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Chit-Chat: Random Writing Nonsense

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I've been lurking these forums for quite some time now and have read many a fiction. I'd certainly like to write one of my own but I've been struggling to come up with original idea, or maybe my obsessive pursuit of originality is stifling my creativity. Perhaps a good story is not necessarily born from of a single moment of inspiration but rather many smaller ideas all cleverly stitched together to form a cohesive narrative, but even is this is the case, some definitive starting point is still necessary. I'm going round in circles here and most probably over thinking things. Hmmm...maybe I should just start writing and see where that takes me.

What do you think?
 
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I've been lurking these forums for quite some time now and have read many a fiction. I'd certainly like to write one of my own but I've been struggling to come up with original idea, or maybe my obsessive pursuit of originality is stifling my creativity. Perhaps a good story is not necessarily born from of a single moment of inspiration but rather many smaller ideas all cleverly stitched together to form a cohesive narrative, but even is this is the case, some definitive starting point is still necessary. I'm going round in circles here and most probably over thinking things. Hmmm...maybe I should just start writing and see where that takes me.

What do you think?
I always have tons of ideas in my head. Some get used for roleplays, others could become fics if I put some effort in them.

But one thing that can definitely make a good base for a story, and sometimes even let the plot unfold in your head easily as you type and plan, is characters. Characters and histories and personalities and relationships. Create a few defined characters in your mind (or on paper, if you prefer to write while you think, I sometimes do) and think about how they would interact. And maybe you can realize that they probably grew up this or that way, and there could probably be something in that history that could be built on to make a plot and something in this or that character's personality that makes it likely that they would act in that plot and make a story.

That's how I do it in my head. But I'm not really a seasoned fic writer, so maybe others have better ideas for how to actually get an idea growing and out into written form. As my ideas most often don't :p And if there's something else you have as a key plot for a fic, I still think creating well developed characters that you know you want to have in the story somewhere is a good driving force for eventually realizing how the plot should unfold.


Something about narrative though, because that's important in forum RPing as well - don't strain yourself too hard to write well or beautifully or complicatedly. Less is more, sometimes, unless there is a mood or setting you really really want to convey to the reader. But even then, I'd say write what feels right.

Then, there are writers who want to struggle with every word and sentence to make them perfect, I guess. Everyone finds their own style.
 

Nolafus

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Basically to back up what Red's Hot Chibi Pelippers said, just write down your ideas on paper so you don't forget them. Try to map out the various characters that are going to appear. Maybe include a main event or two. I wouldn't do a full map of the story because when I did that, by chapter two I had completely strayed from it and even changed some characters. The only thing I would make sure to do, is make sure you know how it's going to end. Otherwise, you might get a little lost on how you want to write it out.
Then, there are writers who want to struggle with every word and sentence to make them perfect, I guess. Everyone finds their own style.
This is definitely me. I don't want to struggle, but I'm at that part of the story where I don't really know what to do. I know what to do after this part, but I need to get past this part first. Oh writers block, will you ever leave me alone?
 

Cutlerine

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Thanks for the replies :3 So, I don't have to feel super bad if my first proper review attempts aren't the best? Haha. I've only done a few in the past. Like Cutlerine says, it's often the same kind of errors authors here do. I doubt I'd take the time to correct every spelling error, rather I'd just tell them to double check again. I'm worried myself that if I post a story, someone will remark on my grammar. Since I know I don't fully grasp English and possibly never will.

Of course! Don't feel bad at all. I mean, there's no reason why you'd have to do a fantastically detailed review. It's just as valid for you to leave a few words of feedback, as long as you mention specific things you liked or disliked. No one expects anyone to go around dissecting every story minutely - that's great if you want to do it, but it isn't necessary. Your review can be as basic or as complex as you like.

(The guilt builds. I must review some things this week.)

As for posting your own stories here, a reviewer probably would remark on the grammar, as well as everything else - but if they're doing it right, they won't crucify you for it or anything. No one expects your work to be perfect, but if a reviewer can give you any help in getting it to a more perfect state, then that's what they'll do.

And um, I'm usually hanging around the Roleplay Corner but I've... Lost my spark. So, I thought I'd try to write something on my own to try and find it again. I know how I want to feel about writing, and I'm struggling to not expect too much from myself because then it becomes hard work rather than fun.

I wouldn't worry about it. It happens to everyone now and again, and I can say from experience that
these things do pass. You just work on something else, or take a break and then try to work through the barrier - honestly, there are a few different ways of surmounting the problem, and I've no idea what will work best for you in this case. But if you want to write and share here, that's as good a place to start as any.

I've been lurking these forums for quite some time now and have read many a fiction. I'd certainly like to write one of my own but I've been struggling to come up with original idea, or maybe my obsessive pursuit of originality is stifling my creativity. Perhaps a good story is not necessarily born from of a single moment of inspiration but rather many smaller ideas all cleverly stitched together to form a cohesive narrative, but even is this is the case, some definitive starting point is still necessary. I'm going round in circles here and most probably over thinking things. Hmmm...maybe I should just start writing and see where that takes me.

What do you think?

I often start with no idea of a narrative at all, actually, unless I'm adapting one of the games into a fic. I start with a place, or a person.

