Another repost from my previous blog. This post talks about what is, in my opinion, the reason so many people write off fantasy as not a real genre because the writer just "makes it up".
Rik stared in horror at the beast before him. It was a creature even his nightmares could never summon. Slime dripped from its contorted figure as it peered back, a malicious smile lifting its decaying lips. Each of its four arms drew back, clenched tightly. Its black, soulless eyes gleamed, and the thing’s entire body quivered with anticipation. It slipped to the left, then to the right, moving far more quickly than Rik thought possible, and leaving a slippery trail of goo behind.
Desperately Rik scrambled through his options. Run? Even if he managed to miss the enormous path of slime staining the ground, he’d never escape before the lightning fast creature caught him. Nowhere to hide, either, without having to run a good distance first. He could fight, but his only weapon, a tiny blade no bigger than his palm and horribly blunted from misuse, would do little to penetrate the monster’s leathery, ick-covered skin. No one knew he was here, and the area was so harsh it was rarely visited and completely uninhabited.
Except, apparently, for the gruesome beasts that popped up out of nowhere when you’re trying to answer a call of nature.
Rik sank down to his knees and wrapped his shaking arms around himself, realising his time was up. He was going to die. The creature slithered forward, four hands reaching forward anxiously. It howled with delight as each bony finger brushed his arms and sides. Rik shoved down a bout of nausea and squeezed his eyes shut, and hoped it would at least be quick.
Then Rik had an idea. He gasped a breath and uttered the words of a spell. The monster released him with a furious scream and backed away. A moment later, it burst into flames and died. Rik returned home, having saved the world from a ferocious slime monster, and lived happily ever after.
. . .
Yeah, doesn’t really make sense to me either.
One of the things that seems to be a standard of fantasy fiction is magic. (There are exceptions, of course, but for the sake of argument, just go with it.) There are many different kinds, many ways it can be used, many rules of what it can and can’t do. It’s often a critical part of the plot or characterization, or both.
But magic isn’t a quick fix. If a spell is used to take out the bad guy and save the day at the very end of the story, there needs to be a really good reason why the protagonist didn’t do that in the beginning. Did they not have enough power to cast that spell until now? Did they need to be in the right place at the right time? Did they only finally figure out how the spell works as they were actually about to lose to the bad guy? Why? Why didn’t the character use this magic in the opening chapter and save himself all the conflict and drama in the middle? (The character claiming he or she “forgot” until the critical moment doesn’t count as a reason.)
The snippet I wrote above is an example of what happens when magic is used like fiction duct tape. It gives the impression that the writer broke part of their plot, and is using magic to hold it together. But rather than fixing the problem, using magic like this actually gives you more problems and plot holes to deal with. Chances are you’ll also have a lot of unhappy readers, who will feel they’ve been somehow cheated by what appears to be an easy way out.
If you write yourself into a corner, magic will not summon your escape window. Take the time to make it work, and make your magic mean something more than just a fast solution, and the whole story will be that much better for it.
Showing posts with label fantasy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fantasy. Show all posts
Wednesday, 12 December 2012
Wednesday, 5 December 2012
Happily Ever After... Almost
Another old post from my previous blog that I still like. Enjoy!
I’ve noticed a growing trend in modern fantasy. It’s a trend I rather like. More and more fantasy novels are finished with an ending that’s less than perfect. (I’m sure other genres have been having this too, but since I read fantasy almost exclusively, I can’t say for sure.)
Some novels do still use the “happily ever after” approach to their endings. We all remember these from the fairy tales that enchanted us growing up. No matter what happened during the course of the story, we knew the main character was going to eventually achieve his or her goal and learn a valuable lesson. Often in fairy tales the sequence of events is so extraordinary and unexplained that it’s obvious realism has no place in it. For this style of story, the “perfect” ending seems fitting.
Then you have authors that attempt to jump to the opposite extreme. These are few and far between, but every now and again I stumble across a novel where the ending features the protagonist specifically not achieving his goal. Perhaps the bad guy won. Or, worse, maybe the protagonist actually helped the bad guy to win, or ended up finishing the story exactly how and where he started. Some people may find these appealing, as it certainly gives fantasy a more gritty and “realistic” feel. However, when considering fantasy, this kind of ending is just a bit too much realism for me, so I tend to avoid them.
