An old writers adage goes something along the lines of kill your darlings. Thats a stark reminder that you should never feel comfortable or complacent about the people and situations you write about in service of the story, you should feel ready to off any of your characters at any time, have terrible things happen to them if necessary. Game Of Thrones exemplifies this storytelling maxim like a bastard. Following on from author Martins way of doing things in the novels, the TV show even actually goes a little further sometimes: Martin never wrote about that happening to dear, sweet little Sansa, for example. In Game Of Thrones, no one is safe, and anything can happen. You genuinely dont know whats going to happen next and people have been blindsided by this show so often that its become a storytelling trope. Now, I know, I know: constant brainless swerving in pro wrestling angles is a horrifying reminder of the Dark Times when the WWF, WCW and TNA let Vince Russo near the book. Thats not what Im suggesting, though. WWEs booking is characterised by safe choices, the powers that be running scared of trying something new that might backfire. Thats right: the firebrand that killed the territories, took on the US government and won, and fought back against the billion dollar wallet of Ted Turner; that guy is afraid of innovation and change in his wrestling product. Yes, I know technically none of those things actually happened the way Vince McMahon says they did, but hes a pro wrestling promoter. They never let the facts get in the way of a work.
Professional writer, punk werewolf and nesting place for starfish. Obsessed with squid, spirals and story. I publish short weird fiction online at desincarne.com, and tweet nonsense under the name Jack The Bodiless. You can follow me all you like, just don't touch my stuff.
