Word Witch Wednesday - balancing formula and originality

This is a battle I've been thinking a lot about lately. Readers want familiarity. Give them their favorite types of genre books with the same formula. Readers also want originality. Something they've never seen before. Giving readers both? It can be done, but it's tough.

Formula - Most publishers will have a sheet on what you're supposed to have in a book in a given genre. For example, paranormal romance (PNR) requires a dual point of view from the heroine and hero, minimum 80% (with some publishers it's 90%) of the plot must have the hero and heroine together, the male must be an alpha, the heroine must kick butt, the key to the climax must hinge on their romance, and it must have a happily ever after or a happily for now ending.

With the formula, I feel like I'm reading the same two or three books over and over again. It's not enjoyable. Every now and then, I'll come across something different within the formula and it will rekindle my love for the genre. But as a reader, the formula is ruining my enjoyment of PNR.

It just isn't in this one genre. I've heard the same complaint about other genres, especially young adult (YA) and romance. The thing is these three genres I've mentioned are the best selling genres in the market.

Originality - Many publishers will not take a chance on a book that isn't written to their formula. Thank goodness for self-publishing! It is in indie books that I see more original tales. Yet sometimes I feel as if these stories are lacking something or wondering what the heck was that!

Making it in the indie world is hard work. Yet there is a lot of fabulous original material out there. Why aren't they selling better? Because readers want the comfort of the formula... while complaining they want something new.

 

The trick is then to give them both. But how?

 

I don't have the secret to that. I can only share what I've been doing. With formula, you can easily Google story structure for any genre and find hundreds of links. If you're aiming for a particular publisher, be certain you know what they want.

Here are some tips for adding originality into the formula:

- stick to the standard main plot but write twisty subplots

- choose a little known mythology to base your story on

- twist the clichés of your genre (e.g. the heroine isn't an orphan but a well loved daughter in a big family)

- have something familiar combined with something new (e.g. a greedy dragon stealing treasure from castles is really a scaly Robin Hood)

- write one main character off trope be it the hero, the love interest, the sidekick, or villain

How do you feel about formula writing? Do you have any tips to add to help make a story original?

Wicked Wednesday - original PNR heroines

I love the kick-butt heroines of paranormal romance (PNR). I love their physical and mental strength, their immense supernatural powers, their intelligence, and their wit. But sometimes they start to blur together.

It's fun to read and write about a strong female character, but there are a lot of them in this genre. When you get so many of the same type of protagonists, the books don't stand out from one another. It's the author's job to make sure their heroine is unique and memorable.

Here are a few tips to having a fantastic and original PNR heroine:

- Give her an unexpected job. We see many assassins, spies, and law enforcement officers. While those careers provide a good background for fighting experience and opportunities to mix with the dark side, there are several other jobs to choose from. What about a teacher or a nurse? Or even a rattlesnake milker. That's a dangerous job!

- Don't make her a loner. There are too many orphans and women from broken homes in PNR. Everyone needs some support. Give her good (smart!) friends and/or a decent family.

- Wit and sarcasm is fine. So is a little attitude. Yet don't go overboard. If the protagonist gives sass back to everyone, no one is going to like her. If she never follows her boss' orders, she's not going to keep her job no matter how good she is.

- Don't make her a glamor queen or a scarred beautiful killer. Not every man needs to lust after her. What's important is that her love interest finds her gorgeous.

- Make her strong, smart, and brave, but most importantly, make her flawed. Everyone has flaws. Protagonists become boring if they're perfect. Give the powerful characters flaws equal to or greater than their strengths. It'll be much more worth the reader's while when the protagonist overcomes them.

What types of heroines do you see too much of in PNR? Any additional tips on how to make them unique?

Wicked Wednesday - making the old something new

Paranormal romance novels feature a lot of creatures that come from popular mythology. Vampires, demons, and werewolves, oh my! The problem with this is that we see the same characters over and over again. It can get tiresome. Yet we love reading and writing about our favorite paranormal creatures. The trick is to take the old and make it something new.

Do your research. If you're writing about vampires, read everything you can about them. Legends, mythology, and fiction. Pick a few particular characteristics and play them up. Maybe your vampires can walk in the sun, but the sight of a holy symbol will blind them. Instead of having the bite cause ecstasy in the victim, let it cause nightmares.

During your research, you might come across little know tales. An obscure myth from a tiny country. These are the ones that you should latch on to. Find out what makes these creatures unique, and what in its culture led to the different take on them. It makes a big difference where your vampires are from because that's what made them the creatures they are now.

Don't be afraid to use exotic myths. A Hungarian legend says that a person can become a werewolf by passing under a birch arch three times with the help of a wild rose's spine. Serbian folklore has a vampire returning from the grave for the single purpose of fornicating with his widow. Armenian lore states that a woman guilty of one of the seven sins must spend seven years as a werewolf. Pick pieces from these myths and twist them to fit the modern world.

Of course the biggest source of originality is your imagination. Add something completely new to your werewolves, make them your own. Look to how the environment is changing and what effect that would have on people that can change into animals. How would that change them? Read about modern myths and make your vampires evolve into creatures that can rule the technological age. What characteristics would they gain to make that possible?

Do you have any tips on making the tired old creatures into something new?

Thank you to Cherie Reich for suggesting this topic. If anyone would like me to talk about any particular aspect of paranormal romance, please leave me a suggestion in the comments.