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Starting off right!

Rullenzar

Troubadour
I've been trying out a couple different settings for where my MC/story starts off and I really don't want to be cliche. Even though the most cliche seems to work best. My MC starts off in a small village/town farmer type, quiet life. His 18th birthday upon him and the promised answers his father made him wait till now for, will soon be revealed. Jump starting the story.

I've also tried this with a family owned bar opening, main city rich folk and one other. The quiet farm life seemed to work best but i feel its also the most cliche. Was hoping to get some feedback/suggestions on possible start settings in a medieval time period. And, do you think the quiet life farmer prototype is outplayed? Or, is it something you would still enjoy getting into?
 

BWFoster78

Myth Weaver
I like the farmboy turned epic hero. Other here will say they hate it.

You're better off, imo, writing instead of worrying if it's too cliche. Explore the story and see where it takes you. You can always change the opening.
 

Steerpike

Felis amatus
Moderator
That opening has become a bit cliche in the genre, but that doesn't mean you can't make it work. You can put a new and/or interesting spin on anything. If that opening works best for your story, stick with it.
 

Malik

Auror
I'm with Foster on this. Every idea is cliche. It's what you do with it.

Personally, what drives me insane is when the farmboy (or nerdy kid, or slacker, or similar underdog trope) becomes an epic hero, but just all of a sudden -- magically, usually; though more often because it's revealed that he's The Chosen One. That's where I toss the book in the Donations box.

But that's just me. Write the thing and then tweak it later if you don't like it.
 

AnneL

Closed Account
I'm with everyone else on if it works, it's fine, but one other thought: have you tried making him an apprentice of some sort that would also give him a useful skill set for his adventure?

Also, it probably goes without saying, but if he's a farm boy, give me the farm -- show him slaughtering the pig or repairing the plow or baling the hay or something. What is it about being raised on a farm that is going to either help him or hinder him in the rest of the story?
 

skip.knox

toujours gai, archie
Moderator
To start off right, start right off.

I assume you want the boy to be ordinary, with no hint of future greatness. Farm boy works, but you could pick most any life. At eighteen he would have been working in his father's shop, or could even be the son of a minor knight, frustrated because there seem to be no opportunities for greatness.

The key, though, is the ordinariness of his life. So take a few pages to establish that. Sure, Dad's going to tell him something on his birthday. Great. It'll probably be to give him a new plow. Or his own stall at the market. Something horribly, stuffily ordinary. So when he learns that he's actually heir to the throne, or whatever, it can come as a genuine surprise.

If you take time for setup, too, you can take time to establish a friend or other relationships and maybe even show one of his virtues. Give us a reason to like him *before* he gets famous or powerful. IMO, Robert Jordan did this well in his opening chapters, however far he strayed in later volumes.
 

danr62

Sage
I once thought of starting a story something like this:

It begins as these things usually do in the stories. I lived on a farm on the outskirts of a small villiage. My uncle raised me since my parents died at a young age. My aunt passed away a few years back from the wasting sickness, so it was just me and Uncle Bob.

That's when the monsters attacked.

So there's a bit of a satirical spin on it.

The point is that there is nothing wrong with using a trope in your story. Some people love the tropes. Other people hate them. You can't please everybody.
 

T.Allen.Smith

Staff
Moderator
To start off right, start right off.

I assume you want the boy to be ordinary, with no hint of future greatness. Farm boy works, but you could pick most any life. At eighteen he would have been working in his father's shop, or could even be the son of a minor knight, frustrated because there seem to be no opportunities for greatness.

The key, though, is the ordinariness of his life. So take a few pages to establish that. Sure, Dad's going to tell him something on his birthday. Great. It'll probably be to give him a new plow. Or his own stall at the market. Something horribly, stuffily ordinary. So when he learns that he's actually heir to the throne, or whatever, it can come as a genuine surprise.

If you take time for setup, too, you can take time to establish a friend or other relationships and maybe even show one of his virtues. Give us a reason to like him *before* he gets famous or powerful. IMO, Robert Jordan did this well in his opening chapters, however far he strayed in later volumes.

Introductory chapters are fine for setting the stage and getting to know characters. However, in my opinion, you still need more happening than just that, or even whatever information Dad is about to reveal.

Showing the mundane & ordinary parts of life are okay IF you're contrasting against something else that's unusual, or at least hinting that your character is about to jump down the rabbit hole.

Since Robert Jordan was mentioned, I'll use that as an example. His introductory chapter does indeed do a nice job of setting the scene, showing us characters, and painting the picture of ordinary life. However, almost immediately the reader also sees the MC being pursued by something strange and sinister....a Myrddraal. It happens much sooner than most readers even realize (paragraph #9 to be precise).

As Rand watched his side of the road, the feeling grew in him that he was being watched.
The next few chapters are a description of Rand seeing a shadow spawn for the first time.

