Unreasonable Expectations? (Part 2 of 2)

[rj_anderson]

In yesterday's post we discussed whether or not it's a reasonable expectation that protagonists should always be pushing the plot forward or otherwise taking decisive action in order to justify their place at the center of the book

Comments

[deva_fagan]

I think all your points are excellent! And yes, I think the key is ensuring that a character has good and believable reasons for not figuring something out if it's already obvious to the reader.

I also think there is a certain type of tension that can be very fun to experience as a reader, when you do know something is going to happen before the character. You start to anticipate what the character's reaction will be when they do find out, and this can add extra layers of enjoyment (whether the surprise is good or bad).

One thing I particularly enjoy is when you have two or more narrators, and you the reader can put the two together to can predict what is going to happen at a certain point (say when the two characters meet). Not sure if that exactly falls into the category of books being discussed, though.

I'll have to think more on particular examples...

[rj_anderson]

One thing I particularly enjoy is when you have two or more narrators, and you the reader can put the two together to can predict what is going to happen at a certain point (say when the two characters meet).

Ooh, yes! I love books like that, too. Although I did read one about twenty years ago that annoyed me to tears, because the author insisted on telling us pretty much all the same events from both points of view. It was "two steps forward, one step back" for the entire book, even after the characters met. And that was definitely a case where the my lack of surprise worked against my enjoyment of the book.

[sollersuk]

The book I'm working on has alternate narrators. The only time they recount the same event is when one has seen a bit of it (and misinterpreted what is going on). They also misunderstand each other frequently, which from time to time builds up a lot of extra tension; though when it's a really bad misunderstanding it gets resolved before the reader (I hope) wants to kick both of their arses really hard. And tucked away in all this is a piece of information which the reader may remember or may not, but the MMC doesn't really take in, which is a clue to why later on in the book other people treat him the way they do; if the reader doesn't remember it they may get as big a shock as he does, but if they do, they will have the fun of being like a pantomime audience shouting "Behind you!"

[rj_anderson]

Sounds like an interesting book! I don't mind misunderstandings from time to time, but I do get annoyed when they're the kind of misunderstandings that any sensible person either wouldn't have in the first place, or could clear up simply by asking one or two questions instead of leaping to some ridiculous conclusion...

[sollersuk]

When the really bad misunderstanding crops up, they aren't even able to communicate as MFC is currently lady-in-waiting to the Queen. MMC sees her with a fancy piece of jewellery and assumes she's sleeping with his cousin who has been hitting on her; she thinks he thinks she's sleeping with the King (and initially, so does the Queen). First we get his pov (hanging about the court desperately trying to get an audience with the King) then hers (caught up in the Queen's routine) - and the reader already knows something that MMC doesn't: the jewellery is her own, given her some time previously.

[deva_fagan]

Indeed