And now a Rebuttal…

‘Twas the blog before Christmas…

I want to make a counter argument to my last blog post.  In it, I noted that an author might choose to write a scene one way or another, depending on the expected audience and the intended genre.  I went so far as to state that a book aimed at one audience might loose readers if it delved too far into the writing style of another genre.

It does happen, by the way.  I’ve seen it.

But isn’t there an argument for just writing the best, most powerful stuff you can, without worrying about who it’s for?  For not letting some editor in the back of your brain convince you it won’t sell to your target audience?  I mean, if you write the good stuff, surely someone will like it, right?

I suppose it depends on what you consider the good stuff.  There is something to be said for internal consistency, after all.  An R rated scene in an otherwise G rated story stands out like a cue ball in a bowl of oranges.  It might be the absolute best way to depict that scene, but does it serve the overall story?

There is no right answer, of course.  Novelists and dramatists and movie producers struggle with this all the time.  And you know, I didn’t want you to miss out on a good struggle in your own work.

Happy holidays!

Hindsight / Make 'em Laugh

I have awesome powers of hindsight. I am really good at thinking, a day too late, "What I should have said was..."

Today is the last day of 2009. I didn't post last Thursday because it was Christmas Eve. What I should have posted then, in the grand spirit of giving, was this:

http://www.thehungersite.com/

It's a site with a simple premise - if you go there, the site's advertisers will make donations to various worthy charities. All you have to do is click a button or two. No purchase necessary.

As for this week's post, I'm going to share a little secret. This is a trick that other writers have used that always works on me. Early in the story, make your characters laugh. It helps, of course, if the joke is actually funny and the reader laughs too. But if your characters are capable of laughter, I will follow them through hell.

When the protagonist starts out wallowing in angst I get worried. After all, for conflict and tension to build, things have to get worse. But when bad things happen to characters who share jokes and camaraderie, then I care. It's a simple variation on the idea that the reader is more apt to like a character who is actually, well, likable.

And maybe laughter isn't your key. Maybe you like characters who make art, or who express romantic feelings, or who (wrapping back to the first half of the thread) do charity work. But if your characters are people you might like, there's a good chance your audience will like them too.