I love this scene because it really does demonstrate and back up everything the story had been telling us up til this point: Clancy Crew would never blab
Even though we know itâs convenient to the plot and reasonably he should! He knows Hitch is a safe person! But Clancy does not rat out anyone, least of all his friends, and the only reason he does finally help Hitch is when they both do a little detective work and Hitch proves to him something has happened to Ruby
And not only this but Clancy not blabbing? Reinforced throughout the series, he is a 100% loyal friend, the only time he does start to blab something I believe is when heâs given a truth serum? Or wait no I think itâs Ruby who is.
I am a huge fan of best friends to lovers ships like Percabeth, really enjoyed it when my best friend introduced me to them. But going back to the Ruby books I really really appreciate how well written Ruby and Clancyâs friendship is, I did back then and I appreciate it even more now. I appreciate it as the platonic version of everything Percabeth is, Ruby and Clancy are ride or die for one another every time all the time and you also donât really⌠feel the need for a romantic element. And sure Percabeth donât NEED romantic attraction to be loyal and such but it definitely adds more to their story, and in the case of Ruby and Clancy it just feels right that their bond is platonic, it wouldnât add anything to their story and I think the way their friendship is explored across the books is far better actually
Something I really appreciate about the Ruby books is how her friendships are written as a supporting part of the narrative rather than a conflict. Occasionally thereâs a little conflict but most of the time theyâre just presented and illustrated to us in a variety of ways as their own characters, and in relation to Ruby, and itâs just really nice because it makes her whole world more⌠alive, and I think this is a key detail a lot of stories miss out on these days. Just because characters are background characters or secondary characters doesnât mean they shouldnât be fleshed out and made interesting, as a byproduct of this I feel like we often miss out on the chance of seeing not only healthy romantic relationships that support the main character and narrative but healthy relationships full stop.
Like, yes Clancyâs her best friend and heâs a key character but in like book 5 I think her friend Del is also written into the story a bit more, we get to see her relationship with Ruby and more of her tough character, and how Ruby often has to have her back and keep her out of trouble too. In book 2 when Ruby needs to let off steam she goes to have a camp out with all her friends on the beach and we learn a bit more about her goofy friend Elliot and how he makes them all laugh, reassuring Ruby about her worries. In book 4 Iâm pretty sure we see more scenes with Red Munroe who is Rubyâs sweet but very clumsy friend and how generous and supportive she is, as well as meeting her cool mum whoâs connected to the movie business and helps Ruby out no questions asked
Yeah the characters are plot devices, but they are given really bright and interesting personalities so while they might be used as a reason for a location change and emotional development, to introduce a new clue to the mystery or to further the main plot, theyâre also really important insights into Rubyâs world. I think itâs really key that the author frames each of their interactions carefully, even if thereâs going to be a larger payoff to the plot later on itâs always grounded in a mundane but character filled moment. An example is the earlier chapter when Ruby and Clancy conned their way into a womanâs hotel room, they did not immediately go there because they have been stuck on this investigation for days and were following up a lead that one of them noticed while going over the mystery again.
They were eating pizza in a square, hanging out and chatting about the best pizza topping combinations, which is such a best friend conversation ^_^, and then they noticed a strange woman and tailed her.
Writing a story is not just about plot from A to B, you have to build the world of the story and the best way you can do that is with characters.
vaporwave
pixelskylines
blakekathryn
theartofmadeline
turnnoffyourmind
