Depression or Suppression

[Helleaven]

Since the first day I have found this site, I've learned many useful things. Almost about every question in my mind, there was an answer.

And yet, now I feel like I am falling down into a dark chasm.

After seeing and reading many things about the clichés, I see that people hate them.

And I realized that my NIP has many clishés...

A boy of seventeen who lives in an obscure town comes of age and than he desperately finds himself in an unwanted situaton...

This is how the story starts. I always wanted to write an epic fantasy series and I have made the story setup and everything was just as I wanted them to be.

Then I saw everywhere that people hates these clichés. Nobody wants to read them. I am so close to finish my first book of the series but now I feel depressed.

I can't just throw away what I was planning and setting up for almost two years. And besides, I'm writing it just as I want it to be. I mean, I thought that what kind of a book I would want to read, what kind of characters I would like, what kind of a story I would like, etc... The story is very good for my taste. But now I feel all alone, I feel that 2 years of working tirelessly was for nothing.

What do you suggest? Should I go deeper and deeper into that chasm and throw my work away, hoping that one day I'll find the courage to write something else? Or should I suppress that feeling of depression and continue to write what I like most and what I would want to read as a reader?

 

[ThinkerX]

I would suggest taking a break for a few weeks. Do a quick finish-up with what you've got, save it, and do something else. Maybe tackle one or another of the writing challenges. Then come back and look at your work with fresh eyes, and see if it is salvagable or utterly terrible.

Something else. I, like quite a few others here, have been writing on and off for a long, long while (as in decades). I have file after file (probably close to a hundred) of works I started or only wrote a tiny snippet or three of before deciding they just did not work. That is a normal part of being a writer.

 

[Taro]

Mate, to be honest most books will a cliche of sorts. i know mine do. we write for ourselves, and the readers are a second. never throw your writing away, it just makes it harder to continue on with others. i have come across this myself, you just need to keep moving, finish your book, go through the editing phase and you might find that it will all smooth out and become something even more. keep your head up mate.

 

[Ireth]

Indeed. I recognize the cliches in my own work, but that hasn't stopped me from writing the stories I want to write. Keep at it!

 

[T.Allen.Smith]

My advice is different from ThinkerX. Finish it.

If you're writing the kind of story you'd want to read then chances are there's lots of folks like you who would enjoy it.

Cliche, in my opinion, can apply to phrases more accurately than anything else. There's a small number of plots (36 some say) & a small number of character archetypes available. Guess what! It's all been done before.

To claim true originality is extreme conceit. People have been writing for thousands of years. No one is smarter or more creative than every author that came before.

It only matters how you package those plots & characters... How make them speak or battle with unusual circumstances or settings.

Write what you'd read & you're fine. Above all else... Finish! Letting the doubt creep in is the worst thing you can do.

 

[ascanius]

@ Helleaven. Don't stop, don't quite, DON"T WORRY, and don't get depressed. Like T.Allen.Smith said, finish it! My story is riddled with cliches but who cares, I don't care that that is what matters. Write what you LIKE! and how you like writting it. When your finished you can look at it and say "OMG! this is awful," then spend a few days contemplating it's fiery distruction at the hands of a plasma torch. Then sit down, take a breath, and figure out what you like and don't like about and start editing.

 

[Penpilot]

If it's the story you want to write, and the kind of story you like to read, screw opinions on cliche. Opinions are like asses, everyone has one and they're all full of sh... ahem.

To me, what separates a good cliche vs a bad one is how well you write it. Tell a good story and it won't matter. Take a look at the movie Avatar, it's cliche city, but it's very well told, and people loved it. But tell a bad story full of cliches and everyone will point and say, "Cliche, cliche, cliche."

One thing though, when using cliche, be aware that it its cliche and see if you can put your own spin on things. Or if you want to go the standard rout on a cliche, own it. Don't wimp out and try to do cliche-lite. And who knows, in the writing you may find your story isn't as cliche as you think.

From my own experience, from my current novel that I'm editing, it started as a very cliche story. It was a story I wanted to tell and I said to hell with it I don't care if it's cliche. I'm writing it. But as i wrote it, it morphed. I found different directions to go, and my characters got deeper, and now, I think it's not very cliche at all. It's got cliche elements, but the story is a lot more interesting than the initial idea.

 

[Claire]

Don't throw it out!!! Honsetly, one of the reasons I wanted to write a novel in the first place is to do exactly what you're doing - write something I'd want to read. If that's what you're doing, then I think you're on the right track.

Sure, there have been stories written about a young boy thrust into unwanted circumstances. But there's certainly a reason for that - there are themes and concepts that touch our hearts and minds, stories that speak to us and capture our imagination. As long as you are writing it in your own way, I think it is fine to have so-called cliches. There are plenty of ways to put your own spin on a theme or concept that will make it unique.

