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gmw · 04-12-2015, 04:48 AM

The only technique I have come up with for myself is: I want to know what happens.

In my writing I am telling myself what happens. I get an image of a character, I don't know where it comes from, and I wonder how he/she came to be like that, and so develops a back story. I get an image of a situation and I wonder how it came to be, and what could it possibly mean, and so develops the main story. And the two should overlap. If they don't, it's not working.

The story and the characters and the back story all intertwine, that's how life works, that's how a story should work - except ... a story gets to choose its ending. And this is part is mostly wish fulfilment. Elsewhere on this forum I said something to the effect of: no one wants to read the biography of some poor sucker that worked hard all his life, did good deeds, and still died poor, lonely and unrecognised. It is how life works for many, but it's not what we want to read in our fantasies.

There is a saying: "Goodness is its own reward". But that's not what we want to believe. We want to believe that being determined, honest and courageous will be rewarded - at the very least with our survival through the hardship. Life's not like that, but we like to think it could be. So we read fantasy stories where things, more often than not, turn out right - or close to it. We accept some level sadness in our fantasy, it adds to the verisimilitude, helps us to believe it is real. But inject too much reality and we are likely to reject it, it isn't what we want to hear - if it was, we'd be reading the news.

I believe story is important, but it should not stand alone. I re-read my favourite books quite often, and so I know what is going to be revealed. I need stories to involve me emotionally, and that should happen regardless of how familiar I have become. I need to be able to connect to (if not actually like), the characters. The poignant scenes of favourite books can still draw tears, however much I know it is coming. BUT I wouldn't be re-reading these books if the story didn't work. A story works when it fits in with who the characters are and how they came to be there.

You are correct that some "big reveal" from some untold past of a character is often not a great story element ... not unless the story has deliberately led you along a path where suddenly you can say "of course, it had to be like that". And there are authors who are masters of this technique.

I guess the point I'm trying to make is that the best stories are not made from one single element. All the elements have to work together. A "big reveal" should not be a surprise, it should be an affirmation of the story. Wish fulfilment is part of most fantasies, but it should not be too obvious or easy, or the reader won't believe it and their wishes will not be fulfilled.

04-12-2015, 04:48 AM	#4
gmw cacoethes scribendi Posts: 5,818 Karma: 137770742 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Australia Device: Kobo Aura One & H2Ov2, Sony PRS-650	The only technique I have come up with for myself is: I want to know what happens. In my writing I am telling myself what happens. I get an image of a character, I don't know where it comes from, and I wonder how he/she came to be like that, and so develops a back story. I get an image of a situation and I wonder how it came to be, and what could it possibly mean, and so develops the main story. And the two should overlap. If they don't, it's not working. The story and the characters and the back story all intertwine, that's how life works, that's how a story should work - except ... a story gets to choose its ending. And this is part is mostly wish fulfilment. Elsewhere on this forum I said something to the effect of: no one wants to read the biography of some poor sucker that worked hard all his life, did good deeds, and still died poor, lonely and unrecognised. It is how life works for many, but it's not what we want to read in our fantasies. There is a saying: "Goodness is its own reward". But that's not what we want to believe. We want to believe that being determined, honest and courageous will be rewarded - at the very least with our survival through the hardship. Life's not like that, but we like to think it could be. So we read fantasy stories where things, more often than not, turn out right - or close to it. We accept some level sadness in our fantasy, it adds to the verisimilitude, helps us to believe it is real. But inject too much reality and we are likely to reject it, it isn't what we want to hear - if it was, we'd be reading the news. I believe story is important, but it should not stand alone. I re-read my favourite books quite often, and so I know what is going to be revealed. I need stories to involve me emotionally, and that should happen regardless of how familiar I have become. I need to be able to connect to (if not actually like), the characters. The poignant scenes of favourite books can still draw tears, however much I know it is coming. BUT I wouldn't be re-reading these books if the story didn't work. A story works when it fits in with who the characters are and how they came to be there. You are correct that some "big reveal" from some untold past of a character is often not a great story element ... not unless the story has deliberately led you along a path where suddenly you can say "of course, it had to be like that". And there are authors who are masters of this technique. I guess the point I'm trying to make is that the best stories are not made from one single element. All the elements have to work together. A "big reveal" should not be a surprise, it should be an affirmation of the story. Wish fulfilment is part of most fantasies, but it should not be too obvious or easy, or the reader won't believe it and their wishes will not be fulfilled.