Bloo starts a discussion and disappears, round three!

So everyone has these—ranging from nitpicky things to entire universes they’d like to either see come to life, or bring to life themselves. Write down a list of yours, feel free to comment on others’, etc.

1. High Urban Fantasy. This is a name I coined for something that probably already exists, but I thought up while rereading the Deltora Quest series. What happens to your typical high fantasy kingdom in an age where you can Skype with elves and it’s the president, not the king, that is in charge of protecting Dangerous Artifact #572? What about forming treaties with other races, where the war on terror involves magic as well as technology? I’m not talking about our earth, although it could work well here too if magic was already out. Basically—Middle Earth in the computer age.

2. Nice guy wins. I’m tired of the main ending up with the sexy, personality-less bad boys. I’ve never had much interest in those types, myself, so it’s mainly just a personal thing.

3. Happy, involved families. Why are the parents always out of the loop? Why are all these girls who fall in love with werewolves only children? Non-dysfunctional, two-parent, multi-child houses actually exist. I know, I live in one.

4. Popular protagonists. Maybe not at the top of the food chain, but not at rock bottom, either. It’s okay for them to have a few mortal friends that they don’t dump as soon as Magical Angel Boyfriend comes on the scene.

5. Supernatural creatures who actually like being supernatural creatures, and aren’t the bad guys. With all these awesome powers, you’d think the vampire/werewolf/shapeshifter/fallen angel/whatever would actually ENJOY being something besides human. But no, it’s angst, angst, angst.

6. Dragons. I know a lot of people write them, but they never seem to show up much in urban fantasy or YA, which is what I usually read. And not the ones that turn into humans so they can be love interests, either; I’m talking about the kind that’s actually cool.

So, have at it, you guys.

My ultimate one-day ambition is a copper-age historical fantasy exploring colonial and post-colonial issues in a subtropical island tribe, from the point of view of a colonised ex-chief. The post-colonial theories really fascinate me, and I think islander groups don’t get nearly enough love in books.

My big thing that I’ve always wanted to write (first inkling of ideas showed up eight years ago) is an urban fantasy based around, OK, so if elves/fairies/whatever you want to call them really existed today, how would it work? Why would no one know about them? Where would they live? Would they have treaties with our governments or work undercover in our armies or what? I just feel like so often in fantasy, people just don’t consider the ramifications of these things. This would be mostly urban fantasy, but I suspect it would end up with some mild scifi elements as well, seeing as this other species would have different uses of technology as the rest of us.

This whole idea also ties in with some other things I’d like to write—a protagonist who is kind of a jerk and isn’t excused for it (basically, I want to make a female anti-hero be the protagonist, where you root for her, sure, but you still recognize she’s a jerk) and an in-depth look at what the world is like from the perspective of a nonhuman character. People always say “you have to have a human character so the audience has someone to connect with, and they could never connect with a nonhuman”. Well, I think that’s absolute nonsense, and I’d like to prove that by writing a story from the perspective of someone who isn’t human.

I also want to write a messy sci-fi story. “Messy” in the sense that it’s a complex universe. There isn’t a “good” side and a “bad” side. There isn’t ultimate peace and tranquility with a benevolent Authority over all, but it’s not an evil oppressive dystopia either. I want to write about a universe where aliens are sinners and saints, just like humans, with a lot of diversity, rather than a galaxy made up of Planets of Hats. So basically… I want to write a Mass Effect novel. :P

@Sen – I like the idea where the “evil” point of view is reconsidered. I love stories where the issue is not so much “these people are evil and these ones are good”, but more about “we think this way and you think that way”. Maybe everyone wants the same good end, just they disagree. And maybe one side does go about working toward this goal in by doing “evil” things, but maybe they really do have legitimate justifications for all of that. Even if you determine in the end that the “good” side really was good all along, I think it’d be interesting to at least say “well, the other side is OK too.”

I definitely love High Urban fantasy. Bordertown is my favorite series ever, and i love the idea of combining magic with modern technology. I actually have written a story with the elvish version of Facebook- it’s interesting.
I want to write/ read stories with flawed, but basically good characters. So, the complete opposite of Eragon and Bella. I also have this secret love of angst.
And any kind of story that isn’t black and white when it comes to a war..

Otto von Bismarck as more of an ambitious, semi-altruistic patriot who just happens to be on the side against the protagonists. Not sure how well this will come across, given that he’s building up an army of mechanical soldiers in the first story.

Um, this sounds awesome. Just sayin’.

Nice guy wins.

THIS.

