Diane Vallere. It's a natural thing to age the characters. And I thought long and hard about what age Crispin would be in 1384. He was supposed to be in the prime of his life at his fall from grace which would put him at 23 then and 30 when the books begin. The idea was to see his life progressing--or regressing--for the next sixteen years, a new year for each book. The dynamic Jeri Westersonhttp://www.jeriwesterson.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-46444213199693754532010-07-22T11:20:49.722-04:002010-07-22T11:20:49.722-04:00Kristin Van Dijk was seventeen on the first page o...Kristin Van Dijk was seventeen on the first page of Baby Shark, and nineteen at the end of the book. Book one began in October 1952. Book four, Jugglers at the Border, began in October 1958. Book five, with luck, will be published in 2011 with the story beginning in 1960. Kristen will be twenty-five at the beginning of book five. Since I started a series writing for a seventeen-year-old, I had noRobert Fatenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-32594973663651957502010-07-22T11:04:46.061-04:002010-07-22T11:04:46.061-04:00When writing, it feels natural to age the characte...When writing, it feels natural to age the characters. They need to show some kind of growth from murder to murder (though when reading I often wish I knew what they were doing in those gaps in time between books!). <br /><br />And by placing them in their 30s, often times they have a past that's not *too* muddy, and enough of a future that anything is still possible.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07754229648422848542noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-78893626334088916112010-07-21T20:20:10.654-04:002010-07-21T20:20:10.654-04:00I always think about time lapse when I'm readi...I always think about time lapse when I'm reading a eries. Sue grafton shose to handle it , as you remarked, by keeping her characgter in the 1980s. Sometimes I like that, but sometimes I do not. I'm just beginning series novels so I don't quite know what to do, but some of the issues confronting my progtagonists dictate the time frame.Lesley Diehlhttp://anotherdraught.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-4549015886780686782010-07-21T17:53:11.856-04:002010-07-21T17:53:11.856-04:00My YA series has my heroine in her 16th year. The...My YA series has my heroine in her 16th year. The crimes/books will happen one month after the other. I think that will give me enough time for her to age a bit. &, while I write the dates on my timeline - so I can manage the series of events easier - I use very few of those dates when I describe events in the book.<br /><br />I figure, if I'm fortunate enough to have all that I'm Alyx Morgannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-16435315895574307452010-07-21T11:58:17.712-04:002010-07-21T11:58:17.712-04:00Priscilla, I felt the same way about Rebus. I didn...Priscilla, I felt the same way about Rebus. I didn't want to see him get old and tired and shuffle off into the sunset. I would have been happy if Rankin had slowed time down in that series and let Rebus stay at his best (such as it was) a little longer. But I think in that case the author was ready to move on, and that was his choice to make.Sandra Parshallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17403144248962124138noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-59496769596630267672010-07-21T11:51:22.583-04:002010-07-21T11:51:22.583-04:00When Rebus retired, I grieved for days! On the oth...When Rebus retired, I grieved for days! On the other hand, I like characters who age because they evolve in their thinking and have to get creative about how to catch the perps. No more dropping three stories in a speeding car and walking away with a minor bruise!Characters who do not age feel plastic to me, but that's just my taste. I age mine but the current six books span only 4 years so IPriscillahttp://www.priscillaroyal.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-12333024306183209362010-07-21T11:32:31.131-04:002010-07-21T11:32:31.131-04:00I think age progression doesn't matter a lot t...I think age progression doesn't matter a lot to the reader - in general. Carola Dunn has two mystery series set at two different times. One post WWI, and Daisy's life does progress, but you never really know her age, though she is young. Her new series takes place in a small village in Cornwall & environs, and when I read the first, from references, I thought '1960s'. The Dianehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14500345360900905162noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-64395159710796308402010-07-21T10:44:27.540-04:002010-07-21T10:44:27.540-04:00Oh, so interesting! Yes, when I'm writing, I t...Oh, so interesting! Yes, when I'm writing, I think it matters...because the character is such a real person.<br />But when I'm reading a novel, you now make me realize, I hardly think about it at all.