“At the End of Magnolia Street” is a magical realism novel set in a fictional rural town in Middle Tennessee, taking place from the early 1990s through the 2000s. The novel explores the challenges a family can both create and endure together, following the lives of two girls as they struggle through difficult childhoods, living under the shadow of shared family history, and a fatal curse that has haunted the town for generations. The narrative alternates between Noble Williams and Liberty Allen as they struggle with unique abilities, ostracization, loss, guilt, and the need for the love and support of their family while simultaneously trying to escape the restrictions of their roots. My craft essay explores the use of counterpointed characterization to create conflict and tension as well as to develop and progress plot based upon Charles Baxter\u27s essay “Counterpointed Characterization” and exploring works that have influenced my own writing
