When writing for a target audience a writer will include and rework various tropes of the genre. There are only so man basic plots after all, so the freshness and originality of a story comes from how it's told. Contrary to certain opinions in the book review community, tropes aren't a bad thing - there's nothing wrong with giving your audience more of what thay want. However there are some tropes that continue and perpetuate a toxic stereotype of mindset when they are repeated in literature. And those tropes really need to be identified and stamped out. Looking at their own experiences in writing and taking examples from film, TV and books, the dragons attempt to untangle the worthy from the unworthy in this weeks episode. On the slab this week Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo, Circle of Magic by Tamra Pearce, Sky in the Deep by Adrienne Young and many more.
Title Music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
Episode 253: The Good Neighbours - Festive Faeries and Winter Elves
Episode 252: Why is There Never a Happy Ending? - and Other Questions Writers Get Asked
Episode 251 To Queer or not to Queer - Including LGBTQ+ Characters in Speculative Fiction
Episode 250: The Usual Suspects - Cast Calling for your Novel
Episode 249 - The Goddess' Chariot - Myths and Folktales of the Moon
Episode 248: All the Feels - Emotion and Characterisation in Speculative Fiction
Episode 247: Sweet, Awkward and Tongue-tied - The Unromantic Hero in Speculative Fiction
Episode 246 - Casting Long Shadows - How Horror Influences Other Genres
Episode 245: Old Gods & Ancient Stones - What Folk Horror has to say to a Modern Audience
Ep 244 - Of Fates and Phantoms - The Anatomy of the Ghost Story
Episode 243: The Mother of Science Fiction - The Life of Mary Shelley
Episode 242 - Chairs, Dolls & Diamonds - Cursed Objects in Fact and Fiction
Episode 241 - Vampires, Incubae and Goblin Kings - The Daemon Lover in Myth and Speculative Fiction
Episode 240: Paging Dr Love - What the Romance Genre can Teach Us about Writing
Episode 239: Unpopular Opinion Time (part 2) - The Dragon's Hot Takes on Speculative Issues
Episode 238: Unpopular Opinion Time (part 1) - The Dragons' Hot Takes on Speculative Issues
Episode 237: Sowing Prejudice - Accuracy and Research in Writing
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 236: News from the Word Mines - What No-one tells Newbies about Writing and Publishing
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 235: The Alchemy of Forever - Immortality in Speculative Fiction
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 234: The Power Behind the Throne - the Hidden Voices of Political Change in Speculative Fiction
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