What Twilight Taught Me About Writing (No. Really)

It's Be-A-Twihard-One-Last-Time week here at Some Screaming Fangirl, where we analyze the books, remember the films, talk about the music, and fangirl all over the place. One. Last. Time.

Today, I'm going to talk about a rare topic - how Twilight influenced me as a writer (especially as a teenage writer, because basically EVERYTHING influences your style then).

1. First Person...Rules: I used to write in 3rd person before the Twilight Saga. But after seeing it used playfully well in the books, I made the switch. Haven't looked back since. While the books may not have the best writing in the world, it has a lot more humor and voice to it because it's in first-person - it's the only way I would have ever believe this super-perfect Bella person to be awkward.

2. If you're going to have a mushy romance, back it up with something un-mushy. Like vampire fight, yeah!: If you ever seen any of the trailers for the Twilight films, you know that they spend a lot of time on one particular scene - THE FIGHT. The fight against the werewolves, the Volturi, the newborns, James. Sure, there's about another two hours of dialogue and staring at each other, but who cares about those scenes?

Anyhow, there is a point to this - if you have one genre, especially something heavy like romance, you're going need a few break scenes to pace it. Shakespeare wrote tragedies, but he still had the random "comic relief" scene here and there, right?

3. Voice and dialogue matters: For example, in Eclipse, my favorite scene is where Jacob kisses Bella, hence her punching him in the face. If you've read the scene in the books, you've probably seen how outrageously hilarious it gets. But if you've just seen the movie, then you probably didn't even remember that scene. That's because it comes off as tense and angry, not funny and memorable. The actors took it a completely different direction.

So when you write dialogue, be sure you convey the emotional tone of the scene. Don't be depressing if it's a happy scene; don't be excited and exclamation-pointy if it's a pretty solemn scene. And so on.

4. Be original. Just not too original: Sometimes I like to imagine Stephenie Meyer did research on vampires and then thought, "Hmmm. How can I completely rearrange all the vampire traditions of yesteryear for this book?" If you're writing about heavily popular topics/creatures (Vampires! Werewolves! Angels! Mermaids! Oh my!) you probably know that you have to change it up to be noticed.

However, there is a point where changing it up becomes complete nonsense. No one talks about how Twilight vampires are conflicted between humanity and hunger, how they have certain "tastes" in humans, or the unique way they transform. No. They talk about how they're "sparkly". When you make a traditional monster your own, have a stopping point.

5. Mary Sue, Mary Sue: I had no idea what this type of annoying archetype character was until Bella Swan. And if you don't know, it's time you learned: http://www.springhole.net/writing/marysue.htm . Watch out for the signs, because there is nothing worse than a too-perfect character. Trust me.

My YA Characters (and EVERYTHING THAT IS WRONG WITH THEM!)

Quick Update: School, school, school.

Song Stuck in My Head: “I Believe in a Thing Called Love” by the Darkness. The highest of high notes are hit in this tune.

So, I’ve been thinking about characterization a lot more lately. After all, my WIP and I have made up (for now, grrr) and the more I write the more I realize how gaping my teenage characters’ flaws are. Which seems pretty ridiculous, since I am a teenager and all blah blah blah, but it happens. After all, a lot of us make the same mistakes.

For instance, unless it’s about the smoking hot supernatural being they’re dating, our YA characters just have no passion anymore. Which makes no sense - I mean, I can think of kids at my own school who get fiery about politics or world issues. Let alone issues right around them.

Or what about their passion for fun and hobbies, not counting sulking, reading/writing, shooting arrows, and pining after outcasts. Do you ever see any YA characters who collect stamps or model airplanes whilst during their YA shenanigans? Didn’t think so. Surely our YA characters could use more pastimes. Like OD’ing on Tumblr or Call of Duty marathons. You know. Normal teen stuff.

