Write What You Want

There's something that happens rather a lot in the publishing community, and it's this tendency toward telling writers to avoid things that have been done "too many times." Common plots and story seeds are labelled as inherently worthless to work with, and the oft-repeated refrain is, "everybody's tired of it."

I have multiple issues with this.

For one, some of my absolute favorite things get swept to the side and called "boring" because they've been "done too many times." I adore portal fantasy. I think plots where someone who seems like a boring nobody is actually secret royalty are still pretty fun. Faerie tale retellings? Love 'em. I could go on. And if I'm not tired of those plots, it's a safe bet that there are plenty of other people out there who aren't, either. So the argument that "nobody likes them anymore" just doesn't hold water.

For two, sure, there are a lot of plots out there that have been written already. But not by you. Not by me. We have not seen every conceivable take on every conceivable idea. Everybody tells a story differently. If I've read one book about vampires, I've read one book about vampires. The vampiric element is only a part of what makes the story, and I want to read all about the unique twists and turns and worldbuilding each new author brings forth. It's fun, it's entertaining, and I like it. No two authors tell the same tale.

For three, there are so many instances where "everybody's tired of it" comes off more as "it's popular, so I hate it." I don't have a lot of patience for that. Especially when these anti-bandwagons tend to heavily target things that are popular with girls and women. If it's not hurting anyone, let people enjoy things.

Trends ebb and flow, but to say that something is ever "dead" is just plain wrong, to me. Every book has a reader, and the only time I will ever look at a trend or a trope and say it's bad and should never be done is if that trend or that trope is rooted in bigotry. No more Nazi romances, for the love of all the gods. No more "noble savages." No more disabled people getting better through the power of love. Portal fantasy, though? Vampires? A portal fantasy with vampires? Hit me with it. I'll keep reading it for as long as people keep writing it.

(No, for real, if anyone has any portal fantasy with vampires, that actually sounds amazing and I want to know about it.)

In short? Write what you want. Write what entertains you. Write the book that you need, that you want, that you find entertaining. Just because some people are tired of it doesn't mean everyone is.

Until next time,
Jenn.