Overused Plots

[theonceler]

Or how about Soda and Steve being the only two people who work at the DX and they always work at the same time.

[zevie]

Hey...that's a new one! I hadn't ever thought about that, lol. I suppose there's a good chance, if Soda's working full-time, that they end up working quite a few shifts together, but it can't be always, and there's probably a manager floating around there somewhere, at least, lol. I can't remember where, but I *have* read a fic about just Steve closing up.

[zevie]

That's the one.

[Des]

I've not had the OUP syndrome yet, but I figure I'll run into it sooner or later if I keep writing.
So far, I've been lucky enough to have my characters move the story into the plot that they want, and take me along for the ride.
-laughs-
A wild ride, most of the time, but fun none the less.

[BlindedxxFalcon]

Yeah...I hate that in most scenes Soda and Steve are working together and the whole Sandy thing.

[ellbtvsvm]

Hi peoples. New here. I'm ashamed to say I've only read The Outsiders and a bit of Rumble Fish (thenigotannoyedwiththenarratorandstoppedO:) but I <3 it profoundly.

Kay. Overused plots. I think it really depends; sometimes, you just get a story idea and you HAVE TO WRITE IT, even though the plot might be considered as overused, but you have ideas that will make it different and original. Since a truly original plot is really hard for me to come up with I usually have to settle with used, but I always find a way to make it different.

The trouble is that some people tend not to care enough to make their story different, so they just end up writing something that's been written a million times before. It all depends on how much you're willing to think about your story.

For example, I have had a plot that's been NIGGLING (and I mean NIGGLING) at my brain for about a year, but I've never written anything for it down. The plot came about right around the time I started watching a show called Veronica Mars. If anyone here is familiar with it, great but for those who don't know, it's a show about a teenaged girl (Veronica) who lives in a town that has a class divide like Tulsa; this girl has been put through the wringer, shunned by her peers after her best friend's death caused her to turn against them to be loyal to her father, who accused one of the richest men in her town (which is called Neptune...I know, I know...) of murdering his own daughter, the girl who was her best friend. Veronica takes after her private detective father and learns some PI skillz, and lo and behold, we have sassy kickass blonde girl. It sounds stupid, but it's really a good show. Or was. Until it was cancelled; more on that later ;-D

Anyway. The plot bunny that's been eating my brain....is having a post-Outsiders girl, who is the daughter of one of the Outsiders, be the Veronica of her school after her friend (who would be another of the gang...yes, very sad) is murdered. The reason I cannot write this is because I haven't yet found a way for it to not be a complete carbon copy, and yet the concept will not abandon me.

Wow, long post. My bad. Hope it wasn't too rambly.

[Tensleep]

I tend to agree with the opinion of a writer taking an over used plot and making it good. It can be done, just don't let us know that's the case in the summary

As for over used plots, I think I have done a pretty good job of steering clear of them. But here are a few of my favorites - so to speak:

Girl at the DX who knows cars better than Steve and Soda, but one of them falls for her anyways. Or both fall for her just to up the drama.

Runaway girl ends up on the Curtis' couch and bringing lots of drama into the boys' lives with her tortured past.

Baby sister falls for one of the gang.

Girl gets sucked into the book. Boys get sucked out of the book.

And I think I'll stop before I get going. I realize new plots are hard with so many Mary Sues waiting for their moment, but hey.

See ya in the funny papers!!!

Tens

[xolilkelox1]

I think parodys are getting used alot to lately but im not sure if Parodys can be overused.

[zevie]

tensleep said:

Girl at the DX who knows cars better than Steve and Soda, but one of them falls for her anyways. Or both fall for her just to up the drama.

Ahh...this must be a newer addition! I actually haven't seen this one before, although it does sound fairly cliche. Would I be totally shunt if I said I might actually read this one? Provided it was well-written and characterized... (Maybe...minus the fact that she's *better* at cars. Unless she's Betty Cooper.)

[Tensleep]

I've read a few, but I generally loose interest then. You know? It's a bit too far out there for me, especially since she always pops in one day out of the blue with a job.