But you already said something important - "I always wanted to write an epic fantasy series and I have made the story setup and everything was just as I wanted them to be." If this is the story you wanted to write, then write it! You can't be the only one and with your unique voice and spin on the concept, it won't necessarily come across as cliche.

 

[Philip Overby]

You can't worry if your writing is cliche'. If it's the story you want to write, write it. However, I have tons of novels I started writing that just didn't work that I stopped working on. Does that mean I'm "throwing it away?" No. I'll use bits and pieces of it or I'll go back and work on it again. If you are new to writing, don't get depressed if something isn't working out or if you think it's too cliche'. Every story is "too" something. Just work on it, finish it, send it out into the world and start working on something else. The biggest danger of new writers is that they put all their eggs in one basket. Every novel is a precious baby that must be protected and nurtured. The publishing industry can be pretty blunt and unforgiving sometimes, but if you put in the hard work, you'll get rewarded eventually. Don't be afraid to finish your book and send it out. Then forget about it and start working on something else.

 

[Chilari]

Don't ever give up. Even if it's cliche and even if you don't think anyone will want to read it, or even if you don't think it's any good (and I think every writer here has felt that at some point), don't give up. It's all practice, it's all learning how to be better. So write, and then read what you're written and work out how to get better.

 

[Flemming Hansen]

As long as an elf gets hammered in the face for knocking over a dwarf's pint, your book should get far by my standards. I love cliches, but oh how I hate elves.

 

[Steerpike]

Helleaven, all the talk of "cliches" you see on writing forums is a load of bollocks. Ignore it.

The fact is, traditional fantasy elements that many other writers (particularly those starting out) would call cliche are popular and have a big audience. I wouldn't let comments to the contrary on any internet forum stop you. You can use every fantasy "cliche" ever used and still write a great story. In the end, that's the only thing that will matter - whether it is a great story or not.

Threads about "is this cliche" or "is this original" are pointless and potentially damaging, as demonstrated here. If you believe in the story you're writing, then go for it. If someone tells you it is cliche, ignore them. That's my advice. Write the story that inspires you.

 

[J.P. Reedman]

I know where your coming from. In the 80's when I published a lot in the small press, I became quite confident in my abilities, with lots of praise flowing in to bolster me. Then I got side-tracked with 'life' and didn't write anything of note till about 2004. It was scary, this little voice in my head kept saying 'What if you can't do it anymore?' Now I'm on the edge of publishing my first novel length work,STONE LORD, and I'm still heaving with doubts. I go back and forth from thinking its great, to really worrying. Worse, it's based in an actual archaeological period,and I have this guy who posts on my blog and he keeps nitpicking about the archaeological data and making me worry that everyone who reads it is just going to look for things that may not be 'in period.' (It's an era I have great knowledge of, but yes, I have deliberate anachronisms on occasion because,at the end of the day, it's not non-fiction, it's a story.)
True, people don't like cliches, but most stories,especially in this genre, will have some. it's really all in how you handle them. I have no aversion to reading about 'peasant youth who becomes king' or similar, as long as he is a sympathetic and interesting character, and not a carboard cut-out do-gooder. With bad writing, it's not the overused idea that's so much the problem, but the cliched writing that often goes with it--'the princess was beautiful with long golden hair' type of thing.

 

[Helleaven]

Thank you so much wonderful people of Mythic Scribes!

You have given me the courage I need in order to keep on!

There is no way I can thank you enough! All of those opinions are very important to me, now I feel confident again, thanks to all of you.

 

[Kit]

Worse, it's based in an actual archaeological period,and I have this guy who posts on my blog and he keeps nitpicking about the archaeological data and making me worry that everyone who reads it is just going to look for things that may not be 'in period.' (It's an era I have great knowledge of, but yes, I have deliberate anachronisms on occasion because,at the end of the day, it's not non-fiction, it's a story.).

There are always going to be people who do that. It's more about them than about you- just look at it as an opportunity to take an extra minute to fact-check whatever it is he's quibbling about, but don't get hung up on him.

 

[Alex]

Helleaven, all the talk of "cliches" you see on writing forums is a load of bollocks. Ignore it.

Dude...you said bollocks, you just became amazing to Americans everywhere...

Sorry, ADHD. Steerpike is right, clichés still have a large audience in fantasy. They became "cliché" for a reason after all. Cliche applies mostly to cheesey one liners, in my opinion.

 

[Lorna]

As above. Everyone has doubts. Every aspect of a plot, if you search hard enough you will find has been done before. It's a case of telling a good story and excelling in your craft. Giving it 100 per cent. If you can do these the cliches won't matter.

 

[Steerpike]

Dude...you said bollocks, you just became amazing to Americans everywhere...

Sorry, ADHD. Steerpike is right, clichés still have a large audience in fantasy. They became "cliché" for a reason after all. Cliche applies mostly to cheesey one liners, in my opinion.

Bollocks is a great slang word. I also like ponce, git, and nancy-boy.