[Balancing light and darkness; source.]
I've been blogging about writing in a more literary fashion. One thing authors have struggled with is finding the right balance between light and darkness. Some authors intentionally keep their pieces light. Modern versions of fairy tales often have almost all light with very little darkness. Yet the human experience rarely reflects this kind of existence. If it's a book specifically for children, this makes sense. But if it's for an older readership, there ought to be some kind of real challenge, some kind of difficulty or experience grappling with the darkness of this world. If there's no real challenge/struggle/drama, there's no story. However, a story that is unremittingly dark can overwhelm and turn off many readers. Part of the point of writing is to entertain and to bring enjoyment to someone's life. Most people don't find enjoyment when a piece is either all dark or all light.
[source.]
So where can a writer find that balance? Part of it is in the genre. How much light or darkness is appropriate for the genre you're pursuing? To find this, it's a great idea to read a lot of that genre. Familiarize yourself with how others balance light and darkness. Read materials about writing that genre. You can push the envelope one way or another, but most people have certain expectations for the level of light or darkness and will find the experience of reading your book unpleasant if you stray too far outside the norm.
[Hamlet]
Shakespeare is a good model for balancing light and darkness. He writes characters with both light and dark aspects and tends to alternate dark scenes with light scenes. A good model for this is "Hamlet" with the porter scenes. We get a heavy, dark scene of Hamlet learning his father was murdered by his uncle, who now inhabits the throne and is married to his mother. That is immediately followed by the porter scene, the source of the knock knock joke, full of whimsy and humor. Another source for light would be love, hope, and joy. However, I once read a book that went predictably back and forth like a wavelength, joy then sadness then joy then sadness then joy then sadness. It got a little old and redundant.
[Map your balance; source]
When you have a draft, I would recommend mapping out your areas of light vs darkness. If it feels like there is too wide a span where it's one or the other, it may be a good idea to lighten the dark scenes with a bit of humor/hope or darken the light scenes with foreshadowing of hardship to come. This doesn't mean undercut the emotional depth with humor. It helps when the darkness and light can appear together, one enhancing the other as in a painting.
[source]
The story needs to be balanced, but the first step is often to balance your characters, particularly hero and villain. If you have a character who is just too dark with no redeeming characteristics, think of a way to help the reader see their point of view, even if the point of view is not one the reader can condone. Show his/her humanity. If you have a character that is so light that he/she becomes a Mary Sue, perfect without flaw, it's time to consider flaws that work within the context of the story. Snow White is only a perfect Mary Sue in Disney. In the Grimm Brothers' version, the evil queen reflects Snow White's own vanity, selfishness, and other dark traits back at her. In destroying the queen, she's symbolically destroying the darkness from her own soul. It's best when you plan these flaws from the beginning, so the story actually works as a way to help them work through those flaws, so the darkness springs somehow from or relates to the character him/herself. Jane Austen's Emma highlights a character whose drama and exploits spring out of her own selfishness and ego. Dr. Jeckyll self destructs--taking many people with him--because of his hubris and his drive to create a perfect world, instead, turning himself into a serial killing creature born of nightmares.
It's important to figure out what balance would work for your story. Are your characters a mix of dark and light? Does this balance keep them intriguing? Does your story balance dark and light in a way that works in your genre and with your plot line? If not, it's time to work on it.
