I found this meme here, by way of freakonomics, a blog I often read because of their interesting stance on economy and the world in general.
So, 10 things that will tell you that I wrote a piece of fiction:
1. The characters have more depth than the story itself.
I do not know why, really. But I love creating characters. I like to think about who they are, what they like and dislike, the way they talk, their idioms, their habits. And I make a point of showing it here and there. One of my character didn’t care for one bit what happened to his body as long as his clothes were intact. Another had never seen a movie in his life, and could not recognize Sean Connery.
Most of the time, the character that start in my head as simple outlines are the ones with the most depth in the end, while the ones that starts almost complete stay that way.
2. There is a distinct change of pace and style at the middle
That is because I tend to start a story, write without stopping for days on end, then put it on a shelf for months, and suddenly, decide to get back to it. Most of the time, I will finish it around the anniversary date of its start. The problem is that there are some incoherencies in the style that crop up, because I’ll have changed in the meantime. I really should finish them sooner…
3. It’s dark.
Even if it is a fanfiction of My Little Pony, I’ll find a way to show the darkest side of the ponies, their insecurities and put them through the grinder. When they’ll be out of the grinder, they will be better off than how they started. No, not when. If. I find it makes a compelling story to see the characters struggling
4. If it’s not dark, it’s funny and strangely familiar
When I’m not making my characters suffer, I tend to write about everyday hurdles (e.g, having a hiccup) and the way it can really make our life a little personal hell (but it’s aways funny when it’s others)
5. Rooting for the underdog
Most of the time, one side of my story will be grossly underpowered compared to the other side. Most of the time, they will be the characters I, and you, like best.
That doesn’t mean they will win in the end, though…
6. Color coded for your convenience. Not.
There is no clearly defined Bad Guy and Good Guy. Each has a reason for doing what he does, and, in his opinion, does the right thing. Sometimes, one of the good guys is a ruthless bastard, and one of the bad guys is a romantic anomaly…
7. Dynamic point of view
I tend to focus on a character for a chapter, following him around. Then, in the next chapter, I’ll jump to another. It can be the man next to the prior focus, or shift to a different time and space.
8. You can hear them think !
Most of the time, you will have access to the innermost thoughts of the character I’m writing
9. White is the new black
I… Sadly tend to have white characters. Sometimes asian. But rarely black, latinos or oriental characters. I do not know how to write them properly, or fear stringing clichés one after the other. The problem is, I do not know many people of these ethnicity…
10. Male only, sorry
I do have female characters, don’t get me wrong. They are just rarer than male ones. And are rarely the mains. I’ll have to work on this one !
