Who Makes The Beds?

The phone rings in the middle of the night.  The female detective reaches over, answers the phone and finds that there has been another murder.  She jumps out of bed, runs in the shower and prepares to fight for justice once again.  We follow her day; all kinds of suspects, all kinds of investigation techniques being implemented and possibly a few interrogations are thrown in.

After a exhausting day, she fixes dinner, has a glass of wine and prepares for bed. Donning jammies; she pulls back the covers and…WAIT A MINUTE!  Who made the bed?

I was making the third bed this morning: the master’s bed, the bed in the snoring room (my sinuses were especially active last night so I skedaddled from the master’s bedroom before I woke up the Bear!) and our son has visited for a week, so hence the third bed.  Suddenly it occurred to me, I rarely read about a hero or heroine taking this task in hand before they leave to conquer love, solve a mystery, or put a heinous villain behind bars.

Is this a chore deemed beneath the everyday heroes we read about?  I’ve noticed that some of them are filthy rich so I have no question that a maid, butler or cleaning woman tidies the bedroom each day in preparation for their employers return.

But every-day characters who live in modest surroundings and drive five-year old cars are basically on their own as far as bed maintenance is concerned.  There might have been a lover with the hero/heroine the night before; but I still haven’t read about them changing sheets and plumping the pillows before their departure!

So, do these characters think like my kids, who used to lament “But, Mom, I’m just going to back in it tonight!  Why make it now?”  Does the writer fail to describe how our heroes climb into wrinkled sheets, rumpled covers and lumpy pillows?

I have been accused of being a little compulsive when it comes to making the beds.  I don’t feel that the house looks clean unless all the beds in the house have been attended to.  Danny complains when he gets up in the early morning to use the bathroom and the bed is made upon his return.

He feels lucky I didn’t make it with him in it (I’ve tried, but it seems to wake him when I pull the pillow out from under his head.)  I have stayed in lovely hotels and made the bed before I left the room.

Now, in fiction, an unmade bed could be letting our readers know that our heroes are so dedicated that they care little about their own comfort.  But, the writer could at least let me know the bed is a mess when the hero climbs in. I know from experience that these sleeping units haven’t made themselves since the days of Samantha on “Bewitched!”

If there’s an overbearing mother; a lover looking to score points by leaving a beautifully made bed or a spouse doing their best to ensure the returning hero gets a good night’s sleep in a cozy, clean bed; let us know!

Sometimes, as my granny used to say, the devil is in the details!  As I’m learning more and more about writing a novel, I’m finding that leaving holes in our story weakens it.  We need to let our readers know how, when and where certain events come about; or why our characters feel, behave or react to other characters.  Otherwise, we leave them guessing.

Of course, my example is extreme..I doubt many readers besides myself wonders about the bed making skills of our heroes.  My point is that readers are smart and you must make sure you take the time to fill in the holes, don’t make the mistake of assuming they know your characters as well as you do.

So, when you’re writing your story, make sure you let your readers know your characters well, pay attention to the details and don’t leave them guessing “Who Made The Damn Bed?”

Just Saying!

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