You step tentatively into the circle on the floor.

A faint hum begins to emit from the magicmeter in the center.

The elderly wizard's eyes stare searchingly into yours as a faint blue glow creeps throughout the room.

"What?" you gasp. "What does this mean? What is happening? Who am I?"

"Why, do you not know?" he responds gravely. "You are – the Chosen One!..."

Welcome back, fantasy-lovers! Glad you've tuned in to today's tale of the special one with face of yellow (sorry, Lego Movie reference, couldn't help myself)... or, more collectively, the trope known as the Chosen One.

The Chosen One is almost the quintessential fantasy trope. Everywhere, in every guise, with every spin, the chosen one is there, it seems, breaking some norm, some standard that confines everyday human beings, with a quality that makes him or her – well, special.

Chosen ones can wear many hats. They might be chosen to fulfill a prophecy, carry out a task, or become a leader. Their rare quality might be wielding shimmery magic, or perhaps the gift of visions, or an area of remarkable talent. Power to turn invisible? Super-charisma? The options are endless.

And is it just me, or has the world of readers grown a little tired of reading about "special" people?

Yes, there is something about the uncommon, the bizarre, the exceptional, that stimulates us, excites us to read on. It gives us a pleasurable thrill to live vicariously through the lives of people who are Something, who are extraordinary, who are what we wish we were. We also like to root for the outcast – the loner – the one who is different and ostracized or reserved on account of it; and chosen ones often are just that, with good reason.

But I also think there's a new hunger growing amid fans of fantasy. They want stories about the relatable, the approachable, the real. They want to see the ordinary overcome extraordinary odds. Sometimes that aforementioned alienation between the Chosen one and the simple people of the story grows so great that the readers begin to perceive it in a different way. Instead of thinking how sad it is that the Chosen one is not understood by the rest of the world, they wonder, "What about these people? How is it for them – those soldiers and merchants and farmers, downtrodden under all the wizards and kings and drama? What is their story?"

Why are all our innkeepers dismissed as story props and superfluities? Why are our villagers (except the lucky chosen one) scorned as being illiterate, uninteresting characters – as though being uneducated made them somehow less-than? Not-quite-worthy? Your job as storyteller is not to fall in with a flawed perspective, but to break it. Show your readers that these are people just as rich and varied as the erudite of the world.

Is the Chosen one trope bad? Nope. Has it burned itself out? Not yet. As the quote goes, "Write the story you want to read" – and if that's a Chosen one story, you WRITE IT. Just don't be afraid to expand either. Feel out some new paths. Maybe a Chosen one story isn't, after all, what you or your readers need right now. Do you want to create some beauty out of the normal and ordinary in the world (which is, strangely enough, immensely dazzling and extraordinary all on its own)? Go on and dazzle us. I know you can.

Tips while writing a Chosen one story:

-Don't make your Chosen one too powerful. This should go without saying. When you level-up your protagonist, you have to do the same to the antagonist (if you don't, you'll face even more absurd problems), and the higher up it gets, the more it becomes a "him-and-me" battle, alienating the protagonist from the people below.

-Do touch base with those people below. Remember that not every tavern-keeper is a round-faced man with a jolly beer belly who drops his h's. And if he is, that doesn't make him comical or stupid.

-Balance the powers or gifts you do give your Chosen one with weaknesses/repercussions. Nobody wants to read about an unstoppable social butterfly who can't do wrong and is the hottest girl ever to spring from Venus.

-Don't do anything magic/power/talent-wise without explanations. No, no three-page info-dump in the first chapter. The explanations can come later; but they've got to come. I'm not buying it that Belaina can whip fire around and communicate with peacocks "just because".

-Need I say it? Have fun!

And that's been today's fire-and-brimstone trope breaker's article! I promise, I don't know as much as I sound like I know, and what I do know probably isn't worth knowing... but if you enjoyed, be sure to check in next time!

ASK THE WRITING FAIRY

@celticwarriorqueen17 asked, "How do you write a good opening scene for a novel?"

So, the first step would be to choose a viewpoint character. The previous chapter had some excellent advise on doing just that, so I would check it out. You could go with the main character, or choose a completely random character. A lot of writers—most notably George R. R. Martin—use the opening scene to show something pertinent to the plot, but to which his main characters would not be privy.

Once you have selected your viewpoint character, I would move on to tone. I would not recommend killing someone in the first paragraph of this is meant to be a romance or a comedy. I also would not recommend laughing or joking if this is an apocalyptic novel or horror story depicting the monstrosity of the human race. Most fantasy stories don't begin with a deep existential look at the character's unfulfilled life. Setting the tone is important because it gives readers an idea what is coming. This allows gives you something to work with which propels the rest of the opening chapter. If you choose to set a somber tone, you will know how to proceed with the rest of the chapter.

Most good openings also set up either an environment (A Game of Thrones), a character (Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone), or a problem that must be solved. Character and environment is kind of easy, since you would just describe them the same way you would in a regular chapter. For setting up a problem, however, I'm going to elaborate. In the opening scene, the viewpoint character is faced with some sort of conflict. It could be minor or major. Examples include the character running from something, fighting someone, or doing something that creates tension. By the end of the chapter (or first several chapters), this problem should be resolved. Notice that most great stories do not begin with the novel's central conflict. Instead, they present a small issue which the character must deal with. In Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, Rick Riordan spends a great deal of the first chapter setting up Percy as a troublemaker and sets up his conflict with Ms. Dodds. At the end of the first chapter, it can be certain their feud is put to rest. If a character is running away from someone/thing, the character must either escape or be caught. Basically, give them a problem and have them succeed or fail.

Hopefully this has been of some help! Good luck with you opening scenes. If you have any questions about this topic or something else, please leave a comment below (seriously; we're kind of desperate).

TFF TOP FIVE

Fireborn by Carolyn_Hill

A Thread in The Tangle by SabrinaFlynn

The Gathering: Bloodmoure Chronicles by JRSheperd

Like a Witch by Seranya

The Jasper by AshlynnCrow

COUNCELOR'S SANCUTARY

Does your protagonist have a favorite article of clothing? Least favorite article of clothing? What is his/hers preferences?

What is the state of your kingdom? Fabulously wealthy? Dirt poor? Is it a newer kingdom, or does its history go back centuries?

What is your protagonist social statuses in the kingdom? Prince/Princess? King/Queen? Peasant? Noble? Or other-- maybe there's unique titles in your fantasy world?

If you could have any fantasy creature as a best friend, what would it be and why? To make it more interesting, if you had to choose any character (not necessarily the main one) in your story to be you best friend, who would it be and why? (Tell us about your character!)

What is the tone of your story? Can it be comical, or is it strictly serious? Both or other?