Mastering Fiction: Creating Big Ideas That Make Your Novel Stand Out

[@johnbrookes9483]

Top notch!

[@bradley.p.beaulieu]

Thank you!

[@thinkle6244]

Really enjoyed the presentation thanks for making this!

[@JoelCrumbleyAuthor]

Thank you for your practical approach and video quality!

[@trendane]

As I was watching this, I was thinking back to stories I had started many years ago and I realized what a disjointed mess most of them are. Heh! Probably one of the main reasons I abandoned them. Another excellent video! Thank you, sir!

[@bradley.p.beaulieu]

It happens to all of us. Crafting an idea that can sustain itself over a full novel is a lot harder than I gave it credit for early on in my writing.

[@briankinsey3339]

First rejection I ever got many years ago was along the lines on "excellent prose, but it's not really a story." I had the technical writing skill, but lacked any idea beyond "I think I can write as well as the authors I'm reading." So yeah, ideas are important. Good video.

[@bradley.p.beaulieu]

It was a real eye opener for me, coming from a technical writing background. Fiction is almost the opposite of that, posing dramatic questions and delaying answers instead of straightforwardly and precisely detailing what readers or students need to know.

[@VinnyTheory]

I have been searching for the answer to this at 1:39-4:15 for a very long time. I’m so grateful you made this video. Books are sold on the idea not the prose is a perfect way to put it. Every other KZbinr keeps saying “it’s execution not the idea” but that’s not what I’m asking! I’m asking if the execution of the idea matters more than prose. And you answered that, the answer is a resounding yes. 🎉

[@bradley.p.beaulieu]

I can't overstate that you have to push yourself hard on craft, but... Once you've reached that professional threshold, then yes, ideas are a massive part of what gets sold, what gets marketing dollars, what creates buzz, and so on.

[@kit888]

Sounds like the Hollywood concept of High Concept. Titanic meets Miami Vice. Bambi meets It's a Wonderful Life. Mashups, but also ideas so compelling that people want to buy the story without knowing the details (dinosaur theme park, evil superheroes, interstellar giant robots). The practice of being able to summarize it, is similar to the Hollywood idea of the logline and the elevator pitch, for all stories, not just High Concept. It's useful to use Hollywood's terminology because there are many existing explanations and examples. Orson Scott Card talks about 4 different types of story, depending on whether they concentrate on Millieu (world), Idea, Character, or Event (MICE). He explains this in an article on the Writer's Digest website.

[@bradley.p.beaulieu]

Yes, definitely similar, and I think stories can flow well from those sorts of big ideas. The trouble I've always had is coming up with something so concise. I often muddle around for a while and THEN come up with what the story is really about. So I kind of zoom in and out constantly until l have something I like.

[@3dchick]

It's wonderful to get writing advice from someone I've read and enjoyed. Thank you for these! And the algorithm for pulling up something I'd never have thought to go looking for. 😊

[@bradley.p.beaulieu]

That's great to hear! The algorithm is so unknowable and for months I feared I'd just get swept under the rug. But I see so many KZbinrs succeed not with flash but with practical content, shot well and presented logically, I thought, why not? I'll give it a try!

[@thisricardopalma]

Normal people, experiencing extraordinary things. That is my cuppa tea.

[@bradley.p.beaulieu]

That’s true, though I think normal people are extraordinary, just in different ways. The trick is to bring that out in the story.

[@lisev415]

Thank you so much for these videos

[@bradley.p.beaulieu]

You’re so welcome! I’m glad you like them.

[@VinnyTheory]

One girl two boys for main characters is like Harry Potter? That’s unfair. Star Wars has 2 boys 1 girl, so does avatar the last Airbender, so does Percy Jackson. Hell, even Hunger games is technically 2 boys and 1 girl. I’m hoping your book was literally a magic school/academy or else that really bothers me

[@bradley.p.beaulieu]

No, no school of magic. And eh. That was probably merely the easiest reason, the one closest to hand. If the story had been more mature, and my MG voice better, they probably wouldn't even have brought that up.

