Can anyone help me with my story ideas?

[TheEndIsNigh]

@TheEndIsNigh thanks I really need to make sense of why martial artists, cyber cops, witches, robots and dragons would be competing and fighting each other. What is Gullivers travels theme?

Basically (as in G's travels) your hero/s overcome one challenge/type of opponent and move on to face another fiendish foe/possibilty.

I can't remember the sequence or all the challenges - Oh wait maybe I can look it up

No joy - amazingly written in 1726 must make it high on the list of original fantasy novels. Why he wasn't burnt at the stake is puzzling.

Anyway he faces seven different oponents if memory serves.

The most commonly known are the Lilliputions - tiny folk.

So in your case your hero would overcome the dwarfs followed by the cycber folk, then the demons and so on. That way each section is a story on it's own but you tie the whole together via the hero. Obviously a bit of cross contamination from one story to the next would be possible.

 

[Bee22]

Make up your mind!

I know I'm sorry! I really need to work on that, I just want it to be a little different and unique

This. The prize needs to be so powerful and transcendental that it would attract even beings from higher planes. Something at the level of "holy smokes! The sun just blinked out!" kinda thing. What does a god or a monster from the 4th dimension care about human money/measly human power? No, the prize needs to be BIG. Once you know the motivation, it is much easier to mould and direct your characters. This in turn can make it easier to build cohesion, maybe a theme or two.

Maybe I can create some sort of ancient artifact that was accidentally discovered by the organization, something that holds the key to all civilizations and the universe! Maybe it's so powerful that it opens up to other altered dimensions which gains the attention of beings from a higher planes, aliens and so on to be drawn to the tournament and because this rich and powerful CEO has it in his hands, which is a very powerful stolen artifact that everyone wants to get their hands on so he made a special pact with someone else behind closed doors ( like a special female ruler of a much higher plane) that to have everyone participate in this tournament and the winner would receive that special prize, which can cure, create, destroy just about do anything. Of course the organization would have to have some sort of catch because it wouldn't make sense to give up such a valuable merchandise, giving the winner to hold the power in their hands.

So far you don't have much to work with. A lot of characters you want to show and a loose setting that is, sorry to say, cliche (in movies alone, and that's without counting cartoons/anime/manga/comics/games/other books), but not much else. I firmly believe the actual main plot needs to come from the writer. If you could give us just a small corner to tug at, we could unravel your informed idea into a more usable form. But you need to give us something first to work with. The plot, that's where the rudder of the story is, and you as its captain can't leave it to the likes of us. One needs to understand the plot very intimately, and have a personal investment in it. Yeah, I know, that's too romantic, but a story with a borrowed plot might lack soul. Be warned. With that said, it does sound like something I would read .

This is where I'm stuck, I can't figure out a good reason for what the organization would benefit out of this. How can I figure a good reason why they would want to hold the competition and allow some victorious winner to have their most powerful discovered gem? The organization discovered this artifact which like the essence and literally from the creator of life. The CEO of the organization is working close ties secretly for this female nonhuman leader from a much higher plane secretly, but what could the organization gain out of this? How can they succeed by holding a fighting competition?

 

[Bee22]

@Venusian Broon this is exactly what I had in mind for the evil female character! Exactly what Eris is! Part of a secret, unknown plan that is not known to the public, behind everything that is happening with the organization, CEO and tournament. Of course the protagonist would not know yet about her as they think it's just the CEO baddie the only one behind it all. It does sound like the Ninth Gate film, I loved it! And she could show her true form at the end. I can fit this in my story and work with it, thanks!

My only problem is figuring out why this human run corporation would be working in connection with Eris and what they would benefit for holding a fighting tournament?

@TheEndIsNigh This works wonderfully, maybe now I can explain why all these monsters and mythological beasts and demigods are all here together, I appreciate it, thank you.

 

[Mirannan]

An idea, with a nod to Heinlein:

All the contestants are fictional characters of one sort or another - ranging from things out of legend to entities created by modern authors. They are all raised into pseudo-real existence, with a definite time limit; maybe in some virtual reality.

And the prize for winning? Existing in reality. Lose, and you fade back into nonbeing. Quite a prize, eh?

 

[TheEndIsNigh]

This is where I'm stuck, I can't figure out a good reason for what the organization would benefit out of this. How can I figure a good reason why they would want to hold the competition and allow some victorious winner to have their most powerful discovered gem? The organization discovered this artifact which like the essence and literally from the creator of life. The CEO of the organization is working close ties secretly for this female nonhuman leader from a much higher plane secretly, but what could the organization gain out of this? How can they succeed by holding a fighting competition?

