the ramble dump

In English class today, we were asked what we thought was more important when it came to creating a good story: writing from experience, or what the teacher called 'freefall imagination'.

I think 'freefall imagination' certainly describes my personal style of writing better. When the teacher was trying to explain what she meant, she told us that science fiction books with their huge concepts and ideas would be an example of where freefall imagination was prominent. I guess it's science fiction of sorts that I write, but I don't think it's just that which makes it so freefall. I love completely crazy and insane concepts, especially when I can just about pull them off and still make an enjoyable story that's not too confusing. I like to create worlds and chains of events that are almost always on the brink of chaos, and I want the reader to feel like they've been grabbed by the collar and pulled in after me, to enjoy the plummet and to hit the end at full speed having not been able to stop, to take a moment to recover and think about what just happened, and then to say, 'Woah...'. Whether or not I'm actually successful at this is another matter. This is, though, definitely what I aim for.

The main argument for writing from experience being more important would probably be because it helps make your story more believable, and it can help give your characters depth. Freefall imagination is definitely what's needed when it comes to spaceslugs and cannibal drag queens, but maybe the crazy ideas I have for characters are based upon certain traits I've seen in people I've met in real life. There's no way you can create a truly interesting character with more than two dimensions without basing them on something you've encountered in a person you've met, seen or heard, even if the character has these aspects greatly exaggerated. And a good story does need interesting characters. The same goes with how believable situations you put your characters in are. And if you're going to give your story some moral or philosophical message... well, you're going to have to have lived your life and arrived at them yourself before you start dishing them out.

I think it depends on what kind of story you're writing. In my case, freefall imagination is extremely important, but I think writing from experience is equally as important, especially as I try to include a lot of humour, a lot of which comes from characters, as well as amusing concepts.

The life experience versus freefall can apply to other things, too. Like art (I've just been talking about it to Holly, and her art is definitely freefall).

Which would you say is more important for you?

Labels: boardfic, starcustard

# posted by Chris @ 9:23 PM