I’d like to write anything that can be described with the word “gripping” truthfully. I’d like to write dramatic, intense, powerful, moving stories, the kind that leave you a little breathless afterward.

I want to write something that shows light in the darkness. I want to write a convincing Dark Lord—and I want to write about the heroes who oppose him, to prove that it can still work as a story. I would like to write about characters with true nobility—of character, and not just of position. I would like to write about true love, that isn’t lame or sappy. I would like to write a fantasy about someone who goes to another world—like Narnia—and winds up staying there, because the people need her.

People fighting ninjas with swords and hurting inside.

Bloodshed, carnage, war, soldiers, cavalry charges, rebellion, human irrationality.

Stories that make people laugh. And smile. And hopefully not cringe.

I'd love to see/write something with relationships that aren't romantic ones. Romance bores me. There are so many other kinds of relationships people have, it's a shame most of the things I've read are focused on the ones that involve sex. >_<

Rambling is good, believe me. That’s a very good ramble.

a story where the characters have a moral code, and are trying to live up to it. They slip up occasionally, because they’re human, but they don’t just give it over and live however they want.

If I ever get published you will like what I write. :D You and I see eye to eye on a great many things.

EDIT:

This thread is really making me suffer because I can’t find a perfect way to sum up what I want to write. I want to pour out all my blood and my whole soul, let out all the glory and the sorrow and the suffering and the knowledge piled up in my heart. I want to write a novel as huge and powerful as the universe, as dark and mysterious as the shadows in the alleys, as ancient and beautiful as life itself. I want to reach out and capture the world in print. I want to write the hard-eyed and soft-hearted, the paradoxical, the brilliant and poignant and funny flowing like a river. I want to tackle all the hardest questions, give them the respect that they deserve, and acknowledge that the best answers are not easily won or easily explained. And here I am lost for words. It is all pouring out in shining colors and formless glory.

I love when someone makes me remember that, you know? The dream that I’m hunting down.

Cheers, mate! :D raises glass

I’ve been lucky enough to have cut my teeth on the classics, and now nothing less will satisfy.

I have a longrunning idea involving magic entirely wielded through music, and operating only over the elements (earth, wind, fire, water).

I also have an old idea for an ultimate film script, one which blends drama, comedy, romance, action, zombie, spy, kung fu, buddy comedy, and horror. Yes, I have a rough outline. Mwahaha.

Third, I have a concept for rewritten fairy tales, keeping the original ideas/plot points, but adding details to make the heroines less…stupid. SERIOUSLY, SNOW WHITE? NEARLY MURDERED BY TWO RANDOM PEDDLARS, AND YOU LET IN A THIRD? REALLY? On that one I have written all of Snow White, half of Cinderella, and haven’t got Sleeping Beauty done yet. I need to get back to that. It isn’t original at all, but it’s fun.

And finally, my current work in progress, a novel of fiction/nonfiction which focuses on friendships/romance. It’s semi-autobiographical. I… have no idea where it is going, but it’s around 50,000 words right now.

To give a serious answer to this(summarizing a conversation I just had), I want to both read and write stories that are like football plays.

What does that mean? Well, when the average person watches a touchdown pass being thrown, they see the play in very simplified terms. The quarterback takes the snap, drops back, and throws downfield to the open receiver, who catches it in the endzone.

For most people, that’s all they really notice. If you’re looking closer, though, you see so much more going into that basic throw-and-catch. The weakside linebacker blitzes, and the left guard manages just enough of a chip block to give the running back time to set up a cut block. The strongside defensive end stunts with the nose tackle, and the right side of the offensive line shifts their blocking assignments in accordance. The receiver who caught the TD ran an inside crossing route with the opposite side slot receiver, and the playside cornerback bit on it, freeing up the deep route. The safeties were in a two-deep zone and rolled the coverage right based on the offensive formation and the QB’s eye movements, and the receiver’s route took him right through the crease in the zone coverage, leaving him open behind them.

That sort of shit happens on every single play, and if you weren’t looking for it, you probably wouldn’t even notice. It’s still very possible to enjoy the basics of the play if you don’t feel like delving any deeper, but there’s still so much more going on in the background even if you don’t catch it.

So yeah, I just want to read and write stuff that reveals more depth the deeper you let yourself get into it but is still fun for lazier/more casual readers.

Timothy Zahn.

There you go.

Could it be…

The Wire?

Despite being my favorite show, The Wire is not a very good example of what I’m talking about, because it will kick your ass if you’re a lazy/casual viewer. It does get tremendously deeper the more attention you pay to it, but the baseline level of viewer engagement required to understand the basics is still really high compared to most other fiction.