Zabé Ellor
@zrellor.bsky.social
SFF author / lit agent / latest: NO BETTER THAN BEASTS / opinions mine
💙💙💙definitely good to not be alone!
November 12, 2025 at 5:57 PM
💙💙💙definitely good to not be alone!
I think ultimately you need to know what’s inside the box from the start, and you need to write with the goal of opening the box to complement the story, not to complete it. If the mystery box becomes the story, you’re in trouble
November 9, 2025 at 9:40 PM
I think ultimately you need to know what’s inside the box from the start, and you need to write with the goal of opening the box to complement the story, not to complete it. If the mystery box becomes the story, you’re in trouble
Alleria’s hunt for Xal’atath is potentially very interesting because she’s on this obsessive journey after a woman whose power mirrors her own internal darkness, who might be the only person who can understand her. So naturally this is flattened into “get the bad guy.”
November 9, 2025 at 8:35 PM
Alleria’s hunt for Xal’atath is potentially very interesting because she’s on this obsessive journey after a woman whose power mirrors her own internal darkness, who might be the only person who can understand her. So naturally this is flattened into “get the bad guy.”
There’s something potentially very interesting about him being a young monarch with Dark Iron heritage and having cultural ties to two very different clans, the son of a forbidden marriage, who never knew his father, and that is never explored. It’s baffling.
November 9, 2025 at 8:34 PM
There’s something potentially very interesting about him being a young monarch with Dark Iron heritage and having cultural ties to two very different clans, the son of a forbidden marriage, who never knew his father, and that is never explored. It’s baffling.
The dwarves are sort of the most interesting characters here, considering how invested they are in the titans as part of the search for the meaning of their lives. I was really expecting to like Dagran in TWW. But he’s written very flatly.
November 9, 2025 at 8:32 PM
The dwarves are sort of the most interesting characters here, considering how invested they are in the titans as part of the search for the meaning of their lives. I was really expecting to like Dagran in TWW. But he’s written very flatly.
MoP-era Anduin discovering there were fundamental flaws in the ideology he clung to in the face of his father’s abuse is interesting. Growly Beard Dude learning this secret is dull
November 9, 2025 at 8:28 PM
MoP-era Anduin discovering there were fundamental flaws in the ideology he clung to in the face of his father’s abuse is interesting. Growly Beard Dude learning this secret is dull
Second, I think the story relies too much on cosmic mystery and not enough on characterization. I don’t care nearly as much about the secrets of the titans as I do how the characters will interact with them.
November 9, 2025 at 8:26 PM
Second, I think the story relies too much on cosmic mystery and not enough on characterization. I don’t care nearly as much about the secrets of the titans as I do how the characters will interact with them.
So I really don’t have faith in the game to deliver the big narrative twist I’ve been waiting for. There’s no indication the story is willing to interrogate the expectations laid out in the original lore
November 9, 2025 at 8:24 PM
So I really don’t have faith in the game to deliver the big narrative twist I’ve been waiting for. There’s no indication the story is willing to interrogate the expectations laid out in the original lore
After Xe’ra, there was lots of speculation we would see light-aligned characters becoming more extremist. That has never developed. At best, we hear that individual light users can be bad people. But the light as a philosophy is beyond criticism
November 9, 2025 at 8:17 PM
After Xe’ra, there was lots of speculation we would see light-aligned characters becoming more extremist. That has never developed. At best, we hear that individual light users can be bad people. But the light as a philosophy is beyond criticism
But I no longer have faith in the narrative of the game to deliver on the story they’ve set up for so long. First, there seems to be no interest in undermining the “light and order good, void and chaos evil” aspect of the cosmology.
November 9, 2025 at 8:15 PM
But I no longer have faith in the narrative of the game to deliver on the story they’ve set up for so long. First, there seems to be no interest in undermining the “light and order good, void and chaos evil” aspect of the cosmology.
WoW has a BIG mystery box problem. As a kid, I was absolutely fascinated by the idea of the Titans and that there were all these inconsistencies in the story of the Warcraft cosmos. I kept thinking “the truth is going to be so cool and epic!”
November 9, 2025 at 8:12 PM
WoW has a BIG mystery box problem. As a kid, I was absolutely fascinated by the idea of the Titans and that there were all these inconsistencies in the story of the Warcraft cosmos. I kept thinking “the truth is going to be so cool and epic!”
The Mystery Box is one reason I think The Winds of Winter is such a hard book to write. The magic of ASOIAF is presented in a way that hints at deep connections between its disparate branches. The first five books set this up—the last books need to give major payoffs.
