3 ms·
> Coincidences to get characters into trouble are great; coincidences to get them out of it are cheating. Ugh. Please, no. I have no training as a fiction wr
by haberman 14y ago
> Coincidences to get characters into trouble are great; coincidences to get them out of it are cheating.
Ugh. Please, no. I have no training as a fiction writer but as an audience member I hate this. Nothing is more annoying than tension that comes from a totally implausible sequence of events.
- runevault 14y agoCoincidence and implausibility are not necessarily the same thing. Good writing requires you to still make it BELIEVABLE but that doesn't mean it can't have an element of "Talk about bad luck"
- jackalope 14y agoAgreed. Coincidences do have an effect and are worth exploring when writing about the human condition, regardless of the outcome. I get the feeling the author was trying to offer a simple example of deus ex machina, which can be enjoyable, but is cheating, nonetheless.
- vacri 14y agoIt's not that bad - coincidences get people into trouble all the time. The problem in resolving a story with a coincidence is that it robs the main characters of their struggle. It happens in real life, but it's not compelling fiction. "I lost my job due to things beyond my control, and subsequently lost my house, but three months later I won the lottery. The end." is a great real life story, but it sucks as fiction.