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Post by the Red Dragon on Jan 20, 2014 18:13:54 GMT -6
So I want to write a short story or two, cause I haven't done anything like that in a while. But I can't think of anything that's not totally typical. Seems like there's really only four types of story and all stories end up being one of the same four, you can't come up with anything really NEW. Ugh.
Soooo....any suggestions for a UNIQUE, totally DIFFERENT story? Anything you got, no matter how random. I'm looking for tidbits that I can fit together to make something good.
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Post by sapphire on Jan 20, 2014 20:10:51 GMT -6
I'm a firm believer in the theory that there are only so many types of stories. The point is not to write a new kind of story, but to make the old one seem entirely new. You have the hero's journey, you have the coming of age tale, you have the "Cinderella" dreams come true story, the story of tragic loss... There are various theories on how many plots are out there, of course. If you're only coming up with stories that you feel are predictable, maybe you should ask yourself how you can twist them to make them different. (I'm doing that in my novel, twisting the hero's journey story to be about the villain instead. It's fun.) You could also check out random generators. There are a couple that I like, my favorite being Chaotic Shiny. I also like Seventh Sanctum. They can be kind of wacky, not always original, but if you generate several ideas and mix them together, you might find what you're looking for.  |
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Post by Raphael on Jan 20, 2014 20:34:55 GMT -6
I would say there are many more than what you think. Like I wouldn't limit it to 4 or even to 20 but that's because a story is so much more than just the boiled down ideas that people use to get to a list of 4. Honestly I get stories all the time. Now you couldn't really write about all of them because it just isn't good enough to get a story, but really every single character has a story of their own. Me myself, I love normal life stories just as much as fantasy. There is something so... romantic (in the lit term sense) and beautiful of normal life stories done well.
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Post by the Red Dragon on Jan 20, 2014 20:35:43 GMT -6
Thanks. I'll check out those generators. So, an idea. I come up with a plot then make a totally random change/twist in the middle of it and see what happens. And then throw in more kinks as I go. |
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Post by Raphael on Jan 20, 2014 20:38:57 GMT -6
The funny thing about today and our literature that we come up with is that we are trying so hard to do new stuff that all the old stuff is going to be "new". Like dystopian is totally over done right now.
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Post by Raphael on Jan 20, 2014 20:39:24 GMT -6
The trick is doing the new movement before its a movement. But that is easier said than done
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Post by the Red Dragon on Jan 20, 2014 20:56:54 GMT -6
Yeah, I always see other writers' stuff and I'm like DANG why didn't I think of that?!?!
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Post by sapphire on Jan 21, 2014 15:28:14 GMT -6
It's true, Raphael - you can't write to the current trends.
I took a class taught by a literary agent last year, and he said that many agents at this point won't even consider something that has vampires in it, simply because they're so overdone at the moment. They're on their way down, so by the time a new book with vampires is published, no one will be interested in them anymore.
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Post by Zoom on Jan 22, 2014 0:01:06 GMT -6
Zombies, too. So sick of zombies.
I think that these kind of predictable kind of cliche story-types are necessary in a way. I mean. New is good. Alien is just weird. Like if I wrote a novel that was about an apricot going to the dentist and coming back, that might be new, but it's not fun, you know? Now if that apricot was going to the dentist several times a day and it came up the apricot was like mortally terrified of getting cavities, that's something.
Also worth mentioning is Avatar - pretty good movie overall, right? Personally I loved it. But it is Such. A. Classic. Story.
Then again like completely predictable and overwrought ANYTHING is going to be boring. I guess what you're aiming for is the perfect balance of new and recognizable. Not that I know how to do that, though, I mean if I did I would be writing that, not this.
If I can be any help at all though I'd suggest taking a cue from real life. Not directly from it, I mean in real life I am not an apricot, but I do sort of know the kinds of things that drive people.
Also I've noticed that if you're just writing for fun and you're stuck on what happens next, think about the monomyth or other timeless story blueprints. If you see that the next item on the list is Woman as Temptress you might get an idea that fits.
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Post by Raphael on Jan 22, 2014 15:56:58 GMT -6
With the Avatar I enjoyed the graphics but I have gotten good at seeing the messages in things and when it is hammered so hard as the avatar I just get tired of it.
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Post by sapphire on Jan 22, 2014 17:20:12 GMT -6
The best writing professor I ever had used to say this all the time:
"Make the familiar strange and the strange familiar."
If you're writing about something we've all seen before, make us look at it with a new perspective. If you're writing about something we've never seen before, make it as if we've always known.
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Post by the Red Dragon on Jan 31, 2014 18:02:43 GMT -6
Hm. Easier said than done, I think...
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Post by sapphire on Feb 1, 2014 0:58:58 GMT -6
Well, of course it's not easy. But half of the fun is the challenge.
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Post by the Red Dragon on Feb 5, 2014 18:34:03 GMT -6
Yeah, I'm all for the challenging part, but for me I need an idea of what I'm writing about first. ;D
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Post by sapphire on Feb 6, 2014 0:30:54 GMT -6
That would probably help. There is always a random generator if you're really stuck and just want to write something. You could also enter our contest. Hint hint.  |
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)) xD