What about college? School and education is barely mentioned in my WIP, for good reasons. But it seems like a lot more YA leaves out academics for no good reason other than there weren’t enough pages. We all know the debate on how unrealistic the college process is depicted in teen novels - but why is that? Even having characters talk about which state college they’re applying to or break down in front of their school counselor might add a layer of reality to their stories.

Even the characters who do go to college, like in teen TV shows, rarely ever have a real career choice or major. Think of all the shows you’ve seen about freshman year…Dawson’s Creek, Gilmore Girls, Gossip Girl, 90210, One Tree Hill, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, That 70’s Show, etc. Can you name THREE of their character’s majors in college? I’ll give you a minute…back yet? Exactly. The I-don’t-know-what-I-want-to-do-with-my-life storyline is great, but at least give them some interests.

And lastly…family! I’m mad at how little of a role my main character’s family plays in my story. But that happens more and more too. Yet in real life, all my teen-aged friends seem to have family issues and drama every day. Clearly parents and loved ones should play an important role in a YA character’s life, even if they are out with their angel-werewolf boyfriends or fulfilling ancient prophecies. Maybe they give advice. Maybe they are overprotective. Maybe they just care. You never know.

Okay. That’s all. I’m writing this at night so…I’m going to go to sleep now. Another important part of being a teenager, of course.

(Though I really wish it wasn’t, there’s so much on TV right now…)

Later.

Looking Back at Harry Potter (the movies at least)

Quick Update: Yawn. Monday's almost over, right?

Song Stuck in My Head: Every one of Britney Spear's older songs. And some Nsync and Christina too. Don't ask.



Yep. We're blogging about Harry Potter on "H" Day. Whattaya know?

As you may or may not know, I’m a writer who’s been at war with her WIP since 2008-ish. With my WIP, I’m always in two stages - safely plotting out my next moves, like I’m at headquarters, or charging at it head-on and trying to write out a new version, like I’m in battle. Over the weekend, I returned to the battlefield, hammering out a shiny, new first chapter after a week or so of plotting.

And what did I turn on for inspiration for beginning a story? The first two Harry Potter movies of course. Not just because Post-Potter depression is finally healing (the remedy: Hunger Games mania, woot!). But because the boy wizard series has always been one of my favorite examples of a perfect mix of world building, characterization, and complex plotting. Why not see how it began, and so simply too?

The horror of the blank page. The cure: Harry Potter?

Now that I’ve looked back, here’s some things I’d seen in the movie version alone. Things to think about when you’re at the beginning of your own story.

1. It happens quick. While we might have a few chapters in the book version between Privet Drive and Hagrid knocking down the door, the ordeal happens in a blink of an eye in the movies.





Sure, J.K Rowling offers enjoyable world building and back-story, but we learn enough in short film scenes scenes. Harry in closet and cooking eggs, miserable. Dudley counting presents, spoiled. Harry sets snake on Dudley, something else. And cue: Hagrid and the letters.

A lot of times we forget that we have to be quick. Readers sometimes have short attention spans. As much as we want to get the flowery descriptions upfront, and show off how awesome of writers we are, sometimes just getting to the point works too.

2. Characters always start out exaggerated. Hermione doesn’t talk as sharply and snobbishly as she does in her first scene on the train. Not even Draco can keep his smirk during the series.





Every character starts with an initial, dramatic version of themselves…a version that slowly changes or gets more detailed. So when it comes to characterization, especially in a series, there’s no need to hammer out a three-dimensional personality by page two.

Some of the best characters are multi-layered. The fun comes in peeling off those layers.



3. There will be questions. If your character is thrown into a fantasy world completely unlike their own…there’s going to be a ton of questions actually! Yet, every once in a while there’ll be an urban fantasy, usually YA, story where a character learns about a whole new world, a whole new species of creatures, a whole system of magic and power.



Are they curious? Do they walk around with stars in their eyes or questions marks over their head? Not so much. One thing Harry gets right in both the books and movies is, despite how humble or polite he is at first, he asks a lot of questions. He’s actually a bit curious about this entire otherworld of creatures he’s part of now.

