What novel - movie most closely resembles your current WIP?

DWSTXS · Feb 21, 2008

If you HAD to choose, what novel or movie most closely resembles your current WIP?

I have in mind that mine is sort of like Almost Famous. (although mine has some violence, and much more sex and drugs.)

because, as everyone knows, there are no truly original, new ideas out there.

Shady Lane · Feb 21, 2008

Fight Club.

of course.

Sonneillon · Feb 21, 2008

My knee-jerk reaction is to say "Pitch Black", not because the plot is similar, but because it also features a desert environment that plays such a significant part in the story, one might almost consider it a silent MC. My husband says my WIP reminds him of a faster-paced Wheel of Time, but since I haven't gotten around to reading Wheel of Time yet, I can't agree or disagree.

I suppose another similarity between "Pitch Black" and my WIP is that both feature main characters who are natural born killers. Kite may not be as deadly as Riddick, but it's only for lack of practice. Once he gets going I fully intend to see a similar amount of violence from him. Both are very nearly sociopaths who often kill without discrimination, but form almost random attachments with individuals who manage to get under their skin. Riddick just doesn't have the slutty element that Kite uses as a trademark.

JoNightshade · Feb 21, 2008

I honestly have no clue. What novel/movie features an insecure, neurotic little guy falling hopelessly in love with the most scary, butch lady ever?

Hapax Legomenon · Feb 21, 2008

No idea.

The most important part is the MC losing touch with his senses, while at the same time an organization wants him for that reason, and he owes a sapeint house his life. I don't really remember reading much like that.

DWSTXS · Feb 21, 2008

JoNightshade said:
I honestly have no clue. What novel/movie features an insecure, neurotic little guy falling hopelessly in love with the most scary, butch lady ever?

Sleepless in Seattle.

LOL

bluntforcetrauma · Feb 21, 2008

That's tough. I do know my MC speaks in the voice of Tom Hanks. And I'm not the world's biggest TH fan. Go figure.

Cranky · Feb 21, 2008

Hmmm. Mine's a little bit Constantine with a dash of The Prophecy thrown in. But that's surface stuff, I think. (Hope, more like) I am trying to mix in some humor as well. All that darkness gets to be a drag.

Danger Jane · Feb 21, 2008

I can't think of anything. I drew some inspiration from Pier Paolo Pasolini's film Medea, but that's just the backstory. Combine that with (the book not the movie of the) The Little Mermaid and you've got the basic, uh, idea.

triceretops · Feb 21, 2008

Oh, that's easy. Once Upon a Goddess is dead ringer for Bedazzled. No question about it. It's kind of scary in that regard.

Word Wars is Farenheit 451, with a cross-country chase scene and the FCC as the bad guys.

Omega Wars is Starship Troopers on earth

Planet Janitor is Robinson Crusoe on Mars, except with eight crew members.

The concept of The Lupus Strain resembles that of Jurassic Park. But werewolves are involved.

Gate Walker is like nothing I've ever seen before.

Dispossessed Incorporated is Harry Potter, only with ghosts and tons of time travel.

Tri

kellytijer · Feb 21, 2008

Do sitcoms count? George Lopez. But from a white person's POV.

Stormhawk · Feb 21, 2008

I can't really think of anything that comes close.

There is an element of Beauty and the Beast though.

swvaughn · Feb 21, 2008

Crying Freeman.

Zelenka · Feb 21, 2008

I can't actually think of anything that's similar in terms of plot. The first thing that comes to mind is, perhaps embarrassingly, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, film rather than book, but that's just because my MC looks like Lucius and one of the other characters looks like the bloke who plays Mr Weasley (is that Mark Williams?). Mine has much more sex and violence though. And no broomsticks.

Sage · Feb 21, 2008

Fairytale-ish is pretty easy. It's Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and Rapunzel. And maybe a little Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, but without having read or seen that, I can't say for sure.

DownLoad is probably most like Full Metal Panic.

AFTRLYF (and HEVN SNT) I always describe as The Dresden Files meet Dead Like Me.

Red-Green · Feb 21, 2008

Although the premise, plot, and characters are totally different, I'm going to say True Romance. What does my WIP have in common with it then?

They're both examples of what happens when a sweet, quirky romance gets brutally t-boned by a suspense/crime story.

CutteRug · Feb 21, 2008

WIP: Axis

I'd say "Contact" meets "Deep Impact".

Makeshift-crapola logline:

When a strange planet is discovered orbiting on a path close enough to pull Earth off its axis, the only hope lies in deciphering an alien artifact and its links to our own ancient history.

KikiteNeko · Feb 21, 2008

The Sixties (that's the one with Julia Stiles, right?)

Paichka · Feb 21, 2008

George RR Martin's darkness and scope crossed with Greg Keyes's worldbuilding and strong female characters, with a dash of Jim Butcher thrown in for humor.

And of course, a little Scooby-Do action, because I have a whole posse of meddling kids. And a talking dog. Sort of.

Paichka · Feb 21, 2008

JoNightshade said:
I honestly have no clue. What novel/movie features an insecure, neurotic little guy falling hopelessly in love with the most scary, butch lady ever?

There's an adorable Russian movie called...Workplace Romance, I think is the translation of the title. The plot is a neurotic little man working at this company where his boss is this horribly scary butch woman. He needs a raise to take care of his adorable little boy (mom is out of the picture), so he and his friend (a player) decide to convince Boss-Lady to fall in love with him, so she'll be nicer. Hilarity ensues, but the end is very sweet and happy, because we learn Boss-Lady is human.

I watched it in high school, and I wish I could find a copy to watch it again. It's the cutest.

Dulvarian_Eldritch · Feb 21, 2008

I think about this one all the time. I really struggle with this because sometimes I will be well into one of 7 or 8 stories floating around in my brainmordial soup and I'll see something too much like it and get flustered.

The one I am rewriting now I would have to say...

The Anita Blake series, the Dresden Files, and the Southern Vampire series. For violence and sex, the inventive use of magic, and a close approximation of the location, relative to the order listed.

What really makes my brain simmer is when I start on something and I fell really good about it and see someone do it better. I get all caught up in analytical cycle about why theirs is better and I just set down what I was working on and redo it in another vein or just give it up. I don't know why it bothers me so bad, but it does.

Back to looking for other things...

Feathers · Feb 22, 2008

Okay, tough one. Take the basic storyline of Murcury Rising, insert Peter from Heroes to take the place of Bruce Willis, change the autistic kid to someone with superpowers, and that's my basic story.

-Feathers

jst5150 · Feb 22, 2008

Columbo. More fallable. More remorse. More intuition. Less happy ending.

Stew21 · Feb 22, 2008

I don't have any idea what movie, but maybe the book Tuesdays with Morrie - except instead of learning these life lessons from a guy right before he dies, my MC learns his from the ghost of a famous guy. But that's only part of the story. I'll have to think of what the right other half is.

slcboston · Feb 22, 2008

Cross Bladerunner with Interview With the Vampire, and minus most of the brooding, self-loathing introspection from the latter.

What novel - movie most closely resembles your current WIP?

Mr Mojo Risin...

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