I think the worst thing about being a writer is...

Mythica · Mar 5, 2008

...everything is so predictable.

It's really hard to watch movies or read books, because we, as writers, discover plot devices in everything. I was watching a TV show, and during the program, I was thinking, "now, if I were the writer, the best twist I could come up with was the murderer have been the ex-boyfriend's father who the victim was having the affair with, and then the real killer would frame the current boyfriend." And lo and behold, that's what happened. That is only the most recent example, too. It's just disappointing.

I don't know if anyone else feels this way, but I'm always on the lookout for twists and turns in the plot, and when I take a guess as to where it's going, I'm usually right.

It's hard to be surprised these days.

WerenCole · Mar 5, 2008

I often feel the same way. We were watching No Reservations last night and calling the next scene four minutes before it happened.

CasualObserver · Mar 5, 2008

The worst thing about being a writer is that it's ruined a lot of reading for me. I was one heck of an avid reader, too. I can't turn off my internal editor, so I read books as if I were beta reading rather than just soaking up some entertainment. "Were, not was. He's acting totally out of character, you said only three chapters ago that he would never do something like that. Gratuitous scene. That's unneccesary to the plot. Pacing here is like frozen mud. Oh, come on, deux ex machina, hel-LO!"

Ravenlocks · Mar 5, 2008

But on the positive side, you can have fun saying, "Well, *I* would've done it this way!"

JoNightshade · Mar 5, 2008

I do this all the time, but it's not disappointing for me. I like it! Especially on shows like Lost. I knew Locke was in a wheelchair from the first or second episode. We watch this show with friends and we always sit around after the show and guess what will happen next. And I LIKE to be right.

It's satisfying as long as I feel the plotting is good and solid-- and it makes it even more satisfying when something surprises me, because the author really caught me off guard.

Dan Razor · Mar 5, 2008

It happens to me a lot. It isn't on purpose though. I was watching an episode of the George Lopez show and it was an episode about his daughter going out with someone new and they 'found out' he was cheating on her. So they went to the movies where the cheater would be and there was an open space between a buff guy and a hot girl and then the cheater sat down in between. I said to a friend "It would be funny twist if he was gay..." And then he starts kissing the buff guy. We laughed for a few minutes at the fact that I was joking and called what happened at the same time.

willietheshakes · Mar 5, 2008

... the long time in limos. The groupies. The difficulty scoring drugs in strange cities...

Oh, the WORST thing.

I'll have to think about that.

HourglassMemory · Mar 5, 2008

I think being on the side of the writer, has sort of ruined the magic for me. who was usually opn the side of the reader, who had a story simply flwoing by whenever I wanted to.
To realise that it's not easy to write a story that pleases people.

I haven't reached the point of where I'm guessing and correcting other people's literary works or stories.
I sometimes expect something to happen and it does happen. I wish things weren't as predictable, but this happens very rarely.

johnzakour · Mar 5, 2008

I saw what's going to happen on shows all the time. It really irks off my son so I'm making an effort not to do it.

~grace~ · Mar 5, 2008

JoNightshade said:
I do this all the time, but it's not disappointing for me. I like it! Especially on shows like Lost. I knew Locke was in a wheelchair from the first or second episode. We watch this show with friends and we always sit around after the show and guess what will happen next. And I LIKE to be right. It's satisfying as long as I feel the plotting is good and solid-- and it makes it even more satisfying when something surprises me, because the author really caught me off guard.

Oh man. My roommates and I had Lost-watching marathons and not only could I almost always predict what was going to happen next, I could say lines along with the characters. My friends kept getting pissed off for some reason. :Shrug:

Hummingbird · Mar 5, 2008

My mom and I both love to sit down and try to guess what's going to happen. We're both writers. It's interesting when we say something's going to happen then why. We both write in different styles and it's fun to see how we think differently.

There are times that it totally ruins something. Especially those where half-way through the movie or book you wonder if you should wait until the end. Thankfully enough most of the time the end of the story is pulled off well so I still enjoy it anyway.

geardrops · Mar 5, 2008

willietheshakes said:
The difficulty scoring drugs in strange cities...

You have difficulty?

