Christopher Keene's Blog, page 10
March 13, 2017
What’s in a Fantasy First Arc?
[image error]TL;DR: The first arc of a fantasy story should create a bridge between the character and the conflict.
Whether a bridge between character and conflict happens in the first chapter or the third or the fifth, as soon as the benefit, trouble or message is hinted at, three things need to occur. First, a key conflict is brought to the protagonist’s awareness. Second, this awareness foreshadows the lead up of the protagonist entering the conflict. Third, the character reacts in a way that either shows reluctance or relevance and becomes aware of their first goal. The reaction itself, like the theme in the prologue, should be indicative to their character.
A good example of this conflict being relayed to the protagonist and the protagonist’s reaction being indicative of their character is in Terry Goodkind’s Richard’s Cypher’s immediate reaction to the journey set upon him in Wizard’s First Rule.
[image error]Bridging the protagonist to the conflict should be second only to the essential world building this arc will demand. If the first chapter should introduce the character, the first arc should introduce the setting. However, to spoon feed this to the reader, this world building will be baby’s first steps to whatever fantasy setting the story involves. World building is built on the back of both transparent and subtle ideas and imagery. Although the minor characters should take a backseat in this, their substitutes should also come through the eyes of the protagonist until later character arcs.
An example of a world being introduced slowly through baby steps is by any doorway fantasy such as the first Narnia and Chronicle of Thomas Covenant books, with the newest manifestation of this being the LitRPG genre.
[image error]In some instances the learning curve of the first arc might be much steeper, particularly in the adult demographic. Instead of intrusively explaining things via exposition to a character fresh to the plot, or via first person monologue, books with a steep learning curves expect patience and deduction from their readers, where the simple use of repetition of foreign terms or abilities should be what allows the readers to pick up on what they are or mean. This forces the reader to conduct their own investigation of the world and characters and form a tapestry from the answers they get. In a sense, this allows for more of an impact when the aspects the reader has discovered twists in on themselves.
Examples of fantasy series with steep learning curves are books with exotic settings such as the first book of the Long Price Quartet A Shadow in Summer and Stephen Erikson’s Malazan Book of the Fallen.
[image error]Of course, an easy way of introducing certain world elements and characteristics simultaneously is by the protagonist’s first run in with them, whether via flashback or introduction to a new environment. In these cases, character reaction or interactions with these elements can both develop character and world build at the same time. To keep the reader engaged with the story, it can smooth a transition to introduce the key conflict after this information is divulged. That’s not to say conflict can’t happen before this point, but if it does, using it for the sake of building character and mystery toward understanding the broader conflict will help pace the story and build the stakes.
Two good examples to explain plot elements through the protagonist’s interaction with them in the first arc is Scott Lynch’s The Lies of Locke Lamora, and although a sci-fi book, Altered Carbon also uses this method well.
[image error]Depending on if a book is standalone or a part of a series might depend whether the first conflict is with a simple obstacle to the goal, a part of a larger foe, or the foe themselves. In either case, one of these should be introduced in the first arc, and if one of the minor obstacles, it could be overcome if only to foreshadow the wider conflict of the story. Of course, and I will discuss this in my next post, it is very common for this wider conflict to be overcome only to discover that they were only a part of the even larger problem. In some cases being the cog that blocks off the this great evil or the canary in the coal mine, but in many cases the escalation itself and lead to series jumping the shark.
The villains being introduced in the first can be seen clearly in such books as The Blade Itself, Angus Watson’s Age of Iron, and as I will talk about in the next post concerning the villain arcs in Brandon Sanderson’s Final Empire.
Next Post: Fantasy First Book
March 12, 2017
What’s in a Fantasy First Chapter?
(House cleaning tip from Adam over at Write Thoughts on the Fantasy Prologue post: Prologues aren’t always necessary for a hero’s tale, but if included, should come out of necessity, less it slows down the story.)
[image error]TL;DR: The first chapter is generally where the main character and the setting is introduced.
If the hero is introduced at a young age, or even at birth, we are generally given a bildungsroman story which always risks the book being shelved under the young adult demographic. The aim in this category is to show a blank slate or innocent that a hostile world/experiences can carve the hero out from. To portray this Tabula Rasa we are given the imagery of fresh, pretty or growing environments in the beginning. This is why the farm boy archetype was so common in older fantasy, as it can also portray positive down-to-earth traits that can work as the soil from which a hero can grow.
There are many examples of this, David Edding’s The Belgariad, William Goldman’s The Princess Bride, but the one I think is the most generic is Christopher Paolini’s character ‘Eragon’ from Eragon.
