Both Sides of the Wardrobe

[Addison]

I recently purchased the third book in the Adventurers Wanted series. Only at chapter two when I had an idea for a dual-world giving dual conflicts. For those who don't know, Adventurers Wanted is about a boy, Alex, who finds a small shop who finds people for adventures (his first dealing with slaying an evil dragon and getting its hoard) He finds this shop in our world and, when passes through a back door, winds up in a mythical world.
Here's my query: What if a story's hero had two plots? One plot in the magical world and the other in the normal world. The hero spends so much time in one world, comes up to cool off/rest and finds another problem which needs solving. Would that be interesting? Or would it be too much? Does it sound plausible?

 

[Penpilot]

Sure it can work, but IMHO one would have to fall into the subplot category. Two main plots could be too many cooks in the kitchen.

 

[Feo Takahari]

I'd argue that the contrast of everyday issues to dangerous threats has become an entire genre at this point. A dual-world narrative is a bit more unusual, but I can see it working quite well if you compare and contrast how the worlds function, and have them parallel or influence each other in some ways.

 

[wordwalker]

Absolutely, make the real point the comparison between plots and how they influence each other. Does he start thinking his Otherworld life is cooler than his Muggle one, or that the girls here are less ditsy than the princesses? Does someone follow him from one world to the other? How's magic from there work back here?

And a few thousand more.

 

[Zero Angel]

I recently purchased the third book in the Adventurers Wanted series. Only at chapter two when I had an idea for a dual-world giving dual conflicts. For those who don't know, Adventurers Wanted is about a boy, Alex, who finds a small shop who finds people for adventures (his first dealing with slaying an evil dragon and getting its hoard) He finds this shop in our world and, when passes through a back door, winds up in a mythical world.
Here's my query: What if a story's hero had two plots? One plot in the magical world and the other in the normal world. The hero spends so much time in one world, comes up to cool off/rest and finds another problem which needs solving. Would that be interesting? Or would it be too much? Does it sound plausible?

This happens in InuYasha sometimes and it's actually not entirely foreign in a variety of contexts. Even the hobbits had to deal with crap when they came back from their LotR adventures. But any sort of mystical mirror thing that offers two worlds--eventually stuff happens in both.

 

[Ireth]

I have a plotline in one of my RPs with such a situation. A hole has opened up between two worlds, and sealed in place by the villain of one world; she sends a spy into the other world to find out more about it, and the spy kidnaps someone of that world back into their own. The victim eventually escapes back to his own world, and his kidnapper pursues him to bring him back, but gets lost. The kidnapper brings another character into his world, but the second victim escapes, and does not find a way back to his own world. Eventually the villainess will wage war on the other world, and the rift will be sealed again when she is defeated -- but not until characters from her world who came to the other are returned to their homes. Alas for the poor second kidnapping victim, he won't find his way home again until another rift opens.

 

[Addison]

That's a great story Ireth. And thank you all for your replies.

 

[shangrila]

King does it towards the end of the Dark Tower series, if you're looking for an example.

 

[Arhenvir]

I love this idea! As I read this post I was thinking specifically of highlighting all the wonderful and cruel facets alike of life in both 'worlds' -- attaining a balance so that the character can't possibly choose one over the other. A dragonslayer or noble in one world... but with a fantastic wife and adorable kids at home. Hmmmm.

 

[Dan Latham]

Yes, it is plausible. The problem you may face is that the other world will be more interesting to your readers. This world is a trifle, um, boring? The closest thing I've seen to a dragon is a particular supervisor where I work. If I slay her I go to jail instead of gaining her hoard.

If someone does go to another world and become a hero, why come back here? As Ahrvenir previously posted, compelling challenges and attractions to keep the protagonist rooted in both worlds would make for very interesting reading.

 

[Addison]

The same problem came to light in the newest Adventurers Wanted book. Alex had to make a choice of where to live, in our world or that world. I think this world will be like a sub plot, a place where the pace slows down and readers can digest everything that happened in the other world.

 

[Zero Angel]

I dislike stories (usually children's stories, but that's no excuse) where the characters have these fantastic adventures in the fantasy land only to come back without any of their level-up-ness/loot.

Basically, anything where someone can argue it was just a dream frustrates me to no end.

 

[The Dark One]

This sort of thing happens all the time in movies and TV shows. A good example is Goodnight Sweetheart in which the main character finds a laneway in London which takes him from the 90s back to London during the blitz. In every episode he would operate in both worlds and the various plots and events would frequently impact on the other side of the wardrobe.

This already a well travelled sub-genre. (My own speculative fiction novel THEM employs the device but in a slightly different way.)

 

[wordwalker]

I dislike stories (usually children's stories, but that's no excuse) where the characters have these fantastic adventures in the fantasy land only to come back without any of their level-up-ness/loot.

Basically, anything where someone can argue it was just a dream frustrates me to no end.

Ticks me off too.

Stories that reflect a basic need for the reader, even the fact that it's just a story to him --Writing 101.

When everyone's already used the same technique, write it different or to at least feel different --Writing 102.

 

[Addison]

Speaking of two sides of a wardrobe in a sense of reality and fantasy, how does one do characters in a realistic yet fantastic way? In a fantasy, especially if in a different world, there's different economy, religions and everything, things the readers don't have a clue about. Yet it adds to the fabulous fluff that sets your world, your story, apart from others. But how can you make a character that's realistically a like to the reader so they care and follow the character. More importantly, how does one maintain a consistency of the fluff and fact of the character through the entire story?