FightWrite: Your Killers Need To Kill

FightWrite: Your Killers Need to Kill

Killers need to kill. It’s surprising how many writers ignore this very specific and important piece of the ones they claim are killers, heartless or not. Sometimes, there’s a difference between the character we describe in the text and the actions the character takes. An author can tell me over and over that a character is a deadly and dangerous person who strikes ruthlessly without mercy, but if they don’t behave that way in the actual story then I’m not going to buy it.

Show versus tell: the difference between who the author says the character is and the actions the character takes in the story. Especially if the actions counteract the description. Now, you do have characters who lie, characters who misrepresent themselves, characters who say one thing and do another, but these are not the characters we’re talking about. This is about ensuring that you, the author, know the character you are writing. Unless you’re hiding their habits, let us glimpse the worst they’re capable of.

Monster. I could tell Jackson I was a monster, but he wouldn’t believe me. He saw a strawberry blonde, five feet eleven inches. A waitress, a Pilates nut, not a murderer. The nasty scar across my slim waist that I’d earned when I was ten? He thought I’d gotten it from a mugging at twenty one. Just as a natural layer of womanly fat hid away years of physical conditioning, I hid myself behind long hair, perky makeup, and a closet full of costumes bought from Macy’s and Forever 21. To him, I was Grace Johnson. The woman who cuddled beside him in bed, the woman who hogged the sheets, who screamed during horror movie jump scares, the woman who forgot to change the toilet paper, who baked cookies every Saturday morning, the woman who sometimes wore the same underwear three days in a row. The woman he loved.

No, I thought as I studied his eyes. Even with a useless arm hanging at my side, elbow crushed; my nose smashed, blood coursing down from the open gash in my forehead, a bullet wound in my shoulder, Sixteen’s gun in my hand, the dining room table shattered, and his grandmother’s China scattered across the floor. He’d never believe Grace Johnson was a lie. Not until I showed him, possibly not even then. Not for many more years to come. Probably, I caught my mental shrug, if he lives.

“Grace,” Jackson said. “Please…” The phone clattered the floor, his blue eyes wide, color draining from his lips. “This isn’t you.”

Gaze locking his, I levered Sixteen’s pistol at her knee.

“Don’t,” she whispered. “Morrison will take you in, he’ll fix this.” Her voice cracked, almost a sob. For us, a destroyed limb was a death sentence. Once, we swore we’d die together. Now, she can mean it. “Thirteen, if you run then there’s no going back.”

My upper lip curled. “You don’t know me.” I had no idea which one I was talking to. “You never did.”

My finger squeezed the trigger.

Sixteen grunted, blood slipping down her lip. In the doorway, Jackson screamed.

Do it and mean it. Let it be part of their character development, regardless of if which way you intend to go. In the above example, there’s a dichotomy present between the character of Thirteen and her cover Grace Johnson. There’s some question, even for the character, about which of them they are. It sets up a beginning of growth for the character as she runs, but it also fails to answer what will be the central question in the story: who am I? Which way will I jump?

If Thirteen doesn’t kill Sixteen, if the scene answers the question at the beginning then why would you need to read the story?

Below the cut, we’ll talk about some ways to show their struggles.

-Michi

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im so tired of stories that want to be epic and interesting so bad that they think turning friend against friend is the only way.

you know what i find epic? you know what i find really interesting?

stories where friends love each other so much that they search for a way to work together despite disparate beliefs—even though it’s fucking hard.

stories where the bonds of brotherhood and sisterhood and found families are so strong that they fight for each other rather than against each other.

stories where an idealist and a pragmatist recognize and take advantage of the fact that they complement what the other is lacking, instead of getting into a pissing match about which way is better. stories where that partnership fucks villains up and makes the world a better place.

stories where shared history and knowing each other gets the weight it deserves rather than being used to elevate a character’s manpain or to emotionally manipulate a reader into caring about a story arc that is transparently about blockbuster panels rather than any real adherence to characterization and actually, sort of reeks of Patriot Act apologism in places

stories where moral complexity doesn’t mean being a fucking asshole to people who have been your best friends and family for decades jfc

stories where trust matters and stealing someone’s memories or agency isn’t seen as a the lesser of two evils because it’s not used as the only other option when faced with worldwide annihilation IN THE FIRST PLACE

sorry

sorry, i got off topic

stories where characters can be gritty and real and multifaceted because they act out of loyalty, faith, and friendship even when the odds are against them, even when it’s easier to do something else. 