[image error]During the late 90s, this cliche was caught onto by many, and so began a long line of writers that started out with their protagonists in some of the worst situations possible. It seemed that a race was created to make the most underdog of the underdogs, locking them into a series of misfortunes and tortures that would make the revelation of their heroic qualities or heritage all the more gratifying in the later parts of the story. From this change in tropes, the idea of making your hero suffer was a defining notion that became the reluctant hero, a law from which many young adult writers follow.
Several examples of this can be seen in the works of Brent Weeks, J.V. Jones and Brandon Sanderson, but Robin Hobb gained a reputation for this in her character Fitz Chivalry Farseer in Assassin’s Apprentice.
[image error]If the hero is introduced as an adult, a troubled backstory of his younger self may be delivered during flashbacks throughout the tale, essentially making the beginning of the tale an in medias res with a non-linear narrative. This more easily falls under the adult fantasy demographic but, along with the prologue, the depiction of the younger characters can work better to introduce new concepts to the reader without the need of forced exposition, which attests to why this flashback trope is so common. Often this adult narration might only act as a framework for a bildungsroman stories or a singled out experience that shaped the character into who they are, be it something they need to redeem themselves for or a loss that they need to get over.
A clear example of this young adult story disguising itself as adult fiction using an adult fame can be seen in Patrick Rothfuss’s The Name of the Wind and also in Wizard in Glass, the fourth of Stephen King’s The Dark Tower series.
[image error]To avoid the risk of falling into the young adult trap entirely is to simply start the tale with the protagonist as an adult and have any flashbacks be of recent or only very brief events in their past. This allows justifications for these flashbacks to contain elements of mature nature for character introspection to keep their focus primarily on present events. This kind of story demands reader engagement and relevance, giving the protagonist the opportunity to show why they are the protagonist, whether it be their skill or unique take on events. In either case, the first chapter should hopefully portray this relevance.
The first chapter of Storm Front by Jim Butcher, The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie and Heroes Die by Matthew Stover are all adequate examples of beginning chapters that portray the character’s relevance.
[image error]In many cases the relevance to the tale can be shown from how they relate to what happened in the prologue (if there is one). Are these people the receivers of what the old hero passed down? Are they going to run into the people who have a message for what trouble the hero failed to put a cork in? Do they possess the tools or skill required to do what is needed to be done to prevent and/or reverse this trouble? The tools of, if not the first chapter, the first arc, is to introduce the conflict the main character must face in a way that the reader will care about its consequences as much as the hero would.
An example of relating the conflict introduced in the prologue in the first chapter is the mentioning of the White Walkers in the first chapter of George R.R. Martin’s A Game of the Throne, roughly the trouble which the “old heroes” died failing to overcome.
[image error]Next Post: Fantasy First Arc
March 10, 2017
What’s in a Fantasy Prologue?
[image error]The story of a new hero should start with the seeds of the old, beginning and ending, death and rebirth. Therefore there should be a story before the story, a prologue, which, as all good prologues do, contain the essence of the narrative to come so the audience knows what’s in store. We see this in many massive fantasy and sci-fi epics, in many cases disengaging the readers right from the very beginning. Whatever the case, the conflicting ideas of the story are in many cases represented by the old hero and his foe under the black and white, almost indistinguishable dichotomy of good and evil.
Although there are many examples, the best I can think of is the confrontation between Lews Therin Telamon and Elan Morin Tedronai in the prologue of Robert Jordan’s The Eye of the World.
[image error]If the essence of the book is supposed to be battle centered then it is more likely for the representations of good and evil to fight. Considering so many fantasy series are battle centered, it makes sense that the prologue would contain some form of battle. The problem with these battle prologues is the fact that the hero(es) and his foe’s powers are unknown to us and their introduction all at once risk exposition being delivered in info dumps throughout the fight itself. Unless the powers or abilities are intrinsically simply, these battle prologues can be disengaging for the readers.
Being a common beginning for fantasy stories, an example battle prologue that springs mind is from Robert Jordan’s successor, Brandon Sanderson, in the prologue to his book The Way of Kings.
[image error]Whatever type of prologue is used the results are generally the same. The hero, or at least a heroic figure, will fall to the foe or vise-versa, shifting the responsibility onto another. How the defeat occurs is usually very indicative of the overall meaning behind the story. For instance, Lew Therin Telamon commits suicide after the madness brought on by his power drives him to kill his loved ones, showing that power in this world will come at a cost to one’s mental state, a common theme in the The Wheel of Time. The defeat may simply be time, whereby the historical record of the hero will be important. Another common theme is sacrifice, whereby the old hero gives his own life in an attempt cut off or pass on something that might help the new hero who will have to take up his burden.
The most common example of this fall is the death of a King or some other ruling figure, whether this be in Steven Erikson’s Malazan Book of the Fallen, The Emperor’s Blades, A Game of thrones or the beginning of Tad William’s The Dragonbone Chair.
