Hello Everyone,

I just wanted to chat off the cuff about some of my writing preferences regarding tropes.

One of the tropes I don't like is the "Secret Identity" trope when it's written in a way that forces the other characters to remain oblivious to all of the signs and facts right in front of them. The hidden CEO trope, for example, oftentimes requires the other lead to see proof that a person is rich and powerful, but they must believe the foolishness and silly excuses given. And the whole time, it means that one character is lying to the other, treating them as if they are stupid, and even when the other character tells them, "Betrayal is what I hate most," they use that as an excuse to keep lying because now they just can't "find the right time to tell them the truth."

Should they be shocked when the other person feels like they've been made a fool of? Even if you were saving the day, you still chose to be dishonest for no good reason. Because once the truth is out, the only conflict that remains is the fact that the relationship was built on a lie. Why create that problem for yourself? Since I don't like characters and stories like that, I don't write them.

In fact, the only "Secret Identity" trope I wrote was for my Ruthless Vigilante series, where it makes sense for someone to hold onto their identity at all costs. Whatever I write has to make sense to me. I tend to be a very literal person, and if the story and characters aren't logical, I can't engage. Even if one character is being irrational and making mistakes, there will be another character to tell them they're "f**king up and better straighten up."

I write that way because I trust that my readers also want logical stories and characters, even in fictional worlds, where the thoughts in your heads are also expressed by the characters. Isn't that fun?

Well that's all for this newsletter on my insights. I'll write more in the future. Stay tuned, stay subscribed for more.

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Much Love,

Always,

Nick