Weekend Reading Assignment - Revenge Arc by Cat Voleur
One of the toughest things to do as a writer is to take a risk.
We are comfortable in our habits, in the way we’ve always told stories. Our audiences find comfort in the same thing. Books are books, words on paper or screen that combine to form a narrative.
And yet, even in this realm of predictability, there are ways to take risks and reap the rewards.
Cat Voleur is a friend of ours. We think the world of her as a writer and as a formatter, and her creative genius is something to behold. So when I went to see if I could find anything of hers on Apple Books, what I found was her debut novel, Revenge Arc.
I’d never really thought about someone doing a “found file” novel until I cracked open Revenge Arc. And it took me a minute to get into it. But once I did: wow! It’s a great example of a risk that pays off brilliantly.
So what do I want you to take away from it?
1. Think Outside the Box
Not every risk will pay off. I’d say here at Undertaker, maybe twenty percent of our brilliant ideas come to fruition. That’s about par for the course.
But you still need to think outside the box and search for new ways to tell stories. Writing is not a static endeavor—we should never stop trying to evolve as storytellers. So try something new. It may not work. But if it does, it may take your story to new heights.
2. Study the Minimalism in Scene Settings
Most of this story is told online, through blog posts, interviews, messages, and other digital communications. Very rarely is there a lot of detail about the environment in which the story takes place.
That’s not going to work in most stories. But Cat pulls it off brilliantly here.
Look at the details she does provide to set the scene and keep the story moving. You aren’t looking at the world, you’re looking at the documents that make up the story. It’s a novel experience.
3. Cliffhangers are Fun.
You can’t leave your readers on a cliffhanger every time. That’s how you wake up to angry crowds outside your bedroom window.
But, if you have the right story, and you can make it work, leaving your readers wondering isn’t always a bad thing. I have theories about the ending, educated guesses based on what I’ve read. But I can’t prove anything, and somehow, I find that more satisfying in this case than having everything spelled out.
We are comfortable in our habits, in the way we’ve always told stories. Our audiences find comfort in the same thing. Books are books, words on paper or screen that combine to form a narrative.
And yet, even in this realm of predictability, there are ways to take risks and reap the rewards.
Cat Voleur is a friend of ours. We think the world of her as a writer and as a formatter, and her creative genius is something to behold. So when I went to see if I could find anything of hers on Apple Books, what I found was her debut novel, Revenge Arc.
I’d never really thought about someone doing a “found file” novel until I cracked open Revenge Arc. And it took me a minute to get into it. But once I did: wow! It’s a great example of a risk that pays off brilliantly.
So what do I want you to take away from it?
1. Think Outside the Box
Not every risk will pay off. I’d say here at Undertaker, maybe twenty percent of our brilliant ideas come to fruition. That’s about par for the course.
But you still need to think outside the box and search for new ways to tell stories. Writing is not a static endeavor—we should never stop trying to evolve as storytellers. So try something new. It may not work. But if it does, it may take your story to new heights.
2. Study the Minimalism in Scene Settings
Most of this story is told online, through blog posts, interviews, messages, and other digital communications. Very rarely is there a lot of detail about the environment in which the story takes place.
That’s not going to work in most stories. But Cat pulls it off brilliantly here.
Look at the details she does provide to set the scene and keep the story moving. You aren’t looking at the world, you’re looking at the documents that make up the story. It’s a novel experience.
3. Cliffhangers are Fun.
You can’t leave your readers on a cliffhanger every time. That’s how you wake up to angry crowds outside your bedroom window.
But, if you have the right story, and you can make it work, leaving your readers wondering isn’t always a bad thing. I have theories about the ending, educated guesses based on what I’ve read. But I can’t prove anything, and somehow, I find that more satisfying in this case than having everything spelled out.