I like to play a game whenever I read. I try to dissect the story in order to figure out the ending before I reach it. Maybe it's a product of my only ever reading scifi/fantasy, but it's gotten to a point where I cant shut off that analytical voice in my head and simply enjoy the story. I have to understand.386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ8e4rm4BDy
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Recently I finished the last book in the Ancestor Trilogy by Mark Lawrence who, in my opinion, is one of the best fantasy authors of recent years. He is a very intelligent man with a degree in math, a PhD in physics, and has even worked on something called the "Star Wars" missile defense program (seriously, read about him.)386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMUQ1wkxEBI
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He also has Aphantasia (categorized as the inability to fully visualize something in your mind) which he refuses to categorize as a 'condition,' but rather an alternate way of thinking. I would agree with that opinion. I tend to over-imagine whenever I write, seeing the full picture and then slowly going from the top-down, picking out words, phrases, feelings, and metaphors that I wish to convey to the viewer. He goes from the ground-up and does the same thing, starting from a foundation and simply building upon it. 386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUcWrmVUsbL
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His process arguably leads to a more stable story. It creates intricate, well-thought-out narration with an overarching plot that has less plot holes. But here's the thing... is there such a thing as being too well thought out? It sounds silly, but let me follow up with this: have you ever read a story and thought to yourself, "wow, everything is working out a little too cleanly?"386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBQYq6tDjBA
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Its not a crime to have a too-clean story; far from it. Most stories are. The reason why Game of Thrones was such a massive hit was because the whole point of it was that it wasn't clean, and aimed to demonstrate how un-clean real life really is—how prone to happenstance and variables each of our lives are. Its pretty scary when you think about it, which is why we take solace in stories that wrap up neatly where the protagonist always wins.386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6wdMSbFWT3
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But when things work out a little too well, when the protagonist gets a little too ahead too quickly, then we think to ourselves, "like that would ever happen. Scoff."386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGowTHIGp2n
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I would urge you to stop reading this if you would like to avoid spoilers. Go read Red Sister at the very least, then come back to finish later.386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyC5BH8NqtP
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Mark, being the cleverboots that he is, manages to conceal the cleanliness of his plot in two ways: 1) by very deliberately hiding information from us while the character is actively taking actions, and only ever revealing the motivation behind those actions once they're done. And 2), by having an incredibly intelligent, competent, and borderline prescient character named Abbess Glass. 386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdXpbIPHhav
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Abbess Glass, savior and mentor to the protagonist Nona Grey, is famed for her foresight, capable of nonmagically 'seeing' how certain events will pan out far before they do. She has a wide information network, a discerning mind capable of penetrating the core personality of every person she meets, and a political touch so subtle that no one ever realizes that they've been playing her game until its too late to make a move.386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0fqW8U6LoS
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She makes a wonderful vehicle for the plot, because in the end the story can say, "all according to Abbess Glass' plan." Which is a reductive statement that unjustly trivializes the work and skill that Mark Lawrence puts into his story, but is ultimately what happens. Even when Abbess Glass loses (which isn't often) she gains something, and when she wins, she wins big.386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVwsTArwSDp
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Which, as a reader, is exactly what I want to see.386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0uS6Sgh5v9
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And which, as a storyteller, is what I always expect.386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaka69C4xOY
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I make this observation not as a criticism, but just that—an observation. My respect comes from looking for this trick in Lawrence's work and him still managing to delight me. He used facets of the world that he introduced in Book 1 to catch me off guard through the end of Book 3. He arguably hasn't done anything subversive, reinventive, or new, but his pacing, his worldbuilding, and the style in which he hides the cleanliness of the plotline should be something that every prospective storyteller studies.386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ0aj0ZWMu1
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Novelists are magicians on a tightrope. The audience expects us to make it to the other side unharmed, demanding that we astound them with magic tricks and flips on the way. Lean too much to one side and we fall. Perform a trick that they've all seen on YouTube and we bore them. Promise them a show only to walk to the end with no magic or flips and they'll get irritated. But focus hard, keep your balance, choose the right time to work your magic for maximum effect, and not even the Death Star will have a missile defense program good enough to stop your photon torpedoes from penetrating its thermal exhaustion port the size of a womp rat.386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoLph3dEEIJ
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See what I did there?386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbXGkIoQVqa
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Sincerely,386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN3ScGNFaWE
Chris386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGlsZm6Xq0S
386Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1r45xCSnaT
Penana
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