Coincidence?

William Randall · Feb 12, 2012

I once read that regardless of genre, fiction has to be believable. The reader has to believe that the events occurring in the book could conceivably happen. I tend to agree with that.

So, here’s my question: should you avoid extreme coincidences when writing a novel?

OR is it sometimes okay to play the Fate Card?

The reason I ask is that I have a very improbable situation in the current draft of my WIP. Several very unlikely things fall into place at the same time so that a chance encounter occurs. This encounter isn’t paramount to the story, but I really like it, and I think it helps develop the characters, plot, and conflicts.

Now, one of the themes of the story is luck, and the MC often points out the odds of a particular event occurring. If I write it so that he is flabbergasted at the sheer improbability of this event, and I sell it correctly, do you think I’m in the clear? Or will the reader be turned off by something like this?

Devil Ledbetter · Feb 12, 2012

The general rule is that coincidences that make things better for the MC are a no-go. That's dues ex machina. OTOH, coincidences that make things worse may be okay.

I say "may be" because it's a real "it depends/if can you make it work" sort of thing.

Coincidences are noteworthy in real life because really, what are the chances? In books, not so much because the author can pull any ol' coincidence out of his butt any time he likes. That doesn't take any rare odds, just a butt-pull. And usually it's lazy storytelling. Why go through the hard work of figuring out how this or that could plausibly happen when you can just make up a giant coincidence?

Too unlikely a coincidence, even if it does make things worse for the MC, may strain the reader's credulity.

You'll notice that oftentimes in fiction a "coincidence" is later revealed to be something some other character deliberately set up to occur.

Debbie V · Feb 12, 2012

I think you can pull it off as you say, the question is should you? If it isn't important to the plot and only helps with the other things, you probably shouldn't. Coincidence bothers me - it is often the author taking the easy way out. Could it be that parts of the setup aren't coincidence, but parts are? Can you find reasons for the events that make them truly important to story. Make the reader feel this is the way things had to happen.

Fate is a theme in my WIP. Many characters believe in it. But they don't believe Fate acts in every minute detail. We never know which ones are choice. Some things that are coincidence are Fated within the framework of the novel. This affects how they react to those incidences vs. others that feel more random. Fate becomes almost a character.

Can you use your scenes to make luck almost a character and shine a light on the theme?

scarletpeaches · Feb 12, 2012

You can write a coincidence to get your MC out of a jam if you want, but that's a surefire way to stop me reading any more of your books.

rugcat · Feb 12, 2012

Honestly, 99% of the time, coincidence is just another word for sloppy plotting. Coincidences certainly occur in real life, but a novel is by definition an artifice and needs structure.

Try tape recording to people talking, and then write it down verbatim. You might argue it's realistic dialogue, but it will read like a train wreck if inserted into a novel.

Not only are extreme coincidences a poor way to go, so is anything that happens for no reason except to make the plot easier. If the MC needs to translate an ancient scroll, it won't fly that her brother in law just happens to be a professor specializing in linguistics.

Everything in plot, ideally, should flow in a way that's almost inevitable.

William Randall · Feb 12, 2012

Just to clarify, this particular coincidence doesn't make things better for the MC.

William Randall · Feb 12, 2012

Thanks to all who have replied.

I like how the scene in question currently plays out--there's added drama, conflict, and irony. But I don't feel comfortable cementing it into the draft for many of the reasons stated above. Maybe I'll write two versions and have betas test it--although a change to this scene does affect the rest of the plot. Hmm...

GFanthome · Feb 12, 2012

I'm always of the belief that if you can make something work, then go for it.

One thing to be careful about though, is not to try to squeeze things into a box that they don't fit into. It sounds as if you're really keen on a particular concept and are trying to make it work, even though in the back of your mind you're having second thoughts about whether this is feasible. In cases like this, I usually listen to the nagging doubts as warnings against going too far with something that might not work. I also rely on my characters to smack me upside the head and set me straight.

Just something to think about, anyway.
________________
One Broken Wing

Lseeber · Feb 12, 2012

William Randall said:
I once read that regardless of genre, fiction has to be believable. The reader has to believe that the events occurring in the book could conceivably happen. I tend to agree with that.

So, here’s my question: should you avoid extreme coincidences when writing a novel?

OR is it sometimes okay to play the Fate Card?

The reason I ask is that I have a very improbable situation in the current draft of my WIP. Several very unlikely things fall into place at the same time so that a chance encounter occurs. This encounter isn’t paramount to the story, but I really like it, and I think it helps develop the characters, plot, and conflicts.

Now, one of the themes of the story is luck, and the MC often points out the odds of a particular event occurring. If I write it so that he is flabbergasted at the sheer improbability of this event, and I sell it correctly, do you think I’m in the clear? Or will the reader be turned off by something like this?

A few questions if I may --

You say that the encounter isn't paramount to the story, but that you really like it. How do you think it helps the character development? Will it add a nuance to the complex picture that is your MC, or simply another minor detail that readers will most likely dismiss?

