In one of my works-in-progress, I have a reaper as a
character aka a grim reaper. This character is creepy and indestructible.
Death follows in his wake. His targets don’t stand a chance.
If you ever find you need to add a reaper to a supernatural
story, here are a few things to consider:
1. Appearance
Reapers usually wear long, black cloaks with hoods to cover their
skeletal bodies. They can be wrapped in shadows. Their faces can be darkness or
a skull. And they generally have a sickle, but you could always do a twist on
his weapon of choice as well as his appearance. Make this reaper your own! Make him (or her) not even appear like a reaper at first.
2. Darkness
Wherever reapers go, gloom dominates. You can describe
clouds rolling in to hide the sun, the lights going out in a room or house, and
darkness clinging to the reaper like a black fog swarming around his feet.
3. Cold
Death is cold. Dropping the
temperature whenever a reaper is around is a good idea. Icy breath can float
from your characters’ mouths, and they can break out in gooseflesh. Frost can
cover the ground, and windows can fog up. Stretch your imagination.
4. Death
A reaper’s job is to kill and take souls. Have the reaper
target people. Then show how he kills them, collects their souls, and then reveal
what he does afterward with the souls.
5. Victims
Who does the reaper target and why? Let us get know some
of them, especially if one is your main character. We need to feel connected to
your characters so we can worry about their safety and root for them whenever the reaper gets close. And we also need to be invested in case they
are hurt or killed.
Reapers aren’t just for Halloween. You could write any kind
of story with reapers, during any time of the year and for any holiday, even Christmas.
Think about it.
QUESTION: If a reaper (aka Death) had a human name, what do you think it’d be? (Pretend this is for a story.)
