Writing About the End of the World discussion

When the world ends, what characteristics does a hero need to survive? To lead others? To create order out of chaos?

I was initially going to agree, but on reflection it may not be the case, at least to start with. Not all heroes start off with those sort of qualities. You could have a person whom you would never expect to be a hero; a person who is thrown into the path of heroism through circumstance alone, and is gradually moulded into a person worthy of being 'a hero'.

In this case, the person would definitely need to have good survival instincts. Someone who was always a coward at heart may have great instincts when it comes to their own survival, and through their journey learn to grow and adapt so they can survive and protect others who matter as well, and then ultimately learn to put their own survival aside for the sake of another.

But if you've already got a character who is hero material, then yes I would think they would need the ability and strength (both physically and mentally) to effectively lead others through challenges and hardships, a clear head to make effective decisions, and the skill to match his words. :) Or her. :)

To survive they would probably need to be selfish. To be a hero though, they'd need to have a conscience.Sort of contradict each other but thats a grimmer view of what an end of the world hero would have to be like. Would be great to write about somebody like that. I suspect they'd be very reluctant to help others, but they would, otherwise the would'nt fall under the hero bracket.

Or how about this? A person who seizes the opportunity to create a "new world order" and succeeds. But that order does not necessarily need to be good. Whether benign, such as "Logan's Run" or "The Time Machine"; highly organized and powerful, such as "The Hunger Games" or the Galactic Empire as led by the Emperor in Star Wars; or even nondescript, such as "Fahrenheit 451" or Asimov's Foundation trilogy. These are all evil to some degree - indifferent at best - yet they rose from the ashes in many cases and preserved and/or rebuilt a society on the brink. Wouldn't the fact that the original people who had developed an evil/corrupt society still be seen as a hero simply because the DID save society?

Hi everybody!
I am new here (thank you Gail for the invite) and have not posted yet, but I drop by every now and then.
If I may, I would like to contribute somewhat now :)

IMHO, a hero must not only be a hero of the whole world. What about "small" heroes of the everyday life? They do not need to be selfish, as the matter of fact, for everyday people, survival might be a matter of cooperation and sharing. And their small, simple achievements would be the foundation of the survival of the humanity (or whatever other civilization, facing the end of the world as they know it). As in the Croatian saying, in translation: grain by grain - a bread, stone by stone - a palace. I'd rather read about such heroes.
Just for the record, I am no writer (teenage fumblings do not count), just a vehement reader :)

Welcome, Vorbore!

You make a good point. A hero can be the father who saves his family from the ravages of a world-gone-wild. This in itself can make for an exciting story, and in many ways, a more intimate story, with closer ties to the protagonist(s).

It can also blossom into something much more. In Suzanne Collins novel (and subsequent movie) "The Hunger Games", the main protagonist, Katniss Everdeen becomes a reluctant hero only to her sister, whom Katniss saved from being selected during The Reaping by herself volunteering. Yet, as the story unfolds in this novel and the following two novels, her role changes - against her will - into becoming the hero of the downtrodden in this oppressive society of the future.

Oftentimes, in creating a post apocalyptic world, the author is compelled to explore the physical, social, and spiritual aspects of the entire system, even if only writing about a tiniest piece of it. I'd wager a good many stories started out focused on a small unit or group of survivors, only to have it blossom into a tale of epic proportions.

Thank you :)

Reluctant heroes are the best kind of heroes IMHO. As one of my favorite authors wrote (I will only give the meaning of what she wrote, because I should go through sixteen books to find the exact quote) - those who really do not want to have that job are the perfect choice for it (she wrote about involvement in high politics, but I think it applies for saviors of the world too).

I liked the Hunger Games, the first book, the best, of the three books of this series. But my problems with the next two were very much created by the exploiting of Katniss that went on, showing that neither the Panem, neither the rebels were clean-handed, as two sides of a same coin, almost. Like when the opposition is chastising those in power, just to do all the same when they seize it, so it seems as if they were complaining only out of sheer envy.

Here is how I see it, regarding end-of-the-world heroes:

If the book is about tearing down a dystopian society to create a better one, then we need an epic tale (well, I need it) because it gives reassurance that bad things cannot last infinitely.

If the book is about starting a new society from scratch after a disaster, then it does not need to have a final end. It can show us a small portion of the struggle, and if it ends in an optimistic tone, I will be happy with it.

However, there is a market for utterly dark dystopian unhappy-ends, too. Not my cup of tea, but it exists.

I'm personally a fan of reluctant heroes because I'm rather suspicious of the people who are eager to save the day. And I agree that heroism doesn't have to be an a grand scale. I think of the rescue workers who got people out of the flooded Ninth Ward in New Orleans, often neighbors who grabbed their boat and went into dangerous waters to get out sick or elderly neighbors. In fact, I'd argue that the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina could indeed qualify as an end-of-the-world story for the people involved.

Small scale world's ends, familiar enough. I had one of those during the war in Croatia. Then as well, cooperation of, and help from, regular people saved many days.
It is funny how people can change to the better in tough situations...

I would just get picked off in that world, bye, bye!
You must have some stories.

For most people, any dangerous situation that encompasses their local area counts as the end of the world. Just think...Katrina, Sandy...plenty of room for heroes.