Originality is something I’ve always struggled with as a writer, blogger, and human being.
How am I supposed to stand out if I’m not unique enough? And how will I become a good writer if everything in my story is a cliche?
In this post, I’m going to talk about the myth of originality, and why your story will never be “original.” And that’s okay.
You don’t have to be original to be good.
First things first, let’s talk about how stories work.
Stories Are Not Focused On Originality.
When you think about the different elements of writing, maybe you think of plot, or characters, or theme.
There are five main building blocks of a good story:
- Characters
- Plot
- Conflict
- Setting
- Theme.
Characters are the people that inhabit your story world. Plot is what they want to achieve, conflict is whatever stands in their way. Setting is where the story happens. And theme is some truth about the human condition that you want your readers to understand after they read your book.
Notice how “being completely original” is not on this list.
Sometimes, it’s good to stand out. But it’s not one of the core requirements for a story.
Good writers focus first on learning how to write.
If you focus all of your energy on finding a perfectly original idea, before you start writing, two things will happen:
A. You won’t be able to learn how to use tropes well.
B. You won’t ever get around to writing, because there is no such thing as an original idea.
Original Ideas
I’ll say it again: there is no such thing as an original idea. And if you think you have an original idea, you’re wrong.
Chasing original ideas is like chasing after the Loch Ness monster, or going on a snipe hunt.
No matter what story idea you cook up, there will be some element of it that is a copy from another story.
Think about every book in your local library, or on the shelves at the Barnes & Noble.
Now, how many more books are published every single day? How many books are written in Mandarin, or Portuguese, or Tajik, that you’ll never be able to read?
Your book is one out of trillions and trillions of books, dating back to the ancient times.
There is nothing new under the sun.
And you know what?
That’s okay.
It’s okay if your story isn’t completely original. We can fix that.
First, Focus On You.
My last finished novel was… interesting. Since I write for myself, first and foremost, I decided I wanted to write a funny story. I needed to laugh, so I wrote a story that made me laugh.
This story was about a sarcastic teenaged girl with uncontrollable magic.
It wasn’t 100% original. Nothing is original.
I knew that going into it.
But as I was writing, one of my writer friends started working on their newest project. A story with a snarky hero and uncontrollable superpowers. Very similar to my own story idea.
I panicked, thinking that my crazy story idea wasn’t really that original.
And you know what?
I got over it.
I put my head down, kept writing my own story, and focused on making my writing as good as I could make it.
And my story got an honorable mention in a contest. So I ended with the best-case scenario.
Similarities are Okay.
It’s okay if your story is similar to someone else’s writing. Your stories won’t cancel each other out. The market isn’t that narrow.
If you have a hard time with this, just remember: readers like to stick with similar stories and genres.
I like portal fantasy books. That includes books like “The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe,” (C. S. Lewis) “A Darker Shade of Magic,” (V. E. Schwab) and “The Hazel Wood.” (Melissa Albert)
None of those books are original. In fact, I love them because of their similarities.
A certain level of similarities are good, because this helps anchor your story in one specific genre.
Find What’s Wrong and Fix It.
If you can realize that something in your story is cliché, you probably know how to fix it.
Or at least you know what needs to be fixed.
Let’s say, for example, that you’re writing a YA fairy tale retelling. It’s about Peter Pan.
This idea by itself is not cliché.
Now let’s say you’re writing it from the point of view of Hook.
Again, it’s not a cliché. It’s not original either, but nothing is original, so it’s fine.
The problem is not your idea, the problem is how you execute it.
I’ll say that again: The problem is not the idea. The problem is how you execute it.
If your story is about Peter Pan being a psychopath and ordering lost boys to kill each other, that’s the plot of “Lost Boy” by Christina Henry.
Originality does not come from your idea. It comes from the way you write that idea.
So how are you supposed to stay away from cliches?
Add your “but.”
Nothing is original. You just have to add your own twist.
If you’re writing a Peter Pan retelling, grab a notebook and write something like this:
“A Peter Pan retelling, BUT”
And then fill in the blank.
“A Peter Pan retelling, BUT Hook is an sixteen year old girl.”