[image error]The point behind these prologues is to show the source or an example of the troubles and conflict the protagonists are going to inherit. Making this source or example set at a distance from them not only helps to show the scale of the conflict, which is important for epic fantasy, but also to makes a juxtaposition between the what is and what could be the reality for their settings once the foe returns. In a sense, when the old hero passes the torch to the new, it is the case that they inherit even more darkness from the old heroes’ failures than light. However, it is learning to control this inherited light that makes for the majority of the heroes journey.
[image error]A common theme is that characters themselves are this light, as even the inherited benefit is that of the foe’s corrupting power, mostly recognized in J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings. Although, one could argue that the beginning of The Lord of the Rings was more about hobbits and I’m thinking of the film’s prologue, in which case, that’s a really good example of a prologue in a fantasy film.
March 8, 2017
Ready… Steady… Sequel Launch!
[image error]Back in the Game is now available on Kindle Unlimited over on Amazon!
Suspiciously fitting that book 2 is released for my 200th post of this blog. As bias as I am to say this, I feel Back in the Game is far superior to my first book, focusing less on the mechanics of the game and more on the characters themselves, and being the follow up chapter in the series, I was allowed to give it a more satisfying ending than the cliff hanger Stuck in the Game left the readers on. Anyone who uses Kindle should buy it, review it and let me know if you feel the same way.
The hard copy is going to be out later on in the month, so keep an eye out for the next launch post if you’re interested. Thanks everyone!
200th Post: Ready… Steady… Sequel Launch!
[image error]Back in the Game is now available on kindle over on Amazon!
Suspiciously fitting that book 2 is released for my 200th post of this blog. As bias as I am to say this, I feel Back in the Game is far superior to my first book, focusing less on the mechanics of the game and more on the characters themselves, and being the follow up chapter in the series, I was allowed to give it a more satisfying ending than the cliff hanger Stuck in the Game left the readers on. Anyone who uses Kindle should buy it, review it and let me know if you feel the same way.
The hard copy is going to be out later on in the month, so keep an eye out for the next launch post if you’re interested. Thanks everyone!
March 2, 2017
Altered Carbon by Richard K. Morgan [Book Review]
[image error]The best book I read in 2016, which is about to be adapted into a Netflix series, Altered Carbon is for any fan of sci-fi like Ghost in the Shell or hard-boiled 1st-person narratives like the Dresden Files. Being a week away from publishing my next science fiction book, I think a review for another great scif-fi book is necessary to pad out the posts between the cover launch and book launch of the Back in the Game next week. And what better book to review than the best sci-fi book I’ve read since Old Man’s War? Altered Carbon is a sci-fi mystery novel that takes classic sci-fi tropes and uses them in an entirely new light.
The novel follows Takashi Kovacs, a badass ex-envoy (elite soldier), who is unfrozen from hibernation into a new body to solve the mysterious death of a Meth (someone who jumps from body to body to live longer) who was uploaded into another body and wants to know who made the attempt on his life. Kovacs teams up with Ortega, a police officer who was the lover of the original owner of the body Kovacs is now inhabiting, and together the two find clues to who killed the Meth and the dark reasons as to why. On their investigation they come across the seedy underbelly this new technology created between the rich and poor as well the corrupt paradise that earth has become.
[image error]The thing that really stands out and makes the book great is Kovacs’ first person narration and how the sci-fi elements and viewpoints are described, no matter how odd and strange they may be. The way these elements are explained his voice are interesting and understandable but also including Kovacs’ backstory in relation to them was a really neat way of both world building and character building simultaneously. However, the points where the exposition takes over the character development entirely can be a bit dry and sometimes requires the reader to shut off their brain just to get to the next bit of action.
[image error]Speaking of action, there is a lot of it. Something I hadn’t seen for a long time in a book is an author’s attempt to hold off on the whole-sale slaughter from a deadly character until it is justified. In this way, Kovacs seems at risk for most of the story until his envoy training kicks in and he, in turn, kicks some ass, or in some cases, gets his ass kicked. Like many many hard-boiled noir characters it’s shocking not just the damage that someone like Kovacs can take, but also what they’re willing to dish out, both psychically and emotionally. This point is even more poignant when faced with very real aspect of body swapping and its affect on those who have to see their loved ones possessed by a different mind.
[image error]I think the pacing is another big problem for the story. It feels like the book could have been cut by at least a third, but that fact that it was so large shows the amount of the ground work Richard K. Morgan had to lay out for the series he was planning. With a multiple part Netflix series coming, it only makes sense why they would want to make the world as realistic and as thought out as possible. Once again the closest thing I can compare it to is Ghost in the Shell or The Matrix, but it takes the class issue a step further by showing how the people and law of a place could be affected to exploit those of lesser means. As Kovacs puts it: “The political is personal.”
