Friday, September 6, 2013

Beware of falling into the trap


The worst mistake we writers can make is by Falling into the trap. The writing trap. A large writing hole that we writers are prone to falling into, due to several reasons; overuse of certain types of plot lines, clichéd resolution, similar style of narrative in all the books we write, even though the books may not be a part of a series, use of similar settings, themes, use of similar protagonists in all the books, not deviating from the same and often predictable thought patterns and plot twists.

This can be attributed to the fact that once a few writers have discovered a successful formula, they want to milk it dry. Perhaps they endorse the view why mess or meddle with something that has worked well. But what they forget is that a certain style the readers may have adored once, may not find takers again and again.

Many times I have felt a sense of Déjà vu when I read the next set of books written by a few writers. I get the feeling that I have met the characters before, at another time in another place. Even the setting has no novelty as it’s the same one as the last book written by the author. The problem faced by the main character and the way the conflict has been resolved is something I had guessed halfway through the book.

Today’s generation of readers have several things vying for their limited and often straying attention. If the writer has nothing new to offer they are quick to discard the book and the writer. The only way we can avoid this vicious writing trap is by being original. This will sustain the writer if he or she is in for the long haul. There are several writers who have adopted this approach successfully: Roald Dahl; each book of his was different  from the other, for example there was no similarity in any of these books; George’s Marvellous Medicine, Twits, Mathilda, James and the Giant Peach, and Charlie and the Chocolate factory.

Another writer who escaped this trap is J.K Rowling. Though the seven potter books had the same setting of Hogwarts and the same set of characters, each book had something new to offer. There were new entrants who took us completely unawares, several times the plot took unexpected twists that intrigued us. This trait of unpredictability keeps readers interested.


 Have you ever felt that a particular writer is falling into the trap? How do you  manage to avoid the writing trap? Please share your views. 

21 comments:

  1. The element of predictability can kill the joy of reading and as you rightly said, cliche's are best avoided:)

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  2. True. But most of the authors I have read before have managed to keep things fresh. I vary the theme of my blog-posts frequently due to this very reason.

    www.destinationinfinity.org

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  3. So true, Rachna. Every book needs to be fresh. And those are the sequels I enjoy.

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  4. I'm avoiding the trap by stopping at three books.

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  5. I think success with one kind of book can make it very tempting to keep churning them out, especially if they keep selling. Bit of a soul destroyer though.

    mood
    Moody Writing

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  6. I've definitely read a few authors who I got tired of because it became clear that they had nothing new to offer. It seems sometimes, and maybe i'm just jaded, that the more commercially successful a writer is, the more likely they are to fall into the trap. The ones with starkly different stories tend to have fewer books and it seems clear that it's quality over quantity.

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  7. I agree. Even though some authors seem to stay with a 'formula', they lose their audience if they don't bring something new to each book. As authors our imagination is our life blood.

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  8. Writer after writer fell into the trap. Just hoping my characters are different enough from each other!

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  9. You should definitely treat each story as an entity in its own right, even if it's part of a series. If a writer becomes formulaic, then it's like the characters are cardbaord cutouts made to fit a certain kind of plot. Some of the best characters are unpredictable even to the writer.

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  10. I have read a few writers that do what you say, they repeat themselves again and again. It does loss appeal with time. I've written quite a few stories myself, but I always tried to come up with something different. I'm easily bored by the same soup, even if I make it.

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  11. I focused on a different character in each of my five fiction books. Different personalities, different ages and problems - it gave it some variety.

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  12. Though it seems like it can be easy to revisit the same plot schemes, I'm hopeful that many of us like the idea of doing something new and fresh. I've seen it with a big author I liked when I was younger, and stopped reading his work when I noticed a whole chapter was from an earlier book. That's extreme! There're too many ideas and things to write about to recycle the same ones. Writer’s Mark

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  13. What an excellent post! I have definitely read books where I felt the author was following a similar formula. Sometimes when I love a book I want to read everything I can be the author and sometimes after reading a number of their books the plot seems worn out.

    I love when authors can keep it fresh! You brought up great examples.
    ~Jess

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  14. Yes I too have read books that seem to follow a formula. It is good to give each book a fresh feel even if they are part of a series.

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  15. I'm in the middle of outlining another story and I've had to actively change a couple of characters and a theme which I'd used before. Oopsies!

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  16. The worst thing a writer or an actor can do is be a prisoner of his own image.
    There are no easy answers to avoid the trap. Writer Arnab Ray wrote his first novel which was witty and widely acclaimed. His second novel was a horror/thriller which was rejected by his fans.Sometimes it doesn't work but one has to take risks.

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  17. Very interesting point, Rachna...

    I dry to keep things fresh by writing in different genres and style... Only my atmospheric descriptions are prevalent in all of my stories...

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  18. Once my trilogy is complete, I will finish a couple stand alone novels with new characters. Then I'll loop back with another Chase Manhattan adventure.

    I think this is a good way to keep from falling into this type of trap.

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  19. The way I see it, we all fall into traps...that's what rewriting is for:) Also, I mentioned you on my blog Rachna:)

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  20. I avoid the trap by not writing enough. I might be prone to falling in writing traps if I was writing a lot.

    Lee
    Wrote By Rote

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  21. I'm all for originality.

    I do get that deja vu feeling many times.

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