All About the Werewolf

Glitchy on the Cliche

Okay so some people may be asking, 'what is a cliche?' 

Well, let me tell you wonderful people, a cliche (as defined by whichever dictionary google uses) is 'a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought.'

It is also defined as 'a very predictable or unoriginal thing or person.' <<<——— You can legitimately add in 'define cliche' into the google search bar and it will bring that up. I can't find my dictionary so google is my dictionary for the this entry!

So now that we've got that out of the way lets get to the guts and glory of this update.

These are questions I've seen a lot lately in the forum and they're really starting to irk me (I let my irksome points build up before releasing them and this chapter was a long time coming).

1).What are your drivers for writing a werewolf story?

   This might seem like a stupid question but go along with it for a while, okay?

A). So, you get people complaining that they put a butt load of work into their stories but they aren't getting reads or votes and that's what they're really after...they're after WP fame. 

B). But then on the other hand you get people who want to write stories that are different, that they want to get out of their heads and down on paper. 

There are two totally different drivers for writing and uploading on WP and they will get you different results and lead you down different roads. Option B is usually the driver I like to see, those people will almost always get my help and I will happily promote their work...why?

Because they like the odd vote and comment but that isn't what is driving them to write werewolf stories, now if I get someone or see someone who's writing because of option A I'm going to actively avoid them and if they send me PM's I'm more likely to avoid them.

It's fine to be driven by votes and comments but it's not my thing and I've found that in their rush, those people tend to forget a few things (like grammar and plot and being nice to others).

Why did I put this in? Because I really would rather work with people that are on WP for the right reasons and not out for their five minutes of fame. In general I've found those types of people to be less pushy and more forgiving of others. 

ANYWAY!

On to our chapter for the day.

2). How do I avoid adding cliche to my story?

  The answer to this is pretty damn simple!

Don't think inside the square, it's that easy. Don't start off with thinking, 'my story is going to be about mates and it's going to be totally different to the other two million werewolf mate stories out there.' If you start off with thinking that way then your story is going to turn out like a few dozen other werewolf stories.

If you want to write cliche then fine, go write cliche but for those who don't want to write cliche you need to think a little harder than a brain fart. Cliche stories really are easy to avoid, don't add mates, don't add rejection, for the LOVE of god PLEASE AVOID abuse! Please?

If you take out mates, abuse and rejection there is still a world of possibilities in the werewolf genre...you've still got drama, mystery, thriller killer, adventure, sci-fi...what else? Erotica (if your boat swings that way), fantasy and humor too!

Ahh, I love a good laugh and I'm sure a lot of other people do too. And I don't mean 'I'm going to laugh at this story because the plot is so poorly thought out and the grammar sucks' sort of humor. I mean the 'holy crap,this character and all the material in this story is gold...pure, comical gold!'

Just think outside the box, spend a little bit more time going over your plot, add something in that you think will blindside readers (but not something so far fetched that it doesn't fit the story).

3). What are bad ideas?

Okay, there are two different ways this question can be interpreted.

The first way is this: Asking people for ideas/ opinions is a bad idea.

  - if you're trying to avoid cliche then the worst thing you can do is ask other people for ideas. To me that is lazy writing, to others that is considered writer-reader interaction. But lets get one thing straight okay?

- asking for unique names, that's fine. If you can't create a unique name or can't fine a name that fits your character then feel free to ask others for ideas. You can't copyright names...well you can but that's complicated and off topic, so for now I'll say that you can't copyright names.

- but! When you ask people for plot ideas...well shit, that's just lazy.

- not to mention, ideas can be copyrighted. So what happens when the person you borrowed the idea from suddenly begins writing it? A shit storm in a tea cup is what the results would be called...so save yourself a battle down the track and try to form your own plot ideas.

The other bad idea is what I like to call 'cheapening up a book.' It doesn't make much sense that way, but what if I said you're selling your story short by taking shortcuts? Make more sense? Instead of taking the easy way out and getting the same results, try something a little different...you might end up writing the next big thing on WP.

4). If it's not cliche it won't get read!

If you're on WP for fame then ignore everything I've just said and go write your cliche story, this is for people who don't want cliche.

There is a growing market of readers on WP screaming out for original material, readers want something that is a little more diverse than what the werewolf genre currently has to offer. If you go with a non cliche story you're likely attract loyal and grateful readers, they'll be thankful that they have stumbled across something that is actually worth reading.

So, take the time out to plan your non cliche werewolf story, sure reads and what not will take a little while to trickle through but I bet once the word gets out that you're story is different and that you're an awesome writer then...shit, you'll be a werewolf genre god! (Not really, that's hugely exaggerated)

Anyway, until next time!