Bought a $40 'plot twist generator' deck, got recycled movie cliches

I saw this fancy card deck advertised for writers, saying it would spark fresh ideas and break you out of ruts. Spent $40 on it last month. Every single card I flipped just gave me stuff like 'the hero was dead all along' or 'it was all a dream,' things I've seen in a hundred YouTube videos for free. I actually timed it, I got 12 predictable twists in 15 minutes and threw the box in my closet. Has anyone else tried one of these writing gimmick products and felt like you could've just asked a friend for better ideas?

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hayden_butler2722d ago

the hero was dead all along" is literally in every writing book ever. You paid for what you already knew, that's on you. Cards are a spark, not the answer. They're supposed to jog your brain, not write the story for you. Maybe the problem is you flipped them like a slot machine and expected gold. I've seen people use those decks and crank out wild ideas. They twist the cliches, mix two cards together, make something new. That takes work though. Sounds like you wanted the deck to do the heavy lifting. $40 is steep for cardboard, sure. But you got what you paid for. A nudge. The rest is on the writer.