Undefined Delirious Oversight

Unconditional nerd for FearTWD, QueerTWD, and Clexa. Theorising, speculating or otherwise discussing the shows and/or characters I like is always welcomed (including The 100 canon S3 universe)

[undefineddeliriousoversight-blog]

Somewhere to belong

Source: http://thecatsbian.tumblr.com/

My mind was still reeling from the utter betrayal at the hands of Jason when the fandom did something I’d never seen before and created the character of Elyza Lex. An Australian badass stuck in a different apocalyptic world seeking the other half of her soul; Alicia Clark.

A lot of our frustration, hurt, and rebellious creativity went into her character. I loved it and started imagining a version of my own. At the time we just really needed a character we could call our own, a character the TV industry couldn’t infect with the lesbian death syndrome, a character that would survive against all odds no matter what.

The essence of Elyza Lex

But who is she really? Most stories seem to have a common consensus on who she is; originally from Australia, a bit of a loner on the road, and utterly loving her bike and shotguns, if not a bit trigger happy at times. Details of her past vary per story or don’t matter all that much while romancing Alicia.

Like most everyone else I began exploring her character too and while I wanted to work on a story starting her adventure at the beginning of the apocalypse, the most important conclusions I came to probably weren’t how Elyza’d work as a photographer for a private investigating bureau in Los Angeles, or that she’d live with one Linzi Reyez, a genius mechanic, majoring in automotive engineering. Nor how she’d become involved in a case of missing teens dying mysteriously from  isolated ‘animal’ attacks in shooting galleries.

The essence of her character lies within all of us. When Lexa died by that stray bullet something changed, enough was finally enough. Burning down Hollywood was not an option from the other side of the pond, but we certainly could flip a finger or two and turn our backs on canon TV and movies. The soul of Elyza is rooted in that heartache and a rebellious hunger for something more than the scraps we’re given. To find that place where we could burrow in loving arms. We put a little piece of ourselves in her character that continued to grow right alongside us as we crawled back out of that hole and started fighting for better representation on TV. Elyza Lex is the refusal of letting the negative things rule our life, but instead to fight for more, for better, to not give up even if we have to change the world by sheer determination alone.

The balance in the relationships

This is exactly what I found that most if not all of the Elyza Lex stories I’ve read have in common. And while I love all the romances out there between Elyza and Alicia, what I love even more is the Clexa story. It’s different from most Lexark stories in the sense that it’s not solely focused on the romance and set in a world we get to explore. Aside from how that love story arc is grounded in the overall story, the power dynamic between Clarke and Lexa is more or less balanced, where they each complement one another. This I see is missing in a lot of stories.

Clexa had on the one side the soft and squishy hearted badass that can physically out perform any woman or man in a duel to the death, on the other side we had a sly genious still learning to survive on the ground, but with a razorsharp mind and able to influence the minds around her. Even Lexa with the added benefit of Alie 2.0 was at times outclassed in strategizing against Mt. Weather and the steadfast determination of Clarke to save the ones she cares about.

@leeshy-loo-squid-squad​ is right when she brings up the power dynamics between Elyza and Alicia. The roles seem switched in this universe, with Elyza being the physical badass, but Alicia often lacks the characteristics that made Clarke a badass in her own right. That’s not to say that I want to see a complete role reversal, but upping Alicia’s character wouldn’t hurt.

The thing is, a lot of stories take the Alicia Clark from S1 and set her up with a (more) fully developed Elyza Lex. And at this point there’s been little development yet in Alicia. Though I’m often joking that we’re seeing Commander Lexa grow up in a different kind of world, because Alicia’s character certainly has that potential to become a great leader. Over the course of the seasons I certainly can see her character developing more and more towards that strong young woman who’s becoming a threat, not to be taken lightly, all on her own.

[heartlessharless]

5 ways to increase/decrease suspense in your writing

Suspense is one of the trickier parts of writing to manage effectively because, as the author, you can’t experience your story the way a reader does. If you don’t have enough suspense, it can be difficult to keep your readers interested. If you have too much, frustrated and stressed-out readers might throw your book against the wall. Too much suspense can even backfire - if you try to keep your readers constantly on edge, they can stop taking things seriously and the end result is as though you never included any suspense at all.

So how can you tell if you’ve reached the right balance? Unfortunately, I can’t answer that for you. Some things really do require feedback from honest and insightful readers. Once you have that feedback, however, there are easy tricks to adjusting the level of suspense without a drastic re-write. Here are my five favorite methods.

Promises and Payoffs

INCREASE SUSPENSE by promising something huge and then giving your reader something unexpected. To borrow an example from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, imagine a teenage boy and girl sneaking into an empty building. Everything from the costumes to the lighting is designed to make you uneasy about the girl’s safety but, in the end, she’s the vampire. Give the audience something sensational and they won’t be disappointed that you didn’t deliver on what you originally promised.

DECREASE SUSPENSE by promising less than you plan to deliver. For example, if you plan to kill off a character as they walk through a dark alley, let them worry about being mugged rather than murdered. Not only is it less suspenseful, the payoff is more shocking.

Characters are Crucial

INCREASE SUSPENSE by shifting the focus to a character who’s more involved in the action or one who has more at stake. Even if you have a single POV character, another can come in and demand that character’s attention, along with the readers’.

DECREASE SUSPENSE by focusing on a character who’s more concerned with a secondary goal. Subplots are a fantastic way to give your readers some room to breathe.

Calm vs. Chaos

INCREASE SUSPENSE by cutting back on the action. Suspense flourishes in the quiet moments when your characters have time to think and to anticipate what may be in store for them.

DECREASE SUSPENSE by giving your characters a big, exciting mess to deal with. Even when that mess causes more problems and puts more pressure on your characters in the long run, you’ve still created an oasis where both they and the readers are too distracted to worry about how the big picture will pan out.

Devil’s in the Details

INCREASE SUSPENSE by concentrating on the details of the setting. Horror movies are great at this - every creak of a door, every shadow across a wall keeps the audience immersed in the experience and tense with anticipation.

DECREASE SUSPENSE by breaking the “show, don’t tell” rule and allow exposition to help you move things along. You don’t need to take readers through every aspect of your story in excruciating detail. It’s okay to gloss over some things and it helps readers relax because they know you’re not going to be springing any surprises on them just yet.

Ticking Time-Bomb

INCREASE SUSPENSE by imposing a deadline that your characters struggle to meet. It’s one of the oldest and most obvious tricks in the book, but very effective.

DECREASE SUSPENSE by allowing your characters to believe that the deadline has been met or pushed back. If they (and the readers) believe that they’ve accomplished their goal or bought themselves more time, it relieves pressure and allows everyone to relax until the truth’s revealed.

[ladyknightrps]

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