*spams friends lists*

[kippurbird]

Right, so remember the person who posted the seven guidelines to make a character more likable? (Found here if you would care to remember.) We had our writer's group meeting tonight and I had to read her work and critique it. It was horribly cliched.

She has phrases like, "Even though she knew in her heart this man hadn’t killed Leah, he might know something, anything to track down her friend’s murderer, " This man being a mysterious stranger in a coat holding a knife and was found in a room full of blood and Leah's body very badly cut up. But she knew in her heart that he didn't do it. Yes.

And the fiance was the designated asshole, who she didn't love at all, so she won't have any conflicting feelings when the mysterious stranger comes and sweeps her off her feet. It just went on and on and on like that.

When I pointed it out to her, she says, "Yes, I know it's formulaic, it's supposed to be that way, that's how it is in the genre. I only have a certain amount of pages to tell the story in, I don't have the space to make it uncliched."

My response was a "............" with a smile on, of course.

I'm not even really sure I know how to respond to that. Except maybe "Nargh".

Comments

[custardpringle.livejournal.com]

I have one word to bowl this woman over on her ass fandom.

Because somehow, miraculously-- take due South fandom, which has been going for over TEN YEARS, and is largely centered on a single pairing. And yet we keep coming up with interesting, entirely not cliched things to do with those same two characters. Sometimes in less than one page.

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

Hah. Well, apparently she can't have the fiance be a credible threat to her Main Character's romance with the Mysterious Stranger because that would take character development which would take pages that she doesn't have.

[custardpringle.livejournal.com]

Having written Harlequin-style fic, I can actually sympathize a bit.

That doesn't mean I've ever been dumb enough to do that kind of thing.

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

I don't think I could ever write formulaic stories. I would get bored halfway through.

[custardpringle.livejournal.com]

Actually, the fun is not getting bored :D

The SGA Harlequin I wrote came out as branching off from canon, which was interesting-- in admittedly a purely fannish way-- because I got to look at how much worse things would have gone without the presence of a certain major character.

And the due South Harlequin I'm writing right now has people-eating aliens in it. *veg*

[custardpringle.livejournal.com]

I'm going to clarify, even, because part of my dS Harlequin is similar to the story you're talking about.

I don't think you know the show, so my leads (both male) are named Ben and Ray, okay? And Ben's father has died, apparently by accident.

Evidence shows up-- fairly thin evidence, mind you, and this is after they've hooked up-- that Ray might have paid for Ben's father to be murdered. And Ben does not know in his heart that Ray is innocent. In fact, he goes and arrests him and is absolutely convinced of his guilt. Because Ben has, hi, SERIOUS trust issues, and it's actually easier for him to believe that Ray is a murderer than that he's actually found someone with whom he could be happy.

And THAT is how you deal with these kinds of plot points. ::nods firmly::

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

That sounds so much more interesting. *nods*

[karaotter.livejournal.com]

*blinks* Dude.... what is she on?

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

I want to make money?

[elvea-aure.livejournal.com]

O_o


Sounds like early stages of Anne Rice Syndrome...

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

Ha! *wonders if she could get away with saying that, doubts it. is sad.*

*HUGS*

[veetvoojagig.livejournal.com]

*blank stare* Obviously she writes for a special genre of idiots.

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

Do Anita Blake fans count as a special genre of idiots?

[veetvoojagig.livejournal.com]

Probably. I've never read those, so I couldn't say.

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

OHMIGAWD!! YOU MADE AN ICON OUT OF IT!! *HEARTS*

They're formulaic bad porn.

[veetvoojagig.livejournal.com]

*cough* Actually, it's not mine. mysticxf makes the best humorous Lost icons ever. Better than me, usually.

[prongsrini.livejournal.com]

My gosh. I can't believe those people exist. Formulac? Arugh, I wish I could smack her for just saying that.

If we all did formulac stories, then this world is going to be deprived of real creativity.

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

Well, I try for creativity. She just wants to sell, apparently.

[jacedraccus.livejournal.com]

I want to say that she's kinda following the maxim of 'aim high, shoot low', but I'm not sure that's quite right.... more like 'Aim low, shoot your foot'.

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

She's doing it because that's what sells. I don't know what you call that. Perhaps I'm stuck up in my ivory tower, but I still think there should be some ... plausibility involved.

[(Anonymous)]

Oh indeed, I agree wholeheartedly there. Just because it sells doesn't mean it's quality.

What I meant was, she's aiming for the lowest common denominator, intentionally, and then not even aiming to be the best of breed there. She could try to improve the genre, enhance it, make it more than what it is... instead, she's just gonna kinda trail after those that went before and pick up their breadcrumbs.

[behyper.livejournal.com]

This post makes me sad that it's quite hard to deal with WRITER FRIENDS.

When you criticize them, they inevitably have excuses. Usually I'm too chicken to tell them the whole thing kind of sucks, so I point out a few holes, and of course they'll flare up--"It's SUPPOSED to be like that!" etc. And then they'll be unnecessarily hard critiquing my work. Yes, appreciate criticism, but I don't appreciate a bitter backlash just because I told you that your character cannot possibly switch personalities within a paragraph.

Sorry. [end rant]

[dergerm.livejournal.com]

Dude, I want to meet her. Just so I can say I met the world famous author before she got her first book deal, 'cause OBVIOUSLY she's going places.

Money

[dove-cg.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that might sell. But you know what? There's only enough room for one cruddy Robert Jordan and one cruddy Laurell K. Hamilton lengthy saga that never ends. She might be able to sell that first series but I doubt they'll pay her to stick around for another one (unless she manages to get a miraculously insane long series herself... and even THEN it's unlikely.)

And her books will most likely be out of print within a few years. She really isn't going to make much money off of this, unless she's writing for the Harlequin series books. And even then, it's not a lot. Writing books is rarely going to make a ton of money for an author. She'd have to be insanely lucky to do so with that kind of drivel. I really do hope you keep us updated on how well her books sell. :P :)

Re: Money

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

There's only enough room for one cruddy Robert Jordan and one cruddy Laurell K. Hamilton and they're being filled by those authors respectively.

If you'd like I can keep you updated on her continuing antics in the group.

Re: Money

[dove-cg.livejournal.com]

Yes, those positions -are- already filled. :D

And sure! I'd love to hear more. I've never had anything published and even I realize she's being kind of silly. Can't wait to see if she starts griping about how the money is only trickling in or something. But she probably wouldn't admit to that. Is she writing for romance or horror? XD

Re: Money

[kippurbird.livejournal.com]

She's not published yet. Just like me. She's trying to get published and she has a novel on an agent's desk. But that's about it.