[image error]In the end, Altered Carbon is great book, if a little long. I would recommend it to any science fiction fan or anyone who just likes a good hard-boiled first person voice. With great elements, great action and commentary that helps with the emotional moments in the books, the only thing I can really fault it with is the pacing and the fact that the sex scenes read like something out of an erotica novel. Other than that, if you don’t want to read it you can look forward to watching the series when it comes out. I know I will.
Total Rank: 8.5
February 28, 2017
[Announcement] Cover Art for Back in the Game!!
[image error]Finally I can reveal to everyone what I’ve been holding back for a while now. And I know what you’re thinking: “The hooded guy looks exactly the same as in the last one!” NOT TRUE! Take a closer look and you’ll see that there is a method to my madness. He has turned around ever so slightly. Why, you may ask? I’ll tell you, dear reader. With every book in the Dream State Saga, the avatar is going to continue to turn by degrees to face forward. That way, when enough books have been released, we get a neat rotation of his avatar with the backgrounds constantly changing. Pretty clever, huh? I guess it won’t truly show until there are more than two books to transition between, but the fact that the change is so slight should show you that this series is going to be a long one.
How long, you ask? At least as long as it takes for him to face forward!
February 26, 2017
Grandia [Game Review]
[image error]Although graphics-wise it has aged about as well as most classic Playstation JRPGs such as Xenogears, Breath of Fire IV and FFVII, Grandia is a great fantasy adventure game that I had the pleasure to play through more than once during my gaming days and I have too much nostalgia for it to give it a reliable review (just warning you). However, there is something unique about it. There’s a scope and atmosphere of, dear I say, grandness of Grandia, the wide world to explore, hyped music and battle interactions making for a pretty decent frame for a story that is paced in a way to build up expectations and wonder.
[image error]The story is about amateur adventure, Justin, discovering the magic of a long dead civilization and an evil military group trying to use its magic for corrupt means, risking the resurrection of a monster that destroyed the long dead civilization in the first place. If this story seems generic for a fantasy JRPG, steam punk elements and all, just remember that this was released in the exact same year as FFVII, so it wasn’t the only one. Where I think Grandia shines the most is how it weaves the romance between Justin and Feena into the story for what I think is one of the best romances in games (or anything) I’ve seen.
[image error]Although it has a slow beginning, Grandia picks up once you set out on your adventure. Just to give an idea of what the game consists of, the main character, Justin, literally calls himself an ‘adventurer’. Safe to say there are many dungeons and settings to crawl through, many of them with very Indiana Jones feel with pretty or beige ruins. This is fine because the world building in Grandia with its different settings and cultures is superb. The battle system allows for players to choose what strategy and angle they attack from in a form of mixed turn-based and real time combat that actually feels natural.
One of my favorite things about the game is the magic and ability-learning system in which you buy a base spell or weapon which you train up in combination with other spells and weapons to make stronger spells and abilities that mixes other attributes together. In a way it did the combination of element/weapon mixing dichotomies long before Naruto and only two years short of another retro-game, Chrono Trigger. It also had ‘decent’ voice acting long before Final Fantasy even had it… well, decent by anime dubs standard.
[image error]Grandia was a great launching off point for what would essentially be an alright game series by Ubisoft. The characters are lovable, the gameplay is interactive, the skills and spell systems are intricate and engaging. Where I obvious can not be trusted on any of this because I’m so nostalgic for it, I would recommend not passing on this just because of its aged graphics and long-ass dungeon crawls. It’s worth it for the epic sense of adventure and heroism this game allows the player to experience though its charismatic characters.
Nostalgia Rank: 10/10
February 23, 2017
Discovering LitRPG
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Turns out I’ve been barking up the wrong tree as far as Stuck in the Game‘s genre goes!
With its science fiction elements, I assumed cyberpunk was the genre I should be selling it under. I had no idea that there was already a pre-made genre with its own community and platform on social media. As someone who has published a book in this genre recently and has a sequel on the way, this is almost the equivalent of getting a soft re-release for my potential series, the DREAM STATE SAGA. For anyone interested, you can check out their hashtag, Facebook groups or website, which I will be appearing on in the future.
As for what LitRPG is, it’s a genre acronym that speaks for itself: Literature focusing on Role Playing Games. This can be executed via science fiction elements with a character interacting with a VR gaming world or via fantasy elements by magic drawing the player into the gaming world itself. Of course, this is nothing new. Many works in many mediums in this genre have been around for a very long time, but the genre has only recently been popularized. As one of the more recent authors to be traditionally published in this genre, I’m more than willing to jump on the bandwagon and promote my books under it.
