Many times I have been asked who I write like. Do I want to be the next Tolkien, Lewis, Jordan, etc.? I never liked this question because it immediately makes me think that people expect me to be unoriginal. I know they are talking about popularity and writing style, but it really does come off as a person claiming that everything has been done before. In my youth, I found this to be offensive and aggravating. In my current years, I find this to be surprisingly true to a point.
I think everything has been done before to some extent. There are only so many basic plots that exist and the artist has been around for centuries. I wouldn’t say everything is a rip-off or influenced by past works, but it isn’t too hard to make connections to some extent between current works and past works. The example that had me thinking of this recently is the Hunger Games. I admit to never reading the book or seeing the movie because of reasons that I will not get into here. Still, I immediately thought of Running Man, Battle Royale, Spartacus, and anything else that dealt with pitting one person against another. There are even some historical similarities that I think of like gladiator fights and child soldiers. I even thought it reminded me a little of The Most Dangerous Game. This isn’t to say that the Hunger Games is a horrible idea and should never have been created. There is an appeal to it and I have wondered a lot about what drew people into the story. I know there is my culture’s obsession with gore and violence, but I think there’s more to it.
I think a traditional plot device such as quests and tournaments to the death can be overlooked if they come with a new world and interesting characters. We read fiction to escape reality, so exploring a world that is different from our own is very appealing. You get a thrill of excitement whenever you come across a town or environment that isn’t on a map. Creatures that you would never meet in the real world are commonplace. It is almost like a child going to the zoo for the first time and seeing an animal that they never knew existed. There is a sense of discovery and wonder that comes from reading about a world that is not your own. Well, there is this sense as long as you let the world take you away until the book is closed. I meet a lot of readers who resist the pull of a book and focus on reasons why they shouldn’t like it. Things like a spelling error on page 74 destroyed the book for them or they already read a story with a similar plot, so this one must have been inferior. I really wonder what would have happened if these people read the second book first. Would the book they are praising now be the weaker of the two?
The second way to utilize a traditional plot device and still earn points with the reader is the method that I like to use. I love designing characters who the reader can relate to even if the reader only relates to a single character. My secondary characters have a history and some depth, so they are more than background. My main characters are flawed to the point where a reader might find them obnoxious at the beginning. Luke Callindor is a perfect example of a character who starts out whining, getting into trouble, and being about as heroic as a crying toddler. Still, part of the fun in reading a story is to see these flawed characters grow and adapt through their adventure. I always believed that character development can trump a standard plot as long as you keep it interesting and somewhat realistic. A hero that begins with no confidence and skills should not be an unstoppable warrior by the middle of the book. There is a recent movie example that I would like to use, but I think the movie is too new for me to safely say it. I will state that commercials made the hero look like some warrior badass, but when you watch the movie this character received no combat training. By the time of the final battle, this character spent the entire thing running and dodging until meeting the villain. This then resulted in a rather amusing beating and the hero wins through a lucky shot and the villain’s own arrogance. I find this type of character development and realism more interesting even when this was a movie that was not original in any way. It made me believe that the character was human and could possibly fail, which I think is very important to push a story.
The truth is that everything has a connection to something in the past. We are all influenced by the world around us and a lot of it is entertainment media. I grew up watching cartoons, movies, playing video games, reading fiction books, comic books, and all manner of media. I ran around my backyard with toy swords pretending to battle whatever historical warrior I was into at the time. Everything I have ever done has been influenced by something that came before me, so my books will be the same thing. This is why my goal is to make memorable characters within the story. I get more enjoyment from hearing someone tell me about their favorite character than being told why they liked the overall story. This may sound strange and it also comes off as me outing myself as someone who doesn’t sit in a dark room struggling to think of something that hasn’t been done before. Besides, I prefer to have the lights on when I create stories and characters. Prevents eye strain, stubbed toes, and the voices appreciate it.
Legends of Windemere 
I appreciate your take on how the things you write are influenced by everything that’s happened in your life so far. I recently started wondering why I like writing creative non-fiction, young adult fiction and general clean fantasy, and I realized as I was reading this post that my favorite books so far have been in those genres. That’s what I like to read, that’s what I liked to pretend when I was growing up…I guess it’s part of who I am now.
I appreciate what you’re doing here. I also love the background on your blog.
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Thanks. I came to that same realization a few years ago when I wondered why I write fantasy with a focus on dialogs and action. I noticed that while traditional fantasy was more description and low key when it came to magic, I was going in the opposite direction. It took a while to realize that it was because I read fantasy books and comic books. I combined the high-powered action of comics with the scenery and atmosphere of fantasy, which seems to have done well for me.
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Funny how that works! I guess that’s part of finding your own style. I can see yours is very vivid, which will make it fun to read.
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Thanks. I just started reading some of your posts and I like the pictures that they place in my head. I’m thinking that a lot of what we write, even as fiction writers, still comes down to the old saying ‘write what you know’. It’s the easiest thing to write about even for people who don’t work in reality.
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Somewhere I read that the more believable your fiction is, the better it is (and the more compelling it is to believe). I’m not sure I have a handle on that yet, partly because a lot of the fiction I write is simply me and my habits of escapism…but you can bet I see the worlds I create in my head! I’m sure you do, too. At least, you write clearly enough that I can imagine what you’re writing about. It makes it fun.
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A lot of the people who read my books for editing and opinions told me that my books read like a movie.
I agree that the more believable fiction is, the better it is because fiction should be able to pull you into the world. I think the realism differs from genre to genre because some have it easier than others. Fantasy fiction in a non-Earth world has a rough time, which is why I think vivid descriptions and flawed characters are necessary. I read one book where the main character was horribly perfect that I gave up because there was no sense that he would fail or even get hurt.
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I’m sure you’re right about the need for flawed characters (something I’ve found I struggle with) and vivid descriptions. I actually love non-earth worlds, partly because I think of them as a very exotic vacation, but I know I’m kind of in the minority that way.
So how do you intentionally flaw a character? That’s something I really need to learn about.
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The trick is to give them a flaw that can be a problem and be overcome, but not be something that makes the character useless. For example, a warrior with a limp can be interesting, but a warrior with no limbs can be overdoing it. It’s really a game of balance between building character depth and allowing your character to fail at things. This is why editing and revising is so helpful.
Using my character as an example, Luke is a skilled warrior and charming, handsome character. He is also cocky to the point where he mouths off to the wrong person, acts without thinking, and doesn’t always win his fights. He also tends to get hit in most of his fights, so it shows he isn’t perfect. I went a secret in his past too, but that’s a spoiler.
I would recommend thinking about what makes a person unique and ‘flawed’. When I started, I used to make lists of phobias, hidden pasts, faulty personality traits (tempers, obliviousness, etc.), and anything that would be seen as a quirk/flaw in a real person. It really takes practice to fit a flaw into a character. A good step is to have them fail or falter every now and then. I hope this explanation helps.
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Actually, yes, that’s very helpful. I think I need to sit down and take a closer look at my characters in some of my books. They seem very flat, to me.
I think character development is the toughest part about writing fiction. I’m grateful for any tips that come my way in this area!
Have a wonderful day. (By the way, I love talking with other writers. I’ve really enjoyed visiting with you.)
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You’re welcome. It is fun to talk shop with other writers because I don’t get to do it too often. If I think of any other tips, I’ll let you know. Though, I’m actually going to try to make next week’s Wednesday post about character flaws.
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Oh! That will definitely be one to read. I have so much to learn here.
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