(The sound of a pen scratching). LOGO. Hellooo everybody! An ENORMOUS thank you
to everyone who already pre-ordered a copy of The Savior's Sister! Thanks to
you guys, TSS reached number one (#1) on Amazon! This is
a big milestone for me and it means the world to me! I really, REALLY appreciate
you guys showing support for TSS, and I am SO excited for you to read Leila's
story! Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! And keep
pre-ordering! Moving on, today we're talking about friendship and how much it
sucks...sort of, not really. I asked you guys which tropes you’d like me to
rip apart next and the landslide majority vote was friendship! Sidekicks,
besties, friends to enemies, enemies to friends - we’re dissecting all that shit! Before we get started, I want to give a shout out
to Book Brush who has graciously sponsored today's video! Book Brush is
a super helpful platform that allows writers to create a wide range of
marketing images for their books. I'm talking teaser quotes, social media
banners, Amazon ads, box sets, and even book covers! I make nearly all of my
marketing images through Book Brush. If you've been following me on social media
then you've definitely seen this in action! The quality of the images is
gorgeous, the designs are super professional, and the platform is beyond
easy to use. Even if you're not tech savvy, you'll be fine. Book Brush has an
instant mock-up feature that allows you to create hundreds of mock-ups of your
books in minutes. I actually use those mock-ups as the end cards for my videos.
But even if you make your own marketing image from scratch, it's super easy and
I'm gonna show you how to do that right now.
So, I'm here on Book Brush and I've opened up their Custom Creator. First
things first is to select an image size. I'm going to do an Instagram image. Then
we move over here to templates. You can choose from community templates or saved
templates, but I'm going to start something from scratch. I think I want
fireworks. Ooh, lots of options. Now, if the image isn't exactly what you
want, you can always add an overlay. Here are some of the overlays to choose from.
For The Savior’s Sister, I've been using this one a lot.
Perfect! Now we move on to the books! As you can see, there are a ton of different
books to choose from - even box set templates! Once you choose one you want,
you click on the cover you want to upload - BAM! Okay, once you're comfortable
with the size, you can move on to the text. “Hardbacks and paperbacks.” You can edit the
text as you would any text editor. You can change the font, the size, the color,
add some shadow. If you want to add more text, go for it!
Once you've got everything laid out the way you want, you can move on to stamps.
You can use stamps that have star ratings, you can use stamps that show
where your book is available. I’ll put a little stamp here in the corner, I think
it looks nice! I think the image is done! So all you do is click ‘download,’ select
the file you want, and just like that - you have your very own marketing image ready
for you to use however you please! Wasn't that fun? Book Brush has a special deal
just for you guys! I will give you the details at the end of this video!
First, I am breaking down the ten (10) friendship tropes that I absolutely
DESPISE in fiction. Please note this is my personal opinion, not objective fact.
If you disagree, that is your prerogative. And if you'd like to hear more of my
rants, or if you want some advice regarding the craft of writing or
information about the publishing industry, definitely subscribe to my
channel and ring that bell! I post content on Wednesdays and bonus content
on Mondays. And of course, don't forget that my upcoming dark fantasy novel The
Savior’s Sister is currently available for presale all over the place! I have the
information listed below, along with information about the presale giveaway,
check it out! Get on it! Yeah! On to the tropes! Number One (1): The
friend-zoned loser. This is a trope you can find in pretty much every genre of
fiction. The main character’s got a skinny boner for his smart, beautiful, and
flawless best friend. But she doesn't feel the same way, and he
just can't figure out why. It's cause you're a loser, dumbass! He's stupid, he's
annoying, he's entitled, and as much as he insists he's a nice guy,
he's really not. I'm so sick of seeing this trope! We are supposed to root for
the guy and wish that the woman would see just how great he is, and maybe I
would feel that way if he WAS actually great, but he's not. He's a stale cat turd
that nobody wants to fuck. Just because you're a guy with hormones doesn't mean
every heterosexual woman is required to like you back. Get your life together, and
maybe I'll ship you with Pretty Mc Perky-Tits.
Number Two (2): The friend-zoned hunk. This is the polar opposite of the previous trope.
We usually see this in Young Adult fiction, especially if the main character
is a girl involved in a love triangle. Two guys are madly in love with her. One
is her best friend since childhood. He is tall, he's smart, he's gorgeous, and he
just so happens to be the nicest guy in the world who is always there for her no
matter what. The other is a petulant douchebag with a six-pack and good hair.
Guess which one she's gonna choose? Bestie Mc Hunk-Face should be a
shoo-in. He is literally flawless, but she always ends up choosing the asshole, who
you just know is the kind of guy who constantly insists on ditching condoms
because they feel weird. How is this trope so common that it's actually a
cliche? Who is enjoying this trope? I just want to talk. Love yourself!
