[Analysis] Genres, what makes 'em and what plagues 'em

[Felicity]

So, this idea struck me after posting in that there Magical girl RP about the topic of Romance in the media and literature after a discussion led to it. A lot of people think they know a Genre and what it includes but a lot more people only know the generic conventions of those genres. Whilst these are important parts of those stories and tales, ignorance of these can lead to some very boring pieces. No one wants to read the same thing that they've read 50 times, even if you think you're adding your "Brand new" take on it, especially if it's chock full of troupes and stereotypes. used 50 times prior. For an example, look at most Ecchi/Harem anime nowadays, using the same old ideas and gimmicks to hook the audience such as the famous "Red-headed Tsundere" famous for her "lol, she's violent" nature that apparently shows her love for the main character.

In this, hopefully we'd have a look at a variety of different Genres and generally discuss them. This is certainly something that would be interactive, as opposed to solo like a lot of things n this section, mainly because I'm only one quite young person who has yet to experience every facet of media and literature.

Hopefully this will give people better ideas of what a genre includes and what are very much stereotypes perceived by people in that genre so that people may innovate within their stories

So, let's get started with the brief analysis of Romance that gave me this idea

Just my thoughts on romance in Media/literature etc

It's far and away seen as the easiest to use plot device or genre and the most instantly gratifying. Therefore, it is easily the most used plot device in the history of everything. Need something to bulk up scenes in between genuine plot? Chuck some romnce in there. Wanna add stress to your character? Add 15 possible romances. Wanna pander? Romances. Best of all, it can be passive when needed and a genuine plot point when you need conflict. Easy

Is it done well? I've rarely seen that be the case. Especially in actual books, where longevity in a relationship is stressed much more than say a movie which is on the spot, sweep-me-away romance. Furthermore, a lot of authors have a snag on focusing on the romance in an attempt to make it better, thus having character relationships suffer elsewhere. Rarely have I seen a true parental bond or a strong Brohood/mance in something tagged with the genre romance.

All of this is sad cuz romance is one of the most evocative genres out there. Gurenn lagann and Angel beats had some semblance of romance scattered throughout and it was done well enough where certain scenes ripped my heart out and had me bawling like a baby. A book series by the Author Michael G manning known as the Magician series (Starting with the blacksmiths son) had a strong romantic relationship for the MC right off the bat, but it didn't overtake the story and had me invested in the events of what was happening. It even got a "D'awwww" out of me every now and then. It wa important sure but nothing suffered at the cost of it.

Shipping on the whole is a rather disgusting aspect to me personally unless they are your OCs, because I don't think anyone has the right nor knows the characters better than their creator to the point where they can decide who they should love like the worlds creepiest backseat player.

[Felicity]

Mmmmk, so this time I'm going to look at another genre i'm fairly familiar with and is popular as a sub-genre

Fantasy. For this, i'm not going to bother going in-depth into terms like light-fantasy, dark-fantasy etc. That said, we still need to define what the Genre is.

Personally, when I refer to the idea of fantasy, I think of the standard DnD rendition of Sword & Sorcery, brimming with many different environments and cultures that basically don't include technology we see in this world barring some strange form of magic as a substitute in a few uncommon cases. More common features of this genre is some form of patriarchy/aristocracy and medieval themes as well as some classic environments like City slums, palaces of the nobles, small villages and the like. Common character archetypes are Wizards and warriors, rogues and priests that worship the worlds god, because more oft than not their is a religious presence in these works.

Now, this genre is very popular because of how malleable it is for the creator. You can essentially break down physics if you wanted, replacing it all with magic or some such far-fetched idea that is infeasible in a lot of other settings. You can also fill this new world with a variety of cultures and races as you see fit, though a lot of people stick to the standard Human/Elf/Dwarf trio a lot perhaps including other common races as they want.

Note: sometimes fantasy themes are used as an overlay for a story set in the real world, for those who don't want to start from scratch, but want to introduce fantastical new themes. See The Dresden files for an example of an Urban Fantasy

This, as I've noticed myself, is very satisfying for the creator because it is your own sandbox for you to do with as you please. The question this raises is, should you?

