《Your Guide to Writing the Perfect Story》Stereotypes, Archetypes, and Clichés
Advertisement
really hard. Sometimes we don't even realize that we're doing it. The thing is our brain has been exposed to all three of these so many times that it just seems natural to include them in our stories. But there's a problem with that and I'm going to explain why. I'll also help you figure out a way to use them effectively. It is possible, you know.
A stereotype is a widely held and oversimplified image of a person or a thing. For example, I talked about the stereotype of a nerd in my chapter on developing characters. The stereotype is that they are anti-social, a teachers pet, super smart, and dress in ties and vests complete with huge glasses that magnify their eyes. In actuality, nerds aren't really like that, but that is the image that comes to mind. It is a stereotype.
The problem with stereotypes is mainly the following. The first is that stereotypes are predictable. We have seen them already so many times that we already know exactly how they are going to react to situations and how they might cause conflict. The next reason they don't work is because they aren't unique. Like I said, every stereotype has been seen before. There is nothing that would separate one stereotypical slut from one in another book.
The last reason is that stereotypes can often be offensive to readers, even if you don't intend for it to be that way. Especially religious or racial stereotypes. Try to avoid this as much as possible unless you are looking for some backlash and negative remarks.
How I see it, there are a few solutions to this problem.
Just don't have stereotypes. Make all of your characters unique.
Make your story a satire. Satires are meant to poke fun at aspects of humanity. They tend to be so ridiculous and over-exaggerated that they aren't even taken seriously. However, usually only literary geniuses like Shakespeare can pull this off. Romeo and Juliet, anyone?
Advertisement
Start off your story with stereotypes but then as the characters get fleshed out and their backstory is revealed, you realize that they aren't really who you thought they were at the beginning. Give them a reason to be the person they are. Reveal something about them that readers never would guess.
Give them other characteristics that aren't associated with their stereotype. For example, I made Nina the Nerd a party girl in my stereotype example in my chapter about developing characters. You could make a so-called "slut" best friends with the most religious kid in school, or have them come from a very religious family. Get creative!
Have the stereotypical character trying to change. For example, the goth wants to change her ways and tries to ditch her satanic rituals to go to church. This is also another way you can use stereotypes to your advantage.
An archetype is a character that is continuously seen in books and movies. For example, the knight in shining armour that comes and rescues the princess or the evil stepmother.
Much like stereotypes, these characters are predictable. They are seen time and time again in stories. The reader doesn't care about the ending of the story because it's blatantly obvious. Again, archetypes are not unique.
I'll list some ways you can do this.
Just don't have them.
Create a satire out of them.
Make them turn out to be disastrously different from their first impression or surprise the reader in some way. For instance, when the knight takes off his helmet, they are revealed to be a girl that escaped from her old life. Or the story is told from the evil stepmother's perspective and it reveals that she isn't really evil at all; it was the stepdaughter the entire time.
Make their role in the story entirely coincidental. For example, the knight wasn't trying to save the princess, he was on another mission and just happened to stumble in her path. Say he killed the dragon guarding the princesses cell. He was actually there to avenge his fathers death (because the dragon killed him) but the princess misinterpreted his intentions and thought he had come to win her heart. This could create some quite humorous situations.
Advertisement
Give the archetype an impression as one thing at first, but completely turn it around later. For the sake of contrasting archetypes, I'll use the knight again. At some point in the story it is revealed that the knight was actually working with the enemy and only "saved" the princess in order to gain her trust. Never let your readers guess what will happen in your story.
A cliché is a character, plot-line, or idea that is often overused in literature. Bad boys are a super common cliché right now.
Are you noticing a trend? Just like I have already said, clichés can be offensive, they are uncreative and they are predictable. I don't feel any need to elaborate because I already have.
The following are ways you can fix clichés.
Honestly, when it comes to clichés, the best thing you can do is to just not use them. You can make stereotypes and archetypes clever and funny but clichés pretty much suck all across the board.
So I guess you must be stubborn and refuse to get rid of your clichés. Create a satire out of them. Nothing new here.
Like a stereotype and an archetype, you can reveal your cliché to be something else entirely. Except there is a problem with this. A lot of time people can't find a good enough reason to explain why their bad boy is so bad so it ends up sucking. A lot.
That's everything I want to say about stereotypes, archetypes, and clichés. If you insist on using stereotypes/archetypes, fine, but I highly, highly suggest you eliminate all clichés. 99% of the time they will be your stories downfall. Don't do it! Let the creative juices flow! Don't take the cop-out.
