Preparing for the holidays has reminded me of all the things I love about the holidays. And all the things I don’t like about the holidays. Fortunately for me, there are more good than bad things to think about. I know it's not that way for everyone. Life is filled with good and bad, as our writing should be.
Have you ever read a book where nothing bad happens? What about a book where everything bad happens and nothing good? In those cases I know the author was trying to get lots of tension but instead they delivered an unending stream of trouble and unhappiness. There’s no relief, leaving the reader too drained to want to continue reading.
Like in life, a book needs good and bad. A book with all bad is just as bad as a book with all good.
I'm traveling for the holidays so I'm not commenting as much on blogs but I'm still around, lurking. Hope you are all having a great holiday season!
Enjoy the holidays and be safe traveling!
ReplyDeleteThanks, hope yours are fabulous too.
DeleteI agree with you. There has to be a balance between good and bad, in life and in writing.
ReplyDeleteHave a great time traveling. And may your Christmas and new year be blessed. :-)
If there's no balance it just doesn't work.
DeleteThanks, and I hope your holidays are wonderful.
Merry Christmas, Sara. I hope you have a wonderful Christmas that is full of blessings. Take Care.
ReplyDeleteThanks Joylene. I hope your holidays are everything you wish them to be.
DeleteBalance is key. I should not feel severely depressed or like I took a happy pill when I finish reading something :D
ReplyDeleteHope you have a great Christmas!
Balance is key. Happy holidays to you!
DeleteHope you have a lovely Christmas.
ReplyDeleteI think that experiencing the bad helps us better appreciate the good. Have a great holiday, Sara!
ReplyDeleteSo very true.
DeleteHappy holidays to you!
Spot on, Sara! Man, everything is a balance, right? And I hope your holidays are fantastic--more good than bad!!!
ReplyDeleteBalance is key.
DeleteThanks, I hope yours are too!
Hope you have a great holiday too! Have enjoyable, safe travels!
ReplyDeleteThanks, hope yours are fabulous too!
DeleteSafe travels! I'm heading out next week myself for a few days--here's hoping the inevitable delays aren't too long!
ReplyDeleteSafe and enjoyable travels to you too!
DeleteI agree, a good book is well balanced between the good and the bad. Have a wonderful Christmas, safe travels and enjoy your time off. (:
ReplyDeleteThanks, happy holidays to you too!
DeleteHmm, I hope I wasn't the author you were reading. Merry Christmas, Sara.
ReplyDeleteOf course not! Merry Christmas.
DeleteDon't talk to me about nothing bad happening - I'm always struggling with raising the stakes in my stories and making sure I don't make things too easy on my characters. I really tried hard to keep 'what's the worst that could happen?' at the forefront while drafting Santiago's story during NaNo. Hope it worked!
ReplyDeleteI have the same problem.
DeleteI love books with lots of tension, but I need to feel hope, too.
ReplyDeleteMerry Christmas, Sara!
Exactly. Hope is a must.
DeleteMerry Christmas to you too!
I can't say I've read one like that. By the time I get to the end and think "why did I read that?" ... sure, but not very often. :)
ReplyDeleteLucky you! I've read some wehre the author went a little too crazy at giving their characters a hard time.
DeleteI hope you had a wonderful Christmas!
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year!
Thanks, hope yours was wonderful too.
DeleteWishing you and your family a Happy New Year, Sara!
ReplyDeleteThe Hunger Games was a neverending parade of trouble and grief. I got 150 pages into the second book and just said, no more.
ReplyDeleteBalance.
(And Happy New Year!)
It was a little one sided. It's good you can stop and move on when you know it's not working for you.
DeleteYes, I know exactly what you mean. Balance is so important. Happy Holidays.
ReplyDeleteHappy holidays to you too!
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