Any advice on writing a whipping? Main point of it is for B to take over A's punishment of a long whipping to teach the rebel group a lesson which'll show his courage despite him being cowardly. It's a tense scene; the only sounds in the courtyard are B's cries & the snapping of the whip itself. Maybe could you write a snippet & I could take advice from there eg. you may concentrate on the emotion behind it more that the act itself. Any book sources you could recommend as well?
((Warning: if anyone is uncomfortable with the mention of blood or whipping, I suggest not reading any further)).
I’m not an expert in this area, but I’m going to share what I’ve learned from my own research and reading on the topic :)
Main thing, whipping is painful as hell. It’s going to hurt no matter what. You might have an incredibly stoic, strong character, and that’s perfectly fine, and maybe they can take it a bit better than someone else, but they’re going to feel the pain and after a while, they’re probably going to show signs of it: crying, gasping for breath, unable to keep body upright, exhaustion, etc.
Emotion is important to include in a whipping scene, but if the story is going to be from the first person point of view of the character being whipped, you’re going to want to include a lot of what he’s physically feeling. After the first few lashes, it becomes less about what he’s thinking or how he feels emotionally, and more about how much pain he’s in. It’s hard to think when you’re in pain like that. In a way, it’s sort of similar to when a person has just finished sprinting around a track; you’re exhausted and breathing hard, and for the first few moments, your mind is just completely blank because you’re trying to catch your breath and cool down. Except in a whipping, your body doesn’t have time to rest until the very end, so the character is left utterly exhausted and beaten.
The Throne of Glass series, which I’ve read and for the most part enjoyed, has a main character who has been whipped (a few times throughout the series), mainly for being an assassin who was sent to a slave-labor camp, and deals with the effects of it throughout the novel. She retains large scars on her back because of the whipping, and despite being in a business where murder, battles, and personal injury are something that she is used to, she reacts very negatively to the idea of whipping anybody and lashes out when another character threatens her with it. This is a YA fantasy novel, so if you’re looking for a non-fiction/instructional book source, that will require some research on your part.
Warning for below: swearing, blood, whipping scene
Excerpt:
“Shirt off,” the guard commanded. B froze, feeling a brief icy wrath fill his veins. He was doing it for A, for the rebels, but no way in hell was he going to let that piece of shit order him around and treat him like a dog. He stood there for a moment, frozen in anger, until he felt someone from behind shove him forward. “Shirt off,” the guard commanded again. B obliged this time, reluctantly peeling his shirt off.
Two other guards appeared at his sides, grabbing him by the arms and tying each arm to a post so he wouldn’t move. He glared forward, trying to block out the sights of the sneering guards. His body tensed, preparing for the inevitable pain to come.
“Stop!” He heard A cry out. He turned his head as best he could, and saw another pair of guards holding A back. They looked devastated. B shook his head.
“Let me do this,” he said, though he wasn’t sure if A could hear him.
Enough talk,” the head guard snapped, walking forward until he stood behind B, whip in hand. B took in a deep breath. “This is what happens to degenerates like you who think they need to begin an unnecessary revolution,” the guard declared, glaring at the captured rebel group before returning his gaze to B.
B knew it would be painful, but when the whip came down on him the first time, his entire body nearly caved. Had he not been tied to the posts, he would have fallen. The sharp sting of the lash was quickly followed by an ache in his muscles, and he was sure he could feel trickles of blood sliding down his back. His breath came out in a quick gasp, and he tried to pull himself together.
The next one felt much the same, though now every muscle in his entire back felt as though they were straining. B was breathing hard already, sweat beginning to form on his brow. He thought A or someone else might have been crying, but everything seemed muffled except for the sound of his own breath. The whip came down again and again, and eventually he cried out in pain, unable to stop. The lashes came faster, barely even two seconds before the next lash broke the skin of his back.
He did not know how much time had passed. He only knew that it was hell. He had never known such pain before. Blood spattered the stone beneath B, and he sagged closer to the ground as he began to drift in and out of consciousness. The ropes tying his hands were all that supported him now.
“Stop!” B heard someone scream as the whip came down again and he yelled out in pain, knees buckling beneath him.
“Not until he falls,” the head guard hissed. B’s head lolled forward, head swimming. His face was wet with sweat, his back bloodied. His sight began to fail as he slowly fell unconscious. The last thing he remembered was the cries of his friends and something cutting the ropes that held his arms, allowing him to fall.
*Sorry for the bloodiness/gruesomeness of this snippet! But whippings aren’t ever going to be pretty or easy. Whippings are brutal. Usually, when they’re included in a novel, it’s to show the extreme hardship a character has faced, or to prove that throughout their journey they will endure hardships.
Mod Carolyn @theories-fans-andwombats