I have also noticed that some people have found this chapter to be offensive. Please realize that every single stereotype, archetype, and cliché I have up here is a very generalized version of reality! No one is that black and white. Some people found the term "slut" to be derogatory. In fact, I have to agree that it is very insulting for anyone to use that term. However, that is the actual name of the stereotype so for the sake of my examples I had to use it. I am sincerely sorry to those people who found this chapter to be offensive. Every single stereotype are things I have seen time and again in stories and I only used them to make a point about not using them. I hope that makes sense.
Advertisement
Child of Dusk
Life can be cruel, especially to those who don't fit in. But what would you do if you were given a second chance? Tim was a nobody during his time on Earth. As a penniless orphan with no friends to speak of, life was tough for him in his little Arizona town in the '90s. He'd utterly lost hope for the future until one day, he was reincarnated as Alvanue, beloved daughter and heir to the Starlit Throne of Silthonduen. Now, Alvanue has everything a princess could ever want: a loving family, loyal comrades and an entire kingdom at her finger tips. But what good is a kingdom when there's a whole world of magic and mystery out there to explore? *** Ok! Disclaimer time. I do edit my own work and I do not have a beta reader, so please feel free to point out any errors or plot holes (politely, of course). Each chapter will be around 4,000 to 6,000 words long and while I was posting every day at the beginning, I think I'll cut that down to once a week for now, excluding bonus chapters! I really don't want to get burned out. I started writing this because I love world building, so this is gonna be heavy on lore. If you're not into that, there's still a ton of character progression and action to look forward to! It's going to be slow at the beginning, but I promise it will pick up eventually. Thanks for checking my story out, I appreciate it a lot!
8 230Rest in a Demon's Embrace
This is a BL story! Be aware that if you do not enjoy romance between two men you will not enjoy this story. It is a slice of life and romance story at a slow pace. We have a website where we post announcements. Release Schedule is a minimum of 2 chapters a week In the continent of Tiandi humans lived amongst beasts, demons, and spirits. Here warriors were as common as the clouds in the sky, and each expert could either cultivate their inner energy known as Qi, or their soul, to form Spiritual Energy. In the village of Jinwei, Luo Xiao grew up like a beautiful bird locked in a cage. He was weak from birth and unable to leave his bed for an extended period of time, yet his beauty made him well-liked amongst the villagers. One day disaster struck the village of Jinwei. A Corpse Puppet appeared wanting to eradicate all life. A seal was unlocked, and soon the Corpse Puppet was dead under the hand of the sickly Luo Xiao, but this was not the end of his misfortune. Right when he thought that the end was coming, a man as handsome as a god descended to the mundane world and took him away. For the sake of revenge, Luo Xiao sold his soul to this handsome man, but is it only his soul that this alluring stranger took from him?
8 142The Shattered Circle
Aleyr Frostborn has survived a hundred prophecies of her defeat, breaking each one by slaying the champions of light sent to kill her. Amongst the forces of good, her very name is a curse, and with good reason. Beyond her own evil, it is said that so long as she lives, the reign of the Godslayer himself will last: the lich king who the terrified masses call the King in Black. While the kingdoms and empires that surround the blighted lands of the undead lands struggle to survive and beat back the tide of evil, the machinations of the Eternal Kingdom's dark court barely contain the bitter struggles for power between the forces that have made it what it is. With one foretold hero brutally snuffed out, another will inevitably arise. For Aleyr, the cycle only further embitters her towards the gods of good and all those who serve them. But the truth is that her downfall might be something much closer to home than their prophecies, those last dregs of mortality beating inside her own chest. With a thoughtless intersection between cruelty and mercy, she begins a chain of events that threatens to tear the Eternal Kingdom and her own loyalties into shreds. After all, many things can be broken, not just prophecies.
8 95Battle Realms System
"If you want peace, then be ready for war!" Dragon, Serpent, Lotus, Wolf. 4 different clans, but what if they were to merge into one super clan under one leader? This is the story of Genji and the Shimada clan. (Not an overwatch fanfic. Uses resources from Battle Realms and it's expansion Winter of the Wolf.)
8 105Wiersze i filozofie prof. Roxy Malfoy
W "wierszach i filozofiach" pogadamy sobie o poważniejszych tematach. Poruszę tematy miłości, toksycznych ludzi i innych problemów. A na rozluźnienie będziecie mogli posłuchać np. terenów o RMie (BTS), ale napiszę też mądrzejsze wiersze.Miłej lektury!~Roxy
8 191Fanboy (Fourtris AU)
Four Eaton is a lost man, similar to the broken creature in his favorite fairy tale. So maybe he doesn't need a princess to break his spell. He just knows he needs a girl to love him for him, not for his money or looks.Can he find this girl? Or are his dreamy expectations too high?Copyright © 2017 Slushie260PREVIOUSLY CALLED LOST SOULS.
8 198