The Power of the Sidekick

In all the epic journeys of literature, there is a sidekick or two. But, sometimes, the sidekick is more often than not the actual hero of the story. Even when they don't reach such heights, you can clearly pinpoint parts of the journey that would have failed had the sidekick not been there.

Examples:

• Frodo would never have reached Mordor or destroyed the ring if it wasn't for Sam.
• Harry would have died or never solved the mysteries of his numerous journeys without Ron and Hermione.
• Luke would never have succeeded without Leia or Han.
• The dwarves of The Hobbit would never have made it without Bilbo.
• The Pevencies wouldn't have returned home without Aslan or Tumnus.
• Dorothy would never have reached the Wizard without the Tin Man, the Cowardly Lion or the Scarecrow.

Even in Disney: Belle would never have saved the Beast without Chip. Cinderella would never have made it to the ball without Jack and Gus, or her fairy godmother. Sleeping Beauty would never have survived Maleficent's curse without the three good fairies. Tiana would never have become human again without Ray and Mama Odie.

You'll find sidekicks in most books and movies that involve adventure. And when you do, you'll find that they offer some critical insight at one point of the journey, or more.

So, how do you write your own sidekick? It depends on your story. For this example, our adventure is one of life or death. There's an evil force out to destroy everything, but only one (or a band of a few) individual can save the world.

Your sidekick will need to provide a little levity, so they need to be funny, good with one liners, and generally good natured and not easily frightened (unless this can be used to comedic value). Never let your sidekick become so hilarious that it becomes incredulous or uncomfortable. Think Ron Weasley, Merry and Pippin, Han Solo. All were funny without effect and without becoming inappropriate.

Your sidekick also has to be helpful, intelligent and it helps if they can see the world in a completely different way to your hero. Examples: Hermione, Samwise, C3PO and Ray (Princess and the Frog). These characters provide clues, positivity in light of dark times and have a broader view of the world than some of the other characters. They use these traits to lead the way, spot clues or generally keep up morale, as the fight for Good against Evil reigns.

It's also important for your sidekick to never overshadow or take the limelight from your hero. Your hero is the hero for a reason and it needs to stay that way. So give your sidekick some insecurities: aversion to blood, a physical or mental weakness, phobias, lack of a sense of direction or an uncanny knack for being clumsy or getting in trouble. That will stop them from becoming the 'too-good-to-be-true' hero. Again, think about Ron Weasley (fear of spiders and insecurity about being poor), Samwise (not adventurous in the least, too curious, can't swim), C3PO (natural coward), Scarecrow (made of straw) and the Tin Man (rusts!)

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There are so many ways that you can create a believable sidekick without making them weak-willed or pathetic. If you want some inspiration, check out the great movie 'Sky High' which is about a school for superhero's, where a bunch of 'sidekicks' or 'Hero Support' end up being the only ones capable of saving the day, thus becoming the real superhero's. It might give you a glimpse of how to balance the characteristics of a sidekick with a hero and how any small talent can win the war.

Author Resource: Storyville: Tips on Putting Together a Short Story Collection

Reblogged from : LitReactor

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So you’ve gotten some work published, and you’re trying to figure out if you not only have enough writing for a collection, but how to put the damn thing together. Here are some suggestions on how to make it a compelling, balanced, and powerful read.

LENGTH

Well, it turns out it does matter—to a degree. I’ve seen really thin collections of dense prose that were only 100 pages long, and I’ve seen epic tomes that were 300, 400 pages and longer. Really, it depends on what you have, but I’d suggest that you have at least 40,000 words. Where does this number come from, you ask? I’ve seen a lot of presses that have this as the minimum. Plus, I was just looking at the guidelines for submitting my collection, Staring Into the Abyss, for the Bram Stoker Awards, and guess what the minimum is? Yep—it’s 40,000 words. Any idea how long my collection is? Not 40,000 words, unfortunately. So, learn from my mistake there. Or, make it as long as you want and don’t worry about it. Your audience just wants enough material to dig into, time to get to know your voice, and something with a little meat on the bone. I’ll go pick up several collections at random off my shelves right now—Staring Into the Abyss, 135 pages; Lindsay Hunter’s Don’t Kiss Me, 174 pages; Roy Kesey’s All Over, 144 pages; Craig Davidson’s Rust and Bone, 234; Kelly Link’s Magic for Beginners, 297; Benjamin Percy’s Refresh, Refresh, 249; Paul Tremblay’s In the Mean Time, 214; Stephen King’s Just After Sunset, 366.

