ParanetOnline

McAnally's (The Community Pub) => Author Craft => Topic started by: Thaumaturge02 on January 27, 2011, 08:33:11 PM

Title: PoV Idea
Post by: Thaumaturge02 on January 27, 2011, 08:33:11 PM
I figured I'm put up this proposition and see if anyone knew of any stories that had a similar premise.

To put it simply, it is a novel from two points of view:

* The Lawful Neutral Insufferable Genius Wizard that is Allergic To Routine, but secretly isn't and has a major Jerkass Facade.
* The Neutral Good Girl that is just learning about the magic world and tries to do good as much as possible.

(in case you haven't noticed, I am a troper)

They are NOT love interests, but partners and foils.  The story is their private investiagtions of crimes involving the magical world.

So, what do you think?
Title: Re: PoV Idea
Post by: jeno on January 28, 2011, 12:28:51 AM
I think if you really want to stay away from any love interest angles, you'll need to have at least one of them already in a relationship, or make them somehow related. Otherwise reader expectations may work against you.
Title: Re: PoV Idea
Post by: Thaumaturge02 on January 28, 2011, 12:47:52 AM
Yeah, I figured as much on that part.  Already got a plan for a love interest for one of them.
Title: Re: PoV Idea
Post by: the neurovore of Zur-En-Aargh on January 28, 2011, 02:49:47 PM
I think if you really want to stay away from any love interest angles, you'll need to have at least one of them already in a relationship, or make them somehow related. Otherwise reader expectations may work against you.

Reader expectations are there to be subverted, no ?
Title: Re: PoV Idea
Post by: Snowleopard on January 28, 2011, 05:28:27 PM
I figured I'm put up this proposition and see if anyone knew of any stories that had a similar premise.

To put it simply, it is a novel from two points of view:

* The Lawful Neutral Insufferable Genius Wizard that is Allergic To Routine, but secretly isn't and has a major Jerkass Facade.
* The Neutral Good Girl that is just learning about the magic world and tries to do good as much as possible.

(in case you haven't noticed, I am a troper)

They are NOT love interests, but partners and foils.  The story is their private investiagtions of crimes involving the magical world.

So, what do you think?

Careful with the Jerkass Facade - too much and readers won't like your character or have patience for him.

Could this idea be possibly slightly similar to one of Barbra Hambly's wizard tales?  I can' think of the series name, sorry.
The neutral good girl sounds similar but not sure bout the wizard.
Title: Re: PoV Idea
Post by: Thaumaturge02 on January 28, 2011, 09:02:42 PM
Careful with the Jerkass Facade - too much and readers won't like your character or have patience for him.

Could this idea be possibly slightly similar to one of Barbra Hambly's wizard tales?  I can' think of the series name, sorry.
The neutral good girl sounds similar but not sure bout the wizard.

Never actually heard of that series before.

And thanks for the advice on the facade.
Title: Re: PoV Idea
Post by: Snowleopard on January 29, 2011, 02:30:06 AM
Never actually heard of that series before.

And thanks for the advice on the facade.

I apologize for not knowing the series name.  The woman in the story is pulled from our Universe into a parallel one with magic.
But the Wizard isn't really like yours.  More an oddball, character based in part on Tom Baker from the Dr.Who TV series.

Title: Re: PoV Idea
Post by: jeno on January 29, 2011, 02:55:01 AM
Reader expectations are there to be subverted, no ?

True. But if you set up everything that way, you may be taking on more work than you necessarily want to handle.  :D
Title: Re: PoV Idea
Post by: Piotr1600 on January 29, 2011, 03:30:23 AM
Dunno.. The unresolved sexual tension worked well for "Moonlighting", "Beauty and the Beast", and others - and seems to be working in TDF, IMO...
Title: Re: PoV Idea
Post by: the neurovore of Zur-En-Aargh on January 29, 2011, 11:27:31 AM
True. But if you set up everything that way, you may be taking on more work than you necessarily want to handle.  :D

there's only so much one can do at a time, agreed.

I just.. this may be naive of me, but it seems to me that if someone reads, say, Harry Potter, and loves it so much that what they want is the experience of exactly the same story again, they just turn the book over and start again from the beginning; that if somebody picks up a new book, there must be at least some degree of wanting something new involved in the motivation.  hence that there is limited point to telling a story that is too familiar.
Title: Re: PoV Idea
Post by: the neurovore of Zur-En-Aargh on January 29, 2011, 11:30:36 AM
Dunno.. The unresolved sexual tension worked well for "Moonlighting", "Beauty and the Beast", and others - and seems to be working in TDF, IMO...

It's one of the things I like least about the series, fwiw.  UST is a thing I am way short of patience with in general; outside of well set-up strong in character reasons for it, my default reaction is to think "Why can't you just damned well have a conversation and settle this like sensible adults ?" particularly if the characters in question are meant to be sensible adults, and particularly if they're meant to be friends and trust each other.