November 9, 2025 at 7:38 PM
The Mystery Box is one reason I think The Winds of Winter is such a hard book to write. The magic of ASOIAF is presented in a way that hints at deep connections between its disparate branches. The first five books set this up—the last books need to give major payoffs.
Rise of Skywalker attempts to give the answers that “the fans want” but fails, largely because the larger story Abrams hinted at in TFA fails to develop. There is no twist that deepens our understanding of the story and pulls us in deeper. The Mystery Box was empty.
November 9, 2025 at 7:34 PM
Rise of Skywalker attempts to give the answers that “the fans want” but fails, largely because the larger story Abrams hinted at in TFA fails to develop. There is no twist that deepens our understanding of the story and pulls us in deeper. The Mystery Box was empty.
But when you’ve set up these hints, you have to deliver on them, and in a way that matches and exceeds audience expectations for the story. I think that’s why The Last Jedi is so polarizing. (I like it.) It develops these mysteries in a way that goes against audience expectations.
November 9, 2025 at 7:32 PM
But when you’ve set up these hints, you have to deliver on them, and in a way that matches and exceeds audience expectations for the story. I think that’s why The Last Jedi is so polarizing. (I like it.) It develops these mysteries in a way that goes against audience expectations.
The story of The Force Awakens (Rey, an orphan on an adventure) is greatly enhanced by this technique. Her mysterious parentage, the questions about how Snoke and the First Order and Kylo Ren emerged, the “where’s Luke?” all hook in fans by hinting a larger and more complex narrative will unfold
November 9, 2025 at 7:25 PM
The story of The Force Awakens (Rey, an orphan on an adventure) is greatly enhanced by this technique. Her mysterious parentage, the questions about how Snoke and the First Order and Kylo Ren emerged, the “where’s Luke?” all hook in fans by hinting a larger and more complex narrative will unfold
This whole thing has given me a lot of thoughts on Mystery Box Storytelling and how it succeeds or fails…
November 5, 2025 at 3:00 PM
This whole thing has given me a lot of thoughts on Mystery Box Storytelling and how it succeeds or fails…
Mists, Wrath, and Legion were the best WoW eras because they gave a damn about characters and let their complexities fuel the gameplay.
November 5, 2025 at 2:59 PM
Mists, Wrath, and Legion were the best WoW eras because they gave a damn about characters and let their complexities fuel the gameplay.
This is why I’ve lost interest in playing (along with the mythic lockout rules.) The writing plays it so terribly safe.
I was REALLY excited at the launch of TWW but now I’m doubting I’ll play Midnight
I was REALLY excited at the launch of TWW but now I’m doubting I’ll play Midnight
November 5, 2025 at 2:55 PM
This is why I’ve lost interest in playing (along with the mythic lockout rules.) The writing plays it so terribly safe.
I was REALLY excited at the launch of TWW but now I’m doubting I’ll play Midnight
I was REALLY excited at the launch of TWW but now I’m doubting I’ll play Midnight
I’ve been in so many old cities where people have told me “this alleyway dates back to 1200!”
November 4, 2025 at 1:40 AM
I’ve been in so many old cities where people have told me “this alleyway dates back to 1200!”
You cannot guarantee a writing career through hard work and determination. It sucks, but it’s true.
November 3, 2025 at 10:02 PM
You cannot guarantee a writing career through hard work and determination. It sucks, but it’s true.
The only advice I can give writers is: a contract is not a career. Multiple contracts is not a career. Multiple genres is not a career. Social media following is not a career.
A career is what you get when luck and in-house strategy align.
A career is what you get when luck and in-house strategy align.
November 3, 2025 at 10:01 PM
The only advice I can give writers is: a contract is not a career. Multiple contracts is not a career. Multiple genres is not a career. Social media following is not a career.
A career is what you get when luck and in-house strategy align.
A career is what you get when luck and in-house strategy align.
The frustrating part is that my writing has gotten SO much better since my debut. But the industry does not value skill growth and professional development. It values novelty.
November 3, 2025 at 9:54 PM
The frustrating part is that my writing has gotten SO much better since my debut. But the industry does not value skill growth and professional development. It values novelty.
Basically—a lot of marginalized authors are in this position where the industry made us lots of promises of support and did not deliver. And a lot of us are being denied further opportunities.
November 3, 2025 at 9:50 PM
Basically—a lot of marginalized authors are in this position where the industry made us lots of promises of support and did not deliver. And a lot of us are being denied further opportunities.