As an Alternative (Hey no one said it would be easy)

Think Onger Games or Guestworld

The fact the hero is battling a dragon, doesn't mean that dragons have to exist.

An opponent that has the look and feel and power of a god doesn't have to actually be a god.

With the power/difficulty of the opponent increasing as he battles on. Plus having defeated

JigWart master of the Dragons

he gets to keep the Dragoney Stick thing that calls forth the beasts to do his bidding as he fights the ants (tricky little buggers ants, but imagine if you had a flame thrower and a scaley skin kind of thing)

The prize should be the usual.

The hero gets to walk away with his life/lover/sister/dog/snowman/gold (I like gold, but who would risk all for just gold)/mother/father/people/planet/galaxy.

Or the even more usual

King of the universe

 

[Bee22]

You make a good point, like a battle for survival to say the least. Interesting.

Now if I wanted to explain to the reasons why a gunslinger, fat woman butcher and firefighter pyromancer and monster hunter woman would make sense with fighting skills does it sound better if they are from an altered universe with fighting skills? Or from our world with some type of combat training?

 

[TheEndIsNigh]

Well given suchthings do not exist in our world (or is this now the collected of the story - clarification in all things )

Anyway, it doesn't matter. However they appear/arrive/take part you'll have to have some kind of back story (not dump) to explain the reason for being in the story.

What combat skills is a fat (Ouch) woman butcher going to get. Unless on you're world butchers have to wrestle the three headed Glisk. A cow like beast weighing three tons and catii for udders that produce an alcholic beverage similar to Tequilla which is prized for childminder's friend.

But, maybe it's time to get something on paper.

Will this be your first child?

 

[Bee22]

Yes I'm a writer newbie I know I have such bizarre fantasy ideas.

 

[TheEndIsNigh]

Then as a suggestion, start small - Maybe the writing challenges.

Or critiques of anything in the critiquing section (you'll need more posts)

I started a project blind, it still isn't finished (80.000 words) because it was written before I knew anything about what not to do and most of it is crap. Hence the unfinished state.

 

[Ihe]

I can't figure out a good reason for what the organization would benefit out of this.

Thinnk outside the box. Maybe not everything has to be tied neatly. Try foul play. Maybe they never intend to give the real artifact. Maybe they don't even have it, and are in cahoots with a powerful being to assassinate one of the contestants and the whole thing is just a ploy. Maybe the artifact is actually dangerous like a ticking time bomb, and they want to get rid of it by plotting to have one of the otherworldly beings win and take it back to their realm, unsuspectingly wiping out their realm/humanity's enemies when the artifact blows/malfunctions. Maybe the organization is not evil, and the artifact aids in the development of life, and they feel that it wouldn't be fair to keep it for humanity alone. Maybe they don't want to give it up, but a more powerful entity forces them to for X evil reasons or X good reasons. Maybe just forget about an evil organisation. Maybe there's an archaeological team made up of many different races, humans among them. The cooperative dig in a neutral realm unearths the artifact, and the dig site becomes the centre of attention when powerful representatives from the different races start showing up to claim a stake on the new find in behalf of their people, and an improptu fake battleground is created in the dig site, with constant security, as no one can leave the artifact out of their sight, or let others take it either, in a very politically-charged tug of war spanning all planes and dimensions of existence. The tournament could be to avoid war among all sentient races. The power of the artifact would have to be big enough to warrant such a multitudinous universe-wide war. So if the motivation for the tournament is "Universal Peace", then the conflict would lie in: how to keep the peace once a race wins the artifact? They could use it to tip the balance of power forever. How to guarantee peace? That'd be where the big plot twist would come in.

Those are just some shallow ideas I thought up in 5 minutes. You should be able to come up with more and better. But do try to break away from your preconceived notions of what a tournament battle should be. Add political angles, foul play, irreconcilable differences in the life philosophies and cultures of the different races, explore big themes like getting peace through blood, etc. There's more to it than the fighting. Once you get going I suspect you'll soon find that the fighting bits are actually the least important and least fulfilling part of your book, plot-wise, despite how much you want it to be the core of your story. And you'll realize that 80%-90% of the rest of book will have to be filled with meaningful characterization and strong plot points and subplots, which is where you should be pouring most of your creative efforts. I guarantee you by the third fight you'll be sick of writing fights. Just find different angles that will give you the most bang for your buck plot-wise and conflict-wise.

Lastly, I'll say that these sort of stories tend to be very cinematic in a writer's mind. Bu remember that a book is not a comic or a movie. Pacing and characters need to be handled very differently.

