Reading "Million Dollar Outlines," laughing like a loon...

[agilebrit]

Because Dave Farland just quoted super-agent Albert Zuckerman's Writing the Blockbuster Novel, referring to what we call "transport." Apparently, in choosing (or creating) your settings, you should have one that transports your audience to a place they'd want to go.

Welp. I guess I'm failing at that, because this story is set, literally, in Hell.

Whoops.

He does go on to say that an unappealing setting doesn't spell instant doom (Pern, Arrakis, the Alien worlds), but you do have to introduce something cool. And then he asks a few questions, to wit: Does the beauty balance the horror? Does the darkness overwhelm the light? Will my readers want to visit here, or will they want to flee?

...it's Hell. So, no. Again, whoops.

That being said, I have workarounds for this that I wasn't even thinking about before I started reading this book. Clearly, my characters are going to have to overwhelm the horror of the setting. I have four, er, people that we're following through this trip, plus another who's important and pops in and out, and each of them needs an arc. I should probably look more at the Hero's Journey for this one and see how I can adapt it.

That being said, my descriptive chops are going to get a workout in this book, I can already tell. I want people to feel the flames...

I'm excited about this one again.

Comments

[selenite.livejournal.com]

Heaven for the climate, Hell for the company, right? :)

[honorh.livejournal.com]

Plenty of novels are set in places where you wouldn't want to visit, let alone live. Most dystopian novels, which are wildly popular, for instance. A frightening or dismal setting can be a challenge for a reader, but some readers like a challenge. They want to conquer it along with the protagonist. I think that's your goal.

[janchristensen.livejournal.com]

Well, "On the Road" fails this test, too, so, I wouldn't worry about Hell being the setting. Is there going to be any humor in it?