Published by deborah.woehr on 18 Mar 2006 at 10:07 am
Using Reality TV to Help You Improve Your Fiction Writing?
My curiosity was piqued by Jennifer Minar’s Four Ways Reality TV Can Improve Your Fiction. While I thought she wrote a good article, I didn’t agree with everything she said.
Character Development
These shows have archetypical contestants: 20-somethings, 30-somethings, gays, nerds, aging, etc. If you watch these shows for any length of time, you can predict how these people will react to each other and the challenges they’ll face.
I must also point out that people behave differently when in front of a television camera. There is always one contestant that goes “over the top” and is touted as the “villian.” More often than not, these people misbehave to gain fame.
To sum it up, they’re cookie-cutter people and not worthy of writing about.
Dialogue
Okay, you might be able to pick up some good lines and some strange body language.
Suspense
“When Beau carries things too far, Keith does something that will shock the other guests of paradise!”
Yeah, I’ve seen the clips of the big blow-ups, which were nothing special. I’ve seen too many real-life blow-ups that were ten times more impressive than the ones they show on reality TV. In order to write effective suspense, you need to imagine how the character is feeling inside as events are unfolding around her.
Setting
Jennifer give some good tips there. You can gain some good knowledge about the culture of exotic and foreign locales.
My Verdict
While you can get some good setting description, dialogue, and body language, using reality TV as fodder for your fiction is a bad idea. Use your own experiences and those of the people you know. Your novel will be richer for it.
Benjamin Solah on 18 Mar 2006 at 5:37 pm #
I definitely agree, seeing as most reality TV is so far from reality, you’d be better off watching a soapy.
deborah.woehr on 19 Mar 2006 at 8:00 am #
The soapies can be melodramatic. Do you have reality TV shows, or is this just an American fad?
Marti on 20 Mar 2006 at 4:00 am #
Yeah, the “reality” TV shows aren’t very “real” LOL
I think a writer has to put themselves in their characters shoes, actually imagine it in your head like a movie.
I do that - as I sit here writing (alone) I will think about a scene, and pretend to BE that character, actually acting out the lines. This gives me a feel for how a living, breathing person would react - if they are shivering from cold or rain, wrinkling their nose at an unpleasant odor, shrinking back from a violent person or clenching thier fists in anger.
deborah.woehr on 20 Mar 2006 at 8:10 am #
You hit the writing experience on the head, Marti.
There have been many times where my eyes will well up with tears as I imagine my characters going through sad scenes. Then there are times when I find myself snickering. I’m so glad that I’m alone when this happens because then my family will know that I am crazy!
pat kirby on 20 Mar 2006 at 8:29 am #
Reality TV = people behaving badly, backstabbing and otherwise being degenerates in pursuit of money (driven by greed).
I guess if you need a model for your antagonist, it’s the place to be. But frankly, I don’t think I’m missing anything by NOT watching any reality TV.
deborah.woehr on 20 Mar 2006 at 11:54 am #
You’re not. These shows are just empty entertainment. We can create better antagonists than these jerks.