How to Get Over the Death of a Fictional Character

Expressing Your Grief

1. Cry as much as you want. Don't think that just because the character is fictional, it's silly to cry. People can go through a similar mourning process for fictional characters as they do for real people in their life, though it may be less extreme. Know that you are completely justified in your sadness and don't try to suppress feelings of grief. ^[1]

2. Allow yourself to feel angry. You might be angry that your character has died. Sometimes character deaths come out of the blue and may seem completely unnecessary. You may be furious at the author, or at another character who may have caused their death. Let yourself feel these emotions and express them in a healthy way. ^[2]

   1. Exercise as a way to let out your anger. Even taking a brisk walk to clear your head can help. ^[3]
   2. Talk about your anger. Either with other fans or with friends and family, talk about how unjust it was for this character to die. This can help you work through your feelings of anger. Try to talk about your anger calmly - taking your anger out on other people will only make you feel worse if anything.

3. Write a letter to your character. Sometimes we feel extreme grief over the loss of a character because we don't have the opportunity to tell them how important they are to us. Writing a letter to your favorite fictional character is a way to feel that you have directly expressed to them your love and your sadness over their death. ^[4]

   1. You may feel silly at first writing to a fictional character. But writing is proven to be very therapeutic, especially when you write directly to someone and express your feelings. ^[5]

4. Give yourself time. Don't expect to feel better immediately. Grief is a process that takes different amounts of time for everyone. Especially if this death came out of the blue, it can take a while to feel stable and better. Whenever you catch yourself thinking that you should be over the death, remember that there is no correct timetable to get over your sadness. ^[6]

5. Practice self-care. Pamper yourself a little bit as you are grieving for this character. This is an important way of acknowledging to yourself that you are going through a difficult time. Do one thing a day, whether it be eating your favorite food or sleeping in a little, to give yourself a little boost. ^[7]

6. Don't judge yourself. At one point or another, everyone has felt the loss of a fictional character. Just because they are not real, that does not mean you don't form attachments to them. In fact, being sad at a character's death is human and it shows that you have a big capacity for empathy. ^[8]

7. Talk to friends. If you have friends who have read the book or watched the movie or series with your character, talk to them about how sad you are. An important step in getting over grief is to express it. People who are close to you are a great resource because they love and understand you. ^[9]

8. Find fans online. Sometimes it's helpful to find people outside your circle who were also affected by the character's death. It's been proven that belonging to fan communities can provide you strong emotional support. Talking to fellow fans will help you get your emotions out of your system and make you feel like you aren't alone in feeling upset or sad. ^[10]

   1. Engage with other fans on official or fan websites. Many of these have discussion boards where you can talk about the death of your character.
   2. Be careful about what information you give about yourself. Don't give out personal information like your phone number. Consider using a pseudonym when talking with other fans.