Allison Symes's Blog - Posts Tagged "change"
Transforming Stories
All stories pivot on change. I write a lot of short stories and even more in the way of flash fiction where word counts are restricted but even in a 100-word story (a form I am fond of) there is a journey for the character. Okay, it is not a long one but it can pack the punch because the form is so short.
Transformations in characters don’t have to be dramatic. A character realising something is a change.
Think of Mr Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice. Both of them change - one loses their pride, the other their prejudice - as they realise they do love each other. (And I refuse to believe that’s a plot spoiler after all this time!). Jane Austen was going to call this one First Impressions which is a fine title funnily enough but lacks the emotional punch of Pride and Prejudice I think.
Another favourite transformation for me is Scrooge in A Christmas Carol and the courage Frodo Baggins and Samwise develop in The Lord of The Rings.
So transformation matters then. (It is with some pride I can say I am in a book called Transformations from Bridge House Publishing with three of my stories. It is such a powerful idea to write and read about).
After all it is why we read. We have to find out what happens. And nothing happens without something or someone being transformed.
Transformations in characters don’t have to be dramatic. A character realising something is a change.
Think of Mr Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice. Both of them change - one loses their pride, the other their prejudice - as they realise they do love each other. (And I refuse to believe that’s a plot spoiler after all this time!). Jane Austen was going to call this one First Impressions which is a fine title funnily enough but lacks the emotional punch of Pride and Prejudice I think.
Another favourite transformation for me is Scrooge in A Christmas Carol and the courage Frodo Baggins and Samwise develop in The Lord of The Rings.
So transformation matters then. (It is with some pride I can say I am in a book called Transformations from Bridge House Publishing with three of my stories. It is such a powerful idea to write and read about).
After all it is why we read. We have to find out what happens. And nothing happens without something or someone being transformed.
