a good, but tiring, day

[wayfaringwordhack]

J and I woke up early this morning to drive into Paris to see "Narnia." Great movie. We then had Pakistani food for lunch and a nice chat with each other and the restaurant owner. After choosing a late Christmas gift for J, we came home and had supper before I sat down to reach my word target for the day. I'm only a third of the way there and it is already 21:30. Going to have to do some serious typing before bedtime.

Apropos the conversation with J, I was telling him that after hearing a very peppy song on the drive and then seeing Narnia, which had me smiling, I have a very strong urge to write something happy, something that will give people that same urgle to smile. Unfortunately, most of the story ideas clamoring in my head to be written right now aren't really smiley-happy stories. And I think that some twisted part of myself tries to tell me that happy stories are just fluff and not serious. But I *like* to be happy. Other people do, too. Well, most of them. So why do I feel that if there isn't something tragic and dark going on that a story might not be worth writing? I'm specifically talking about short stories here since I think there is time for both in novels. And yet (boy, I'm using a lot of conjunctions to start sentences), even as I type this, I can't imagine writing a novel that is all sweetness and light, one that leaves you smiling in satisfaction at the end because of the rightness, yes, just all good, good, good, peppy, pep, no.

Am I alone in this?

Is it because we need to know sorrow to taste true joy?

Comments

[sunflower-sky.livejournal.com]

Unless, of course, we keep the whole thing dark and evil right to the end.

Which I could never bear to do. I get way too attached to my own characters. If I had my way, I'd write an enormous epilogue on every bittersweet ending going "BUT IT'S ALL OKAY! DON'T WORRY! She'll be released, and he'll save the world, and then they'll get married and have twelve children and live in a beautiful cottage in the forest with fluffy kitties and pancakes for breakfast (not the kitties! The pancakes)!"

But I restrain myself.

I did write a novel once that had a very fluffy ending. Well, the whole thing was mostly fluffy. But the cynicism of the main character and her frustration and stuff de-fluffified it slightly. (I just made up a new word. I like it.) It wasn't all sweetness and maple syrup. Not that I'm defending it or anything.

Besides, you can't blame me. I was fourteen.

~D

[jmeadows.livejournal.com]

"BUT IT'S ALL OKAY! DON'T WORRY! She'll be released, and he'll save the world, and then they'll get married and have twelve children and live in a beautiful cottage in the forest with fluffy kitties and pancakes for breakfast (not the kitties! The pancakes)!"

Oh good. I was hoping that's what happened. *grin*

(honestly, I think you left off at the right place. good for restraining!)

[sunflower-sky.livejournal.com]

You have no idea how hard it is not to write a sequal from Sirius's point of view. The TEMPTATION. He could throw orange juice at himself all day.

Sequal?! Me?! From Sirius's point of view?! How dare you suggest such a thing! With ALIENS in it?! I'm SHOCKED! Simply shocked!

(This is how the "Aliens?!" thing came to be. I had a dream about a sequal to Starlight and it had aliens in it. o.O And then I started--I mean, I NEVER started writing a sequal! Sequal?! Of course not! And I denied passionately that I ever began--as if I would!--writing a nonexistant sequal from Sirius's point of view.)

In all seriousness, even if I did write one (*shuffles stealthily in front of My Documents folder to hide file called "Sequal" that hasn't been touched in months*), I'd never try to publish it. It would be like my own personal fanfiction.

Admit it though. When you get so attached to your characters... it's so hard to leave them.

~D

[jmeadows.livejournal.com]

Oh it is.

I love all my characters with the crazy love. And miss them desperately when they're gone. I've started sequels for both SoV and Glicia. The SoV one I actually finished, but with the changes I've made to SoV, pretty much everything about the sequel is dead like a dead thing. :) And the Glicia one? Probably just for me. And my mom since she refuses to believe the ending of Glicia. :)

[sunflower-sky.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I have a few friends who nearly kicked me for the end of Starlight, and if I wrote a sequel it would be for them, too...

We have a habit of dominating people's comments pages, don't we?

~D

[jmeadows.livejournal.com]

We do. :)

(I would totally want to read the sequel, just for kicks.)

[mnfaure.livejournal.com]

Hey, what are you guys doing on my page? *giggles into hand*

[sunflower-sky.livejournal.com]

AND WHAT ARE YOU DOING UP AT THIS HOUR?

[jmeadows.livejournal.com]

I'm getting ready to go to bed. :D

The hubs works three shifts, and I keep them with him. This week is overnight.

[sunflower-sky.livejournal.com]

That's awesome. *is jealous* I don't know how many people would be jealous of that. But I am.

~D

[mnfaure.livejournal.com]

Hehe...I'm glad you didn't mean the kittie's were for brekky.

That is a good point about having a character's POV or attitude acting to undercut the sacchrine. It could be a very useful balancing tool if you wanted to make sure something didn't get too happy.

That reminds me of a C.S. Lewis character: Puddleglum. I loved his wetblanket attitude! Of course lots of things went wrong for the characters in the Silver Chair, but his comments, negative as they were, still served for a laugh. *Loves Puddleglum*

[mnfaure.livejournal.com]

ARGH! kitties. Kitties, Miquela. *has an apostrophe use affliction since commencing The Traveler's Daughter*