Archetypes - The Hero: Classic

As I prepare for National Novel Writing Month (which I'm actually doing in October, though I'll officially update during november -- I just have too much going on in November to do it that month) I'm re-reading my favorite "How to Write a Novel" type book - The Writer's Journey by Christopher Vogler.

Best. Writing Book. Ever.

It's basically a step-by-step guide to writing any kind of book that involves a main character going through a journey of self-discovery, be it a romance, adventure, sci-fi, fantasy, or any kind of genre, this basic guide can help you write it! It's an easy-to-understand layman's guide to The Hero of a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell. Now don't get me wrong, I love ol'Joe but his writing is dense dude! (and often gender specific).

Mostly I want to talk in this blog about the general Archetypes, and the different forms each one can take. This week will be Heroes - ie the protagonist. There are tons of types of heroes, but I'm gonna start with the classic: The Knight in Shining Armor/The Good Guy. Morally impassioned, noble, virtuous, kind, compassionate and yet brave and courageous - he will fight to save the orphaned nuns from the evil overlord of doom.

Examples of the classic hero (or heroine) are many, such as Superman, Robin Hood, Duddley Do-Right, Luke Skywalker, Will Turner in the Pirates of the Caribbean films and many more. Some female heroes that fulfull the classic type (which they're are not a lot of, because most females have a classic role of damsel in distress) Hermoine in Harry Potter Books (even though she's not "the" hero, she is one in her own right), Kagome in Inuyasha, Elizabeth in the Pirates of the Caribbean films, and even some historical figures like Boudica.

In my own works I have several as well - such as Ketlan in the Destiny Trilogy, Diyara in Pandora's Box, and I know I have more I just can't think of them at the moment (doh!).

The biggest problem with the Classic type is that it's rather boring. You don't want the hero to start out being perfect - have bouts of pointless angst - then going back to being perfect! That's not enough of a character arc and it leaves the reader unsatisfied and rooting for the villain or various allies and foes. Now, sometimes you want a good old fashioned classic hero, but these days it's often not enough unless you're going for a "classic" kind of adventure story.

Tune In Tomorrow for: Willing Heroes & Unwilling Heroes - and The Hapless Hero

One of the most recognizable "Classic" hero types: Superman!

Prince Ketlan in the Destiny Trilogy (played by Chris Hutchens) is my best example of a "classic" hero in my own writing (although the book version of him starts out more of a Hapless Hero).

10 Day Challenge - Day 10

1 Picture of Yourself

Okay, well, that's easy.

Here's a picture of me riding an elephant at the

Kansas City Renaissance Festival in 2009:

10 Day Challenge - Day 9

2 Songs

Only two songs? Dude, that's really frickin' hard to just pick 2! Oh well, here goes:

1. Aria by Chris Spheeris

This song is not only awesome, but it really did change my life. The first time I heard this song my brain overloaded with images and after listening to it about 20-30 more times I sorted the images into a basic storyline that then became the opening montage of the Destiny movie. I feel like that song lead directly to Destiny which lead to so many other things including making movies, TV shows, meeting friends, even where I went to college. Before I started making movies I was planning to major in Mythology and Folklore at Indiana University, but I chose to go to SIUC to study film (didn't get that degree, but that's okay - I like what I ended up with) and if I hadn't gone there I wouldn't have met some of the fabulous people I'm friends with now. It may be strange to say a song what "life changing" but it really kind of was.

2. To The Sky by Owl City

This is one of my current favorite songs. It's from the movie Legend of the Guardians: THe Owls of Ga'Hoole, and it's a beautiful, light, and uplifting song that includes inspiring lyrics and mythical themes (surprise surprise). I like to listen to it to start my day because it puts me in a good, positive mood.

10 Day Challenge - Day 8

3 Films

1. Megamind

This is my new favorite movie of all time. I love villains, so a villain who ends up as the hero is a movie custom made for me! It answers this very simple question: What if the supervillain actually achieved his goal of killing the superhero? It's a fantastic exploration of the "what if" scenario and I adore it!

2. 2012

I'm a disaster movie junkie -- I totally am -- and this is the Super-Mega-Mondo-King-Daddy of all disaster epics! It's got everything - tornados, earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions in Yellowstone Park - but more than that it uses mythical concepts and deep seated human fears to create a compelling story that highlights the best and the worst of humanity. Just don't watch if you have a heart problem, cause you'd die at least three time while watching it.

3. Love Actually

This is always in my top five movie lists because it looks at all angles of love in a way that most movies don't. Most movies deal with romance or familial bonds, but this movie shows every kind of love there is - parents and children, newly weds, a couple on the verge of divorce, siblings, even love overcoming the limitations of language. It was an ambitious project. as is any movie that follows multiple characters in multiple story lines. But unlike a lot of other movies that try it and fail this succeeds beautifully. I watch it every year at Christmas and any time I feel depressed by the greed and maliciousness of human society.

10 Day Challenge - Day 7

4 BOOKS

1. The Epic of Gilgamesh by some long dead Sumerian dudes

This is my favorite book because it really is the original epic adventure and pretty much contains examples of all the major universal themes found in mythology.

2. The Writer's Journey by Christopher Vogler

Best book ever for helping a writer figure out plot structure, characters, and the general story arc. It draws mostly on The Hero of a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell, but it's a LOT easier to read and uses examples from movies to explain each element discussed. Awesome book! Every writer needs to read this!

3. A Wizard in Bedlam by Christopher Stasheff

One of my favorite books of all time, and not just because it's written by my dad. It introduces a complex world that mixes sci-fi and fantasy perfectly and best of all it's an epic adventure with great characters and a heavy mixture of symbolism and mythological concepts and ideas. Fantastic book!

4. Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters

I was surprised to discover that not everyone read this in school or on their own considering it's one of most interesting and linguistically accessible books of prose poetry out there. It contains over two hundred monologues "spoken" by people who have died and now lie buried in the fictional town graveyard of Spoon River. It's a beautiful and thought provoking book, easy to read, and it completely destroys the myth of happiness and joy in "Small Town", America.

10 Day Challenge - Day 6

5 FOODS

1. Pumpkin Pie

2. Tomato Soup

3. Watermelon

4. Chocolate!

5. Tuna fish salad sandwich

10 Day Challenge - Day 5

6 PLACES YOU WANT TO GO

1. Pompeii & Herculaneum in Italy

2. Alaska to see the Aurora Borealis

3. England (especially London and Bath)

4. Teotihuacan, Mexico

5. Ireland

6. Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas