A couple of muddled thoughts on writing that I keep framing in assorted comments, so I'm going to top-post here and let everyone take a pinata-like whack at 'em.
Thought the First: Fanfic vs Profic
This is of immediate import in my life, as am finally making that jump myself. (How is writing like prostitution? First you do it for love, then a few friends, and finally for money.) More discussion on the details later when it's "real." (Read: I'm actually looking at the check.) And among the rest of the writerly jitters, I'm smacking face-first into the one major difference between fanfic and profic: characterization vs. plot.
Now before the comments get filled up with fanficcers protesting that they write complex plots (and many do) and pro writers protesting that they do plenty of characterization (and they do), the point remains that without even discussing plot-what-plot stories, fan writing can usually be summed up as "Character X has an epiphany" while pro fiction can be summed up as "Character X has a quest."
Switching gears is to some degree stripping mine; I have to keep reminding myself that the point of the story is the action and not what the characters think about the action.
Thought the Second: Variety in Villains
This particular post is going to remain spoiler-free, so all I'm going to say is the generic comment that there are persistent rumors regarding which traditional Doctor Who villain will be showing up this season. And I'm pretty pissed about it. I've always felt that villain was overrated and boring. And frankly? We're watching new-new-Who, so a little novelty would be awfully nice. So far, all the Big Bads have smelled faintly of mothballs. Acknowledging the past is great, but we're reaching the point of using it as a crutch.
But this has made me think about villains in general. And I've got a fair amount to say on that subject.
FIRST: I have NEVER liked universes where there is only one Big Bad -- when no matter what the plot is about, it's *always* going to end up being a scheme by the G'ould or the Government Conspiracy or whatever. There is a major failure of storytelling when your plots have fewer variables than the average game of Clue! Fortunately some shows are avoiding that fate: while there is a season arc with a season baddie, not Every! Single! Plot! has to hinge on that baddie. This is cool.
SECOND: I have never been particularly thrilled or chilled by the "I am determined to prove a villain, MWAhahahahaaa!" type of evil for evil's sake. (Particularly when that evil gets a little less evil with every predestined loss to the hero. There comes a point when it's just like "Oh, please, give it UP, you couldn't kill Superman the first 57 times, what makes this different?") Thin motivations - "Batman dropped me in acid and now I'm nutso" or "I'm sick of being in line for the throne, I'm gonna sit IN that throne!" are better than "I'm evil because... well, because I'm evil."
But the *best* villains - and I say this from both the reading and the writing perspective - are the ones who don't think they are villains at all. There's so much scope there! The ones who think the ends justify the means, who are just doing their duty, the ones of dubious loyalty, and best yet, who are bone-deep convinced they are doing right - now THERE'S a plot worth following! Is Wolf a traitor or not? What about Jack Sparrow? What will Yvonne do for Queen and Country and who will pay the price? Which side - Gollum or Smeagol - will win in the end?
When I was a kid, I was a big fan of Alfred Hitchcock. But after I read a couple of the adult anthologies, I got bored. Someone *always* died. It wasn't suspense, it was 101 Ways To Buy The Farm. The kid anthologies though? Sometimes someone died, sometimes they lived, sometimes it was a pyrric victory. Now THAT'S suspense!
...and I'm supposed to be spending all this typing and energy on the writing that pays, so that's it for now.
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