Can You Mix and Match Archetypal Character Arcs?

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helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com
www.kmweiland.com
Historical and speculative novelist K.M. Weiland offers tips and essays about the writing life to help other writers understand the ins and outs of the craft and the psychology behind the inspiration.
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This week's question is from Asha Lark (from Patreon):
"I have a few questions about writing with archetypal arcs. I'm writing muti-POV with three characters, one Queen, one Maiden, and one that I think is flat who would theoretically be 'Parent'. It's dystopia/action, an I'm intending it to be a series.
1. On the timing of the archetypal beats within the overall plot/novel. Some archetypal beats, particularly for the Queen who is separated from her children for much of the book, happen without her there. E.g., the first pinch point when the 'children clamour for action', is seen through the POV of the Maiden, not the Queen. Is it more important that the pinch point be close to the 25% mark of the novel, and have the Queen react to it a bit later when she learns about it, or is it the Queen's REACTION that needs to happen at around the 25% mark? Or, am I (plot twist!) possibly not writing a Queen arc if she is away from her children for much of the book, in which case her pinch point would be something more immediate that she is dealing with before finding out...
2. The flat arc character. He is post-Hero, so theoretically he is a Parent. He is the brother of the Maiden, so that works fine. He is the love interest of the Queen, and I think that works - there is a lot of friction over who leads, and she gets more air time and changes more. He spends the whole time trying (heroically) to look after both of them and realises towards the end that he has to let them make their own stand, but it's really the first glimpse of the truth, he hasn't completed the arc.
I'm confused: Am I writing a flat arc, with the baby steps of a Queen arc at the end? Can the Parent be a workable love interest for someone on the Queen arc?"
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For more on archetypes, check out my book Writing Archetypal Character Arcs: www.helpingwritersbecomeautho...
For more on character arcs, check out my book Creating Character Arcs: www.helpingwritersbecomeautho...
For more on story structure, check out my book Structuring Your Novel: www.helpingwritersbecomeautho...
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Опубликовано:

4 июл 2024

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Комментарии : 15

@tulkdog 10 месяцев назад

It’s a well known fact that a story where all the characters are flat would be by far the most riveting

@andyclark3530 Год назад

Wisdom as usual. It's always possible to be excessive. At one point, I planned to have six full character arcs running through my novel, with all the arcs fully articulated. It didn't take me long to realize I needed to pair it down. The novel was not only long it lost focus in the course of juggling the arcs. I would say that even though there were many scenes I'd at least outlined (and quite a few written) that hit the trash can, it still wasn't a terrible exercise - it taught me a lot about the characters and writing in general.

@jwstanley2645 4 месяца назад

Thank you for the videos and putting podcast posts on RU-vid.

@modernbuys Год назад

This is a really great concept, KM! I love the idea of taking really complex/interesting questions readers have after reading your books and breaking them down here. Gives a lot of extra insight to concepts that may be easy to understand but harder to implement. Thank you!

@AndrewDMth 10 месяцев назад

Great vid! I agree wholeheartedly. Layering archetypes adds so much depth!

@wordcharm2649 Год назад

I'm really excited to read your book. Just got it today. It seems perfect for a future series I have in mind where I really want to play potentially with the "Queen" archetype for my MC. Now with this video, I want to see if I can assign various archetypes to each major supporting character being that it will be a very long series, having each major character anchored to a specific archetype/role will just give me more creative potential for each of their stories, while creating boundaries that allows me to keep the characters separate yet complex enough when compared to each other. (aka I want each character to go through rich journeys, but I want to avoid accidental repetition/overlap so I'm not doing the same thing with different characters. Grounding each in a specific archetype seems like that is a very simple way to keep them separate and allow for equally complex UNIQUE journeys).

@leelynch3614 Год назад

I bought this book and several others and am enjoying them. Very helpful, thank you :D

@mageprometheus Год назад

Thank you. Love and light.

@lemonblue2387 Год назад

@K.M. Weiland , I know you told us before, but I forgot the answer; did you say you were putting Archetypes out on audio? I thought yes - but I keep looking and it's never on Audible. Can we get an update? Thank you :)

@KMWeilandAuthor Год назад

Yes! I'm waiting to hear back from my narrator as we speak, so we can get started on the project.

@lemonblue2387 Год назад

@@KMWeilandAuthor YAY !! thank you so much - both for the audio coming and getting back to me SO FAST :D

@alcosmic Год назад

Is there a connection between the archetypes and archetypal experiences and "enlightenment"?

@TheZetaKai 10 месяцев назад

In a word, yes. The path to enlightenment is a personal journey, unique to every individual, but it leads through several common steps, which are analogous to the story beats described by Kate. The reason that stories are so often appealing is that they give the audience a bit of resonant truth about the nature of the world and our journeys through it, teaching us about ourselves and our paths through life. The archetypes of characters are the same in many ways as the archetypes of real people as they grow and develop from flawed beginnings to perfected enlightened beings, in alignment with their spiritual selves.

@bluenetmarketing Год назад

You are so pretty! I never knew. I am still in love with your "Rose" character from Wayfarer. I have to ask. What archetype do you see yourself as in real life?