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Predictability is not a bad thing.
4 years ago
General
This is something I have had to come to realize a while back because one thing I did not want in my writing is to be predictable.
BUT.
Being unpredictable is not necessarily a good thing. In fact, it often does happen to be a bad thing. Doing something unexpected for the sake of being unexpected is usually a very bad idea in terms of writing. At least when it comes to very serious moments in a story. Something unexpected that has no real impact on the story, say something like a joke when a villain is talking and they lose track of what they were saying because they feel embarassed or just confused, is completely fine. Again, if the moment is not meant to keep a specific tone. Don't throw a joke at a villain when they have just defeated the hero and are about to succeed in their goal. That is a tone that generally requires the moment to be taken seriously.
Likewise, DON'T FUCKING CHANGE SOMETHING LAST MINUTE JUST BECAUSE YOUR AUDIENCE HAS PREDICTED A THING WAS GONNA HAPPEN DUE TO YOU SPENDING A LONG TIME IMPLYING THIS THING IS GOING TO HAPPEN IN A SPECIFIC WAY. (looks at Game of Thrones Arya Stark defeating the Night King instead of Jon, one of the many issues GoT had in the final season)
Just because your audience knows what is about to happen does not mean it is bad writing. In fact, you generally are doing a good job if your audience can piece together what is going on and what is going to happen. That is a very good thing. The last thing you want is your audience not knowing anything about what is going on. So... don't do that.
BUT.
Being unpredictable is not necessarily a good thing. In fact, it often does happen to be a bad thing. Doing something unexpected for the sake of being unexpected is usually a very bad idea in terms of writing. At least when it comes to very serious moments in a story. Something unexpected that has no real impact on the story, say something like a joke when a villain is talking and they lose track of what they were saying because they feel embarassed or just confused, is completely fine. Again, if the moment is not meant to keep a specific tone. Don't throw a joke at a villain when they have just defeated the hero and are about to succeed in their goal. That is a tone that generally requires the moment to be taken seriously.
Likewise, DON'T FUCKING CHANGE SOMETHING LAST MINUTE JUST BECAUSE YOUR AUDIENCE HAS PREDICTED A THING WAS GONNA HAPPEN DUE TO YOU SPENDING A LONG TIME IMPLYING THIS THING IS GOING TO HAPPEN IN A SPECIFIC WAY. (looks at Game of Thrones Arya Stark defeating the Night King instead of Jon, one of the many issues GoT had in the final season)
Just because your audience knows what is about to happen does not mean it is bad writing. In fact, you generally are doing a good job if your audience can piece together what is going on and what is going to happen. That is a very good thing. The last thing you want is your audience not knowing anything about what is going on. So... don't do that.
