son of the bride of the meme

[aria]

Weekend, therefore, ENDLESS MEMES.

If I made Cinderella, the audience would immediately be looking for a body in the coach.
— Alfred Hitchcock

When I write a story, what do you immediately look for?

Comments

[littledust]

TERRIBLE PEOPLE IN LOVE. TERRIBLE PEOPLE IN LOVE. TERRIBLE PEOPLE IN LOVE. I mean, also things like metaphors and deft interweaving/expansion of canon, but mostly TERRIBLE PEOPLE IN LOVE.

[aria]

:DDDDD TERRIBLE PEOPLE IN LOOOOOOVE. The other things you mention also make me flail with joy, but ACCURATE. <3

[sentientcitizen]

Bad guys as sympathetic protagonists. Probably in deep/twisted love with the technical hero of the piece.

[aria]

Hah, yes, I do that a lot. :D

[gehayi]

Present tense. DEEPLY MESSED UP PEOPLE that you will get me rooting for, even thought I know from the start that neither their love nor their friendship will end well. Blended genres--like when you mix together the Orpheus legend and a contemporary cop story, or a young wizard talking sense to a guilt-stricken Time Lord. Smart characters who do things.

[aria]

Oh present tense, how hilariously fond of you I am! But yes, smart people doing smart things! Usually while also being deeply messed up! :D

[innocentsmith]

Smart but deeply messed up person finding something like redemption, or at least the lessening of some of their issues, through a partnership-type bond with someone.

Usually a romantic partnership bond, but not always. (I'm thinking of that story with Faith and Ten.) Mostly it's about mutual understanding, I think? And redemption isn't really the right word, but I can't quite think of what is; sometimes the character is already a good person but still has very serious holy shit issues (e.g. Fraser) that need to be dealt with. And sometimes they're a bad person who stays a bad person, just...more functional? A little happier because they have at least this one thing in their lives?

[aria]

YES, mutual understanding! And also -- yeah, functionality, and maybe inner acceptance, more than redemption.

The thing I love about this meme is that it is also making me be more articulate about the things I love to write about. :)

[feverbeats]

Moments of characters being inarticulate about their feelings. PLOT. Comfort. Neat endings. Equilibrium.

[aria]

INARTICULATION FOREVER. (Except from Loki, who is extremely precise.) Also, yeah, I think equilibrium is absolutely the right word here. :D

[tei]

A touble magnet and an intellectual taking on the wooorrrllld!

[aria]

...thank you, I think you have just accurately summed up my character/paired character types in the most delightfully succinct way. :D

[fahye]

Redemption. Love and chaos and curiosity as primary motivators. Lives twined around one another deeply and tightly, often unwillingly.

[aria]

YES. Also -- Love and chaos and curiosity as primary motivators -- I think I need to write that out and stick it somewhere I'll see it often, because it's accurate and also the best reminder.

[schiarire]

Everyone else has said all the things I wanted already! Curse your intelligent friends. It is left to me, however, to observe that one of the most prominent things to me about your writing is that the one senses the writer's essentially good, gentle humor. Terrible people in love totally notwithstanding.

[aria]

Honestly, I suspect that I keep bumping up against narratives about terrible people in love because I want to say bright hopeful things about them? In any case, <333