To answer that, a problem with this genre is the same as it's strength. Sometimes a writer can go overboard and sometimes break their own rules in the world or create contradictions. Depending on how big and detailed you go, the more chance there is it can be inconsistent. For example, someone plots out this big hierarchy/ feudal system between noble houses in their world. A character could potentially do something small that would normally set off a big chain reaction in that system but due to the small nature of the action it would be ignored, creating an inconsistency that nobody likes and also threatens the integrity of the world you have bult as these inconsistencies pile up. Another, probably better example, is throwing in too many noble houses to the point where there's too much to reasonably consider for the reader. I know people who struggle with reading Game of Thrones, one of the most popular Fantasy based series in recent times, because they can't keep track of the details between different houses.

How is this problem overcome? There are a variety of different ways to overcome this. You can create general guidelines for the world that everyone know, then start writing from a singular perspective. Whilst this limits the amount of the world your audience sees, it gives the writer breathing room to fix any wrongs they otice along the way because no matter how much you look it over, you do find things wrong with a world because the issue just doesn't occur to you.

This genre is also very popular due to how well it works with other genres, including Action, romance, mystery, alternative history or supernatural (Supernatural and fantasy seem to be the same due to the similar use of monsters such as vampires, werewolves etc, but don't be mistaken, they aren't the same thing. Mainly because supernatural creatures have some basis in folklore/myth to my knowledge whereas fantasy need not stick to such sources). You can build a framework for your story influenced by Fantasy, then bulk it up with other genres.

For very quick examples, go look at the RPs PSS: Project Sky Slayer by Stratos and currently hosted by Lt. Surge as I type this or Graterras by Hukuna. Each bear traits of the Fantasy genre that are fairly easy to spot in the world building.

[Sutoratosu]

Aaaaannnnnnd I get pointed out....

I'd just like to say, soldiers, as the current host I own up for every single mistake made in that. But at the same time I also suggest that people go and just look at Graterras by Hukuna.

PSS is not exactly a proud point for the author right now, perhaps someday, but as it is, it needs alot more work on every front. So yeah, just... stick with Hukuna's work for an example here.

[Felicity]

Aaaaannnnnnd I get pointed out....

I'd just like to say, soldiers, as the current host I own up for every single mistake made in that. But at the same time I also suggest that people go and just look at Graterras by Hukuna.

PSS is not exactly a proud point for the author right now, perhaps someday, but as it is, it needs alot more work on every front. So yeah, just... stick with Hukuna's work for an example here.

It is in all honesty an example of both good world building, because it is indeed fantastic, but also an example of too much detail. that's all. I didn't just point you out for a negative reason.

[Raindrop Valkyrie]

There is one thing I would like to point out. With the sheer size of worlds etc... and stories, don't forgot that Tropes and the like are not bad unless they are used poorly. ((even character related ones.)). If you use a typical trope to make up a character evolve this practice.

Like say in a Fantasy setting you are writing Joe-shmoe warrior man. We take all the tropes this applies of course, but that is kinda boring. But don;t ask what is the same about him and other character that use these tropes. Ask what is different. The differences, even small ones can add a great breadth of character to something that would otherwise be cliche or full of common tropes. With Graterras I did adapt most of Dungeons and Dragons main over look on fantasy races, however I shifted them in ways to amke them my own. Like Elves in Graterras aren't just your standard live a long time and then retreat to their spirit world type folks. They die just like everyone else. Or my Gnolls, they believe in gods of travel etc and are a nomadic culture and a lot they do revolves around this. In Dungeons and Dragons they are just a race of more or less mindless monsters for the PCs to just slaughter.

Tropes and somewhat 1 dimensional characters are the building blocks of the universe. They are what we build upon and then build outward from. It is hard to avoid some of these period, and hard to avoid them cropping up at all. Not every character is going to be a fresh ray of sunshine or be entirely unique. That is expecting waaaaaaaaay too much work from a writer. Trust me, I know there are probably some very trope latent characters in Graterras.

((I should mention inconsistencies happen in Graterras a buttload, but due to the opposite reason of Stratos's works lol. Stratos has a lot of info he has to check back on. A breadth of info that holds him to his points etc... Where as I have a different problem. I have the problem where I don't hash out fine details. This allows me to be more flexible on the fly, but tends to me changing my mind on stuff sometimes even changing the names of things lol. My style is more fit for RPs where the overarching story is jsut a by-product of the play. So it is hella going to happen. I have probably changed the spelling of Bartimis at least 3 or 4 times because I couldn't remember it, and then my players couldn't remember it XD. That was actually kinda of funny to look back on though.))