After reading this title I'm sure you're about to click out of my blog, but give me at least a full two minutes to explain.
Ready?
Go!
Okay, so most people are sick of elves. And I don't see a reason why you shouldn't, no one can outdue what Mr. J.R.R Tokien did. But that's our main issue, most people find that he's the end all say all being of high fantasy. If he made a moon that gave a creepy smile and puked up blood then everyone else would have one that gave creepy frowns and cried blood. Simply put we haven't been able to get past the pure awesomeness that Mr. Tolkien created.
But does that mean we have to get rid of elves, dwarves, halflings, and orcs? Of course not! If I told you that I created a halfling race that was actually evil and the main users of magic would you be intrigued? Or what if I said that elves were so inbred that they were mentally stunted and as such the laughing stalk of the entire world? Or how about we go straight back to the very beginning of fantasy and go to the original myths? After all orcs AND elves were all evil, no one was good or safe with them around.
Basically I'm saying that we all should just think of ways to enhance the entire fantasy experience. I think one reason why many people just can't get into fantasy is because people think it's all the same formula. The boy who grabbed a sword out of a stone and went off to destroy it with the help of an old wrinkly wizard and a drunken dwarf. We should spruce up our ideas for our novels and do our absolute best to keep them nice and original.
Now am I saying that Mr. Tolkien shouldn't get credit or you can't be inspired by him? NO! Please don't think I'm saying that, we'd all be idiots if that was the case, but we should all do our parts to be original and stop ripping off an old dead guy who basically invented and defined a genre.
Now I'm off to go kill off half my elves since they're cliche.
Tuesday, January 27, 2015
Saturday, January 17, 2015
Writing with Anime/Manga in Mind
Alright, time to be honest with you guys...I love anime and manga. I'm a complete geek who stands around in the comic section trying to read an entire volume of manga in an afternoon and then walk out with six volumes I didn't even plan on buying. Why is it that you need to know this? Because I'm sure there's a few of you who lack drawing skills yet write plots for awesome anime or manga in mind. So if you are one of those awesome people then I suggest you sit back and relax because I'm gonna help you out a bit.
So if you've read a lot of manga or watch a ton of anime then you know that there are certain tropes you need to follow depending on the genre. But because this is very general we're gonna just go with some of the main tropes of anime and manga that you often see.
The Loud Mouth: This is typically a guy, usually a teen, that talk way too much and brags about how awesome he is. I discussed this in my last post so I won't swell on this too long, but basically this guy has a big ego yet is usually an underdog that isn't very skilled. If he is skilled then his bragging get's in the way of being truly awesome. Just watch out when he's serious though, the moment he stops playing with you he's dangerous.
Loli/Shota: A loli is a girl and a shota is a guy. Either way it's a person who could be sixteen or seventeen yet look like they're twelve. This trope can be bent in plenty of ways so you could make them evil, like Kanato from Diabolick Lovers, or sweet and adorable like Momiji from Fruits Basket. No matter how you do them up they'll always look very childish and be cute to almost diabetic levels.
Tsundere: Tsundere is a Japanese term that takes two words and jam them together. Tsun tsun, which means turn away in disgust, and dere dere which means lovey dovey. Basically it's a guy or girl who's cruel to their crush/partner but will be sweet to them at other times. Often they'll deny they like the person they're crushing on and even when they get together anything romantic will be accepted with a glare and blush. Of course it doesn't just have to be for crushes, they could love/hate their friends as well. Some good examples are: England from Hetalia Axis Powers, Kagami Hiiragi from Lucky Star, and Sakura Haruno from Naruto/Naruto Shippuden.
Also, if the Tsundere is female then she could wear two pony tails on the side of her head. For some reason that hair style often goes with tsundere females.
Emotionless Characters: For some reason there's that one guy, or girl, who never shows their emotions. Do they have them? Yes. But they just never show them for whatever reason, It could be a tragic past or some other horrible thing, whatever the case the character is never very happy to show their emotions, but when they do...Lord have mercy on your soul. Some wonderful examples are Julius Monrey from the Heart no Kuni no Alice series, Levi Ackerman from Attack on Titan, and Lucy from Elfen Lied.
