Adaptations of classic stories are everywhere. Beyond the usual adaptations of Romeo and Juliet and Macbeth, some versions give more modern adaptations of the text. For example, everyone’s favorite teen movie of 1999, 10 Things I Hate About You, is based on William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew.
Why write a modern adaptation of a classic story?
We all know the adage “write what you know.” It’s good advice. It’s a solid approach to relatable characters and descriptions that feel real.
But when it comes to themes, this is not good advice. When it comes to themes, write what you don’t know. In fact, it’s one of the best paths to a key element of great fiction: complexity.
Good things supposedly come in threes, right? Whatever your numerical fave is, grab all your literary vitamins because today’s Theme of the Day is STRENGTH.
Do you like your characters strong or weak? Powerful or vulnerable? Invincible or a push-over?
The answer lies, as in so many things, on the golden middle path.
I just started reading The Perks of Being a Wallflower, having already seen the movie and feeling that I would like to do the work justice by also reading the book. I’m maybe 20 pages in and I can already tell that Charlie, the narrator and protagonist, has a lot of feelings. To be fair, he’s also undergoing some pretty intense stuff, so that’s understandable, but it seems like he’s very in tune with his emotions. One might say that he seems like he’d be a Feeler in the context of the Myers-Briggs type, but you’d have a skewed idea of what Feeling actually is.
