 Drama: November 20, 2013 Issue [#6010] |
  Drama
This week: Your Winning Formula Edited by: Kitti the Red-Nosed Feline  
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Finding a winning formula that endears you to readers is great! However, when your publishing house and your readers keep on expecting more of the same, that winning formula can lose its shine...
This week's Drama Newsletter is all about success and versatility.
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If there is one thing every author knows, it's that it isn't easy to get published. You can write tale after wonderful tale, only to be met with rejection. Small wonder, then, that when someone not only gets their hands on that coveted letter of acceptance, but also manages to attract a respectable audience, they're going to stick to their winning formula as though their career depends on it. And it might, which is a shame...
Winning formulas are widely accepted, both inside the world of novels and without. Everyone knows that boy bands sing songs about love, and that you're going to hear words like “baby” whether you like it or not. Everyone knows that the kind of romance novels you'd never admit to having read will be about your average (but very pretty and usually slim) woman who's swept off her feet by a strong, handsome and often powerful man, and even though something goes wrong, they get back together in the end and they'll live happily ever after. I can't picture a boy band writing and performing a political song, unless it's for charity, and I'd be very surprised to pick up a Mills and Boons about a size 14 woman who falls in love with a balding supermarket cashier, only for nothing bad to happen except that there isn't a real spark and both decide that they're better off as good friends.
Similarly, once some authors discover what their readers enjoy, they're loathe to go off on a different track. Not under their established pen-name anyway. Sophie Kinsella, who's best known for her Shopaholic novels, has written some (slightly more) serious novels under her real name, Madeleine Wickham. Anne Rice has written under the pseudonyms of Anne Rampling and A. N. Roquelaure.
It is understandable that once you discover a winning formula, you're going to want to keep on using it, because there is a lot of pressure on an author to keep on writing bestsellers. The second novel should be at least as good, if not better than the first. The third should be just as good if not better than the second. All of a sudden you're not simply writing because you enjoy it; you have expectations to meet from your publishing house and the readers who fork out for your work.
The problem is that a winning formula only tends to last for a few novels. Use it too often, and the reader will grow bored. There are only so many times a person wants to read about a young, up and coming lawyer taking on a big, nasty corporation, win, yet walk away with nothing (sorry, John Grisham). Or about a woman who's oblivious that the man she's falling for is a vampire, and then the budding relationship becomes troubled by an evil yet none-too-clever person but, phew, love overcomes all obstacles including fangs (sorry, Lynsay Sands).
In fairness to John Grisham, he's written some truly memorable gems. The Chamber is a brilliant tearjerker, and The Brethren is both funny and original. Both novels break away from Grisham's usual winning formula, and the risk pays off. For those who want a fun little Christmas Story, I can also recommend his Skipping Christmas.
The point is that you don't want to be the Hugh Grant or Jennifer Aniston of novels. Yes, both have done well, but they always play the same kind of role in the same kind of movies. When you see their name, you know what you're going to get, and whilst this seems like the safest route to take, you risk your readers becoming bored and, once their loyalty wears out, go elsewhere. Worse than that, you're stuck in a golden cage - you may be in an enviable position compared to others, but you're still trapped, and your limitations are of your own making.
Being versatile carries its own risk, but if you are good at what you do, your readers will come back for more. You don't have to be outlandish, or break all boundaries of reality to be original. Offer them an unexpected yet believable twist, and they will love you for it, so don't be afraid to break the formula and try something different.
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The Drama Newsletter Team welcomes any and all questions, suggestions, thoughts and feedback, so please don't hesitate to write in! 
Anna Ruth  - I was so happy to see an item of mine featured; thanks! And thank you for the reminder that some of our best work can come from our deepest, darkest dragons. Many years ago, I churned out a spectacular poem that dealt with the depths of my loneliness as a teen. I'm currently writing a character much like me into my NaNo novel. Maybe by giving her a balanced, dark-and-light personality, I can create some more convincing depth!
Thank you, and you are welcome! It sounds like you are on to something good in your NaNo novel. Best of luck in the remaining NaNo days!
~~~
Wishing you a week filled with inspiration,
The Drama Newsletter Team
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