I suppose I asked for this one with all my stories about holiday disasters last week.
On Thanksgiving, my roommates and I put everything together and had a nice meal . . . sans one thing. One roomie who shall remain nameless had bought a frozen pumpkin pie to simplify things, but she misunderstood the directions on the box and thought it needed to thaw before we baked it. By the time she pulled it out of the fridge, it was a soggy, drippy mess. 😬 None of us thought it was a good idea to bake it, so we had to throw it out. Honestly, I wasn't too upset because I've never been a big fan of pumpkin pie anyway (I think it's the texture). For that reason, I'd bought an apple pie and ice cream, so we did still have something for dessert.
Tradition, I've realized over the last week or so, is a strong motivation—and sometimes the only one—for why we do certain things. But that doesn't always mean it's a good motivation. I mean, why annually choke down a food that you don't like and that really has no nutritional value just for the sake of doing what previous generations have done?
All this makes tradition a useful tool for when we need characters to do things they normally wouldn't. For instance, the main action of my fantasy WIP is triggered when the protagonist (a medieval princess) goes behind her overprotective father's back to issue the Challenge, a traditional competition for her hand in marriage. Her father doesn't find out what she's done until competitors and spectators start arriving. He's furious, but with no way to stop other guests from coming and the PR disaster that would result if he canceled the Challenge, he has little choice but to play along.
Tradition can also be a powerful trigger for characters who've been through trauma. Maybe there's nothing problematic about the tradition itself, but it reminds the character of traumatizing experiences. This is especially true of holidays, which are steeped in tradition and are often or always spent with family (who might be the source of the trauma). For example, I considered not making my family's traditional cranberry salad for Thanksgiving this year because I didn't want the reminder of my parents. But eventually I decided, "Hey, I like this stuff. I'm going to make it."
How might tradition play a role in your story? Use the social-media links at the top of this page to join the discussion!
Write on,
Candice
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