Another example: you’re writing a story about a young boy with magical powers, who goes to a magic school to learn how to defeat the dark lord.
So you might write: “A magical boy goes to school in order to defeat the dark lord, BUT the dark lord is his mother.” Or “BUT the school is an illusion, controlled by the dark lord.” Or “BUT he secretly wants to join forces with the dark lord.”
See how many different twists we can put on one simple idea?
Now that you have one “BUT,” add another one.
“A Peter Pan retelling, BUT Hook is an sixteen year old girl, BUT–“
But what?
But Peter Pan is actually a drug lord? Or the story is set in the time of the Vikings? Maybe it’s set in modern day Iraq?
Now that is a unique idea.
(It’s still not original! Remember, nothing is original. You’re still taking bits and pieces from other stories and combining it into your own work. However, this is a pretty unique idea, and unique is what we want.)
Read More Fiction
If all your readers keep telling you that your story is too cliched, but you’ve been a writer for years, this means you need to read more fiction.
Some writers tend to fuss about this. They say, “I’m scared to read while I’m writing a book, because then I might accidentally copy the book.”
In reality, this is a cover up for one of two excuses.
A. They don’t want to read because then they’ll find out that their story isn’t actually original.
or B. They don’t want to read because they don’t have an original writing voice established, and their writing style changes with the slightest push.
In all frankness, how the frick frack do you expect to write a good story if you never actually read stories?
You have to know what’s being published. You have to know what connects with readers today.
Not just books from the 1900s, not just Jane Austen or Charles Dickens. Books that are coming out this year. Books from the last three years that still top the bestseller charts.
Also, you get new ideas from reading other people’s work. Do you really want to put yourself in an idea draught while you’re writing?
Read books.
Read lots of books.
Every night before you go to bed, read one chapter. Read romance, and fantasy, and historical fiction, and horror.
Don’t put yourself under literary siege while you’re trying to write!
If you’re in the category of writers who struggle with their writing style, take a break. Read some books. Then come back to writing.
If you don’t know what to read next, you should follow my book account on Instagram!
I’m at @lauryn.reads
(Shameless self promo, go check it out!)
And if you’re just trying to avoid seeing your ideas in someone else’s story, check out my post on writer’s jealousy HERE.
To Sum Up
There is no such thing as an original story idea.
In the end, all stories come from the same four conflicts: human vs. human, human vs. nature, human vs. the supernatural, and human vs. self.
And really, we’re all just remixing the same alphabet.
So don’t be hard on yourself if your idea is not “original.” Just work on finding your own twist.
Keep reading, and keep brainstorming ways to put a new spin on your story ideas.
And be encouraged. It does get easier with practice.
Do you struggle with the concept of originality? How do you overcome it?
Thanks for reading, and I’ll be back soon with a new blog post!
~Lauryn
This is so true. When you take into account just how long humans have been telling stories and just how many stories have been told, it’s hard to imagine that anyone can create anything that is 100% original and new. But the point isn’t to be 100% new. The point is to make a new version of an old thing. It’s to make your version of an old thing. Because even if there are elements in your story that the world has seen before, they’ve never seen anyone do it the way you can. And if you read through your story and find that it’s too cliché, then that’s a problem for the edits. When you start off, just have fun and tell whatever story you want to tell. Get the ball rolling, and then if you want to shake it up later, at least then you’ll have something to work with.
So true! I love how you said this. The most important thing is to have fun with your writing! And you can always worry about cliches later.
(This is Lauryn by the way! I’m writing from my phone, so for some reason I have a different username lol)
This is so true!! I used to worry so much about making sure my ideas were unique enough, but now I don’t worry about it as much because I know that it’s ok to use “old” ideas. And reading great literature (both old and new) has given me so many great ideas! One thing I’ve found really helpful in the writing program I’m taking right now is choosing comp titles for each writing project. That helps ground me in a genre and gives me permission to take a few ideas from other well-known stories while putting a new spin on it.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Great points! Thanks for commenting! And yes, finding those comp titles is super helpful, not only for writing, but also for the querying process as well, if you’re going for traditional publishing.