Being Set in Japan: Most anime/manga are set in Japan. If this is the case then do some serious research! No, most Western people won't know if your information is correct, but then you have that one person who happens to be a Nipponophile...Anyway! Just do your research before doing this, that way you're not the laughing stock of the world. Eamaples...Do I honestly have to list them?
A Japanese Monster: Depending on what genre you're writing you're gonna involve a Japanese monster or yokai. It could be slice of life with a fantasy twist, a right out fantasy, or some kind of mystery. But if it has monsters then there's gonna be at least one yokai thrown in. Some examples of creatures are yuki-onna, shinigami, and kitsune.
Blood: If you're writing an action, thriller, horror, or anything that has fighting expect a boatload of blood, and make sure at least gallon of it comes out of the characters mouths. Do humans have enough blood to fill up a milk carton? Yes. Should they be able to live if they lost that much? No, but this is a book made like an anime/manga so we're just gonna go with it. Examples...Every.Single.Shonnen.Anime.Ever.Made.
Light glinting off glasses: Yes, this IS a thing. No it's not necessarily something unique to anime and manga, but if you want your book to resemble it then I suggest you put it in. It's really an effect meant to make a character with glasses, who's probably awesome anyway and this will be discussed further another day....Rant aside, the light is just meant to heighten the mood to make them either awesome, thinking, or feared, Some examples are: Fraken Stein from Soul Eater, Nice from Baccano, and almost anyone with glasses in Hellsing.
So there you go, some very basic tropes used all the time in anime and manga. These won't make your book specifically anime or manga like, but it could help you go in the right direction. But don't take my word for it, please don't, go out and look for some tropes yourself. Who knows, maybe you'll find something new and awesome to share with the rest of us nerds.
So if you've read a lot of manga or watch a ton of anime then you know that there are certain tropes you need to follow depending on the genre. But because this is very general we're gonna just go with some of the main tropes of anime and manga that you often see.
The Loud Mouth: This is typically a guy, usually a teen, that talk way too much and brags about how awesome he is. I discussed this in my last post so I won't swell on this too long, but basically this guy has a big ego yet is usually an underdog that isn't very skilled. If he is skilled then his bragging get's in the way of being truly awesome. Just watch out when he's serious though, the moment he stops playing with you he's dangerous.
Loli/Shota: A loli is a girl and a shota is a guy. Either way it's a person who could be sixteen or seventeen yet look like they're twelve. This trope can be bent in plenty of ways so you could make them evil, like Kanato from Diabolick Lovers, or sweet and adorable like Momiji from Fruits Basket. No matter how you do them up they'll always look very childish and be cute to almost diabetic levels.
Tsundere: Tsundere is a Japanese term that takes two words and jam them together. Tsun tsun, which means turn away in disgust, and dere dere which means lovey dovey. Basically it's a guy or girl who's cruel to their crush/partner but will be sweet to them at other times. Often they'll deny they like the person they're crushing on and even when they get together anything romantic will be accepted with a glare and blush. Of course it doesn't just have to be for crushes, they could love/hate their friends as well. Some good examples are: England from Hetalia Axis Powers, Kagami Hiiragi from Lucky Star, and Sakura Haruno from Naruto/Naruto Shippuden.
Also, if the Tsundere is female then she could wear two pony tails on the side of her head. For some reason that hair style often goes with tsundere females.
Emotionless Characters: For some reason there's that one guy, or girl, who never shows their emotions. Do they have them? Yes. But they just never show them for whatever reason, It could be a tragic past or some other horrible thing, whatever the case the character is never very happy to show their emotions, but when they do...Lord have mercy on your soul. Some wonderful examples are Julius Monrey from the Heart no Kuni no Alice series, Levi Ackerman from Attack on Titan, and Lucy from Elfen Lied.
Being Set in Japan: Most anime/manga are set in Japan. If this is the case then do some serious research! No, most Western people won't know if your information is correct, but then you have that one person who happens to be a Nipponophile...Anyway! Just do your research before doing this, that way you're not the laughing stock of the world. Eamaples...Do I honestly have to list them?
A Japanese Monster: Depending on what genre you're writing you're gonna involve a Japanese monster or yokai. It could be slice of life with a fantasy twist, a right out fantasy, or some kind of mystery. But if it has monsters then there's gonna be at least one yokai thrown in. Some examples of creatures are yuki-onna, shinigami, and kitsune.
