What Would You Save in a Fire?
My son lives in Los Angeles, and you’ll understand that while we’ve been watching the wildfires out there with horror for those experiencing immediate loss, we’ve also had heightened concern for our son. When he called to tell us that he’d received an evacuation order from the city, he also admitted he hadn’t yet packed a bugout bag. He had no time to listen to our volley of suggestions-“Don’t forget your passport!”-he had to move.
Ironically, two months prior, while moving into a new apartment, he lost a bag filled with-in his words-“everything I’d grab in a fire.” It was excruciating for him to digest the loss of these items, which were not of the passport variety. A denim 80s Guess jacket that belonged to his dad. A painting made by a loved one. The worn skateboard that saw him through college.
Chaos on the outside can cause chaos on the inside, of course. And so after that loss, he misplaced things he never normally would have, including a credit card. His mind had been elsewhere, you might assume, though he’s also wondered-only half-jokingly-if his new apartment is home to a poltergeist.
When the fire came, it was with this additional context. He knew that what you save in a fire goes beyond practicalities like “passport” and even beyond sentimental replacements, like the new old Guess jacket we’d given him for Christmas-a replica of the one he’d lost. And only he could decide what was worth saving.
So how do you decide what’s worth saving when you have limited time and space? And what, if anything, can you deduce from this when it comes to creating characters for your novel? Is there a way you can push your characters to reveal themselves through choices forged in fire?
Choices Forged in Fire
Moments of crisis can become a powerful lens that reveals character in a way few other situations can. That’s because the pressure to choose has a way of calling everyone’s bluff-revealing core values and hidden attachments beyond the easier-to-explore surface of character. It calls the author’s bluff too, as pushing a character into the fire can illuminate for you what’s important to them.
Imagine your protagonist faced with a literal fire, given only five minutes to choose what to save. Now ask yourself:
- What’s the most revealing item your protagonist could choose to save? Consider how this object might embody their core values. A childhood memento, for instance, might reveal their longing for simpler times, while a professional award could signal their identity being tied to external validation.
- What does their version of a “Guess jacket” look like? What’s the thing they have to grab, not because of practicality, but because it anchors them to their sense of self? This could differ from the item above by reflecting a more emotional value.
- Can a character’s attachment to certain items become a subtle way to hint at deeper, hidden layers of their story? Think about the items they save not just as props, but as extensions of their psyche. A battered book might symbolize a love lost or abandoned dream, while a broken watch could hint at their fractured relationship with time or father’s legacy.
- What do they leave behind? This can be as revealing as what they save. It might be something taken for granted and only missed later, or it could be a purposeful choice-something they consciously leave behind and feel no regret over. All choices can illuminate different facets of character and story.
- How might the choice reveal a deep pain? What unresolved conflicts might come into sharp focus in moments of urgent clarity, when the need for immediate action strips away all pretense? Perhaps a character saves an item that embodies an unresolved trauma, like a photograph of someone they’ve lost. These moments can offer profound insights into a character’s inner struggles and motivations.
- How might your character’s choices in a crisis highlight their arc over the course of your novel? The decision to save one thing over another can mark a turning point. At the start of the story, they might cling to symbols of their past, but by the end, their choices might reflect growth-or their inability to let go. This progression can provide subtle yet powerful evidence of their journey.
- What happens when they lose the item they’d save? Sometimes, what a character would save is exactly what the story needs to strip from them. Do they learn they never needed it in the first place? That it was holding them back? How does the loss reshape them, force them to grow, or challenge their self-perception? Losing an irreplaceable item might push a character toward a pivotal decision, revealing vulnerabilities they’ve tried to hide and driving them to confront long-avoided truths.
- How might the chaos of loss create ripple effects in their life? Chaos rarely appears, changes one thing, then disappears. Fire spreads. How might that look in your character’s world? Might one loss lead to another? Could this loss disrupt their foundation, leading to further mistakes, conflicts, or revelations? Perhaps the initial loss unravels a deeper issue, compounding the chaos and pushing the character toward transformation or collapse.
The fire that forced my son’s evacuation was contained with relative speed after consuming 43 acres of land and without reaching his apartment. He was able to return within 24 hours. Lucky. He was lucky. And surely he has a more profound gratitude for what was spared than we think about as a rule.
Whether it’s a fire, a flood, or a metaphorical blaze like a shattered relationship or career implosion, asking your characters what they’d save can be rich story fodder. And once you have a handle on those answers, you can use those key items and whatever it is they represent to weave in layers of meaning that enrich your narrative.
What would you save in a fire? How might those insights about yourself be superimposed upon your story and characters? Considering your work-in-progress, is there a way to create-if not a fire-a moment of urgency that forces your character to make a revealing choice?
These are chaotic times. Stay safe, friends. And if you’d like to help those affected by the fires in LA, click HERE for a list of options.
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