tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post1882786396736091353..comments2024-03-29T09:30:44.859+00:00Comments on MOODY WRITING: Readers Love A Surprisemooderinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01523337588830695638noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-54660037569508700402012-02-23T18:28:37.998+00:002012-02-23T18:28:37.998+00:00@Charmaine-cheers.@Charmaine-cheers.mooderinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01523337588830695638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-87112726382339713002012-02-23T10:20:01.870+00:002012-02-23T10:20:01.870+00:00I miss Peanuts :(
A good twist can make a story, a...I miss Peanuts :(<br />A good twist can make a story, and it's usually the part the reader remembers forever. The best surprise I've come across in a novel was in James Phelan's first book in the Alone series, CHASERS. You have to read right to the end to get the twist and it's a doozie!<br />I'm amazed at the content you continually come up with. Very generous with your time and knowledge - thanks.Charmaine Clancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18059559142070140041noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-87449863271196212792012-02-23T08:54:20.662+00:002012-02-23T08:54:20.662+00:00@Margo-I think you're right. He also made sure...@Margo-I think you're right. He also made sure he had a large enough cast to be able to lose a few.mooderinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01523337588830695638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-59668821646186788032012-02-22T21:54:38.828+00:002012-02-22T21:54:38.828+00:00I think part of the success of Game of Thrones (I ...I think part of the success of Game of Thrones (I think, I could be way off base) is that he dared to do something VERY unexpected and surprising: killing off main characters that we're invested in. I haven't seen that done before, at least not quite as blatantly as he does it. Just thinking here.... a very thought provoking post.Margo Berendsenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03476308235642890474noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-80777585420960062372012-02-22T21:00:28.580+00:002012-02-22T21:00:28.580+00:00@Karen-I wish that were true, but safe sells very ...@Karen-I wish that were true, but safe sells very well. Sequels, covers, series tha give you more of the same... You liked book one? Here's seventeen more. Real conflict is replaced by familiar conflict. Surprises you can see coming a mile off. Safe never had it so good.mooderinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01523337588830695638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-41080872918238509182012-02-22T20:39:51.299+00:002012-02-22T20:39:51.299+00:00Safe doesn't sell. Safe never sells! Surprise ...Safe doesn't sell. Safe never sells! Surprise and conflict is what readers want. Not in life but in books LOL.Karen Jones Gowenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01153821980625034810noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-69909077151132403372012-02-22T13:36:29.349+00:002012-02-22T13:36:29.349+00:00@nutschell-I think trying to make the more mundane...@nutschell-I think trying to make the more mundane everyday stuff a little more unexpected helps too.<br /><br />@Stephen-and it also feels good for the reader.mooderinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01523337588830695638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-41666911075291650452012-02-22T05:42:14.406+00:002012-02-22T05:42:14.406+00:00Surprising. I don't want the reader to know wh...Surprising. I don't want the reader to know what's going to happen next. This is easier said than done. But if I can pull it off consistently throughout the story then I feel I've succeeded as a writer.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-43742658740395935312012-02-21T22:40:55.671+00:002012-02-21T22:40:55.671+00:00I do love unpredictable storylines. I try to inclu...I do love unpredictable storylines. I try to include at least 3 surprises in my own writing--one right after the Beginning, another in the middle of the middle and one before the Climax. :)nutschellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10967710710805174781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-49078648787371825982012-02-21T20:26:56.995+00:002012-02-21T20:26:56.995+00:00@Rachna-tricky part is not to end up being vague a...@Rachna-tricky part is not to end up being vague and confusing.<br /><br />@Suze-Perhaps the novel could do with a fresh approach, doesn't seemed to have evolved much over the last couple of centuries.<br /><br />@Ciara-sounds like an excellent read.<br /><br />@Wendy-but it should be difficult, shouldn't it?