Not that he asked this many questions...


Those are a few things. What can you think of in terms of classic movie/movie series beginnings? Or even book beginnings?

Later.

Quite the Character: The Best Bud in YA/Teen Lit (and other stories)

Quick Update: C for Characters! Woot! On a roll.

Song Stuck In My Head: Somebody That I Used to Know by Gotye. Will explain later.

Here’s the first of one of the new features I’m hoping to try out, exploring archetype characters and the best of the bunch. Obviously, this is more YA but it can apply for any genre when you think about it.

Today’s character…THE LETHALLY FUNNY BEST FRIEND/GAL PAL/BRO.

YA, romantic comedies, action movies, even horror tend to have these. A best friend who’s mostly there to make jokes, be un-serious, be a comical voice of reason, be outrageously perverted, whatever you want.

Sometimes this doesn’t work. The best buddy might be completely unnecessary in a story. Not that your main character shouldn’t have friends (Don’t be a Bella Swan: there’s nothing wrong with a social life for a teenage character).When do best buddies work? There’s a lot of ways, actually. Here are some of who I think are the best ones out there.



Youth In Revolt’s Nick Twisp and Lefty (movie version). Lefty is Nick, or Michael Cera’s, equally loser/virgin best friend that he leaves behind when he falls in love with his poetic soul mate Sheeni. While Nick talks about how amazing it is to be in love, Lefty still awkwardly obsesses over his lifetime crush (who doesn’t seem to know he exists, though he already reads up on how to seduce and be with women, just in case).

As a result, Lefty acts as both a best bud and WORLD MAIN CHARACTER LEAVES BEHIND. Most MC’s have a routine life or situation at the beginning of a story. Maybe the best bud is part of it.



Inception’s Don Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Arthur (Joseph-Gordon Levitt). Both are top-notch spies/dream architects and experts. However, they’re completely different. As another character puts it, Arthur has no imagination and is way more logical about their approach to inception/deception than creative. Meanwhile, Cobb is a little too outside the box. They balance each other out. Arthur is both Cobb’s good friend, equally talented dream worker, and DIFFERENT POINT-OF-VIEW throughout the thriller.



Juno’s Juno MacGuff and Leah. From a glance, raunchy cheerleader Lea who has crushes on teachers and slurps blue slushies with Juno doesn’t have too much relevance in the story of a pregnant teenager. Then you see the moments where she suggests that Juno find a couple “desperately seeking spawn” when Juno chickens out on her abortion, leading to them going to the classified ads. Or when she teases Juno about being jealous of Paulie Bleeker’s new girlfriend, making Juno realize she kinda has a thing for the track star geek that knocked her up. Lea constantly PROVIDES PERSPECTIVE or IDEAS, usually ones Juno couldn’t come up with on her own.



Talledega Night’s Ricky Bobby and Cal Naughton Jr. (Or should I say… “Shake and Bake”?) Though both are equally idiotic, perverted, and obsessed with racecar driving, Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly’s characters also have a bond beyond their dimwittedness.

Even though half the comedy’s conflict is Ricky Bobby’s wife leaving him for the more successful Cal Naughton, the two still support each other in the end when Cal helps Ricky Bobby defeat an evil French race car driver, giving up his own chance to be the winner. During the movie, the two always have each other’s backs. Thus, Cal is the ULTIMATE TEAMMATE.



Morganville Vampire’s Claire Danvers and Eve Rosser. Everyone’s favorite Nerd Girl/Goth Girl Duo are best friends, sisters from other mister’s, roommates, and partners in crime when it comes to fighting and rebelling against a town run by vampires.

Despite her constant vampire sex jokes though, Eve also has the uniqueness of her own storylines. Her murdering brother. Her bad experiences with vampires and family. Her gloomy romance with good vampire Michael. Her job as a coffee shop clerk who deals with immature college students everyday. While she helps out the vampire-killing and dishes out advice to little Claire, Eve also CARRIES OWN SUBPLOTS like a boss.