Then you have my favourite, the bittersweet ending. That not-quite-perfect ending that is becoming more and more popular. These are the endings where the protagonist achieves his goal, or maybe just part of it, but at a heavy price. For example, the good guy defeats the bad guy, but loses the girl he loves as a consequence of his actions.
This is where I think a bittersweet ending is capable of doing so much that the other two possibilities can’t. You get the joy of knowing the character managed to do what he set out to do. You get the thrill of seeing his goal accomplished, the joy of seeing that character finally triumph over impossible odds. But twisted around it you also feel the pain of what he lost. You see the heavy price he’s paid for his victory, and know that despite achieving his goal there will always be something missing from his “happily ever after”.
While writing something that evokes joy or sorrow in the reader is a great thing, being able to make the reader feel both simultaneously is even better. The conflict is no longer just on the page, but twisted into readers’ emotions. It draws them in to the point where it becomes difficult to put either feeling aside in favour of the other. It’s the kind of mixed emotion that will stay in their memory long after they’ve put the book down.
That is the feeling I want to create for my readers. I want them to feel torn, to remember that conflict after they stop reading. I want an almost happy ending that will stick in the mind and keep them coming back for more.
To finish this off, I’m going to ask: Which ending do you prefer? I’m curious if this is just me…
I’ve noticed a growing trend in modern fantasy. It’s a trend I rather like. More and more fantasy novels are finished with an ending that’s less than perfect. (I’m sure other genres have been having this too, but since I read fantasy almost exclusively, I can’t say for sure.)
Some novels do still use the “happily ever after” approach to their endings. We all remember these from the fairy tales that enchanted us growing up. No matter what happened during the course of the story, we knew the main character was going to eventually achieve his or her goal and learn a valuable lesson. Often in fairy tales the sequence of events is so extraordinary and unexplained that it’s obvious realism has no place in it. For this style of story, the “perfect” ending seems fitting.
Then you have authors that attempt to jump to the opposite extreme. These are few and far between, but every now and again I stumble across a novel where the ending features the protagonist specifically not achieving his goal. Perhaps the bad guy won. Or, worse, maybe the protagonist actually helped the bad guy to win, or ended up finishing the story exactly how and where he started. Some people may find these appealing, as it certainly gives fantasy a more gritty and “realistic” feel. However, when considering fantasy, this kind of ending is just a bit too much realism for me, so I tend to avoid them.
Then you have my favourite, the bittersweet ending. That not-quite-perfect ending that is becoming more and more popular. These are the endings where the protagonist achieves his goal, or maybe just part of it, but at a heavy price. For example, the good guy defeats the bad guy, but loses the girl he loves as a consequence of his actions.
This is where I think a bittersweet ending is capable of doing so much that the other two possibilities can’t. You get the joy of knowing the character managed to do what he set out to do. You get the thrill of seeing his goal accomplished, the joy of seeing that character finally triumph over impossible odds. But twisted around it you also feel the pain of what he lost. You see the heavy price he’s paid for his victory, and know that despite achieving his goal there will always be something missing from his “happily ever after”.
While writing something that evokes joy or sorrow in the reader is a great thing, being able to make the reader feel both simultaneously is even better. The conflict is no longer just on the page, but twisted into readers’ emotions. It draws them in to the point where it becomes difficult to put either feeling aside in favour of the other. It’s the kind of mixed emotion that will stay in their memory long after they’ve put the book down.
That is the feeling I want to create for my readers. I want them to feel torn, to remember that conflict after they stop reading. I want an almost happy ending that will stick in the mind and keep them coming back for more.
To finish this off, I’m going to ask: Which ending do you prefer? I’m curious if this is just me…
Thursday, 29 November 2012
How to Write Your Dragon
My brain is a little frazzled at the moment and unable to come up with logical thoughts. In the meantime, here is an old post from my previous blog that you may find interesting.
I shamelessly took and altered this post title from a popular film that I happen to love. How to Train your Dragon is a brilliant movie (even if it is very, very different from the book it’s based on), and I’ve seen it more times than I can count. One of the things that keeps me coming back is the main character, who is so endearing it’s near impossible not to love him. The other thing that keeps me coming back is the dragons.
I love dragons. I think that was one of the highlights for me when I first started reading fantasy fiction, and then writing it. There are so many different ways to write a dragon. They can be ferocious and conniving, cute and cuddly, strong and loyal, etc. I love reading a novel where a dragon is used as a character, given a personality, a name (if needed), and so on.