Mythica · Mar 5, 2008

Ravenlocks said:
But on the positive side, you can have fun saying, "Well, *I* would've done it this way!"

LOL! You're so optimistic! You should live in my back seat and when I scream vulgarities at the slow driver who can't hear me, you can reassure me that "well, at least they got out of your way, eventually!" hahahaha

I should at least have a CD playing with a loop of that every five minutes...Ooh! New invention! lol

I can definitely relate to being the party pooper when watching movies/TV and spoiling the end. I remember sitting in the theater watching The Forgotten (and this was when I was a rude, 17-year-old idiot) and thinking aloud (quite loudly) about halfway through, "OH! It's aliens!"

wayndom · Mar 6, 2008

No kidding! But you have "writer's brain," whether you write or not.

I was in the sixth grade when the first Twilight Zone shows aired. I was immediately hooked, but since they followed an O'Henry-like "twist ending" formula, I soon discovered that I could accurately predict the ending after watching no more than ten minutes of the (half-hour) show.

At the time, I didn't see any downside to that, and I started writing Twilight Zone-like stories.

But now it haunts me, in terms of rejecting story ideas because they're "too obvious," and in terms of my strong reluctance to try to fool my readers, since I always assume they'll see through my plot ideas (even though my beta readers never do).

seun · Mar 6, 2008

The worst thing is friends and family saying they want to read my stuff. Then three months later, they tell me they haven't had time to read any of it. I am so sick of that.

Tedium · Mar 6, 2008

Sure it can make things more predictable, but it pushes me out of the box toward innovation.

I could be totally and completely off base.

Sonneillon · Mar 6, 2008

Mythica said:
...everything is so predictable.

It's really hard to watch movies or read books, because we, as writers, discover plot devices in everything. I was watching a TV show, and during the program, I was thinking, "now, if I were the writer, the best twist I could come up with was the murderer have been the ex-boyfriend's father who the victim was having the affair with, and then the real killer would frame the current boyfriend." And lo and behold, that's what happened. That is only the most recent example, too. It's just disappointing.

All right, but aside from that... how'd you like New Amsterdam?

sunna · Mar 6, 2008

I don't mind predicting; like Jo, I enjoy being right.

I do find I'm a hell of a lot more critical, though, which does sometimes get in the way of enjoying a story.

But on the plus side, I also find that when I am surprised - by plot twist, or a really good turn of phrase - I appreciate it a lot more than I used to.

seun said:
The worst thing is friends and family saying they want to read my stuff. Then three months later, they tell me they haven't had time to read any of it. I am so sick of that.

Yep. I just smile and nod and move on now when I am asked to produce a WIP for anyone who has even the vaguest recollection what I looked like in diapers.

Willowmound · Mar 6, 2008

Mythica said:
...everything is so predictable.

I don't find this bad. Because it means I am getting good.

KTC · Mar 6, 2008

one word: REWRITE

Patrick L · Mar 6, 2008

KTC said:
one word: REWRITE

Yeah...I agree. First drafts are so much fun. Creating a new world, etc. Second drafts...UGH!

JimmyB27 · Mar 6, 2008

Mythica said:
I think the worst thing about being a writer is...

...the fact that I'm also a work-shy, lazy, talentless slob.

KTC · Mar 6, 2008

JimmyB27 said:
...the fact that I'm also a work-shy, lazy, talentless slob.

You had me at the.

Ken · Mar 6, 2008

crooked finger from writing with pencil.

writin52 · Mar 6, 2008

The Worst thing about being a writer

Getting an absolutely brilliant idea in the middle of the night when asleep or almost, managing to write it down but finding it is absolute gibberish in the morning :Shrug:

I think the worst thing about being a writer is...

Expert Gerbil Wrangler

Funny what? Do I amuse you?

How novel.

has finally arrived

Bringing Flanel back

Gentleman. Scholar. Bastard.

Dangerous with a Keyboard

the good old days

Pen, Paper, Prepared. ...Write!

Good thing I like my day job

Expert Gerbil Wrangler

Horror Man

Le sigh.

Autophobic Misanthrope

Lightly salted

Stand in the Place Where You Live

looking for a home

Hoopy frood

Stand in the Place Where You Live