And lastly, everyone’s favorite….



Harry Potter series’ Harry and Ron. Throughout the seven-book series, we come to love the redheaded, proud and emotionally-challenged Ron Weasley. He is the ultimate teammate, he provides his own ideas, carries his own subplots. But there’s a lot of qualities that make him the best Bestest Bud out there. Not just explaining parts of the magical world to Harry. Or being supportive or excited about all the good things that happen to his friend. Not even hating on Voldemort when the time is right.

He does the most important thing of all in a fantasy book - he KEEPS THE HERO SANE/NORMAL. With a teen book that delves so deep into the magical and impossible, it’s easy to get lost in the world building and forget that the character is indeed a teenager. If we didn’t have Ron and Harry debating Quidditch or talking about how complicated girls are, Harry wouldn’t be your average teenage boy. His hero’s story wouldn’t be as dramatic.



Your turn now - who have been some of your favorite Best Buds in YA, movies, or even TV shows? What do you think worked about them?

Later! (Translation: Tomorrow, D-Day in the A-Z challenge. Ha!)

TWIST AT THE END: Tip For Writing Mind-Exploding Endings

Quick Update: Hmmm. So I never did finish that Reality Show series of blogs…hmm.

Song Stuck In My Head: “Ellen”, the Zac Efron/Taylor Swift duet in the style of “Pumped Up Kicks”. My ZacAttack crush is returning. Damn…you…DISNEY… CHANNELLLLLL….!



This post on twist endings couldn’t be more time-relevant. See, TV shows all have three types of “finales”. Series finale, the depressing end to a series that cuts all ties and ends all storylines. Season finale, or TV’s summer vacation. Usually the plots and subplots are resolved, but they’ll hint at what’s to come.

And then you got you these “winter finales”. Translation: Hi, viewers. We’re going to give you a huge Twist Ending and then play re-runs or give a midseason replacement a chance to shine. See ya in two months, suckers!

This year’s been good on them. How I Met Your Mother’s “not yet”. Glee’s car crash. Even American Idol has left me biting off my fingernails over Phillip Phillips’ fate. Okay, that last one isn’t a winter finale, but it still sucks, okay?

Either way, I had a semi-revelation-epiphany last week about twist endings, so I thought I’d share. After all, while most of us manage to have a unique storyline and some memorable characters, the one thing that won’t always come naturally is twist endings. And when you got one, you know it.

Sometimes they’d already been happening without us knowing, like Harry Potter’s Professor Quirrel being the baddie, not Snape. Maybe they reveal a secret about the main character that’s been building up - Sarah Rees Brennan’s “The Demon’s Lexicon” has a excellent example of this.



Or maybe they’re just an action that makes us drop the book. If anyone’s ever read the Morganville Vampires, in which every book ends with a twist ending it seems like, you know this action. I mean, in the first one alone one of the main characters gets STABBED, people. He comes back, but still. Intense.

Twist endings can be really difficult to pull off. It’s like in Inception, when they try to plant an idea without making it seem forced or coming from someone else. They try to make the idea feel as natural as possible. That’s the challenge for writers, especially those who write in a series - how do you foreshadow, reveal secrets and tidbits, try to clue readers in on the important true fax…without making it obvious?



Some stories are great, but predictable. My literature class is reading the Great Gatsby, for instance. The girl who sits next to me, a fellow bookworm, said she could already guess what happens by chapter two. And she did, more or less. She foreshadowed the romance. She foreshadowed the deaths (one of them, at least). It was sort of uncanny.

Whether you’re a fan of spoilers or not, a predictable book is never as fun as a twist ending. After all, those are the ones you remember. The ones that make you look back and say, “EVERYTHING IN THE WORLD MAKES TOTAL SENSE NOW! THANK YOU MAGICAL AUTHOR! THANKYOUUUU!”. That.



