: Re: If two characters are blood relations will it seem coincidental? I have a character who is a seasoned CIA agent and is part of the task force that is bringing in my MC. I have another character,

@Phylliss352

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The trick to coincidences is to explain them. In

Coco

the fact a character bumps into someone who turns out to be

the ghost of their ancestor

is attributed to

his dog being a spirit guide,

as hinted at in the name

Dante.

(I don't normally add spoiler tags to my examples, but the film I mentioned is recent and amazing). In your case you want to explain why your MC has made a friend of one person and an enemy of their relative. How's that supposed to happen? Oh, I don't know; maybe the criminal-vs-law-enforcer conflict runs in families in-universe, but rebellion against one's family background is common, or at least explicable in this case. If the MC has cause to know many people on at least one side of the divide, as could be hinted in a packed scene, it works even better.

The funny thing about coincidences is their ruinous effect on a plot doesn't depend just on probability. One of Pixar's rules of storytelling states, "Coincidences to get characters into trouble are great; coincidences to get them out of it are cheating." That's why Luke Skywalker can run afoul of the Empire because an escape pod landed within walking distance of his home (how likely is that on a whole planet?), but his torpedoing the first Death Star required the Force rather than just luck. Applying that to your story, it's OK to have the agent come after the MC because he knows him through his family, but not OK for the assassin to suddenly save the day and explain their knowledge of the MC being in danger in terms of a previously unknown relationship with the agent.

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