JUST GIVE ME THIS: STORIES THAT GLORIFY FRIENDSHIP AND LOVE NOT THE EVIL THAT MEN DO IN THE NAME OF THE GREATER GOOD. SUPERHEROES WHO FIGHT BACK TO BACK. PARTNERSHIPS. TEAMS. FAMILY.

i’m so so tired of the circle jerk of betrayal and angst coming from WITHIN rather than ACTUAL SUPER VILLAINS damn

How would you describe green eyes without it sounding cliche?

There are some ways to describe eyes here.

Hiya! I love your blog it's absolutely amazing. I'm an aspiring author and I was wondering.. How do you overcome writers block?

Hello there, writerly friend~ ♥︎

I have to be straight-forward with you, because I need to be honest right now. This is the sort of question that I have difficulty answering… because every time I try to tackle this very (very) general and vague question I end up writing something that’s a little too meta and I become afraid of what people will think of me.

But, then again… I get this question an awful lot, and while I wish that people would look at my Mega Masterpost (which is updated every Saturday by the way) and find the answer to their question, I have not really tackled Writer’s Block in general. So, let’s talk about it— okay?

I will be brave, and you will listen with an open mind, okay?

Let’s pretend I am a Doctor, and you are a patient. You walk into my clinic and tell me that you get headaches all the time. Of course, I prescribe you headache medicine and we both go our own ways.

Now, let’s pretend I am a Writing Advice Blog (which I guess I am ;p), and you are a Writer (which you certainly are). You come into my blog and you tell me you have writer’s block. Now, I could just give you my cure for Writer’s Block— but what does that achieve? Just because it worked for me does not mean it will work for you. And if next week you come back asking for more help then have I really given you the tools to overcome Writer’s Block, or have I just put a band-aid on your problems and say you have ‘healed’?

No. I have something more useful for you.

You see, people think Writer’s Block is something like the cold— that you catch it out of the blue, but I disagree. Writer’s Block is a problem with you. Yes, it is something that is going on with you— and thus you have the tools to overcome this. You just need a little help realizing exactly what you need to do~

I want you to step back for a moment. I want you to take a deep breath and consider the following question. Forget about what is going on right now. Forget about your phone notifications, and that email that you meant to send last week. Forget about them for just one minute and focus on this:

What do I need, more than anything, to finish this book?

What is the first thing that came to mind? What was the first enormous hurdle that rose before your path? Our greatest foes are just that— great, huge in size, and they make themselves known to us if we call to them. Remember: this foe is a part of you, and thus you hold the tools the defeat them, destroy them, or have them join your side.

But you need to be honest with yourself in order to see them for who they really are.

'Writer's Block' is a fancy catch-all term for a bunch of things— and to be honest I don’t like to use it, because it adds a veil of mysticism, almost romanticizing the problem instead of focusing on overcoming it.

Again, consider the question you asked yourself earlier.

What do I need, more than anything, to finish this book?

Are you bored with this story? Be honest with yourself. If what you need is excitement, a spark to re-ignite that flame, then you already know what you need, and I can help you.

Are you afraid of the opinions of your peers? Be honest with yourself. If what you really fear is what people will think of you, then you already know what the problem is, and I can help you.

Are you tired of this story, and you want to write something else? Be honest with yourself. If you dread writing this story, but you don’t want to feel guilty by leaving it, then you already know what the problem is, and I can help you.

Are you afraid that writing is a waste of your time? Be honest with yourself. If you are really afraid of that, then you know what the problem is and I can help you.

Because let me tell you… you hold within you the answer to your questions, because the foe blocking the path is a part of you. I am sorry of this offends a lot of people, but it is a really big part of American culture to blame your problems on other people. It’s easy to just remove yourself of all blame and demand the world to fix you. And I know that I am opening myself to hate by saying that, but trust me when I tell you that I used to be a very rotten person. I used to demand things of the world, and I used to blame my problems on everyone but me.

"Why did you let me do that?" was something I used to say a lot, because rotten people like to act like they had no control over their actions.

