There are many, many lists available online of cliches, so I thought: why not generate a list of non-cliches for a change? Of course, it's hard to come up with an idea that has never been done before, not to mention that non-cliches have the potential to become cliches themselves given time and popularity, but still . . . I've personally found that this is a great exercise for creating fresher, less predictable work. So, go ahead, post ideas that you'd like to start seeing more of in fiction! 1) Instead of predictably falling in love, a hero and heroine who dislike each other upon first encounter grow to dislike each other even more. In fact, their mutual animosity begins to interfere with the project/goal they are working towards together. 2) Main character in a journey-style adventure fantasy is old, overweight, plain, or all three, rather than the typical fresh-faced farmboy. 3) In science fiction: Highly intelligent aliens who are nevertheless incapable of mastering human speech due to biological differences. 4) In science fiction: Alien planets with diverse cultures, climates, and landscapes, as opposed to the typical mono-culture, mono-climate, and mono-landscape deal.
* SF: Aliens who are individualistic and freedom-loving, and to whom human society seems like a collective. * Fantasy: The male and female protagonists set out to find the Sword of Perils which can only be wielded by The Chosen One - who turns out to be the female. * Fantasy: The rightful heir sets out to reclaim the power in the kingdom from his father's vizier. But since the rightful heir is tyrannic while the vizier is wise and just, the protagonist sides with the vizier.
Just some that came to mind when you said those Definitely not cliches, but there are some out there Trying to think of one, but can't come up with a good one haha, I'll give it another go tomorrow!
1) The hero survives his trials against the evil Gods and their demons, only to catch flu and die of illness two days later. 2) The detective, who has been chasing a mysterious villain for years, suddenly discovers that he is suffering from multiple personality disorder, and has actually commited all of the crimes himself. 3) Harry Potter demonstrates a flaw in his personality. Any one will do. 4) A gay dwarf. 5) Just as Frodo approaches the mountain of fire to drop the ring into it, the volcano erupts and kills EVERYONE.
The biggest fantasy cliche is people going ooh that is a cliche lol I mean by the standards of what is a cliche in a fantasy book - having humans in a general fiction book is a cliche lol I mean they do it all the time. OK what is a non cliche. 1) Monotheism where the magic and religion intertwine 2) Twins that have seperate personalities and aren't linked in someway other than birth 3) The chosen one completly craps up and doesn't make it. 4) The evil one is a case of mistaken identity
"...4) A gay dwarf...." Well, there was an "openly female" dwarf in the Discworld series. Same dynamic. 1) Sci-fi. The lizard-like alien is the good guy. (sure, it's been done, but not often) 2) Fantasy. The Sword Of Power is just a metaphore. 2b) When this is explained by a wise elder, the hero is still clueless. 3) Romance. A year after he left to follow work, she gets a letter: "Having tons of fun here. Hope all's well there. Will write again when I get the time." -Frank
1. a main character who is a parasite fused into a human body. And the humans are the antagonist. 2. an elf who is morally bankrupt. 3. a dwarf who uses anything but an axe or hammer 4. A vampire that doesn't sparkle
You're better off writing a fresh and stimulating treatment of a familiar story. Being different for the sake of being different is what the greenest of writers do - and I don't mean green as in eco-friendly. Most of the top rated books and movies are based on familiar storylines, presented in a way that makes them seem shiny and new. Don't jump through hoops to be different. Just be amazing.
Ditto Cogito - that's Stephen King's formula. He took the Weird and Pulp fiction (and radio drama?) of his youth, modernized the styles and presented them to a new audience. -Frank
Okay, if the primary goal as an author is to hit the bestseller's list, I agree. But if the element of fun is somewhat more important, playing around with new ideas can be challenging and entertaining. Moreover, if people never took chances, fiction as we know it would be nowhere as rich as it is now.
LOL well actually the chosen one doesn't make it in the first book his brother does. However it isn't explained until the second book. He is then given a secondary role that then turns out to be more powerful but only because he gave up being king.
I don't know if anyone is familiar with "The Company of Wolves" by Angela Carter, but it is a wonderfully non-cliche take on the Little Red Riding Hood story. In fact, I think you can find a copy of it online here.
Here's some. The protagonist turns out to be the antagonist and kills himself. The antagonist is pleased that his spell of confusion worked so well! Lol. The protagonist goes to slay a dragon. . .falls off a bridge and is injured... and is rescued by said dragon. . . at which point he ends up falling in love with it. The protagonist is transformed into a spider by a witch or sorceror early on, and spends the rest of the comical book attempting to befriend the witch so she'll turn him back. They may or may not end up falling in love. An elf who's afraid of heights goes to live with dwarves underground. The protagonist is a weakling who can only defeat enemies by outsmarting them.
1) In science fiction: highly intelligent aliens who have sophisticated cultures, yet are not anthropomorphic. 2) Warrior women who look butch and wear just as much concealing armor as their male counterparts. 3) Protagonist competes with the "Chosen one" to save the day - and wins!
Totally EPIC. The Edge Chronicles http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Edge_Chronicles Covers that with some amazing characters. There is a species where the females become HUGE and strong at puberty whilst the males never really get stronger.
A story with a female protagonist who isn't a simpering idiot in need of a knight in shining armour. A story with a female protagonist that does not have a romance as part of the story. A story that pitts good vs evil, only to find that there is no such thing as pure good or evil - there is evil in good and good in evil. A story with a male protagonist who is saved by his superhuman girlfriend.
Humans are always looking to colonise other planets. In a distant future, Earth has died and Humanity has moved on to another planet. Lets all go and recolonise Earth! (I'm writing this one )
Doesn't something like that happen in James Blish's "The Seedling Stars"? Those sound very much like the sort of thing Michael Moorcock would write. At least in one case it seems as if only the hero and his love interest have survived, but we later discover that it's the hero and his father that have survived, but the hero has been driven mad by the death of his love interest and thinks she's still alive. That was pretty much the motivation behind Buffy the Vampire Slayer, wasn't it? Medea.
