Examples of Stakes in SFF that Are Not Cosmic or Self-Centered

[hvoad]

Hi y'all,

So I'm going through the querying process and reading sample queries until my eyes pop. And I notice that a common theme is that the stakes are either "if the protagonist doesn't do x, a city/country/empire/planet/galaxy/universe is destroyed" or "if the protagonist doesn't do y, something horrible happens to them (and it's usually death, or bodily harm)."

Do you have examples of relatively popular SFF books where the stake is more like, "The protagonist is a good person, so they don't want to watch someone they care about (not even irretrievably in love or have blood ties with) suffer, and for them, they'll do z."?

 

[The Big Peat]

Not super popular but here's the blurb for tordotcom novella The Sorcerer of the Wildeeps

"Since leaving his homeland, the earthbound demigod Demane has been labeled a sorcerer. With his ancestors' artifacts in hand, the Sorcerer follows the Captain, a beautiful man with song for a voice and hair that drinks the sunlight.

The two of them are the descendants of the gods who abandoned the Earth for Heaven, and they will need all the gifts those divine ancestors left to them to keep their caravan brothers alive.

The one safe road between the northern oasis and southern kingdom is stalked by a necromantic terror. Demane may have to master his wild powers and trade humanity for godhood if he is to keep his brothers and his beloved captain alive."

 

[Swank]

Plenty of SF is mystery or benign adventure. Almost anything by Clarke, for instance.

 

[Dave]

I can think of some. The difference is stems from the point of view of the storyteller rather than the story itself. For example, take an old man recounting his life and times. If he was still a young man and the events were still occurring then the stakes would be higher. However, you tell a story, it must have some conflict and risk.

 

[paranoid marvin]

Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy has Arthur Dent trying to find a decent cup of tea.

 

[Montero]

Do you have examples of relatively popular SFF books where the stake is more like, "The protagonist is a good person, so they don't want to watch someone they care about (not even irretrievably in love or have blood ties with) suffer, and for them, they'll do z."?

Speaking as someone who has been through the querying process several times, a goodly chunk of agents at least are not just looking for books that yours is like, but recently published ones. As in new and rising stars not old classics.
To my mind as a reader that is irritating, as I'd love more like Hitchhikers, Discworld etc, but that does seem to be a bit of an expectation. Don't know if it applies to all agents 'cos there certainly was a period when every second new fantasy author was described as the next Tolkein. So maybe you need a mix of classics and new.

 

[hvoad]

I can think of some. The difference is stems from the point of view of the storyteller rather than the story itself. For example, take an old man recounting his life and times. If he was still a young man and the events were still occurring then the stakes would be higher. However, you tell a story, it must have some conflict and risk.

Where's the third book, Patrick?! Where is it!

 

[hvoad]

Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy has Arthur Dent trying to find a decent cup of tea.

Ya know what, you've convinced me to finally read the book.

 

[sknox]

As has been pointed out, there's a huge number of SFF books that are not about saving the world or the universe. So, if the agent is saying something like that, they're not communicating well. Their objection lies elsewhere. They might simply be saying that, in their judgment, the stakes as stated by the story don't seem urgent or clear or important (to the characters). That is, not that the premise isn't big enough but that it isn't sold fully. It's also possible that the reply is little more than a "no" dressed up in convenient phrases.

 

[The Big Peat]

The OP isn't asking solely for "not saving the planet" though. It's not saving the planet *and* not primarily saving their own skin/advancing their own cause. And I think with the latter caveat it gets a lot, lot harder

 

[Swank]

advancing their own cause.

That seems like a new wrinkle. I thought the OP's point was that there were violent stakes for the OP.

 

[The Big Peat]

That seems like a new wrinkle. I thought the OP's point was that there were violent stakes for the OP.

It is not presented in the initial paragraph. But in terms of the example the OP gives in the second paragraph, the whole point seems to be avoiding self-interest.

Although it's also a fairly meaningless extra wrinkle. The vast majority of recently published books that I have observed in which the protagonist is pursuing their own interests in fantasy come with violent stakes - and that is usually clear on the blurb.

 

[Swank]

It is not presented in the initial paragraph. But in terms of the example the OP gives in the second paragraph, the whole point seems to be avoiding self-interest.

Although it's also a fairly meaningless extra wrinkle. The vast majority of recently published books that I have observed in which the protagonist is pursuing their own interests in fantasy come with violent stakes - and that is usually clear on the blurb.

So is the MC in Fountains of Paradise self interested in his project to build a space elevator, or is he making the world better?

 

[ColGray]

There's a lot of recent sf/f that falls into this category. I'd suggest:

1. Becky Chambers
   1. A Long Way to a Small Angry Planet (any of the Wayfarer series)
   2. Psalm for the Wildbuilt)
2. Emily St. John Mandel
   1. Sea of Tranquility
3. Tamsyn Muir
   1. Gideon the Ninth (no spoilers, but later books in the series move towards greater stakes)
4. Hugh Howey
   1. Dust -- but also Wool (but that isn't recent anymore)
5. Michael Mammaly (sp?)
   1. His recent generation ship book

All those books have stakes that are "small" compared to, Save the universe. Many are either personal or about helping someone else (often times, someone they don't like much!)

Also in the querying process and had a meeting with an agent last week through MSWL. One of the more helpful things he said was, You're never going to find a perfect comp that is a 1:1 match on tone, style, plot, stakes, resolution, etc. If there are 10 criteria to measure a book, find good examples that hit 7 or 8. Given three comps (which is the expectation) any good agent should be able to see that Venn diagram overlap and go, Ooooh, okay.

 

[hitmouse]

Hi y'all,

So I'm going through the querying process and reading sample queries until my eyes pop. And I notice that a common theme is that the stakes are either "if the protagonist doesn't do x, a city/country/empire/planet/galaxy/universe is destroyed" or "if the protagonist doesn't do y, something horrible happens to them (and it's usually death, or bodily harm)."

Most Vance or Simak plots fall outside these themes. Thank goodness.

 

[ANV]

I would recommend Hogfather by Sir Terry Pratchett.