My main issue has of course been that I don’t truly know what my twist ending was (is? Will be? Whatever) after changing the storyline so many times over the past few months. Thus, I didn’t know what to hint, what to add. After all, I didn’t know what it led to. So I randomly tried something last week.

I wrote my antagonist’s make-believe “tell-all” scene.

You know in the movies, that corny scene at the end when the villain gets just a tad cocky and says something along the lines of, “Well, since I’m about to finish you off anyways, let me tell you exactly how we got to this point, exactly how I conquered you, usually giving you enough time to fight/escape/snidely remark back?” Well, if you’re having trouble making your story twist and shout, here’s an idea…write your own tell-all scene.

That’s right.

Be corny if you wish, but basically have your villain/antagonist tell your hero/protag all the clues he/she should have seen, what led up to the bad ending. Have him/her go over every diabolical detail. Have him laugh evilly over your hero’s mistakes.



Will you include this scene in your actual WIP? No, probably not.

Will you have an idea of what clues, mistakes, hints, etc. to add throughout your WIP like seasoning? You should. Bonus: you’ll get to flesh out your villain a little bit too, including his motives. Your antagonist does have motives, doesn’t he?

This is just my new way though. So far, I’ve been feeling more confident.

But how about you guys - how have you handled twist endings? What’s the most memorable twist ending you could remember? (Not just books…any twist ending!)

And to end such a dramatically long post...

Later.

YA Fashion and Stereotypes...Today!

Quick Update: Just finished typing up a faux movie review for my journalism class’s April Fools Issue. It’s a sci-fi/dystopian-macabre-adventure/action-soppy romance. Its lead actor is Justin Bieber, and Charlie Sheen voices a talking animal. Figure THAT out.

Song Stuck In My Head: “Stay Home” by Self, via soundtrack for 1st Shrek movie (rather random, I know)

Heey, guys, long time no…blog. Spring break’s over, I’m back in the computer lab, I got TWO, count ‘em, TWO new followers in my absence (to whom I wave vigorously to) and it’s time for something fresh.

This post is mostly inspired by a purchase I made the other day, a long and very Joan-Jett-esque leather lacket. One of the buttons is missing, a pocket’s torn in, and there’s some tears. That kinda just makes look more badass though. : ) I LOVE it. And not just because it looks rocker, but it fits this thing the baddie wears in my WIP. Which got me to thinking….

What DOES fashion say about the tweens/teens in your WIP? Anything? Everything?

I am so not going to make it seem like I know anything about fashion in the real world of teenagers. I have a dorky-rocker look going on with lots of colors, ties, gloves, skirts, and heavy makeup. Very hybrid.

Here are what I would call today’s stereotypes though. It has evolved far from the broad classifications (cocky jock, cheerleader-prep, uuber-nerd, poetic goth, and plaaain/everyman) that we all already know and love. Much more distinct….




Jock has developed into…

Richer, preppier, well-to-do “jocks” - For some reason, wear a lot of white. Long shirts. Lifetime supply of shorts. These tend to be the ones on track or cross-country teams, but also basketball too.

Buff, more classical, tanned “jocks” - The vest is still a popular artifact, if you want to keep that in. More pants too. Definitely for more of the football variety, but soccer and baseball too.




Cheerleader has developed into…

Girl “Jocks” - These are the girls who walk around with the jerseys and sports outfit’s a lot like it is their wardrobe. Depending on whatever sport they’re in, of course.

Actual cheerleaders - Not too much of a similarity between them, except for their size. Just remember they almost ALWAYS have their hair up.

Fashionistas of the future - Girls with big, layered hair made by extensions and a lot of short skirts, heels or boots, make-up galore, fishnets, lace, etc. Sometimes I see them wearing designs they made in fashion class. Good for them.



Uuber-nerds have developed into…

Modernized geeks/nerds - Think a lot of cargo shorts and a lot of baggy t-shirts. The most common hair is short, sorta-touseled but thick hair that makes you think of Daniel Radcliffe in the first Harry Potter movie.

