Madison Dong: "Dear Max Gladstone: Blood is Thicker Than Water"

Dear Max Gladstone: Blood is Thicker Than Water

By Madison Dong

            In eight days, I will have graduated from high school. This weird, resounding statement has led to a lot of self-reflection. What are my most memorable moments from these years? My regrets? My aspirations for the future? After digging through the memory bank of all twelve years of my high school career, I can definitely conclude that my biggest takeaway from this experience is the importance of other people.

At school, especially at a residential one, my friends are a second family. The bonds we share form a beautiful network of support, laughter, naps, and food. We know each other almost better than we know ourselves, and rejoice in each other’s failures and successes as if they were our own.

So how does this relate to my thoughts on narratives?

In my opinion, the narratives that resonate for me are the ones in which the characters are so relatable and interesting that they feel real, almost like my “second family.” I can connect with and relate to them, but also be shocked by their actions; they can make me laugh, but also cry. The closer I feel with the characters, the more invested I am in the story, and the more emotional and gripping it can become.

Thus, the stories that resonate with me are ones that have relatable, interesting characters who are developed so well that I wouldn’t be surprised if I met them in real life. The specific parts of a story that resonate--the parts that have me reading into four in the morning, the parts that have me reeling for days afterwards--are the moments in which I am able to witness the major success and failures of the characters.

Stories from my childhood with deep character development still stick with me. I still rewatch all of Avatar: The Last Airbender once in a while because my mind continually wanders back to how beautifully the writers showed the maturation of Prince Zuko. Sure, it was a kid’s show, but the way that every character in the series had so much depth and development, as well as their own moments to shine and fall, really, truly resonated with me.

I love SF, but the distant style of “hard SF” such as “Fondly Fahrenheit” by Alfred Beester just doesn’t do it for me. I’m not led to care about the characters, so I don’t feel very impacted by the events that go down. However, stories such as “Hungry Daughters of Starving Daughters” by Alyssa Wong stick with me for a long time. The protagonist, Jen, has such an interesting voice that is both sassy and relatable. The reader is shown her complex romantic problems. We get to witness Jen’s temptation to consume her friend Aiko, as well as Jen’s relationship with her parents and how they’ve impacted her perspectives on life. So at the very end, when Jen is in despair, the audience can also feel impacted, and experience that emotion as if it were their own. It sticks.

To reiterate: overall, for me, the best narratives have the best characters. They paint the protagonists and antagonists as people or things that have complex pasts, thoughts, and desires, and they string me along for the emotional rollercoaster. They draw me in to empathize and invest myself in the story.

And about graduation? Well, high school has been great. I’ve come to feel very intensely for and to love the people that I’ve met, and that has carried over into the world of storytelling as well. After all of this--all the classes and late nights and adventures--I can say that in all journeys, real or imaginary, the people you meet along the way are the greatest part.