[@mcgeeal5342]

I noticed a couple of times you used references to other stories as their tag-line, like ocean’s 11, the Matrix, etc. I heard an anecdote that this is a popular way to pitch new movies (Speed’s pitch was “Die Hard on a Bus” IIRC). Do you find this is a good way to pitch ideas as well? Popular story X with an interesting twist Y?

[@bradley.p.beaulieu]

Yes, definitely! In fact, I give that advice in one of my other presentations (coming to KZbin soon). The marketing around movies is really powerful and they tend to really nail the messaging in very brief ways. Mashups like you mentioned are a good way to generate interest, so long as they grab. But be careful about overreach in queries and even in-person pitches. You risk eye rolls by being the thousandth person to compare your book to The Hunger Games or A Game of Thrones of what have you.

[@scottjackson163]

I’m listening. I haven’t heard anything yet that maps to my writing predilections. My literary heroes are from the 20th century: Kafka, Joseph Conrad, Hemingway, Joyce. One modern writer: Cormac McCarthy. I don’t know if the High Concept approach is applicable to my story interests.

[@bradley.p.beaulieu]

Yeah, there’s no one size fits all rule, for sure.

[@larissakey8011]

I have a lot of my ideas fall apart because i tend to get the idea for a line or something that sounded good in my head. Its not always a story but like in a recent work I want to use the line "Part of her wanted to taste that familiar poison."

[@bradley.p.beaulieu]

I've found it's pretty common for ideas to fall apart a bit once you really put them under the microscope. But, like you, sometimes they're not full story ideas, but rather a part of a larger story. And that's cool, too! Anything that adds depth, intrigue, complexity, or what have you is great for your stories.

[@naassonjones8649]

Hey Brad. Thx for the video. Love it. But i want to brag on you for a little bit. I'm a aspiring sci-fi and fantasy writer. Your Shattered Sands series is unmatched. Read ALL 6 books. Ceda, Emre, Ihsan, I love them all. And I'm inspired to finish my own Afrofuturistic book partly because of you. For the life of me I don't understand why you're not as big as you are. You definitely should be on the same level as JK Rowling, Brandon Sanderson, and George RR Martin. Your series got all the trappings of a modern fantasy story that checks all the right boxes. A female lead that's not a girl boss but earns her way through the book (check) Exotic world that's not the typical medieval setting (check). Unique and interesting magic system that's easy to understand (check). Male characters who aren't dumbed down to make their female counterparts look smart) check) Please tell me some movie studio is banging at your door for the rights to the series??? I can definitely see it as a TV show like Game of thrones or a Film series like Harry Potter. Even your novellas are good. Keep up the good work man. You definitely have a fan in me 💯💪🏿

[@bradley.p.beaulieu]

That's so kind of you to say! Thanks for taking the time to reach out. You know, so much of this business is striking the right chord at the right time. The key, for me, anyway, is just to keep plugging away and putting out the best stories you can. Do that, and at least you can be proud of what's out in the world. Best of luck on your Afrofuturistic story! We need more of those, and there's such diverse and rich set of cultures and histories to draw upon.

[@trevormackay4664]

The City And The City sounds a whole lot like IQ84 by Murakami. A great read.

[@bradley.p.beaulieu]

That wasn’t on my radar but I’ll check it out. Thanks!

[@JoelAdamson]

"Wait, that's what that book is about?" What I kept saying in the first section of the video.

[@bradley.p.beaulieu]

Did you have different takes?

[@JoelAdamson]

@@bradley.p.beaulieu No, it was just that in a couple of cases I couldn't tell that's what the story/idea was about (from reading). I've read half of Way of Kings but if someone asked me what it was about, I'd have a hard time telling them. I think I just wasn't into Black Sun Rising, much as I wanted to love it, and probably wasn't paying attention by the time the revelations came along.

[@bradley.p.beaulieu]

Okay, that makes sense. In some cases, I'm oversimplifying quite a bit so I can talk about ways to attack (inspire?) new story ideas.