 

[Bee22]

I like the idea of some archeologists discovering this artifact. I think I could somehow turn this into the "organization"that they develop into because of all the fame and riches they gain from this. Or them and other groups all discovered it all at once below ground and all became big, fame and powerful but couldn't handle sharing the fame and power from this gem due to their selfishness (like how humanity is at times) and each wanted to claim it all for themselves, which created more wars, violence and chaos throughout the world so to settle this they made a more civilized agreement, (though still a brutal competition) to start a fighting tournament to see which one of their top fighters/projects or anyone out there that can pass their tests or willing to step up to the plate of who is the best, maybe each organization places best on who they think will be the winner and whoever wins, that organization gets the entire artifact for themselves and the winner gets to be part of that organization given a sum of power from that artifact, money, fame, for freedom or survival, for justice, for good, for evil, etc, whatever their goal is that the winner requests according to the characters background, (like they do in fighting videogames with Street Fighter or Tekken's characters motives) all which is taken place in the near future. And of course this artifact would open up to other altered dimensions, ancient relics and other races and stuff.
Something like this.
This is just a basic premise outline I would work with for a reason why the corporate would would hold such a tournament and why characters would have motives to enter the fray. Of course I would add much more and get more in depth with it. And sure enough there would be a hidden supernatural organization working behind it all in conjunction with the human corporate/s.

Is this a good idea to work with? please let me know, any honest opinions, what improvements does this idea need? I'd really like to know

 

[RJM Corbet]

You mean like if they fight and the winner gets their freedom? That could work, is that similar to Hunger Games?

I do think yes, the governmental organisation idea does seem too close to 'The Hunger Games.' I think it is here that you could focus?

Why else would champions gather to compete? Just to win, perhaps? To be able to boast: "I'm the greatest!"

 

[Bee22]

Why else would champions gather to compete? Just to win, perhaps? To be able to boast: "I'm the greatest!"

Well I'd have them compete for various reasons like one for survival, another to prove their the greatest, one for revenge, to stop an evil, to become more evil, etc.

 

[RJM Corbet]

Well I'd have them compete for various reasons like one for survival, another to prove their the greatest, one for revenge, to stop an evil, to become more evil, etc.

But they compete because they want to? Not because they're forced to? It's just a new thought?

Professional fighters do fight for purse, sure -- but mostly they fight because they're driven to. By pride mostly. A fighter will always rise to meet the challenger. It's the psychology?

 

[Bee22]

Some because they want to, some could be cause they're forced to, some because they've been tested and lord into it, some for survival, I feel if I just have every single character in the story fight because all of them are forced to, it would get old fast.

 

[RJM Corbet]

Some because they want to, some could be cause they're forced to, some because they've been tested and lord into it, some for survival, I feel if I just have every single character in the story fight because all of them are forced to, it would get old fast.

Because in theory, if it's going to be a story that works, there has to be an emotional involvement by the reader in just one or two of the fighters? ie: The 'good fighter' vs his clever and dangerous opponent ' the bad fighter' ... with the others as extras?

 

[Bee22]

Because in theory, if it's going to be a story that works, there has to be an emotional involvement by the reader in just one or two of the fighters? ie: The 'good fighter' vs his clever and dangerous opponent ' the bad fighter' ... with the others as extras?

Yes! Well sort of. I would have three main good fighters, which are in a sense kind of like anti heroes, but my focus would be on one of them the most which is the main hero and vs the clever and dangerous opponent. Others would be kind of like extras but I wouldn't want to leave them out too much of the story as their motives and reasonings would be just as important too.

 

[RJM Corbet]

I like it. But, just thinking: the clever and dangerous opponent doesn't have to be 'bad'. It could be his best friend? Now we're creating a story ...

 

[Bee22]

I like it. But, just thinking: the clever and dangerous opponent doesn't have to be 'bad'. It could be his best friend? Now we're creating a story ...

Yes! Exactly, I had a rival/friend idea in mind for him that he would face against. It goes back to an event that happened when they were young and now bring faced at the tournament.

 

[Ihe]

Ha, I see that the idea of an evil organizaton is quite firm in your mind, but you don't really have a story-centric justification as to why you need it to be that and nothing else. I believe that particular idea doesn't give you enough plot threads to work with.

Be careful about making up your mind on a story's elements so early in the creative process. An evil organization doing evil things just because, is quite the cookie-cutter approach to plot creation. Have a feel for the story and develop end goals and motivations before settling for the corporate flavour. Maybe you'll see other options that branch out more and farther.