I
consider myself an eclectic writer in that the genres for the stories I’ve
written tend to vary, from romance, science-fiction, dystopian, political
thriller, paranormal, adult, young adult, and chick-it. In fact, my first
novel, Enigma Black, is four of those aforementioned genres all rolled into
one. But, if you were to hold me down, kicking and screaming, after careful
thought, I would tell you that the increasingly-popular dystopian genre is by
far my favorite type of novel to write. Why? I’m glad you asked because I just
so happen to have five reasons why I prefer to write dystopian novels:
1. Better
world building. A dystopian setting offers a literal world of
possibilities. Whether your literary world is governed by anarchy, oppression,
a disease that forces its inhabitants to
live in seclusion, forced pairings, or generalized fear, the dystopian genre
allows you more of a creative liberty (in my opinion) to multiply the darkest
fears buried in the deepest recesses of your mind and bring them to life on
paper.
2. More
kick-butt female protagonists. From Katniss in The Hunger Games to Tris in Divergent,
dystopian novels are rife with strong female main characters who make wonderful
role models for young women, and have more honorable traits for others to
emulate, such fearlessness and strength (as opposed to selfishness and a
dependence upon others to save the day).
3. Because
rainbows and sunshine get old. I, for one, don’t want to read a novel where
everything is hunky-dory all of the time nor do I always want there to be a
happy, sugar-coated ending. I want there to be tension; I want to feel a sense
of impending doom amidst a world I can’t seem to figure out. And you get all of
that in the dystopian genre, making it one of the more exciting genres to both
read and write.
4. You
can stack other genres on top of it. There is so much more you can work
into a dystopian novel. You can have an epic romance, an alien invasion, a
political thriller, or even a horror story (think zombies), all set within a
dystopian environment. Really, the world’s your oyster when it comes to the
dystopian genre, allowing you to be a tad more creative with less restrictions
than some of the other genres impose.
5. Heroes
rise from oppression. One of the things I love most about the dystopian
genre is the ultimate banding together of those who oppose it. Alliances are
made, heroes are born, and a darn good story usually ensues as a result.
2 comments:
I love a good dystopian story. You rarely find better underdogs than in dystopian fiction, and I love an underdog.
One of my future book ideas is a dystopoan superhero novel set in a world where the superheroes decided to start killing supervillains, and over time took control of the world, for its own protection.
What dystopia's need are more male protagonists. Not female. The genre is riddled with female heroes. It's honestly tiring. It's like only women are allowed to be scared and vulnerable. I would for once like to read about a scared vulnerable male character who becomes strong and confidant. And eventually kick ass. Not many of those around.
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