Guest post by Indie Gantz, Author of PASSAGE: The Akasha Series Book One - Uncover a Lifetime of Lies in this Fantasy Adventure!
Passage (The Akasha Series #1)
Genre: YA Scifi Fantasy
Release Date: March 2018
Uncover a Lifetime of Lies in this Fantasy Adventure!
On day one, Charlie Damuzi and her mute twin brother Tirigan are blissfully unaware of the dangerous world they live in. They may be aliens living on Earth after the extinction of humans, but to Charlie, life is pretty mundane.
On day two, the Damuzi family is ripped apart by a family secret that forces the twins to flee the only home they’ve ever known.
Determined to find a way to reunite their family, Charlie and Tirigan travel to uncharted territory in search of their salvation.
But that’s just Charlie’s side of the story.
In the future, forty days from when we first meet the Damuzi twins, Tirigan is on the move. His destination is unknown, as are the people he’s surrounded himself with, but his mission is still the same. Keep his sister safe and reunite their family.
However, as Tirigan attempts to navigate the complex bonds he’s formed with his companions, he’s forced to confront the one thing in life he has yet to fully understand.
Himself.
Family. Deception. Power. Destruction.
It all begins on day one.
Here’s Tirigan’s.
Guest Post by Indie Gantz
Avoid the Cliché Character
Ah, the cliché characters.
We all know them. The nice guys who always finish last, the dumb jocks, the hookers with a heart of gold, the lively horn dogs, the brooding rebels, and the ever present and equally dreaded: Mary Sues.
The Mary Sue is a much talked about character trope, because she can be found in some of the most popular Young Adult novels. She’s the one who is beautiful but doesn’t know it, supernaturally smart and kind, and probably has a tragic past of some kind. She’s also usually unique in some way. Whether it be superpowers or her ability to charm every man who looks her way, The Mary Sue is really something spectacular. Her flaws are actually cute little anecdotes, and she always overcomes vice.
Don’t write a Mary Sue.
People, real people, are not always kind and they don’t always have the best comebacks. They make mistakes, a lot of mistakes, and they are rarely the most beautiful person in the room. Give your characters flaws. You can base your character on a popular cliché, as I have done with many of my characters, but you have to break the mold and flip it around so that your character doesn’t become predictable and, well, super lame. For example, I gave my protagonists the ever cliché purple eyes to signify their ascension to the supernatural. Why did I use such a common trope? Because it’s a common trope for a reason. Purple eyes are interesting, exciting, and immediately identify your character as something special… but its overuse has now made it very difficult to use un-ironically. But, I like a challenge and I hope my version of supernatural purple eyes will be fresh and explored differently.
So, you can use the tropes and all the clichés you want, it’s nearly impossible not to, just be sure to play with it and make it fresh in some way.
Let the nice guy get the girl. Give the brooding rebel a talent for ballet and a craving for anime. The lively horn dog who can charm the pants off of every man and woman in the room, but secretly just wants someone to love him, for him? Give him Psoriasis or Multiple Sclerosis, and maybe the desire to go to culinary school. Let your jocks read a book from time to time; I have it on good authority that many do. And that Mary Sue? Let someone get mad at her. Let her be callous or selfish. Give her a real flaw, not just clumsiness or nail biting. Let her really suck as a person from time to time, because news flash?
We all suck sometimes.
So, don’t be afraid to make your protagonists unlikeable from time to time, and don’t slap a cardboard cutout of a classic cliché character onto your supporting characters. If you avoid the cliché, your characters will truly come to life.
- Indie Gantz, Author of Passage: Book I of The Akasha Series
About the Author
Indie Gantz grew up in Northern Virginia and received her Psychology degree at George Mason University. Despite her passion and curiosity for the human mind, Indie left her chosen field of study to finally give voice to the many imagined minds she has created.
Indie lives with her family in North Carolina. She spends her days drinking tea and clacking keys.
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