Every 21st century piece of writing advice: Make us CARE about the character from page 1! Make us empathize with them! Make them interesting and different but still relatable and likable!
Every piece of classic literature: Hi. It’s me. The bland everyman whose only purpose is to tell you this story. I have no actual personality. Here’s the story of the time I encountered the worst people I ever met in my life. But first, ten pages of description about the place in which I met them.
Modern writing advice: Yes your protagonist should have flaws but ultimately we should root for them and like them from the beginning :)
Charles Dickens: Here is the worst ugliest rudest meanest nastiest bitch you’ve ever met in your life.
Modern writing advice: Make sure your POV character goes through a significant arc! Make sure they are changed by the narrative! Make sure they learn a lesson!
Narrators of every book of the 19th century: the lesson I learned is these people fucking suck, sayonara you freaks
Modern writing advice: It’s all about the character overcoming obstacles and learning! They learn their lesson so they can fix their mistakes and make good choices in the future! It’s a character arc! It’s called growth! Readers love it!
Everyone from ancient times through the 19th century: would you like to watch a Guy fuck up twenty times in a row
Somewhere or other, C. S. Lewis points out (and I’m paraphrasing here) that every era of writing has its own tropes and its own blind spots; its own failings and its own successes. This is why it’s important to read in lots of different eras: so you can see what does and doesn’t work, in the long run, and be able to make your own informed choices about how to write.
Space Dog, Alan Shapiro | From Wikipedia | Laika, Sarah Doyle | Space Patterns Painting, Katya Garipova | Laika, Ben Florin | Constellations, The Oh Hellos | First Dog in Space, Brennig Davies | Are You Scared Yet, Laika?, Gus Gresham | Pillars of Creation, James Webb Telescope | space dog., Basil Sai | Icarus, The Crane Wives | Quote via. Oleg Gazenko
here are some honorable mentions i regret not putting in the original.
[image description: a gif parodying edward hopper’s nighthawks. it depicts the diner filled with water and various fish swimming around inside it. the light from the diner casts reflections through the water onto the street outside. /end description]
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