Sagas...That's What I Like

I like to think I live a relatively drama free life mostly because I do not relish confrontation over serious matters. Yelling and ranting and such, you know. And my life is pretty calm. Sure, I have my troubles and such. However, I try not to make a big deal out of them or exaggerate about them. I mean sure, we all vent a little about what troubles us, go have ourselves a bad day here and there, cry a bit, moan a bit. But I don't think I do that overly much. At least I sure do hope not!

Anyway, I'm reading this book I told you about - The Wise Man's Fear. It's one of these sagas that takes you in to a story about a character who lives a pretty dramatic life. I mean seriously. This guy lives an uber drama filled existence, if you know what I mean.

Of course, that isn't reality. Let us be honest, shall we? If life were that dramatic, who would survive it? No one. These characters never sleep, fall off of buildings, carry damsels in distress out of burning buildings, save the king from being poisoned, live through shipwrecks, survive grueling poverty, get chased down by unknown demons, are wooed by wanton women (okay I just wanted to throw that in there, although that is often a trope in said stories, actually) and yet manage to bedazzle their compatriots with wit, charm, energy, brains, talent on ZERO sleep and /or food.

And I just have to wonder why I am drawn to such stories. I am. I find them fascinating. Maybe it is exactly because my life is nothing if not pedestrian, at least in my mind. Nothing exciting ever happens on my block and all that.

That and it amazes me how a writer does it. Take Mr. Patrick Rothfuss, author of said saga. How does he manage to keep the story straight, detail after detail, layer after layer as it builds and builds? It is nothing short of brilliant, really. At times I find myself thinking, "Wow! How did he remember to incorporate that detail?" Or, "Did he think of this idea when he first started writing so that it could fit in both the first and second installment?" (Um, as an aside, because you know I am a fan of the asides, J.K. Rowling is the undisputed master of this! Hello peeps...horcruxes? She had that figured out from the first book! That is some serious writing know-how!)

So that is to say that: 1. I loves me a good saga. And while we are on that point, here are some (but only some) of the past sagas I have loved: Gone With The Wind, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Jane Eyre, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, The Pillars of the Earth, Anne of Green Gables (Hear me out on this one, folks. The girl has serious drama going on in her life. Hello! She gets her bff drunk on their first play date, sells her neighbor's prized Jersey cow, dies her hair green, splits her slate over Guilbert Blythe's head, all in the first like six chapters or so...need I go on?).

And 2. How will I ever become a saga writer? I mean really. Because I want to write a series. And it has to have drama. And I just hope I have the mental gymnastics skills to come up with crazy creative links in my stories. Things that were obviously planned from the first scene in the first story, you know? Because that is what makes a saga super special. It all comes together!