My point being, don't dilly-dally on the mundane and ordinary aspects of your character's life. Those are the boring bits. Let us jump into the meat of the story without too much setup. If, however, you need to show the stuffy ordinary aspects of their life, contrast it against the unusual or the remarkable. The reader needs to know not all is well and that events are already careening towards chaos and drama, though the characters themselves may be partially unaware.
 
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Mythopoet

Auror
Not every idea is a cliche. A cliche is a trope that has become overused to the point of being meaningless. Emphasis on the meaningless part. If the idea/trope still conveys meaning to the readers it is not a cliche no matter how often it is used.

My MC starts off in a small village/town farmer type, quiet life. His 18th birthday upon him and the promised answers his father made him wait till now for, will soon be revealed. Jump starting the story.

I don't think the small town farm boy is the really cliche part. I think most people can identify with that aspect. We all feel like we're just a small person in a big world sometimes. Which is why that trope conveys meaning.

It's the "ordinary person's secret extraordinary identity is revealed at a pivotal moment" that has become a cliche. Now, a lot of the time the two are combined. Which is why most readers, as soon as you introduce a farm boy, will say to themselves "oh, but he's secretly the descendent of some significant historical person and there's probably a super special heirloom like a sword that will be passed on to him just before he sets off on his adventure". And most of the time, sadly, they will be right.

Personally, I'd rather read a story about a farm boy who is actually just a farm boy but becomes a hero not because of his secret heritage or a special heirloom but because of his true merits.
 

TWErvin2

Auror
Nothing wrong with starting on the farm...but if possible avoid a 'day in the life' setup to contrast later how the MC's life changed. Something can be happening on the farm, a crisis of some sort, which can reveal the character while revealing some about the setting.
 

skip.knox

toujours gai, archie
Moderator
Calling things a trope is becoming a trope. I say we swear off the word and spend the winter in the tropics.

Gods, did I really say that?
 
C

Chessie

Guest
Rullenzar, I like AnneL's idea of showing us the farm. Why not have his skills as a farmer be put to good use? Maybe he rocks in wilderness survival because he's knowledgeable about the outdoors.
 

Rullenzar

Troubadour
I didn't want to give too much away in my first post so I gave a pretty lackluster generalization. My MC essentially grows up with a brother and a sister. He's also got a boyhood friend and a mysterious barkeep who's treated the lot as his own sons, teaching them how to fight as they grew. My MC and his lot have always been fascinated by all the strange folk and adventurers coming through their village and would ask for stories from whom ever would give them the time of day. Their imaginations are what basically led them to being taught by the old barkeep. Nobody knows where he came from but hes been in the village longer then my MC has been alive and he's quite skillfull in combat. Growing up my MC notices differences between him and his siblings and so before long questions arise. Around the time of his birthday he also gets strange pains in the top left of his shoulderblade. Like something moving, excruciating pains. But, only close to and around his birthday each year. After asking his father for years for answers and his father refusing to say anything his father finally agrees to answer anything at his coming 18th birthday (age may be subject to change).

I'm leaning more towards a father with blacksmithing background but not entirely sure yet. I was going to incorporate the teachings they've had throughout the years as their starter kit for fighting. Meaning they aren't proffesional fighters or the best at anything by a long shot but they know some basics at least. I'd go further but it would give away too much about what I'll be using to create the drama of the events that unfold on the birthday and so the beginning of my Mc's journey.

I did some more work and found that having a small community instead of just a stand alone farm will probably work best. I'm still unsure what proffesion/field I want his father in so any suggestions for that would be much appreciated. So far I've been thinking on blacksmith/trader.
 

Bansidhe

Minstrel
Introductory chapters are fine for setting the stage and getting to know characters. However, in my opinion, you still need more happening than just that, or even whatever information Dad is about to reveal.

Showing the mundane & ordinary parts of life are okay IF you're contrasting against something else that's unusual, or at least hinting that your character is about to jump down the rabbit hole.

I'm with Allen on this. I'm keen on using a first chapter for not only establishing setup/characters, but to serve a dual purpose in foreshadowing trouble on the horizon (aka the Inciting Incident), or to plant clues if a mystery's involved. I like to establish any and all conflicts asap, even if the reader won't realize they're conflicts quite yet until more information is provided. The idea is to set up the precursors, or the subtext, of conflict.
 
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Where ever he begins, make him an Expert in that field. If he starts as a Farmer, make him an excellent farmer, then he is called away to an adventure where his expertize aren't as helpful directly.

You got a man on a farm, then on his 18th birthday he sees a Black Stallion race across the fields leaving death and decay in its wake. Then, the father share the family secret. He is a magic cowboy that must catch Death Horses.

Or, maybe his outdoors-y nature allows him to lead a troop of city-slickers on a quest to fight a dragon.
 
The farmboy start is definitely cliche. However, as a coming-of-age story, it always need not be the farmboy.
For example, In the novel 'Dragonborne Chair' by TadWilliams, he starts off the protogonist, Simon as the kitchen skullion in the castle.
An ordinary life of a person in a different profession than farming as a start, would be refreshing.
 
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