But I changed. I got tired of being who I was. I got tired of being rotten. I got tired of blaming the world for my failures, and I got tired of not achieving my dreams because I was afraid of taking responsibility for my destiny.

If you have read this, and you still think that the problem is not you, then it most certainly is. And while some people look at that and feel insulted, I have found empowerment within it. You are the source of your problems, and thus you have the power to fix them. Even if it deals with things that may seem external, you can still fix them.

"But I don’t have time to write"

"But I am too young"

"But people will hate me"

"But I don’t have talent like other people"

If you can’t talk about what is stopping you without centering it around yourself (I/me) then the problem has to do with you.

And this is good.

Because you have the tools within you to overcome your problems. You just need to be honest with yourself, stop blaming the world around you, and take action. And — just like that — that foe will step out of the way. Your path will once again be clear, and you will be able to return to the things that truly make you happy.

The things closest to your soul.

I hope this helps. Part of me didn’t want to publish this, because it is more about Life Advice than Writing Advice, but it was time. I hope that those of you who followed me all the way through (this rather long post) will find the same empowerment I did when I realized… I held the key to my own personal definition of happiness.

I haven’t suffered from Writer’s Block ever since~ ♥︎

the Bechdel test, the Ellen Willis test, ALL THE TESTS: or, a handy guide to feminist critiques of narrative

(reference for when i am trying to explain these to people and they are looking at me like “huh”):

the Bechdel test: does the story have a) more than one women, b) who talk to each other, c) about something other than a man.

the Ellen Willis test: if you flip the genders, does the story still make sense?

the Sexy Lamp test (courtesy of Kelly Sue DeConnick): can you replace your female character with a sexy lamp and still have the story work? if yes, YOU ARE A HACK.

the Mako Mori test: there is a) at least one female character, b) who gets her own narrative arc, c) that is not about supporting a man’s story.

the Tauriel test (which i made up in response to The Hobbit 2 [which passes] and Skyfall [which fails]): a) there is a woman, b) WHO IS GOOD AT HER JOB.

and in justification of my recent TV obsessions, i would like to note that Scandal, The Vampire Diaries, Buffy, and Nikita (ALL HAIL MAGGIE Q) pass all of these tests with flying colors.

UPDATE: i just discovered the Finkbeiner test and it is FANTASTIC.

BASICS:

Genres:

Alternate World: A setting that is not our world, but may be similar. This includes “portal fantasies” in which characters find an alternative world through their own. An example would be The Chronicles of Narnia.

Arabian: Fantasy that is based on the Middle East and North Africa.

Arthurian: Set in Camelot and deals with Arthurian mythology and legends.

Bangsian: Set in the afterlife or deals heavily with the afterlife. It most often deals with famous and historical people as characters. An example could be The Lovely Bones.

Celtic: Fantasy that is based on the Celtic people, most often the Irish.

Christian: This genre has Christian themes and elements.

Classical: Based on Roman and Greek myths.

Contemporary: This genre takes place in modern society in which paranormal and magical creatures live among us. An example would be the Harry Potter series.

Dark: This genre combines fantasy and horror elements. The tone or feel of dark fantasy is often gloomy, bleak, and gothic.

Epic: This genre is long and, as the name says, epic. Epic is similar to high fantasy, but has more importance, meaning, or depth. Epic fantasy is most often in a medieval setting.

Gaslamp: Also known as gaslight, this genre has a Victorian or Edwardian setting.

Gunpowder: Gunpowder crosses epic or high fantasy with “rifles and railroads”, but the technology remains realistic unlike the similar genre of steampunk.

Heroic: Centers on one or more heroes who start out as humble, unlikely heroes thrown into a plot that challenges them.

High: This is considered the “classic” fantasy genre. High fantasy contains the general fantasy elements and is set in a fictional world.

Historical: The setting in this genre is any time period within our world that has fantasy elements added.

Medieval: Set between ancient times and the industrial era. Often set in Europe and involves knights. (medieval references)

Mythic: Fantasy involving or based on myths, folklore, and fairy tales.

Portal: Involves a portal, doorway, or other entryway that leads the protagonist from the “normal world” to the “magical world”.

Quest: As the name suggests, the protagonist in this genre sets out on a quest. The protagonist most frequently searches for an object of importance and returns home with it.

