Is there such thing as a book that's TOO depressing?

[-Wallflower-]

I've been toying with a novel idea - I have about 6000 words down, so I'm not very far in yet, but I was going over my plans and stuff that's already happened, and I realised that the whole book is a bit of a downer.... lol
What I mean is, there really isn't much hope for our protagonist - at all, and there isn't a happy ending... I didn't intend on there being a happy ending, but if in some like, parallel universe, I managed to get published, I didn't want people not reading it because it's just too depressing lol.
Because, the thing is, if I give her hope, it's just gonna get crushed later on, anyway.
:confused:

So, y'know, does all of that matter or am I worrying about nothing?

[Carraka]

I know there are people that are turned off by books that are too depressing. Case in point: my mother. Some people read to escape into a world where they can cheer for the protagonist without getting their hopes dashed and dashed repeatedly.

I'm not one of those people though, and GRRM has lotsalotsa readers besides me. I think there's a market for depression out there. You won't reach everyone, but ... you never were going to, in the first place. I figure you should write it now and procrastinate on the worrying part. If the story that's within you is a depressing one, and you decide to write something happy-go-lucky that you are not at all enthusiastic about -- yeah. Don't do that.

[Shaun]

You're talking about writing to the market. Stop. Just write what you want to write. If you want to tell a story where the protagonist loses and there isn't much hope, then do so. Don't change your story just because you're worried it won't get published.

But, to answer your question, don't worry about it. Literary fiction is often depressing anyway. Lots of stories about characters in hopeless positions who try to get out of it, but ultimately fail. Read some Gunter Grass.

[-Wallflower-]

You're right >_<
Ultimately, (besides 'writing to the market' and shizz), I think it's just I have a soft spot for my protagonist :P.
Bless 'er :P

[Shaun]

Screw your protagonist. Make them suffer :P. That's what I like doing...the first novel I ever completed was pretty much a bash-fest on my protag. I mean, he won in the end, kinda (well, it's part of a series, so he sort of loses, but still). But he still suffered a LOT and still does.

[Crocolyle]

I know there are people that are turned off by books that are too depressing. Case in point: my mother. Some people read to escape into a world where they can cheer for the protagonist without getting their hopes dashed and dashed repeatedly.

I'm not one of those people though, and GRRM has lotsalotsa readers besides me. I think there's a market for depression out there. You won't reach everyone, but ... you never were going to, in the first place. I figure you should write it now and procrastinate on the worrying part. If the story that's within you is a depressing one, and you decide to write something happy-go-lucky that you are not at all enthusiastic about -- yeah. Don't do that.

My dad reads a lot of cheerful books.

I actually prefer depressing ones. Otherwise, it gets boring for me.

[Majyk]

Screw your protagonist. Make them suffer :P. That's what I like doing...the first novel I ever completed was pretty much a bash-fest on my protag. I mean, he won in the end, kinda (well, it's part of a series, so he sort of loses, but still). But he still suffered a LOT and still does.

My protagonist seems to suffer quite a bit more than I had intended :p.

And I like reading more depressing stories than not. For the same reason as Crocolyle.

[jordanisonfire]

If it was about pirates, then it would depress me. All the rape, disease and alcoholism...

[Starry]

I think the wanting-to-read-happy-books-to-forget-about-real-life is kind of an adult thing, when you're old and bored with life and stuff. :P Everyone else just wants to rea something new and different.

At my current stage of planning, only one of my three protagonists in my story gets to survive. Not because I don't like the other two, but because otherwise there would be no resolution to the story. So do whatever's best for the story itself, and the right audience will enjoy it.

[isalin]

I was also wondering this as I am beginning to write a story, but when I was looking over my rough outline I started to worry that it is depressing. But I cannot get the story out of my head and I love my main characters so much already I don't think I even have the choice anymore. I am going to give it a go, and just hope it all goes well with hard work :D

Anyway. It has been proven that books where not many things go right can be published and do very well! I mean just take Mary Shelley's Frankenstein for example. The poor guy in the book just has one bad thing happen after another, right through to the end and the endings not exactly happy either. So I think that yes you can have a depressing book, and no not everyone is going to want to read a book like that (but if you wrote a really happy book not everyone is going to want to read that either) but it doesn't mean that it wont be good.

I say if you want to write it then go on :D