Would I be a more original author if I wrote a story about

a male character being driven crazy by something and killing everyone?

You know, like a fanfic based off of Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow's alternate ending or something.

Teens dress as Batman to catch pedophiles; cops not impressed

Nobody cares about originality, only how well you handle what you have. How original you are should mean nothing to you as a writer, because literally everything under the sun has been done before.

"Jack, you have debauched my sloth."

No. But that doesn't mean you should toss the idea.

'Your manuscript is both good and original; but the part that is good is not original, and the part that is original is not good.'

Don't get overly focused on being "original". Some things may have been done again and again but there are always ways to turn what was done into something original.

edited 13th Dec '11 5:51:57 PM by MajorTom

• 1) If you have to ask the question...
• 2) You just cited something you could base it off of. That should by its nature tip you off that it isn't original if it's been done before...

I am now known as Flyboy.

Well, considering what you've said about your work, it would at least make it less repetitive.

I'll hide your name inside a word and paint your eyes with false perception.

Based on what you guys said, I guess I'll just play it safe and stick to stories about young girls going crazy and killing everyone. It's not like I have anything to lo-...

oh god dammit.

edited 13th Dec '11 6:16:31 PM by Dragonzordasaurus

Teens dress as Batman to catch pedophiles; cops not impressed

Dragon, have you considered a career as a screenwriter for B horror movies?

And better than thy stroke; why swellest thou then?

Sex and/or gender don't matter.

Like at all.

It isn't the sex of your character that's the problem, dude.

Banned entirely for telling FE that he was being rude and not contributing to the discussion. I shall watch down from the goon heavens.

...wait a minute...

~steps out of thread~

Edit:

~steps back into thread~

You are the one who made the "Is this rape?" thread.

Now this () makes sense...

edited 13th Dec '11 7:13:11 PM by USAF713

I am now known as Flyboy.

"Sex and/or gender don't matter."

In the context of the OP's question, sure, but how would you defend this argument if we were talking about a story dealing with, say, workplace sexual harassment or unplanned pregnancy?

And better than thy stroke; why swellest thou then?

If the main character of a story focusing on being an unplanned pregnancy is a male, it should be really awkward...

I'm a (socialist) professional writer serializing a WWII alternate history webnovel.

You're not the first person who's compared me to that style of writing.

Except no one becomes evil/crazy in that story. Bad example.

Teens dress as Batman to catch pedophiles; cops not impressed

If you're thirsting for more, uh, original feedback, I'd offer the suggestion of finding another hobby altogether. Writing for yourself is alright, but it seems that you are actually looking for an audience; in which case, either make your work palatable, or don't expect a readership at all.

And better than thy stroke; why swellest thou then?

Seconded.

Kash: In the latter example, sure, because it fails basic biology, but there is nothing impossible or even improbable about a man being sexually harassed by a woman at the workplace so it boggles me that you'd bring it up. In most contexts, sex and gender affect the relationship between the character and the world, and the character himself only indirectly as a result of the world around him. Or her.

EDIT: rhino you forgot the italics — there's a subtle semantic difference between "male character" and "male character".

edited 13th Dec '11 9:27:35 PM by annebeeche

Banned entirely for telling FE that he was being rude and not contributing to the discussion. I shall watch down from the goon heavens.

No, I'm not calling sexual harassment of a man impossible. Rather, it triggers different issues than the sexual harassment of a woman, which is common and, in certain positions and communities, expected.

Unless you're writing about a world in which gender roles are absent, you cannot take men and women as social equals whose actions and reactions are entirely divorced from the ideologies of the superstructure. A bisexual man, for example, is going to have a far shittier time finding acceptance than a bisexual woman; and a woman who abandons her child will be much less sympathetic than a man would be, because fathers walking out has been normalized in many societies.

edited 13th Dec '11 9:26:42 PM by kashchei

And better than thy stroke; why swellest thou then?

Yes, but it explains why this seems familiar, and why you'd think such a thing is original.

Superficial differences aren't going to make this... marginally workable...

You need to get something with literary merit to hold together... whatever it is you're going for here.

I am now known as Flyboy.

Kashchei:

you are describing this.

Banned entirely for telling FE that he was being rude and not contributing to the discussion. I shall watch down from the goon heavens.

I know what I'm describing. That statement of yours is, however, inconsistent with saying that sex and gender do not matter.

And better than thy stroke; why swellest thou then?

Yeah, it's a statement that I take back. Another symptom of my chronic inability to explain myself.

I do believe that it shouldn't matter though, which is completely different.

Banned entirely for telling FE that he was being rude and not contributing to the discussion. I shall watch down from the goon heavens.

Ja, I can get behind that.

And better than thy stroke; why swellest thou then?

Dude, just write what you think makes a good story. That's all that really matters in the end.

edited 13th Dec '11 10:11:16 PM by Scherzo09

These are the words that shall come from my mouth. I shall be known for speaking them.

...I don't know that that's the best advice to give in this context...

I am now known as Flyboy.

Well I just think its absurd for a writer to ask if his premise is good enough. That's something the writer needs to decide for himself.

These are the words that shall come from my mouth. I shall be known for speaking them.