Writing a long short story....do evil spirits need to sleep?

Question

It was originally a book...but now its really just more of a long short story and I'm writing a different novel.

NEAWHERES

My antagonist is a little girl possessed by evil spirits....my two protagonists need to discover a bunch of stuff about her while she's away...doing something. So, I'm thinking of having her fall into this deep sleep-like state.

Do you think that even evil spirits need to "recharge"?

Answer 1

It's the storyteller's world. You can make them need sleep if it's what you need for the plot.

Answer 2

I would guess that spirits do not need sleep.  However, their vessel would need recharging and I'm sure they're smart enough to realize that.

Answer 3

no.

maybe the spirits can make her kill herself and come back to life if its necessary.

Answer 4

First of all....  It's fiction.  Therefore, as long as you can be consistent in the logic of your plot/story (i.e. not create a paradox that has the reader thinking, "what a minute....  that can't work that way"), you can do whatever your imagination wants.  All you have to do is maintain the reader's "suspension of disbelief".

Secondly....  Say an evil spirit doesn't have to sleep - which doesn't seem quite "realistic" to me.  The body it has possessed may have to rest and "recharge".  (In fact, that would seem somewhat more logical to me.)  However, that doesn't mean the "consciousness" of the spirit would sleep at the same time.

It seems to me a sub-plot where the spirit is attempting to reach some alternate goal that would preoccupy it's attention (perhaps in a different dimension it exists in beyond the material) would seem a better distraction.

If you want some suggestions on how an evil spirit using possession as a vehicle to do evil could work....  Watch the movie "Fallen" with Denzel Washington.  Cool movie.

Hope that helps.

Answer 5

It would make sense either way, I've seen both styles of spirit.

I guess it would normally not need to recharge if it was a spirit, but demons I guess would.

but it's your book, you can choose to make the people purple with pink dots if you wanted.

GOOD LUCK(:

Answer 6

as far as evil spirits go: never. they never rest.

as far as evil spirits possessing a body go: more than a normal human. the amount of mental strain caused to the human actually has an effect on all possessive creatures,it slows them down and tires them out almost every hour.

(heres just a few ideas, may they help you)

your evil spirit would need a henchman to assist her. i'd suggest a golem made from a few suits of armor to carry around the human host. despite the fact that she is tired out by controlling the human she can use the human as a phisical form (to be able to give orders to phisical beings, cast majiks more effectively, an easy hostage that would be difficult for your heroes to free)

hope that helps out in some ways or others.

Red.