QUALITY

I know this seems obvious, but don’t just stick every story you’ve ever written into the collection. Read through and only choose the work that really resonates with you. If you read a story and aren’t impressed, leave it out. Maybe you’ve grown since then, or maybe you just don’t like it any more. Whatever the case is, put your best work in—because people are going to tear it apart. They won’t love every story, but at least try to make the collection as strong as possible.

PUBLISHED VS. UNPUBLISHED

Most short story collections are going to consist of writing that has already been published. If you pick up any collection off your bookshelf, you’ll find this to be true. Your collection is a body of work, a way for your fans to read more than one story in one place, one sitting, all together. They don’t want to have to scour the internet, or track down and pay for every obscure journal and magazine you’re in. It can get expensive. Imagine if you have twenty stories in a collection, and each journal or magazine costs $3, that’s $60 to get all of those stories. So don’t feel bad that these are essentially reprints. Only your most loyal fans will have read every story you’ve written in the original publications. I’m a huge Stephen King fan, but that doesn’t mean I rush out to buy every copy of The Atlantic or Esquire or Playboy that he’s in. BUT, if you do want to do something nice for your readers, include one or two original stories, totally new and never seen before. They’ll appreciate the fact that there is new work to be read, and it’ll help to generate a little bit of excitement about your collection.

TONE AND THEME

If you write a wide variety of genres, try to focus on one theme, tone or genre with your collection. If you only write horror stories, then make sure that the horror stories you include work together. Maybe you have several new horror stories that are more literary and subtle and don't fit with your older work. When I was putting together Herniated Roots, my first collection, I chose stories that leaned towards noir. When I put togetherStaring Into the Abyss, I chose stories that leaned towards horror. I left out my MFA stories, the literary stories I wrote, because they weren’t published yet, and they didn’t fit the theme and voice. I also left out more recent work that was closer to magical realism because it also didn’t fit. Just keep that in mind.

THE TITLE

The title of your collection is going to be a great way to wrap it all up and clue your audience in to the theme, POV, focus, genre, and voice. The easy thing to do is give it the same title as one of the stories in the collection, usually the “best” story in the book. That’s what Benjamin Percy did with Refresh, Refresh. The first story in the collection is “Refresh, Refresh.” But a title like Magic for Beginners gives you a hint at what’s coming, so when you dig into Link’s work and get surreal, magical realism, you aren’t surprised. Also, check Amazon to make sure that the title isn’t already taken. It doesn't mean you can’t use it, but why not tweak it and make it original? There was no Transubstantiate when I wrote my first book, and there is no book called Exigencies either, an upcoming anthology I’m editing at Dark House Press.

THE ORDER

This may be one of the most important aspects of the collection, but don't sweat it too much, because in the end, your audience may not even notice these subtle choices. And when I say “best” what do I mean? I mean your favorites, I mean the stories that were placed in the best publications, the ones that got nominated (or won) awards, contest winners, the ones your readers kept talking about, all of that.

Here are some things to keep in mind:

1. First and last. I always try to start with one of the best, and end with one of the best. Why? You want to grab your reader and get their attention. If they read a great story first, they will most likely continue. Also, you want to leave them thinking their hard earned dollars were well spent. If the last story is just average, or ends on a weak note, they’ll leave thinking bad thoughts. Why take the chance? Start strong and end strong.

2. Tent poles. This is a theory that I like as well. If you have 21 stories in a collection, and you’re already starting strong and ending strong, why not break up the rest of the collection with your better stories? So, 1 is strong, and 21 is strong, probably your best, then put your next two at 7 and 14. The idea is that whatever is going on, hopefully the reader will put up with a few weaker stories, or more experimental stories, if they keep getting a fix every so often. I know, I know—all of your stories are brilliant. Then just pick your favorites for 1, 7,14, and 21.

