The Matrix
For those who know me, you may be familiar that I investigate a wide range of stories, from movies to novels, comics, art, animation, plays, and tv shows, even if (and sometimes especially if) they’re foreign. Each week I try to discover something new, and this week in particular I started watching what could be considered a New Adult Asian drama (university students) called Dream High about a bunch of talented young/new adults who struggle to make it big in the entertainment industry. At first, the only thing in the premise that interested me was the focus on multiple characters, which are absolutely unique and brilliant, but once I began to witness the story, what stuck out to me was the volume of constant choices the characters had to make. And that’s what kept me there.
A choice is not always stated as: you must do A or B. Often, you have no idea what the character may do. But they will always be in some form of crisis or conflict and will pause if only for an instant to make the audience wonder what they’re going to do next. Most impressive is when the choice is unexpected, yet logical.
One book about choices that recently stood out was, of course, Divergent, which uses choice as a big marketing ploy. True enough, the main character is put through multiple tests throughout the story, which keeps the reader wondering what choice they will have to make next.
To quote J.K. Rowling, “It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.”
-The Story Addict
Do you look for choices when you read/watch stories?
This week, I chose…steampunk as the theme for the special indie feature. Here is the beautiful book waiting to be read:
Claire Trevelyan was expected to catch a rich husband, but her talents lie in the chemistry lab, dodging explosions. When her father gambles on the combustion engine and loses, Claire is cast out in the street. And a new leader rises in the underworld, known only as the Lady of Devices . . .
It’s amazing how, from the other side of the screen, where we have such trouble making choices, we are drawn to the skillful creation of characters who continuously, clearly, and sometimes catastrophically make choices! Sure, we make choices every day, many of them important, most of them unconscious. But in good writing, choices and their consequences, and then the choices that result, are definitely the thing that keeps us reading. I totally agree. Great use of “The Matrix” metaphor — especially because it’s a choice between waking and sleeping…..
Very true, Carol. I think in life we often waver a lot more between choices than a lot of writers allow their characters. Sometimes we’ll make a choice, regret it, and go the other way. Or years will pass and we decide to take a different route entirely. Other times we’re so stubborn that no outside force can influence our decision. I’d like to see more characters genuinely portrayed as real life people versus the ultimate hero who always makes the right choices, or has help to get back on the right track if he/she veers off course. Ultimately, that’s what readers want to see, but it’d be interesting to have them figure it out for themselves. Thanks for the great thought!
And sometimes, we think weʻre not making much of a choice at all, and it turns out to be as important a choice as Neo made between the two pills in The Matrix. Eesh. Iʻm a coach and healer (Storyweaving Coaching and Healing, http://www.storyweaving.com), and I just had a client say she wanted the big shift, longed to change everything right away! I have learned, in my clients and in my own experience, that the most subtle shifts can be the most profound, and the biggest shifts can turn out to be small course corrections. We NEVER know. Until we see the consequences. And in writing — we try to make it all inevitable, because itʻs just so darn uncomfortable in real life…
Very true! I think I skip over a lot of choices my characters make just because I think it’s natural for them to make that choice. You’ve got a lovely blog, Carol
I agree, the most impacting choices are the ones that happen over time. I hadn’t considered those! Great thoughts 
The book cover for Lady of Devices is gorgeous!
It is, I’m looking forward to reading it
Not sure when, but I’ll get around it.
Thanks for the mention of Lady of Devices! The choices that are interesting to me as a reader are not between good and bad–that’s too easy. But what about bad and worse? Or good for me but bad for you? Somewhere in the gray area between black and white are the possibilities for character-building, because in choosing one path out of many, each with its own consequences, the character finds out who she really is.
Absolutely! I’m actually really interested in it (read an excerpt and it beguiles me
) so I’ve added it to my to-read list. Yes, exactly, “which of the two evils is worse?” Good/evil choices are usually obvious and bland. Not always, but mostly.
Love your picture of Neo as he makes his choice. In genre fiction (adventure, fantasy, romance, mystery, sci-fi), don’t all our main characters have to make a choice? Campbell and Vogler call it crossing the threshold. What happens when they make a choice that they come to doubt was the right one gives the readers insights into their real character. Love the quote from Harry Potter–very true.
Thought provoking post. Thanks, Diane
Great thoughts, Diane! (You have my main character’s name, by the way
) Yes, a story isn’t a story unless a character must make some sort of choice. And very true about questioning the decision, that definitely gives it depth. What I love about some stories, though, is constant choice which keeps the reader from putting a book down or skipping an episode. I think it’s an important fuel for many stories, especially character-driven ones, versus the character needing to fall in line with events as they happen to them instead of by them.