How often does the MC point out the odds of a particular event occurring? If he does it every chance he gets, honestly that sound more contrived to me than a minor coincidence.

As far as the reader being put off by a coincidence, it could happen. I think, that beyond the belief that an author is being lazy if they use coincidences (not entirely sure if I agree with that idea), is the concept of the coincidence being plausible. I would have an easier time believing that a wind gust blew a newspaper into the face of the MC which revealed pertinent information to the plot line than the coincidence of an meteorite landing just in the right spot near the MC to reveal the underground secret lair of his enemy.

Just a thought, of course. As always, please take with a boulder of salt

Laura

William Randall · Feb 12, 2012

Lseeber said:
A few questions if I may --

You say that the encounter isn't paramount to the story, but that you really like it. How do you think it helps the character development? Will it add a nuance to the complex picture that is your MC, or simply another minor detail that readers will most likely dismiss?

How often does the MC point out the odds of a particular event occurring? If he does it every chance he gets, honestly that sound more contrived to me than a minor coincidence.

As far as the reader being put off by a coincidence, it could happen. I think, that beyond the belief that an author is being lazy if they use coincidences (not entirely sure if I agree with that idea), is the concept of the coincidence being plausible. I would have an easier time believing that a wind gust blew a newspaper into the face of the MC which revealed pertinent information to the plot line than the coincidence of an meteorite landing just in the right spot near the MC to reveal the underground secret lair of his enemy.

Just a thought, of course. As always, please take with a boulder of salt

Laura

Here's what I like about it: The MC unexpectedly comes face to face with a guy he is supposed to hate, and the MC is presented an opportunity to be the "hero" if he chooses to help this guy. The kicker is that there's a big ol' crowd of people watching/urging him to help, so he finds himself if a very tricky situation.

If I go through with this, it won't be just a minor or trivial part of the book, which is why I want to make sure I know what I'm doing before I actually ink it.

Once every twenty pages or so the MC points out the odds of something happening. He has a weird obsession with luck in that he doesn't believe in it, opting for probability as the basis for many of his decisions, and yet luck often seems to toy with him... which is why I thought it might be an easier sell for something unlikely to actually happen.

William Randall · Feb 12, 2012

GFanthome said:
I'm always of the belief that if you can make something work, then go for it.

One thing to be careful about though, is not to try to squeeze things into a box that they don't fit into. It sounds as if you're really keen on a particular concept and are trying to make it work, even though in the back of your mind you're having second thoughts about whether this is feasible. In cases like this, I usually listen to the nagging doubts as warnings against going too far with something that might not work. I also rely on my characters to smack me upside the head and set me straight.

Just something to think about, anyway.
________________
One Broken Wing

Good advice. I really don't want to go too far with something that won't work. But I so want it to work haha. Definitely something to think about... those nagging second thoughts.

EnitaMeadows · Feb 12, 2012

I tend to agree with the above in that positive coincidences tend to break the illusion that the story creates. When I read stories that include coincidences that aren't explained within the story, I get put of, usually thinking that the author took the easy way out when writing it. Of course, if the occurrence is explained and lessened in some way, well...forget I said anything.

muravyets · Feb 12, 2012

If luck is a theme of the book I wouldn't have too much trouble with one or even several Rube Goldbergian improbable scenes playing out, so long as they work for the story, suit the characters, and the characters react appropriately. The style of the story matters too. If there's a strong element of comedy or satire or commentary in the story, then I think it's easier to make unbelievable events read as believable.

However, I'm worried about this:

Several very unlikely things fall into place at the same time so that a chance encounter occurs. This encounter isn’t paramount to the story, but I really like it, and I think it helps develop the characters, plot, and conflicts.

It's bad when an improbable scene is set up to make things easier for the MC, but I think it's also a problem if the improbable scene is set up to make things easier for the author. Imagine a reader explaining the scene to someone, and they are asked "Why did that happen?" and the answer is "To move the plot along," "to set up these later events," or "to demonstrate this aspect of the character" -- mmm-ouch, that kind of makes me cringe a little. So I'm a little concerned about the description of unlikely things falling into place so that a chance encounter occurs, especially when you mention that you really like it.

I'm all for driving off a cliff with plot events, but make sure it's a worthy cliff in a good cause that won't break the reader's immersion experience.

dangerousbill · Feb 12, 2012

William Randall said:
I once read that regardless of genre, fiction has to be believable. The reader has to believe that the events occurring in the book could conceivably happen.

It's not even that simple. Coincidences happen in real life that would provoke a sneer if they appeared in a fiction story.

What are the chances that two people whom I know well would be seatmates on a flight between two cities in China, traveling for unrelated purposes?

The chances that I'd blunder across my first girlfriend on Facebook, after 54 years, purely by accident?

Or that I'd look up a news article in the Toronto Star, and discover it had been written by the guy who'd been my best friend in Grade 8?

