Greetings! I'm not foolish enough to attempt to claim that my story would be the the first to use the idea of fate. It's an obvious and potentially overused trope that has endured in storytelling for eons. Hell, Greek myth tells of the "Fates", incarnations of destiny. As a living human, I hate the idea of fate and that, regardless of my decisions, I am potentially being led down a narrow path with only one destination. On the flip side, as a writer, I feel myself compelled to explore the concept and try to adapt it in some way into my works. So my first question is this: Is the topic of fate in creative works getting old or can it still be made fresh? Now, in my graphic novel currently on the brew, fate is a HUGE central plot point, but I'd like to convince myself that I'm doing it in a unique and interesting way. The plot itself revolves around a failed author whose life seems to be falling apart around him, so he decides to record and compound his anger, despair, and struggles into a final manuscript, publish it openly on the web, and take his own life. When finished, the novel tells of man's destructive tendencies awakening a power deep within the earth, which comes alive to fight back against and eventually end humanity, then recreate the world into a "better place". Strangely enough, before he commits suicide, he notices that his manuscript receives rave reviews from online readers and many independent critics who admire the honesty and no-holds-barred style of his writing. This rekindles his desire to live and pursue his dream. But fate has other plans. The world begins to change, with his country becoming deeply involved in a second Cold War and a a newly discovered element allowing technology to advance at a backbreaking speed. On top of this, mysterious tremors and earthquakes appear to be occurring all around the globe, with no known causes. To top it off, just as things seem to be looking up for the MC, he arrives home to find a scene of a destructive home invasion, with every single inch of his living space overturned and each book he owns torn to shreds. Even stranger? He discovers the culprit passed out on the floor of his kitchen, and she looks just like one of the main characters from his "final" manuscript, who belongs to a race of changelings that came to be after the destruction of the world. Unsure what to make of the situation, he waits until she awakens, after which he learns that she did not actually come from his book, but rather "the future". It so happens that the future she came from, IS the one from the story, and the destruction and rebirth of the world that he wrote of actually comes to pass! This plot will have two central themes. Man vs. Fate as the MC attempts to prevent his own writing from coming true in the real world around him, and Man vs. Self as he comes to terms with the gravity of his own actions and guilt. Now because I generally don't really like to think about or write about fate, this is new territory for me, so I want to make sure I can execute the plot in the most believable way possible without it coming across as too bogged down by context and exposition. My major question is this: How do you advance a story, where the ending is made clear from the very beginning, while still leaving room for the possibility of change? For instance, the destruction of the planet seems inevitable and is explained to the MC and reader early in the story, so the plot is intended to move toward that point, but I still want to instill in the reader a sense that there could be room for changing "fate" and not make everything predictable. Thank you all for the help =)
Honestly, you said the ending was clear from the beginning I was kind of surprised it was actually going to happen. Changing fate is a common enough idea, I think, that when it's brought up it seems plausible even if it's described as not possible. What I think would help make the concept seem more open is to make sure at least one character believes they can change it, and is portrayed as not inherently foolish for it (not that no one can think they're foolish, just not everyone, or at least the narrative shouldn't be describing them as naive or similar things). You could also introduce (even if only through a character mentioning it) the possibility of fate coming true, just not in a way they were really expecting, opening up multiple options for how fate could pass. When I first read "deep power within the Earth" I thought some big monster, but it could also mean that that newly discovered element (if it was found in the ground) will cause all tech involving it to go wrong, or a whole mountain of other things, for instance. The girl from the future could describe one thing but hints could be dropped towards others happening instead.
Sounds like an interesting idea. But why "As a living human, I hate the idea of fate and that, regardless of my decisions, I am potentially being led down a narrow path with only one destination."? Have you not heard of Stephen Hawking's "trousers of time"? OK, that's Terry Pratchett...what Hawking actually said was... The past, like the future, is indefinite and exists only as a spectrum of possibilities. Stephen Hawking Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/s/stephenhaw627106.html The point being that, at every moment, the future is splitting off into a myriad of possibilities and each one exists as an alternative universe...so there exists a universe where my wife wasn't revived and I'm a widower...so, you're NOT being led down a narrow path, and you ARE being led down a narrow path...at the same time...
Hi, Two options come to mind. The first is that the MC rebels against his fate and does everything he can to avoid it. But in the end all his attempts to avoid it are what actually bring about the future he fears. The second is that the future arrives and he's a broken man. But then you swing the table so that at the end he's actually a patient in a mental asylum, and while he's living in a world in which everything has gone wrong, in actuality that's only in his head. In reality the world has become a paradise. And for extra spice you could throw in that the reason that its a paradise is because of his writings. He saved the world and lost his mind in the process. Cheers, Greg.
I agree that there should be one character who believes they can change it, the MC for one, mostly because he doesn't want to believe that he is the cause for the world's destruction. That idea in itself will be a central piece throughout the entire story. I suppose it would make sense to have another character that believes it can be changed as well, to help him reaffirm to himself that a difference can be made. As strange as it might be, I don't want that optimist character to be the "girl from the future". She's there to serve a different purpose for the story, and has her own ambitions aside from saving humanity. There is a third main character that won't be introduced so early in the story, so I might have that person serve as the main support for the author's character's actions. I'd be inclined to explain why I feel the way I do about fate, but the object of this topic is in regards to my explorations as a writer for the sake of my Graphic Novel, not my personal views or beliefs. To be frank, timelines are not something I wanted to include in my story, and it will have it's own rules regarding time and continuity. Thank you though =) Your first option seems more appealing and relevant to the story as I imagine it, not to say that the second could make for a great idea for another story for another time. Back to the first, it brings up an plan which I hadn't really paid mind to. He wrote the story which proceeds to become a reality, but of course, as an author, he did not inject himself into the story in his writings. As the events of his book are brought to life, however, he is obviously going to be involved in the plot by trying to stop it from happening. I was thinking that possibly, because he is constantly getting involved, the world automatically adapts to the changes whenever he interferes so that it still moves down the same path.
