When Stuff Happens

This should be obvious to most but...

When something so monumental and life-changing happens to a character, how do they react? How are they afterwords? Do they care? Do they bury their reactions? What do they do?

Well, obviously, if they got into a car crash, had their own arm amputated, and one of their friends died, they wouldn't be smiling and crying out tears of joy. Unless your story is about some psychotic, mentally-unhinged creep, who may-or-may-not have caused the accident himself.

If your character goes through a terrible event, make sure you show that they were affected in some way. Don't just say that, during the event, the character was "hideously scarred for life" and then show him acting as if nothing happened.

If your character had just been kidnapped, don’t make them comment on how handsome and daring their captor is. In real life, you would be think about how you will escape!

Remember to make their reactions true to life and true to your character. Don't have them act according to the plot.