Is original story telling dead?

[Chronitis]

Or is this just an excuse for lazy writers? Is there always an original story out there if someone just thinks hard enough?

[spadesart]

there are no original ideas out there, but everybody executes those ideas in a different way.

unless you mean overusing generic tropes?

[punkarsenic]

depends on your definition of original?

obviously original storytelling isnt dead, because were not all writing fanfiction and rewriting old stories and nothing else. theres always a level to which a story can be perceived as unoriginal, because we need to utilise references and structures familiar to our target audience - of course you cant build a story out of a void, separate from anything else ever created.

since the dawn of humanity, weve built on other peoples stories. and before that? we built on real life. oh, theres a thunder storm - bitch, you though! its a god fighting another god! then the people with the thunder gods move somewhere, and tell the people there abt thunder gods, and theyre like 'bitch you thought! they have totally different names and stories but were taking this bit and this bit.' and then later, marvel is like 'bitch, you thought! them gods are motherfucking aliens (or some shit idk our lore is full of inconsistencies.)'

originalitys overrated tbh. reference and remix and copy as much as you like, a beautiful collage is worth ten thousand crappy drawings.

[nikaalexandra]

i definitely think there's still room for original storytelling, but as @punkarsenic mentions, it's difficult for something to be COMPLETELY 100% ORIGINAL NEVER THOUGHT BEFORE! in the modern day and age. but i don't think that means that referencing and frankensteining parts of other stories to create a new sequence is a bad thing, and can in fact be super helpful when orienting an audience

idk i think with the advent of hyper-capitalism in media, where the most successful books, comics, and films being created are ones that are either sequels, retellings, or reboots because they are safe and familiar is probably what causes a lot of creators to feel like originality is dead (at least monetarily)

but i find that hard to swallow when you look on websites like tapastic or youtube and see completely unknown creators making amazing work purely for the sake of making amazing work and coming up with incredibly original and clever ideas that just aren't recognized because they're largely untested, and it's hard to get those fresh ideas out there when companies would rather support the popular and safe "money-makers"

i think that original flavor is still out there, we just gotta trust :^)

[LCT_m_a_d]

Well lets be a little more specific.

Original in what way?
Storytelling has to do more with the planning presenting and execution of an idea. It's simply a tecnical aspect. I've seen some very cliche themes presented from exceptional perspectives. That's original to me because I've never looked at something that way. Rather the idea has already "been done" is only relavant to the specific readers experiences.

I personally believe as an artist, what holds value is the experience itself. The themes may not be new but the experience itself from idea to media to reader can be.

I think what's most important is to learn to cherish the value of ideas, and become more aware of what we can takeaway from them good or bad, and how they can reflect and shape cultures.

Phrases like "Original" "creative" and "unique" are the journeyman's buzzwords. Sometimes the best way to understand something is to simply experience it and appreciate it for what is.

[DiegoPalacios]

Is not dead. Anything can be a source of inspiration for a new story. And in a quickly changing globalized world, the potential for new stories grows exponentially. Also a genre can be executed in an unusual way, and there is always the chance to create an original genre.

[IdiotWithPencil]

is originality dead? short answer: yes
long answer: well their has been roughly 10.000 years of stories in human life, the most "original" genre in the last 100 years would be science fiction and even that has gotten a bit cliche within the last decade or so,

but I think people focus to much on story and setting and forget the most crucial part of story telling, good characters and execution

their is no more original stories but that doesn't excuse cookie cutter and flat characters

[darkone4587]

Honestly as a short answer, yes, but it's been dead since we've been writing books as most stories can be attributed to a different take on classical myths or legends.
I say that everything is a remix, it might be similar to something else, but it's your own personal take on that familiar subject matter.

[gojimun]

yes, and i think that's beautiful! storytelling is a culture built upon people telling similar tales in different ways according to their own experiences. every new approach is worth something!

[ConradComics]

I keep seeing fresh stories. Some through plot construction. Some through pov changes. Some through scope. So no, I wouldn't say original story telling is dead. As with all things though, one would have to look outside pop culture to find it, since pop culture is, by design, unoriginal.

Edit: With that said, I don't think there's anything wrong with writing something mainstream. That's well within the writer's choice. I personally won't hold anyone to task for it. I mean, I doubt I'll ever purposefully write anything avant-garde, and I'm perfectly happy with that.

[ahkwardkat]

I do not think original is dead. I think that fanbased or comic that use something from everyday actual events are simply more prevalent. I mean look at the top comics, a lot of them are episodal or slice of life based on real events, not made up original ones. People cn often relate, thus they tend to be more popular. Or they are already told stories with a really neat twist or fan-based series that already have a base to be attracted to the comic. Both are smart ways to get larger numbers more quickly.

The brand new originals struggle BECAUSE they are original. They are new, or possibly use a less common or less popular "base". My own comic, Naor, is a murder mystery. That really is not a super popular idea. However my twist is the accused and accuser are animals, not people. So Ireally think it will vary depending on a lot of circumstances.

Check out "Prologue Covers" from Naor: Murder of an Island on Tapas https://tapas.io/series/Naor/ep1

[joe_galindez]

When the second story ever to be told, was told, critics judged it to be derivative.

[jpnakashima]

As some have said, it's all about how you tell your story, and for that, there are endless ways

[XzynderVexymous]

When it comes do to basics, there is no such thing as “original”. What it means now is to take an idea and put a spin to it.

For example, a girl goes to school and falls in love. Not really original right? What if I said she falls in love with her ex-bf that she broke up with 6 times. Now it’s completely original.

Hmm, maybe I should use that... haha.

[shazzbaa]

I don't feel like it's a terrible important element. A story feeling fresh and different can definitely make a good idea more interesting, but just being original doesn't make it compelling or good.

[Doubtcent]

Technically, yes. Practically every story element comes from something else, but a take on a story can be original. Much like we all have similar life experiences, but no one lives the exact same life.
Plus, old stories will be forgotten, which will open up the originality atmosphere up.

[Wumbl]

I think you're confused between story telling and plot outlines.
Are original plots (the events occurring in a story) dead? No, but I can see why people consider it dying. A lot of people don't pay attention to unique ideas because people like familiarity. It's always been that way though, which is why a lot of classic creators didn't gain notoriety until they died or something.
Is original story-telling dead? No. Story-telling is in the style of the creator. Every creator has some kind of unique trait that tells their work apart from others and this will never die.