That's all I'm saying. Number Three (3): Ugly girl, pretty girl. The best friend is
beautiful with a swan neck, golden locks, and curves in all the right places. But
the main character is a short, ugly cave troll and she's bitter about it. It's
fine if an ugly girl and pretty girl become friends. I'm just tired of the
envy it produces, at least in fiction. If you resent your friend’s appearance -
something they can't entirely control - maybe you shouldn't be friends. I will
say I do love this trope when it's properly subverted. An ugly chick and a
hot chick are best friends and there's zero resentment in that regard
whatsoever, but I'm not gonna read a book about a
girl moping because she has a unibrow and her best friend doesn't. Just wax it,
dumbass. Number Four (4): Guys and girls can't be friends...’cause genitals! Look, if you
can't be friends with another person just because your genitals fit together
you need to grow up. My pee pee fits into her pee pee, gross! It's extra annoying
when this shit is perpetuated in fiction because it's not remotely realistic. Do
friends sometimes thirst for one another? Of course. It happens! But sometimes
friends...are just friends. Sometimes guys and girls like each other's personality
and nothing more. Sometimes it's because they're not each other's type. Sometimes
it's because the boy likes boys and the girl likes girls. If you can't write a
convincing friendship between different genders, I am convinced you're nine years
old. You can't change my mind. Number Five (5): The lone gay. In a group of ten (10) or more
friends, we've got a single, solitary gay. You know, for diversity! First of all, one
out of ten ain't diversity. Pretty sure that's just a token. Second, I believe
this friendship group for about zero seconds. Like attracts like, people are
friends with those they can relate to. Unless they live in an area where the
pickings are slim, queer people are far more likely to befriend other queer
people, ‘cause straights are kind of boring. Of course there are exceptions, maybe
they've been best friends since childhood. Maybe they're a found family
of misfits. But nine times out of ten, you're more apt to find a massive group
of queer friends with a lone straight, versus the other way around.
Number Six (6): The asshole friend. In so many books, there is always one friend who is
a complete and utter asshole. If they're female, they're usually a mean girl or a
bully. If they're male, they're usually a raging misogynist. But the kind hearted
main character is close friends with this person, often even best friends. They
see the good in them, and my question is, “Why?” I can understand if you're stuck
with this person and clearly very annoyed by them, but in any other
situation, why are you voluntarily spending your
time with them? It works for love interests, as well. If the main character
is presented as this ‘heart of gold’ do-gooder and their best friend or
love interest is a flaming pile of shit, you're activating my side
eye. We are a reflection of the people we choose to surround ourselves with. If
your best friend is a piece of shit, you're probably a piece of shit too.
Number Seven (7): The one-sided friendship. This is very common when we've got a
book with a hero and a sidekick. The main character has a goal they're trying to
achieve and the sidekick is hovering around like, “Yes, master. Whatever you say,
master.” I get that the main character's story IS the story, so we need to focus
on them. However, I expect there to be some indication that the friend has a life of
their own. Are they dating anyone? Got any hobbies? Or do they exist solely to throw
out zingers and suck the main character’s dick? Not only will this prevent me from
believing the friendship, it'll also make me hate the characters involved. The MC
is some kind of douchey taskmaster and the best friend has about as much agency
as a paper bag. Number Eight (8): Perfect harmony. I don't know if it's just me, but
I've noticed a trend in fiction where best friends just get along perfectly.
They never fight, they never argue, they just agree on all things, ‘cause the author
said so. I think this is the author's attempt of showing how well they get
along, but I'm gonna call bullshit. Cliff is my best friend and sometimes we
disagree. Doesn't mean we're in a fight - it's often playful and funny, but we are
still separate people with our own opinions. And even if it is an argument,
so what? Friends fight. They get on each other's nerves. I'd like to see more
instances where friends bother one another, because that's how relationships
work. It's not all perfect harmony and unwavering support. People are flawed and
rub one another the wrong way. I wanna see THAT in the next book I read.
Number Nine (9): The fight. This is the opposite of the last point. They’re best
friends, have been for years, decades! Then they get into one fight. THE fight. It
usually isn't very serious. One of them is dating a jerk or maybe they're
spending too much time at work. You know, dumb shit. But they can't recover. The
friendship is over. Over ONE fight. Seriously? Friends fight.
It happens. And if you've been friends for decades, it's probably happened a lot.
How did this one fight over something so trivial destroy the foundation of
your friendship? I could understand if you’re acquaintances, but best friends?
Unless your friend fucked your wife, or fucked your mom, or fucked anyone of
importance, really, this should be something you can bounce back from. Dial
it back a bit, the drama’s TOO damn high. And lastly, Number Ten (10): Friends to enemies, back to friends again. You used to be best friends, but then she fucked your
boyfriend, killed your dad, and set your house on fire. But now you're friends
again, because redemption arcs are on trend. I know I said friends should be
able to bounce back from a fight, but there is a HUGE difference between THAT
and tolerating repeated abuse, and then allowing the person to come back into
your life. Have you no pride, or at least standards? Look, I'm willing to overlook a
lot of flaws, like not respecting the Oxford comma, or listening to Taylor
Swift. But if you become my full-blown enemy, like ‘trying to ruin my life’ status,
that bridge is burnt. I don't care if it's fiction, write some characters with
some goddamn common sense! So that's all I got for you today! A huge thank you to
Book Brush for sponsoring today's video! I am a HUGE fan of their platform! They
are so easy to use and I use them for nearly all of my book marketing images.
And right now, you can get 20% off any paid plan on Book Brush using code JENNA20. This will give you 20% off each year you're on one of their paid plans, so if
you need any marketing images - which, let's face it, most authors do - definitely
check it out! JENNA20. The link is below! Get on it! Don't forget to subscribe to
my channel! I post new videos on Wednesdays, and if you want to be alerted
as SOON as I upload, you HAVE to ring that bell. I post tons of bonus content
on Mondays. You don't want to miss out! Ring it! The Savior’s Sister is available
for pre-order right now, and I'm hosting a massive presale giveaway! I'm handing
out over thirty-five (35) prizes! All of the information is listed below, pre-order a
copy and enter the giveaway! And be sure to follow me on social media! I'm on
Instagram, Tumblr, Facebook - and of course, you can Tweet me @JennaMoreci. Bye! (Male Voice) Hey,
this is Nick, the voice of Tobias and the narrator for The Savior's Champion,
written by our Jenna! If you enjoy her writing advice,
or if you want to find out about her publications, then you know what to do!
Click the subscribe button, ding the bell, and you'll get notified every single
time she puts up a video or she goes live! Now what are you waiting for?
