When my husband first started writing he would explain some of his plot points and characters that he was envisioning and I would say:
"Oh, you mean like...(fill in a movie or book)"
and he would say, "Yeah, but..."
and we would play that game over and over.
and we would play that game over and over.
Eventually he said something that rocked my world.
He said: "It doesn't all have to be new."
Then I remembered all of...
the Chris Farley movies I've seen
the Cinderella books I've read.
the Chris Farley movies I've seen
the Cinderella books I've read.
I still love Jack Black! (Sorry Jim.)
I have read a million rout mystery novels.
I have read a million rout mystery novels.
My couch is couch shaped
We could eat pizza in our house every night
Don't even get me started on Scooby Doo
HE WAS RIGHT!
I still liked these things, even if they weren't entirely new ideas.
So, now I cut myself some slack when a character or plot point doesn't seem entirely original.
I'm the one breathing life into them.
They'll never be a carbon copies of someone else's creation.
They'll never be a carbon copies of someone else's creation.
Of course you need to be careful but...
If the wheel ain't broke, why reinvent it?
This kid's got the idea
(That was for of you, Kim K)
Being original as far as story/plot is near impossible nowadays. Every story borrows ideas and concepts from stories of long ago. The only fighting chance we have now is VOICE, because it's the one thing that's uniquely our own and no one else can really copy it. =)
ReplyDelete"If the wheel ain't broke, why reinvent it?" - Awesome quote, and amazing advice. :D
ReplyDeleteOh, Charles in Charge...I had a decent crush on him. Sheesh. You're right, no matter how often a plot is repeated, we'll each write a story that is completely ours.
ReplyDelete(Big fan of Chris Farley and Jack Black;)
All the notes have been played before you have to try to play them in a different order.
ReplyDeleteHah! I always said you had me at Charles in Charge - okay, I said it once. But it's true ;)
ReplyDeleteBut... that kid has WAY too much time on his hands... or not enough. One of the two.
I liked this post - great advice. And it's true - no one has told a story in my voice before - so even if my story line may not be original, if I tell it truthfully, it can be at least genuine :)
Oh, I should have told you that this kid does Ian Mckellan doing really random stuff. That's key to getting the joke. Sorry about the bad set up.
ReplyDelete