It's odd the things we can't see.
Earlier this evening, I was bemoaning the rather bloated arc story on
one of my favourite scifi TV shows, and the lack of decent plotlines within individual episodes.
You know how it goes. A long, sweeping plot that's driving a whole season along, frequently recurring secondary characters, endless references to other episodes, and a whole mess of characterisation.
All of which is lovely stuff, but not when it's done at the expense of entertaining plots.
I'm a consumer, dammit, and I know what I want!
Right? Well...
When I sat back, weary and smug and bemoaned out, it occurred to me that maybe I've been guilty of doing the same thing of late. Right here, under your very discerning nose. The big story I'm writing,
The Long Road Home? The fourth and "final" part (still in progress, almost there) has become a bit of a monster entry now, to the point where it's so chock-full of
stuff that I'm considering splitting it up and delivering it over a number of tightly-spaced entries.
The very bloated arc story concept I was grumbling about earlier.
And there's the problem.
Some stories, some ideas, grow too big to squeeze into an episodic format. So we write bigger stories, and spread the ideas out. Some readers like these longer narratives, and may appreciate the craftsmanship and the fact that they're bursting with ideas, but they become harder to dip into. So, if all you're tuning in for is a few well-turned lines and some funny badgers while you have a coffee, it's probably a bit of a drag.
And frankly, arranging arc plot continuities over multiple entries as a perfectionist is a pain in the backside. You have to have most of it written, and then rewrite it to make it all hang together nicely.
So, perhaps I now appreciate the TV writer's lot a bit better.
It really can't be easy.
But still, I'm a consumer! And I'm
fairly sure what I want to read
*.
[
* I have no idea what
you want, of course. I'm always surprised what goes down well. Feel free to tell me, I may choose badly.]
So, I'll just put this tale to bed after a thorough and
lean workout, and then get back to some short, fun stories. Frequent posts. Daft ideas. Eccentric characters.
Funny badgers. You remember, right?
Until I write my book, anyway; stay tuned for that.
And stay tuned for the conclusion of
The Long Road Home.
It'll be worth the wait.
Though you may need a flask and sandwiches.
Indigo
This blog entry is protected by copyright © Indigo Roth, 2011
Symbolic prism was blatantly stolen from Eveek.