I couldn't use these in fiction. They're too unrealistic.

scarletpeaches · Feb 13, 2012

Fiction has to make sense. Real life never does.

seun · Feb 13, 2012

Here's an example I like:

a guy is walking past a public phone when that phone starts ringing. He answers it. The person calling is his brother who dialled a wrong number. Think about what had to happen for this to go as it did - one brother has to dial the wrong number but it had to be right one for that phone, the other brother has to be walking past at the right moment and has to decide to answer the phone instead of carrying on.

If you read that in a book, would you think coincidence or sloppy writing? Chances are most people would think it was too outlandish to take seriously.

Now what if I told you it happened for real?

Devil Ledbetter · Feb 13, 2012

Years ago I sewed a sock monkey for my best friend, kind of a jokey gift. I mailed it to her. She wrote me a letter saying she loved it, and she'd named it "Betty Badgley."

About a month later she moved to another town. The previous tenant of her new apartment was an elderly woman who had recently died. The name on the mailbox? E. Badgley. She did a little digging and discovered the E stood for Elizabeth, nickname Betty.

Yeah, I wouldn't try to palm that off in a book unless it was a paranormal.

Grunkins · Feb 13, 2012

I've heard it said you can get away with an extreme coincidence ONCE in a book. One time. And it can't be at end to resolve things (deus ex machina).

Al Stevens · Feb 13, 2012

Arthur Hailey used coincidence effectively in "Hotel" to bring many disparate characters together in a falling elevator in the last chapter.

This book (http://www.amazon.com/dp/0809058405/?tag=absowrit-20) explains why a world without coincidences is mathematically impossible.

LJD · Feb 13, 2012

One coincidence that kicks off the story? Usually OK for me.
Generally I have a problem with it if:
1) A coincidence helps solve a problem.
2) There are a number of coincidences.

Al Stevens · Feb 13, 2012

I was run off the road into the median, damaging my car. The other driver, a teenaged boy, stopped. When the cop came, he made an abrupt turn onto the median, and the car behind him almost rear-ended the cop. That guy stopped to chew out the cop, only to discover that his son was the teenager who ran me off the road.

Would you believe that in a book? Perhaps as a setup for other, unrelated things. But if it was the climax in which a man finds his long-lost son kidnapped years ago, probably not.

In my WIP, the MC gets shot at and missed. Later, a guy who looks just like him gets shot at and hit. They both drive the same kind of old, beat-up car. They never met. First shooting was mistaken identity. Turns out they are twins adopted at birth to different families. That happens in real life and is, I think, believable. The detective even comments on the similarity to bad tv show plots about twins played by the same actor. The coincidence that worries me is the car. Currently it is written off as one of those separated-at-birth twin things you read about, but I'm having trouble believing it, and I'm the author.

Didn't mean to hijack your thread, but this seems related. From the description you give as the setup, I don't see the coincidence. Is it what brings the MC together with the guy in distress whom the MC hates?

Phaeal · Feb 13, 2012

Grunkins said:
I've heard it said you can get away with an extreme coincidence ONCE in a book. One time. And it can't be at end to resolve things (deus ex machina).

I'm generally cool with this.

kuwisdelu · Feb 13, 2012

seun said:
Here's an example I like:

a guy is walking past a public phone when that phone starts ringing. He answers it. The person calling is his brother who dialled a wrong number. Think about what had to happen for this to go as it did - one brother has to dial the wrong number but it had to be right one for that phone, the other brother has to be walking past at the right moment and has to decide to answer the phone instead of carrying on.

If you read that in a book, would you think coincidence or sloppy writing?

I'd assume something paranormal or fate-related was going on.

Titan Orion · Feb 13, 2012

I think coincedences are fine as long as its not a plot device. If you need a person in a particular place/time, and you choose to put them there by a wierd coincedence, the more time/events between the coincedence and the place/time thing, the better.

Im ok with certain characters showing up "in the nick of time" but I prefer it not to be absolute last second before bomb goes off. Im pretty sure if I knew a bomb was gonna go off in an hour, and it got down to five minutes, Id be worried for the characters. But when the bomb has 2 or 3 seconds left it cheeses me off. You can leave a minute or two on the clock if you want. JUST to be spontaneous.

The kind of coincedence that irritates me is the kind that stops characters from doing something they could normally do, just for plot purposes. Its like having a guy who always knows someone who can do whats needed... EXCEPT for the one thing the good guys need to get done. Or the bad guy that talks to the good guy for 45 minutes, THEN points the gun and gets interrupted, and the guy who showed up was all like "Phew! Took me about 45 mins to find you!"

Just make the coincedence believable. Foreshadowing was made for these moments.

Buffysquirrel · Feb 13, 2012

For me, having the MC comment on how unlikely it is would break the whole thing. If a character says, hey, this couldn't happen! I'm right there going, yeah, I agree, it couldn't. If you want to take the reader with you, don't give them reasons not to go.

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