"Oh C'mon! They can't do that!!"

Suspension of belief is a tricky thing.


I don't know how it is for other writers, but in order for me to write a particular scene, I visualize it happening in my head like a movie. Often while listening to dramatic soundtrack or movie trailer music. (Believe it or not, there are music producers who do nothing but trailer music. Look up "Two Steps from Hell" on YouTube and see what I mean.) Anyway, while this may put me in a mindspace for fantasy/sci-fi writing, it does have a drawback in that I tend to visualize characters doing what I often see in the movies, TV, comics, video games, etc.


So when I want a character to leap into the air, spin on a circle and blast away with twin rapid fire blasters amid enemy cyborgs, it makes for a great storyboard for a movie, but maybe not so much for a great story. My poor co-author for Cat o' Nine, skilled in martial arts as she is, not only has to fix all my typos, but has the job of keeping me ... well... grounded. We had a long argument about the "blaster ballerina" example above during a project we were doing before Cat o' Nine. In her (qualified) opinion, once you leave the ground in a fight, you lose control and nobody who knew what they were doing would be dumb enough to attempt such a stunt. My side of the debate was pretty much limited to "Yeah, but it would be so cool!"

But in the end, she won out because in truth, I've had the same "oh c'mon, no way" moments. My personal gripe is about Legolas' "quickdraw" archery skills in LOTR.

In medieval history a trained archer with a longbow could fire around 8-12 arrows per minute. Keep in mind, we're taking about guys who practiced all the time. I have my own longbow and I've tried it. The only way I manage 12 arrows in a minute with reasonable accuracy is if the arrows are in a quiver I made for myself that's strapped to my calf, giving me a couple millisecond advantage in a pull and nock maneuver. That still leaves almost no time for aim. I have to loose my shot the moment I bring the bowstring back to the side of my cheek, sighting down the arrow as I draw. And it's exhausting. I could only keep up that rate for three minutes. I don't think I'd make the cut for archery corps back then.

Legolas' "eyeblink" draw and fire would be a rate of 1, maybe even 2 arrows per second. Do the math and he would get off 60-120 arrows a minute. With the quiver he had, he's out of ammunition in half a minute tops. I can't watch those scenes without rolling my eyes.

I guess this is why the really good authors end up doing a ton of research before they write. In Hollywood, one bullet can kill ten Indians, but this here ain't Hollywood pilgrim.