 Action/Adventure: April 08, 2015 Issue [#6920] |
  Action/Adventure
This week: What is Adventure? Edited by: Storm Machine  
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“Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.” ~Andre Gide
“Life is uncharted territory. It reveals its story one moment at a time.” ~Leo F. Buscaglia
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Product Type: Toys & Games
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Adventure: (from the free dictionary)
n. noun
1. An undertaking or enterprise of a hazardous nature.
2. An undertaking of a questionable nature, especially one involving intervention in another state's affairs.
3. An unusual or exciting experience.
v. verb
1. To venture upon; undertake or try.
2. To expose to danger or risk.
3. To proceed despite risks.
What can you take from a dictionary definition? Hazardous, questionable, unusual or exciting. Most people don't tell stories about the boring days. I'm not talking about your stories, here - think about that car accident you drove by that mucked up traffic for miles, or the broken arm from trying a stunt.
Think for a moment about the stories you tell and the stories you remember, whether comparing battle scars or the long walk uphill both ways to school in the snow. Life is full of unconnected happenings, while stories tend to say something and present themes through the events.
Consider a short record of my driving...
1. I drove about 50 mph (45 mph zone), and a sparrow flew into the grill of my truck. My passenger and I thought the bird was dead, but it flew away a couple miles down the road when I stopped at a stop sign.
2. Driving home through curves, I slowed down (about 30 mph) and a pheasant flew into the side of my car. No damage to either of us.
3. Drove to an event with my husband, a bunch of doves covered the road. I continued on my path, with the birds scattering in front of me - all but one. That last one ducked, and lost its tail feathers when I drove over it. It attempted to fly off afterward. (about 35 mph - within speed limits)
While all three events are centered around flying wildlife and my driving and none of the birds died in these instances, is that enough to start a theme? Maybe, and maybe not. The events by themselves are a bit odd.
If I want to start this as a theme, it might be nice to tweak the poor dove's story so it wasn't denuded of tail feathers. A stronger theme might present some way to connect the driver to birds in a way that they are precious or sacred or conveying some sort of message.
If it isn't a theme, but a string of coincidences, you may have to let this go from the current narrative. Your adventure can be spiked with unusual occurrences and not be coherent. It's how you unfold your tale that makes it the adventure that others wish to read.
They tell you to skip the boring parts, but consider whether you need the disconnected parts and the mere coincidences. Every word takes the reader farther in, and they point in the direction of the end. |
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| |  | The Vulture (13+)
How a vulture helps in the invention of Star Trek's transporter.
#269840 by Dad  |
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#2036319 by Not Available. |
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writetight
"So the question is: What does it take to overlook something that might be annoying in a storyline?"
Predictability is a curse. I can't overlook knowing what will happen in a story, due to it having been done to death. New times are upon us, however. Let the female be the hero. Girl gets girl, or girl gets boy, or boy gets boy. Climb out of the rut and experiment. 
Predictability is a curse. It's one reason I've never understood why someone would read the last page first. You already know the end!
monty31802
I read things that get to a point that I nearly close the cover on several times but there is always something that gets me curious and I close the cover when I have read the book.
Read on! |
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