Sword and Sorcery: Pseudomedieval settings in which the characters use swords and engage in action-packed plots. Magic is also an element, as is romance.

Urban: Has a modern or urban setting in which magic and paranormal creatures exist, often in secret.

Wuxia: A genre in which the protagonist learns a martial art and follows a code. This genre is popular in Chinese speaking areas.

Word Counts:

Word counts for fantasy are longer than other genres because of the need for world building. Even in fantasy that takes place in our world, there is a need for the introduction of the fantasy aspect.

Word counts for established authors with a fan base can run higher because publishers are willing to take a higher chance on those authors. First-time authors (who have little to no fan base) will most likely not publish a longer book through traditional publishing. Established authors may also have better luck with publishing a novel far shorter than that genre’s expected or desired word count, though first-time authors may achieve this as well.

A general rule of thumb for first-time authors is to stay under 100k and probably under 110k for fantasy.

Other exceptions to word count guidelines would be for short fiction (novellas, novelettes, short stories, etc.) and that one great author who shows up every few years with a perfect 200k manuscript.

But why are there word count guidelines? For young readers, it’s pretty obvious why books should be shorter. For other age groups, it comes down to the editor’s preference, shelf space in book stores, and the cost of publishing a book. The bigger the book, the more expensive it is to publish.

General Fantasy: 75k - 110k

Epic Fantasy: 90k - 120k

Contemporary Fantasy: 90k - 120k

Urban Fantasy: 80k - 100k

Middle Grade: 45k - 70k

YA: 75k - 120k (depending on sub-genre)

Adult: 80k - 120k (depending on sub-genre)

WORLD BUILDING:

A pseudo-European medieval setting is fine, but it’s overdone. And it’s always full of white men and white women in disguise as white men because around 85% (ignore my guess/exaggeration, I only put it there for emphasis) of fantasy writers seem to have trouble letting go of patriarchal societies. 

Guys. It’s fantasy. You can do whatever you want. You can write a fantasy that takes place in a jungle. Or in a desert. Or in a prairie. The people can be extremely diverse in one region and less diverse in another. The cultures should differ. Different voices should be heard. Queer people exist. People of color exist. Not everyone has two arms or two legs or the ability to hear.

As for the fantasy elements, you also make up the rules. Don’t go searching around about how a certain magic spell is done, just make it up. Magic can be whatever color you want. It can be no color at all. You can use as much or as little magic as you want.

Keep track of what you put into your world and stick to the rules. There should be limits, laws, cultures, climates, disputes, and everything else that exists in our world. However, you don’t have to go over every subject when writing your story.

World Building:

Fantasy World Building Questionnaire

Magical World Builder’s Guide

Creating Fantasy and Science Fiction Worlds

Creating Religions

Quick and Dirty World Building

World Building Links

Fantasy World Building Questions

The Seed of Government (2)

Guide to Science Fiction and Fantasy

Fantasy Worlds and Race

Water Geography

Alternate Medieval Fantasy Story

Writing Magic

Types of Magic

When Magic Goes Wrong

Magic-Like Psychic Abilities

Science and Magic

Creative Uses of Magic

Thoughts on Creating Magic Systems

Defining the Sources, Effects, and Costs of Magic

World Building Basics

Mythology Master Post

Fantasy Religions

Setting the Fantastic in the Everyday World

Making Histories

Matching Your Money to Your World

Building a Better Beast

A Man in Beast’s Clothing

Creating and Using Fictional Languages

Creating a Language

Creating Fictional Holidays

Creating Holidays

Weather and World Building 101

Describing Fantastic Creatures

Medieval Technology

Music For Your Fantasy World

A heterogeneous World

Articles on World Building

Cliches:

Grand List of Fantasy Cliches (most of this can be debated)

Fantasy Cliches Discussion

Ten Fantasy Cliches That Should Be Put to Rest

Seven Fantasy Cliches That Need to Disappear

Avoiding Fantasy Cliches 101

Avoiding Fantasy Cliches

Fantasy Cliches

Fantasy Cliche Meter: The Bad Guys

Fantasy Novelist’s Exam

Mary Sue Race Test

Note: Species (like elves and dwarves) are not cliches. The way they are executed are cliches.

CHARACTERS

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