I Swear by My Pretty Floral Bonnet

In a recent conversation with The Hubz I said, I like my good guys to be good guys and my bad guys to be bad. I prefer when the white hats and black hats are clearly defined. Specifically, I have a hard time rooting for the protagonist in a story where the ‘hero’ is a gangster and the ‘villain’ is a member of law enforcement just trying to mete out justice.

And it's as simple as that.

Every story has some necessary basic elements, kind of like a letter. Remember, back in the day being taught the parts of a letter? I don’t think they do that anymore. Sad. Some things are need to know and the proper way to write a letter is one of them. I digress. A letter has an introduction, a body and a conclusion. So does a story. A story also has a protagonist, an antagonist and a conflict between them that requires resolution. No matter what story you’re telling you need these things or your tale is incomplete and your readers will track you down on social media and roast your virtual nuggets over their outrage fueled bonfires.

 

Maybe it isn't that cut & dried after all

The good guy doesn’t have to be squeaky clean, in fact I prefer they have a little grit. If he/she makes mistakes, the character becomes more relatable. Face it, no one likes a Pollyanna and the point is to root for the good guy. The bad guy doesn’t need to be redeemable, the badder the better in fact. Whatever the conflict between them, regardless of the resolution, I want to like the protagonist and dislike the antagonist, thereby insuring my emotional investment in the outcome.

I know the world is rarely black and white. We live within the many shades of gray. And I do enjoy the good guy with the gruff/bad exterior [I refer to it as my Han Solo complex].

Yup, tis all your fault ;) 

But if I wanted real life in my down time would I read/write fiction? Not likely.