<br /><br />PS to authors: I learned, almost the hard way! to keep track of such things...In book one of my series, the main charater is 46. In book four, which is a year and a half later, Hank Phillippi Ryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17420701704169428286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-64409407795047533182010-07-21T10:30:08.431-04:002010-07-21T10:30:08.431-04:00I like protagonists whose lives change, and that&#...I like protagonists whose lives change, and that's hard when no time is passing. Elizabeth George has introduced huge changes into the lives of her set of characters -- and that's the reason so many readers say they read the books mainly to find out what's happening to Tommy, Havers, etc. (When is Havers ever going to find a good man?) I don't think anyone read the Miss Marple Sandra Parshallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17403144248962124138noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-44967242307882142632010-07-21T10:17:58.825-04:002010-07-21T10:17:58.825-04:00I agree with Karen, if the author is consistent, i...I agree with Karen, if the author is consistent, it doesn't matter to me too much one way or the other. I do like to see the characters develop rather than remain the same, in general. I mean, who needs Miss Marple to develop? I'm writing an historical (series, please) and plan to use real events and age the characters, but only slightly.Gayle Feyrernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-91236248420329241612010-07-21T10:04:15.011-04:002010-07-21T10:04:15.011-04:00As a reader, I don't care which route the auth...As a reader, I don't care which route the author takes as long as they're consistent. Reading pretty much always involves some degree of suspension of belief, and this is a relatively minor issue -- unless the author does something really awkward that makes me stop and think about the passing of time.Karen Russellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16826935910848113399noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-3025283240082563072010-07-21T09:48:06.020-04:002010-07-21T09:48:06.020-04:00Sheila, have you noticed how many female mystery p...Sheila, have you noticed how many female mystery protagonists are in their thirties? Male and female, that seems to be the most common age range. I can see some reasons why. If a protagonist is a cop, she/he has to be 30 or older to be a seasoned detective. (Many police departments won't even let cops apply to move up to detective until they've been in uniform a certain number of years.) Sandra Parshallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17403144248962124138noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-40033661966384897682010-07-21T08:55:11.544-04:002010-07-21T08:55:11.544-04:00I had to impose a real-world calendar on my Orchar...I had to impose a real-world calendar on my Orchard series because it revolves around (surprise) an orchard. The first four books run from winter (dormancy) through harvest in one year. The one I'm working on is set in December, and after that I'm not sure--but it will be within months. <br /><br />Assigning an age to our main characters is tricky. I wonder if anyone has done a poll Sheila Connollyhttp://www.sheilaconnolly.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-21956613142516498232010-07-21T07:57:19.180-04:002010-07-21T07:57:19.180-04:00Hercule!
Sorry.Hercule! <br /><br />Sorry.Susan Dhttp://www.destevenson.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-28329480686525079112010-07-21T07:56:29.372-04:002010-07-21T07:56:29.372-04:00Suspension of disbelief and math is the only way.....Suspension of disbelief and math is the only way.... <br /><br />I think Agatha Christie bemoaned the fact that Hecule Poirot was retired from the Brussels Police Force when he first appeared in the middle of WWI. And Miss Marple was definitely old in the 1930s. Both continued to solve mysteries until the 1970s.Susan Dhttp://www.destevenson.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-30233835279123454862010-07-21T07:51:37.350-04:002010-07-21T07:51:37.350-04:00Well, I always know exactly how old Kinsey Milhone...Well, I always know exactly how old Kinsey Milhone is at any given moment, since she and I were born on the same day. Somehow, she still gets to be in her 30s (my mental age) while I have grown relentlessly older. <br /><br />On the other hand, she's stuck in the Eighties, while I get to enjoy the finer things in life, such as grandchildren and retirement and any book written in the past 20 Susan Dhttp://www.destevenson.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8056815460076050228.post-81763200408378531392010-07-21T03:53:46.606-04:002010-07-21T03:53:46.606-04:00FYI: Sue Grafton's character is Kinsey Millho...FYI: Sue Grafton's character is Kinsey Millhone, Marcia Muller's is Sharon McCone. Both are good series and I'd also throw Sara Paretsky's V.I. Warshawski into the women private investigators' mix.kathy d.noreply@blogger.com