Back with another writing-related ask! And to answer your question from before, I've read most of your new girl fic from back in the day :) Rn I'm writing an evak fic based on my own private idaho, and I've gotten it pretty well laid out so far. Who knows if it'll ever see the light of day, but the thing I'm worried about is adhering too closely to the movie. Do you have any advice on how to strike a balance between your source material and your own storytelling?
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LOL, New Girl! Now I really can’t believe you’re asking me about anything relating to writing. I’d actually never written any kind of fiction prior to those, and it fucking shows. Um, thanks? But also, HOW and WHY. I feel bad that you’re coming to me for advice. I think maybe you need to approach some of the New Girl pros like @blithers or @kyrafic instead. Or some SKAM pros like @irazor, @modestytreehouse, or @nofeartina.
The only wisdom I have comes from being an amateur who consistently aims above their abilities. I don’t know how useful that is.
I’m doing a SKAM fic now which is an odd mash-up/AU version of a ‘90s detective movie called Insomnia. In it, Isak is basically repeating the path of the lead in the film, Jonas Engström. While writing, all I keep asking myself is: would Isak, as he is in this fic, a beardy 33 year-old hot mess, make the same choices that Jonas Engström makes in the film? I let that lead the story. It turns out that there are many things I just don’t believe him capable of and that leads to further questions--how does him not doing this influence what comes next? A whole fucking lot as it turns out. And it’s okay to deviate, it should.
It’s been a hot minute since I watched My Own Private Idaho--all I remember is CLEAN, LITTLE DUTCH BOY, CLEAN--so I can’t even imagine the grafting of one work to the other, but the approach would be pretty much the same, I should think. What are the similarities between your versions of these characters and their film counterparts? Are they as passive? As sad? As complacent? As hopeless? What change do they bring? Is the relationship as one-sided and if not, how does that shift everything?
You can always pick out the moments in the film that are “constants”. The ones that you absolutely need to tell your story but think hard about everything else. Is the alignment that perfect? If not, change it. Let the characters behave as they would in those particular circumstances. Have those choices lead where your story goes next. Don’t forget who Even and Isak are, at least to you.
I’m just some rando on the internet and I don’t really know shit. I’m just learning myself. I think that you probably have a better sense of what you need to do than you think. Trust your instinct. Keep the things that made you want to write this AU in the first place, but don’t be afraid to discard what doesn’t make sense.