I don’t love the books that throw a dragon in as nothing more than an obstacle. Want to get through this passage? Oh, you need to get around this evil, vicious, mindless dragon first. Want to get to the next level? Tough, got a fire breathing dragon in the way, and it wants nothing more than to roast you alive for no particular reason. These kind of dragons drive me crazy.
When you have something as fantastic as a dragon (or any other kind of mythical creature, for that matter) in your story, the least you can do is give it a personality. Give it a reason for wanting to cook your main character to a crisp. Give it some motivation beyond the typical “you look tasty”. I’m not saying every creature in your story needs their own backstory – the last thing I need to know is why that squirrel on that tree is on that tree at exactly that time – but for the special ones, make them feel special, rather than just a convenient story block.
I shamelessly took and altered this post title from a popular film that I happen to love. How to Train your Dragon is a brilliant movie (even if it is very, very different from the book it’s based on), and I’ve seen it more times than I can count. One of the things that keeps me coming back is the main character, who is so endearing it’s near impossible not to love him. The other thing that keeps me coming back is the dragons.
I love dragons. I think that was one of the highlights for me when I first started reading fantasy fiction, and then writing it. There are so many different ways to write a dragon. They can be ferocious and conniving, cute and cuddly, strong and loyal, etc. I love reading a novel where a dragon is used as a character, given a personality, a name (if needed), and so on.
I don’t love the books that throw a dragon in as nothing more than an obstacle. Want to get through this passage? Oh, you need to get around this evil, vicious, mindless dragon first. Want to get to the next level? Tough, got a fire breathing dragon in the way, and it wants nothing more than to roast you alive for no particular reason. These kind of dragons drive me crazy.
When you have something as fantastic as a dragon (or any other kind of mythical creature, for that matter) in your story, the least you can do is give it a personality. Give it a reason for wanting to cook your main character to a crisp. Give it some motivation beyond the typical “you look tasty”. I’m not saying every creature in your story needs their own backstory – the last thing I need to know is why that squirrel on that tree is on that tree at exactly that time – but for the special ones, make them feel special, rather than just a convenient story block.
Thursday, 26 January 2012
Twisted fairy tales
There is probably nothing that I like to read - and write - more than a twisted up fairy tale. I say "probably" just in case there is something else I like more that I just can't think of at the moment. I'm tired right now and liable to forget things, so if I later say something that is contrary to this, there can be two somethings. Oops.
Anyway, back to fairy tales. It's brilliant when someone can take a story everybody knows, throw a few quirks in it, give it a new perspective, and somehow make it different enough that it feels like you're reading something completely new. I've read some stories where it was told from the viewpoint of the villain, stories that took place in modern times, stories that made things that were completely unbelievable into something strangely rational and sensible.
One author I love, Juliet Marillier, has done this at least a few times, and I'm always impressed by her reimagining of classic tales. In fact the first book I read by her was exactly that. Daughter of the Forest is essentially a retelling of "The Six Swans" set in ancient Ireland, and is the first in a trilogy. It was beautifully done, and is one of the few books I still reread regularly.
I recently read a Kindle book that was an interesting take on the Snow White story. I've written a few of my own stories that try to change well-known tales and ideas into something new. I'm falling in love with a handful of comics that do the same. I think it's fair to say this is a theme that is going to continue to be on my favourites list for a long, long time.
Anyway, back to fairy tales. It's brilliant when someone can take a story everybody knows, throw a few quirks in it, give it a new perspective, and somehow make it different enough that it feels like you're reading something completely new. I've read some stories where it was told from the viewpoint of the villain, stories that took place in modern times, stories that made things that were completely unbelievable into something strangely rational and sensible.
One author I love, Juliet Marillier, has done this at least a few times, and I'm always impressed by her reimagining of classic tales. In fact the first book I read by her was exactly that. Daughter of the Forest is essentially a retelling of "The Six Swans" set in ancient Ireland, and is the first in a trilogy. It was beautifully done, and is one of the few books I still reread regularly.
I recently read a Kindle book that was an interesting take on the Snow White story. I've written a few of my own stories that try to change well-known tales and ideas into something new. I'm falling in love with a handful of comics that do the same. I think it's fair to say this is a theme that is going to continue to be on my favourites list for a long, long time.
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