[latch22]

I can't see Steve giving a girl like that the time of day. It would hurt his pride to know that a girl was better with cars than him. And Soda seems to me like he would prefer someone more feminine.

What's kind of funny is that so many of the people who write those stories--where a girl works at the DX, is the Master of the Wrench, and Steve and Soda both fall for her--probably don't know a thing about cars, and yet they can speak with such an authority on the subject, and other characters will just go with it like it's gospel. I don't know anything, either, but still... at least I don't pretend to.

Mary-Sue: Hey, pass me the thing-a-ma-jig, Steve.
Steve: That doesn't sound quite right... but you're the boss, Mary.
Mary-Sue: Of course it's right. I need it to fix the whose-it, or else it'll grate up against the voom and might combust the whole darn thing! You won't want to see that. It ain't pretty when whose-its and vooms mingle.
Ponyboy: Is that a metaphor?
Darry: Get your nose back in your book--it's not due out until you have to do your never-ending pile of homework. And besides, I can't yell at you until you finish that page.

This is entirely random and off-topic, but... who is that in your icon/avatar/whatever, Tens? I've been wondering. Its neat.

Cheers!

[Tensleep]

Latch - That is William Smith as Joe Reilly in Laredo. Gorgeous, isn't he? I'm still mad they made him into a whimpy store clerk for The Outsiders. But I'm ok now. I love that picture. It's just so different!

[latch22]

Thanks, Tens. You're right--gorgeous.

Seriously? He was the store clerk?

Okay, I looked it up, and apparently he's had a hand in everything, which means that you're absolutely right. His list of credits is longer than Dally's record. So, yeah, that's interesting. I learned something. (Isn't learning beautiful?)

It is a great picture.

[zevie]

On the other hand, I can totally see him helping out someone who's clueless. Not in the caring way that say, Soda, would, but being so proud of his skills I think would make him keen to be in the teacher role a bit, and prove how much he knows without really having to show off. A bit of the damsel in distress thing with cars probably wouldn't hurt a girl's chances with Stevie. On yet another hand...I say damsel, someone else says MS, so...maybe not. Depending on who wrote it, I'd still read it though. That really seems to be what it comes down to in the end - if you have a good reputation as a writer, you can probably risk it with a "cliched" plot, so long as you have a good reason for it.

[hahukumkonn]

The one thing I couldn't resist doing, which was probably a bit cliche and over the top, was that bit with my OC saying his dad thought Communists were in the school system. Y'all are making me blush here, too.

I try to keep in mind that the authors may honestly not realize just how frequently their ideas tend to be executed the same way in the same manner. If I may momentarily borrow from the Harry Potter fandom, a lot of people end up writing almost from the same basic "template" when it comes to a particular genre called "Post-OotP independent!Harry fics". Mundungus Flectcher skives off duty, Harry escapes in the Invisibility Cloak, gets the Knight Bus, goes to Gringotts, cusses off Dumbledore, and then ends up buying a seven-compartment trunk and coincidentally using the one time-turner that still exists after they blasted the lot to smithereens at the Ministry.



Juxtaposition for the Outsiders - the genre here can be the "girl becomes friends way too swiftly with the gang", wherein the OC comes to Tulsa, meets Darry, takes up permanent residence at the Curtis House, doesn't offer to pay the bills, and tames Dallas Winston. Again there's a bit of a template problem here.

How many of you have tried con-critting some of the authors with slightly better potential? For example, say someone writes such a 'template' fic, but manages to do so with minimal grammar and spelling errors? (an auxiliary to the genre-template problem is that such stories tend to usually be sloppily written with little attention to punctuation, etc.)

Incidentally, I nearly fell into the trap of using the 'template' for time-travel until either I smacked myself on the head and said "wait a minute, would someone REALLY permanently take up residence at someone else's house without paying the bills etc", or I happened to notice on GAFF (GodAwful Fan Fiction) that someone griped that this was one of the major defects of such fics. Either way, I changed directions quite quickly there, and thank God I did so.