3. Length. Mix up the long stories and the short stories. Try to fill in the blanks around the 1, 7, 14 and 21 with a variety of lengths. I try not to put two really long stories back to back. Bookend the 7,000-word story with two flash fictions, perhaps. Just play around with it. I’ve also heard that you should put you longest story LAST, so keep that in mind as well. It’s the story your readers will spend the most time with, so that’s an option, a way to end with some power, a longer connection, some depth.

4. Tone. If you have some really dark stories, maybe follow them up with lighter fare. If you have some really technical science fiction, follow it up with some softer science. If you have some experimental voices and formats, follow them up with more traditional work. Make sense?

5. Frontload. Another approach is to put your better stories in the front. So if you’ve got first and last as your best, and a couple of tent poles, why not put a couple more of your best stories up front? Don’t let the reader slip away. Hit them hard and hit them often, pummeling them into submission—with your words.

IN CONCLUSION

Try to keep all of these ideas in mind, but in the end, just have fun with it. Try to imagine the journey your reader is taking. Mix it up—short and then long, up and then down, dark and then light, opening strong and ending strong. Your voice is your voice, and if people love your work, they’ll probably enjoy whatever you put together. Here’s one quick example for you. When I put together Staring Into the Abyss, I did worry that some of the shorter, older stories wouldn’t hold up. But I re-read them and still liked them a lot, so I put them in. And strangely enough, whenever I’ve read the reviews of Staring Into the Abyss, I’m always surprised at what they highlight as the best. Whether it’s the guys at Booked, Horror News or Parable Press, there was at least one story they loved that I worried wasn't good enough. So, who knows what your audience will like, just do the best job you can, and let the chips fall where they may. Good luck!

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Plotting Against You

Do you ever find yourself in the midst of writing a story and you suddenly realise that you're going down the really obvious route?

Never happened to you? Or happens all the time?

Personally, it happens all the time, to me. I often have to sit there and second guess my need to travel that route. Most of the time, with just one or two small re-writes, you can go the non-obvious track, without having to re-do your entire manuscript. Sometimes you don't even have to re-write anything, because it's a simple matter of revealing the "surprise" and then explaining it in a way that absolutely makes sense.

I've done this twice, in a book I was editing recently. It's not a Simply Sexy Reads book, but one for teens. I had a bad guy about to be revealed and just as I was about to reveal their name, at the moment then the teens finally found out who was causing all the trouble, I stopped and realised it was far too obvious. I'd written the entire book, building up to the reveal of this certain character - let's call them Character A for now - as the bad guy. But then, as I was about to write the name, I realised that I wanted to make it a shock. That I wanted to go really out there and choose someone who the reader would never expect, Character B. Character A could be the decoy; the one so obvious that it would make absolutely no sense for them to really be the bad guy. But, when the revelation that it's really Character B comes out, it's a shock factor and the reader begins to wonder how they never saw it coming.

That's a much better way to go.

I did the same thing with a romance, in the same book. I'd had the set up practically perfect - the two characters (C and D) became best friends through book 1 and 2, then had hints of getting really close in book 2, before finally revealing in book 3 that they were a couple. UNTIL I realised that they didn't fit, at all. Character C was way too innocent and non-romantic for Character D, who was a real romantic and a little too feisty for C. So, I switched it up in book 3, revealing the shocking surprise that Character D was actually going to end up with Character E, who was Character C's twin!

Most of the time, I'd say that it's perfectly fine to follow the plot where you'd always planned to take it. But not in this case. Sometimes, when it's really obvious, you have to switch it up, to offer your readers something that they didn't see coming. In the end, it might not work. But you'll have tried it and you can know that the obvious route was the right one.

Or, it will be fantastic! My two changes read so much better, now that they're not at all obvious. What will readers think? Who knows. Maybe they'll have seen it coming, maybe they won't, but I'll know that it was the route less travelled, when plotting out my story.

The biggest tip here is to listen to your characters. The romantic love interest changed, because my characters were telling me it wasn't right. And some instinct, whether plot or character driven, made me stop and second guess writing that 'bad guy's' name down, while writing the big revelation scene.

Don't be afraid to change your mind and don't be scared of scrapping an entire chapter or two, if it makes your story better. In the end, you'll know what works and what doesn't, when you read your story like a reader. That's when I do my best editing. Get away from it for a while, come back fresh, and you'll see whether your changes work or not.

Either way, you'll have taken the risk of finding out.