Girl geeks/nerds - More fashionally awkward clothes. Think stuff you’ll see in a thrift store a bit more, haha.

And, my fave, fan girl geeks - Band shirts, lots of colors and randomness. I have friends who wear pigtails and then ones who merely straighten their hair. There’s usually some sort of thing on their clothes or backpacks that relate to animals too.



Poetic goth has developed into…

Dark goth - Yep, they still wear black. Dyed hair. Fishnets and the occasional leather glove. When it comes to girls though, not-so-Goth accessories like silver jewelry have become more commonplace. Don’t ask why, because I do not know eiter.

Rocker/metal Goth - A lot of black, but more skinny jeans, band or Hot Topic shirts, and so many accessories that one might scream. Their hair is usually wild, colorful and creatively dyed but usually joined by black (underneath or in highlights perhaps).

Plain/everyman has developed into…

Well, nothing. This sect shall always exist, the epicenter of all the others. Today, that usually means Wal-mart or Target clothes. I’m not sure about shirts, since my high school has a t-shirt uniform. Skinny jeans are still way too popular (if it was just girls I’d understand but there’s nothing more traumatizing than a guy wearing skinny jeans low enough to see his boxers). Shoes are mostly converse or sneakers. A lot of hair is straightened when it comes to girls. Relatively simple when it comes down to it.

Stereotypes have come a long way since John Hughes. There are more in-betweens, more specific classifications. When deciding what kind of teenager your main character will be, don’t over think their wardrobe. Sometimes fashion can just be natural.



What sort of fashion-stereotypes do your characters already seem to be like? How about your favorite YA characters when it comes to clothes? After all, there are many interesting people out there besides Plain-Jane/girl-geek hybrids like Bella Swan.

Okay. The laptop screen is starting to dizzy me, so time to catch some Z’s. I’ll talk to you all later, hopefully! Expect a Rec of the Week on a book next week. ;)

And I'll leave you with a trailer for the movie I'm sort of DYING to see right now (it involves a girl in a mental asylum, haha!)

CHARACTER: Lessons From High School English, a WPT Post

Quick Update: So, good news...I shall be at a friend's house for two days. Looking very forward to reliving my addiction to blogger/Twitter/and Youtube.

Attention, class. We covered plot yesterday, so today let us move onto the helpless dolls and puppets in your story that face horrors and fantasies... I mean, uh, *cough* your characters!

The definition of "characters" in my English class was blunt as well, sadly. To quote our test, characters are "persons who are given personalities and role in stories". True...and false.

For the truth, I would certainly hope your character have personlity. Traits, habits, manners of speaking, and experience are just some of the makeup you give them. Characters are like us - maybe they have the same taste in music as whatshisname, and dress like that-one-girl, but everyone manages to be different and unique.

Good characters are when they might do something, or say something, and make us think, "that's so him/her". It means you put a clear image of the character in the mind of the audience. So know your character well. I can honestly say I know most of mine better than myself...well, on good days.



The false part is the "given roles". Hello. Stories are not waiting for actors to portray them. It is the characters, and their back stories as well as a variety of their own habits and traits, that truly begins a story. Usually, tales are centered around relationships, or a decision the character makes. How can you just insert a random person into this plot, and not expect it to change?

If you really want characters to stand out, don't create a story then throw them in. Create them, and let the story fold around their own quirks and oddities.

Of course, we did do a bit on "dynamic" and "static" characters as well, which makes me breathe easier. There's another tip - if you want a memorable protagnist, make him/her/it dyanmic. If they have the same personality traits and do the same routine they did in the beginning of the book...you failed. Just kidding.

Be sure to remember...are you the same as you were ten years ago? Yeah, I didn't think so. Not that I can say much...ten years ago I couldn't spell 95% of the words in this blog post (I was five, hahaha). We're all characters. If you put that in mind, you should be good.