<br /><br />Cheers for the comments.mooderinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01523337588830695638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-80397065087119246362012-02-21T19:57:07.769+00:002012-02-21T19:57:07.769+00:00Easily said than done. Good post.Easily said than done. Good post.Just Wendy https://www.blogger.com/profile/05268645629027109282noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-70421967711072954752012-02-21T19:07:09.914+00:002012-02-21T19:07:09.914+00:00I'm big on doing unexpected things. Ask anyone...I'm big on doing unexpected things. Ask anyone who has read The Curses of Gremdon. ;)Ciarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15628488753277495111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-26593491440267447942012-02-21T17:03:25.580+00:002012-02-21T17:03:25.580+00:00'But with art being in the middle of such a st...'But with art being in the middle of such a stagnant period, where remixes and covers and remakes and reboots dominate the landscape, if ever there was a time to try something different, now is it.'<br /><br />It'd be interesting to seed not a trend but a thinking man's revolution, at this point. The conditions are ripe for it. Fiction has historically lent itself for as much but you're right, never has it been harder to come up with something nobody's ever seen before. It sounds to me like you're advising not to find something different to say but to say (whatever it is) in a different way?<br /><br />There's a spark within that wants to rise to the challenge, but just as soon, it goes out. Is novelty even possible, anymore? Or should we, as writers who want to blaze any kind of trail, be *thinking* in different ways and not just writing in them.Suzehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07908805179119217608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-49801467190203862352012-02-21T16:12:22.808+00:002012-02-21T16:12:22.808+00:00I am with Alex, I need to pump up the intrigue vol...I am with Alex, I need to pump up the intrigue volume in my book. I like to surprise my readers :)Rachna Chhabriahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16900999965919504282noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-32075712298962320022012-02-21T11:00:38.217+00:002012-02-21T11:00:38.217+00:00@Alex-In life or just in your books?
@Michael-but...@Alex-In life or just in your books?<br /><br />@Michael-but the culture in general seems to be moving towards the familiar and recognisable. It'a very frustrating.<br /><br />@Madeline-I think the value of a good surprise will onlkly go up as it becomes rarer.<br /><br />@Lydia-I agree with Michael too (but don't tell him I said that).<br /><br />@Jamie-it's been a while since anyhting got my dander up (although I believe they have pills for that now).<br /><br />@Alexis-a good way to approach it. <br /><br />Thanks for the comments, much appreciated.mooderinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01523337588830695638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-47407954911725930532012-02-21T07:46:53.734+00:002012-02-21T07:46:53.734+00:00I always try to do this when I'm hooking the r...I always try to do this when I'm hooking the reader - I always try not to surprise them with What, but with Why. <br /><br />Great post!Alexis Basshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00635465457833459349noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-24636120507518608872012-02-21T07:05:37.994+00:002012-02-21T07:05:37.994+00:00Using the surprise isn't something I do well, ...Using the surprise isn't something I do well, but something I will work on. Sadly, I think safe tends to sell better. Anything too innovative and people generally don't like it (except for the hipsters, and they get my dander right up).Jamie Gibbshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15168603412367448706noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-40784149977591634642012-02-21T04:22:30.349+00:002012-02-21T04:22:30.349+00:00I'm with Michael. If I know what's going t...I'm with Michael. If I know what's going to happen, it's harder for me to continue. I love it when an author can conceal info and reveal it just so...that's the best.Lydia Kanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00484415427764822386noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-49136193894764363882012-02-20T20:36:28.426+00:002012-02-20T20:36:28.426+00:00I think this is one of the hardest things to pull ...I think this is one of the hardest things to pull off - surprising the reader but still having that surprise make sense. It can't come totally out of left field. It needs to leave the reader surprised yet nodding, saying "Oh, I see it now! Good one!" Not confused and throwing the book across the room. :)Madeline Mora-Summontehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05529397293165046430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-77591372083707891372012-02-20T20:30:50.801+00:002012-02-20T20:30:50.801+00:00I agree. I hate it when I'm watching a televis...I agree. I hate it when I'm watching a television show and I already know how it is going to end or who is going to die. The older I get, the easier it is to spot something because I have a larger pool of experience to draw from. This is totally applicable to writing as well. When a book or story becomes predictable, I lose interest.Michael Offutt, Phantom Readerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10557969104886174930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-89081172974613471682012-02-20T19:36:17.325+00:002012-02-20T19:36:17.325+00:00Intrigue is something I need to work on more.Intrigue is something I need to work on more.Alex J. Cavanaughhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09770065693345181702noreply@blogger.com