Elliot Kessler

With the release of Liar’s Legacy as an eBook and paperback, I’ve had a question on my mind that has been bugging me quite a bit recently. What next? Now that my first novel is out of the way, what do I write about now? What kinds of stories can I conceive?

I’ve been debating between two kinds of stories: the ones that are meant to entertain and the ones that are intended to make the reader think. One is filled with action and wonder. It is filled with conflict and is constantly on the move. The other is filled with ideas and questions. It takes its time to think and reflect on the nature of humanity and morality.

I enjoy both. I’m a huge Star Wars fan, which is filled with action and excitement. My adrenaline gets going, and I sit on the edge of my seat. But I’m also a big fan of the film Arrival and C. S. Lewis’s Space Trilogy, which are both slower, deeper stories that examine humanity. I love both kinds of stories.

So, since I enjoy both, should I flip-flop back and forth between the two? Should I write an action-focused, plot-heavy thrill ride first, then switch to a slow, thoughtful, meditative story next? Or should I focus on one kind of story over another?

As I thought about these questions and went through the pros and cons of both styles, I came to a conclusion. I don’t need to choose. I can do both.

H. G. Wells’s War of the Worlds is a thrilling adventure where the narrator tries to survive an alien invasion. It’s also a look at colonialism from the side of those being invaded. It’s an exciting, action-heavy story filled with tense moments and a thoughtful, intriguing look at humanity.

Inception is a heist film where a group of characters must enter a man’s subconscious through his dreams. It’s filled with tons of fun action and unique fight scenes. It’s also about the conflict of fantasy versus reality. Is escapism a good thing? What happens when we focus so much on our dreams we lose track of reality? Can our dreams become our reality?

Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game is the story of a genius boy who must be trained to be an admiral before the aliens who nearly wiped out humanity decades ago return. It’s action-packed with terrifying obstacles and astronomical stakes. It also questions the human mind. To understand your enemy enough to defeat him, you must first love him. It’s so intriguing and so thrilling at the same time.

The best kinds of stories are the ones that marry action and excitement with intriguing thoughts and moral questions. They use the outer conflict of the plot to illustrate the philosophical conflict of the story. They aren’t mutually exclusive. It’s not as though you can’t have one without the other. In fact, it’s better to have both of them simultaneously rather than casting aside one and focusing almost exclusively on the other. It’s an important balance that is extremely difficult to figure out. But I’m confident that I’ll be able to do both with enough time and practice. I’ll be able to deliver an enthralling, exciting story with tons of interesting ideas and questions that will make readers think about the book long after they finish the final page.

I’m sure that, if you want to, you can do the same. You simply have to learn and keep learning while writing story after story. It’s a lot of work, I’m sure, but I’m equally as sure that it will be worth it in the end, and the stories you deliver will be incredible.

Thanks for reading! Have a fantastic day.

Be sure to check out my debut novel, Liar’s Legacy! It’s a thrilling Sci-fi adventure about guilt, redemption, and friendship. If you love fun stories filled with heart, this book is for you! Get it here!