Giving Your Character a Good Ghost

By the title you might be wondering what I mean exactly (unless you already know what a character’s “ghost” is). Your character isn’t dead, why should they have a ghost and a good one at that? Wouldn’t the readers kill you, as the author, for giving your character a ghost? 

Well, that’s not exactly what I mean. A character’s “ghost” is a shadow of their past; it is something that “haunts” them throughout the book. For a lot of characters this could mean someone they care about dying (usually parents) or a mistake they’ve made or something completely different. 

You may already understand what that means without knowing the term “ghost”. Your character may already have a really good ghost that helps them along their character arc. (You can read my article on character arcs here: https://mountaingirlmeandering.wordpress.com/2024/06/07/character-arcs/)

But just because they have a ghost, it doesn’t mean it’s a good ghost that will help them on their character arc. 

What is your character’s ghost? 

This is the first question you should ask when deciding whether your character’s ghost is good. What is haunting your character? Is it the death of someone? Or is it some other traumatic experience? 

For some examples, I’ll take my main characters R and Elias Atara. 

Elias’s ghost is the experience of watching his parents die then the following events of having to watch over his sister and survive in Regnum City. 

R, on the other hand, has a smaller ghost of just having to hide herself and the trauma of living in the city, since she doesn’t remember her parents dying. There were also a few smaller mistakes she’s made that haunt her. It’s a smaller ghost, but it can still be a powerful ghost. It also can help you as the author to push yourself and make the smaller ghost create a good character arc. 

So, just ask yourself what your character’s ghost is. Then, once you know, write it down in a notebook or somewhere where you can find it again. Your character’s ghost is one of the most important parts of their character arc. 

What makes a good ghost? 

No, the answer is not finding the most traumatic event and making it happen to your character. No matter how fun that might be to write. 

And, no, the answer is not killing characters either. 

A good ghost is one that puts lies into the character’s head that they have to replace with the truth during their character arc and also ties into the theme of the book. 

It’s not overly traumatic every time, but it’s also not something too hidden or complex. I’ve got a few characters who have slightly complex ghosts that are multiple events that brought up their lie, but as long as your complex ghosts tie together into a neat lie that you can resolve, it’s probably a good ghost. 

Also, be sure your ghost makes sense and is realistic. Does it make sense for their best friend to die in your genre? If so, how can you do that in a realistic way? Maybe they did something to betray those they care about? How could that fit into their backstory? 

Figure out the answers to all these questions and write them down somewhere. 

How do you make your character’s ghost good? 

Okay, so you know your character’s ghost and what makes a good ghost, but how to you make your own character’s ghost good? 

Ultimately, this comes down to the way you write it in my opinion. If you brush it under the rug or forget about it (I’ve been guilty of this in the past) or spend too much time making it dramatic (also been guilty of this), it won’t be good. 

You’ve got to find a balance. Figure out where you draw the line between how much to write it and how much you want it to affect your character. 

Also think about how it can affect your character’s personality. If they’re a quiet, timid person, their ghost might be more traumatic. Or if they’re a cocky, bold character their ghost might be a little less traumatic (or they could just be good at covering their emotions). Keep in mind, this isn’t true all the time, but often personality is affected. 

So, overall, think about it a lot. Find the right ghost for your character and decide how it will affect them and how it will fit into your theme. Then have fun taking (dragging) your character along on a journey to help them heal from their ghosts! 

Until next time, 

Aliya Gerow