Blood: If you're writing an action, thriller, horror, or anything that has fighting expect a boatload of blood, and make sure at least gallon of it comes out of the characters mouths. Do humans have enough blood to fill up a milk carton? Yes. Should they be able to live if they lost that much? No, but this is a book made like an anime/manga so we're just gonna go with it. Examples...Every.Single.Shonnen.Anime.Ever.Made.
Light glinting off glasses: Yes, this IS a thing. No it's not necessarily something unique to anime and manga, but if you want your book to resemble it then I suggest you put it in. It's really an effect meant to make a character with glasses, who's probably awesome anyway and this will be discussed further another day....Rant aside, the light is just meant to heighten the mood to make them either awesome, thinking, or feared, Some examples are: Fraken Stein from Soul Eater, Nice from Baccano, and almost anyone with glasses in Hellsing.
So there you go, some very basic tropes used all the time in anime and manga. These won't make your book specifically anime or manga like, but it could help you go in the right direction. But don't take my word for it, please don't, go out and look for some tropes yourself. Who knows, maybe you'll find something new and awesome to share with the rest of us nerds.
Saturday, January 10, 2015
Writing Character Traits that Aren't Saracasm
For some reason writers believe that sarcasm is a wonderful and 'unique' character trait. Biting one liners that often make the weaker characters cry and the baddies curse like demented sailors. Well, wonderful people who are actually published, sarcasm isn't the only character trait in the entire world. Books, anime, and every other medium of story telling has proved that there are more quirks and traits than sarcasm. Yet new writers immediately think that the only trait that makes a very strong character is a bad attitude with a salty mouth that spits out acid.
Look everyone, sarcastic characters ARE fun. Look at Raistlin Majere from Dragon Lance, Levi Ackerman from Attack on Titan, or Tony Stark from Avengers. These characters are some of the most beloved in their respective series because of their sarcastic mannerisms. However, thanks to their success, other writers get the idea that their characters will be loved thanks to having a similar personality. This, dear friends, isn't true. There are a boat load of quirks that can be injected into your characters to not only make them unique, something the market desperately needs, but also interesting and loved.
So let's start with one. Miri from Princess Academy has a love for learning. Now I know that this book wasn't made for older audiences, but bare with me for a moment. Miri's love for learning goes beyond the normal 'I want to know 1+1', it stems from wanting to help her family, to becoming her main character trait. She wants to know absolutely all she can so that she can help those around her, outshine others, and be seen as useful to her community. This proves that her strong character can be built up entirely around one trait, learning.
Now let's try another character. Anyone who's watched anime knows that there is at least one character, usually male, who loves to scream and shout how awesomely awesome he is. Well lets spin our random generator and pick a guy...Oh look it's Black*Star from Soul Eater!
Alright, since I said that this guy basically brags about how awesome he is it should be clear that this is a main character trait. The fact that he is so confident gets down to every single part of him, allowing him to push himself further to the next point so that he can become the best of the best. This confidence branches out to other people as well, he is confident that his weapon will also become just as awesome as him since he's wielding her.
See, two very interesting characters and neither use excessive sarcasm.
Now should we just throw sarcasm away into the 'over played Mary-Sue' dumpster? No. Some characters wouldn't be as awesome or fun without their sarcasm. There is a time and place for sarcastic characters, they just don't have to be the center of every other book in existence. Especially the urban fantasy genre, but I'll get to that topic on another day.
Now let's try another character. Anyone who's watched anime knows that there is at least one character, usually male, who loves to scream and shout how awesomely awesome he is. Well lets spin our random generator and pick a guy...Oh look it's Black*Star from Soul Eater!
Alright, since I said that this guy basically brags about how awesome he is it should be clear that this is a main character trait. The fact that he is so confident gets down to every single part of him, allowing him to push himself further to the next point so that he can become the best of the best. This confidence branches out to other people as well, he is confident that his weapon will also become just as awesome as him since he's wielding her.
See, two very interesting characters and neither use excessive sarcasm.
Now should we just throw sarcasm away into the 'over played Mary-Sue' dumpster? No. Some characters wouldn't be as awesome or fun without their sarcasm. There is a time and place for sarcastic characters, they just don't have to be the center of every other book in existence. Especially the urban fantasy genre, but I'll get to that topic on another day.
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