Clichés aren’t wrong because audiences have seen them before. The problem is that clichés do not carry your author voice. Cliches move your story along while robbing your story of YOU.
At the same time, you don’t have to start from stratch. Dragons work. They resonate with audiences worldwide for dozens of reasons. Pick any one reason and use it as an emotional target to aim for. With very little work—just a few quick questions—you’re about to systematically personalize your dragons so brilliantly that stereotypical dragons will never satisfy you again.
