--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You can kill the spell of identification…" description: "\"“You can kill the spell of identification just as easily as you can create it—if you lose the readers' sympathy for the character. You can lose reader ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c8/james-n-frey-31646_books_you-can-kill-the-spell-of-identification_437098.jpg" --- # You can kill the spell of identification just as easily as… ![“You can kill the spell of identification just as easily as you can create it—if you lose the readers' sympathy for the character. You can lose reader sympathy by having your character commit acts of cruelty to another character with whom the readers identify more strongly or for whom they have…” quote by James N. Frey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c8/james-n-frey-31646_books_you-can-kill-the-spell-of-identification_437098.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c8/james-n-frey-31646_books_you-can-kill-the-spell-of-identification_437098.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c8/james-n-frey-31646_books_you-can-kill-the-spell-of-identification_437098.jpg) > ““You can kill the spell of identification just as easily as you can create it—if you lose the readers' sympathy for the character. You can lose reader sympathy by having your character commit acts of cruelty to another character with whom the readers identify more strongly or for whom they have strong sympathy. You can lose reader sympathy by having the character make dumb choices—acting at less than maximum capacity. The idiot in the horror story who responds to creepy noises by going into the attic armed only with a candle is an example. You can lose reader sympathy when a character seems too ordinary, is stereotyped, or doesn't struggle hard enough. The reader wants to cheer a fighter, not witness a milquetoast wallowing in, say, selfpity.”” [James N. Frey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-n-frey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage explains how losing reader sympathy occurs through poor character choices or weak conflict. **In simple terms:** Bad character actions or blandness cause readers to disengage. Key Takeaway Craft characters that earn and retain empathy. Themes writing character development reader engagement Mood analytical instructional Type educational craft When to use this quote - novel drafting - editing workshops - creative writing classes Key Concepts empathy narrative tension Questions to Reflect On - How can flaws be portrayed without alienating readers? - What balance of competence and vulnerability works best? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on sympathy can limit complex characters. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ## Related quotes > [Why do you keep reading a book? Usually to find out what happens. Why do you give up and stop reading it? There may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-carson-levine/why-do-you-keep-reading-a-book-usually-to-find-out-what-happens-why/) [Gail Carson Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-carson-levine/) > [You need to have a reader's sympathy in order to accomplish anything. 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Frey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-n-frey/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! 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Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“You can kill the spell of identification just as easily as you can create it—if you lose the readers' sympathy for the character. You can lose reader sympathy by having your character commit acts of cruelty to another character with whom the readers identify more strongly or for whom they have strong sympathy. You can lose reader sympathy by having the character make dumb choices—acting at less than maximum capacity. The idiot in the horror story who responds to creepy noises by going into the attic armed only with a candle is an example. You can lose reader sympathy when a character seems too ordinary, is stereotyped, or doesn't struggle hard enough. The reader wants to cheer a fighter, not witness a milquetoast wallowing in, say, selfpity.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "James N. 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