For instance, I have a story going around in my head that started a few days ago with the idea of a small city that had a man who busked in it by giving out random facts, rather than playing music. So I just wrote about someone walking past him, and didn't let myself stop writing, and I ended up creating a protagonist out of that someone. And from there a story has sort of started to come together. I won't keep that original piece of writing in the finished story, in all likelihood, but it got the ideas flowing and gave rise to a story.

In other words - don't be afraid to just write, as you put it. You can't go wrong, and whatever you write you can change, or use as the base for something else. Take one image, of any sort, and write, and see what stories emerge. It might take a couple of tries to get something, but if you're stuck for ideas, you could do a lot worse than just start.

But one thing that can definitely make a good base for a story, and sometimes even let the plot unfold in your head easily as you type and plan, is characters. Characters and histories and personalities and relationships. Create a few defined characters in your mind (or on paper, if you prefer to write while you think, I sometimes do) and think about how they would interact. And maybe you can realize that they probably grew up this or that way, and there could probably be something in that history that could be built on to make a plot and something in this or that character's personality that makes it likely that they would act in that plot and make a story.

Definitely. I always either start with a world I want to write about, or a person. The last major story I wrote started with a world - a twisted alternate version of Edwardian London. This next story started with a person, and their story - an exploration of their experience as a human being and what would happen to them if someone were to leave a very large dead fish in their apartment.
 
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an exploration of their experience as a human being and what would happen to them if someone were to leave a very large dead fish in their apartment.
This might be one of the most interesting premises I've ever heard of.
 

Nolafus

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You want to know what I just realized? I just realized that there's nothing like the feeling of being stuck on how to continue for a couple weeks. It's so aggravating seeing the story you worked so hard on collect dust because you can't think of a way on how to continue. Today, I just broke through my writer's block and wrote probably my favorite part of my entire fic. I realized that there isn't a feeling like that and I get a certain rush when I write, a rush that I want to feel again and again. But the most important thing I realized, is that starting college wanting to become a mechanical engineer might not be the best thing for me. I realized that writing might just be the thing I want to do for the rest of my life.

I feel bad that that this post was all about me, but I just had my epiphany and I want to have my moment and share it with the world. I'll sleep on it tonight and see if this feeling is just temporary or not (I'm kind of hoping it's not temporary).

an exploration of their experience as a human being and what would happen to them if someone were to leave a very large dead fish in their apartment.
I've got to agree with RHCP (sorry, didn't feel like typing out your entire name) on this one, you should quote this in your signature, you'll probably get more attention. I'm guessing that this pertains to you current fic, "Cracked, or how the love of seafood saved Unova"?
 
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I realized that there isn't a feeling like that and I get a certain rush when I write, a rush that I want to feel again and again. But the most important thing I realized, is that starting college wanting to become a mechanical engineer might not be the best thing for me. I realized that writing might just be the thing I want to do for the rest of my life.

I feel bad that that this post was all about me, but I just had my epiphany and I want to have my moment and share it with the world. I'll sleep on it tonight and see if this feeling is just temporary or not (I'm kind of hoping it's not temporary).
I want to get back to this feeling too ;; been years since I felt like that truly. I'm becoming a chemist now, haha, but I doubt I'd ever be successful in the writing world anyways. We do it mostly for ourselves and to let our wild imagination be expressed instead of banging on our heads from the inside, maybe.
 

Cutlerine

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I want to get back to this feeling too ;; been years since I felt like that truly. I'm becoming a chemist now, haha, but I doubt I'd ever be successful in the writing world anyways. We do it mostly for ourselves and to let our wild imagination be expressed instead of banging on our heads from the inside, maybe.

You want to know what I just realized? I just realized that there's nothing like the feeling of being stuck on how to continue for a couple weeks. It's so aggravating seeing the story you worked so hard on collect dust because you can't think of a way on how to continue. Today, I just broke through my writer's block and wrote probably my favorite part of my entire fic. I realized that there isn't a feeling like that and I get a certain rush when I write, a rush that I want to feel again and again. But the most important thing I realized, is that starting college wanting to become a mechanical engineer might not be the best thing for me. I realized that writing might just be the thing I want to do for the rest of my life.

There's nothing to stop you two doing both. In fact, it's probably better for someone who wants to write to have another, more applicable skill; writers have bills to pay and food to buy as much as anyone else, and they don't make much money. We'd all like to be writers and just writers - but success of even the minor sort is hard to come by in that world, and it's much more realistic to keep on going towards something else in the meantime. Something that will provide an income.

I have zero expectation of ever attaining any measure of success at all in any field of art; that doesn't mean I'm not going to try. It just means that I'm going to have to do something else in the meantime, and write at the weekends and at midnight.

I've got to agree with RHCP (sorry, didn't feel like typing out your entire name) on this one, you should quote this in your signature, you'll probably get more attention. I'm guessing that this pertains to you current fic, "Cracked, or how the love of seafood saved Unova"?

Nope. That's been going on since last year; the story I'm referring to there is only a few days old, and not even fully formed in my mind. It's pretty different from anything I've written before, and I'm not sure I even have the skill to write it yet - but that's not going to stop me from trying.

This might be one of the most interesting premises I've ever heard of.

Thank you. It does get weirder. As is so often the case, the fish is not all that it seems to be.
 
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Nolafus

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Cutlerine said:
and I'm not sure I even have the skill to write it yet - but that's not going to stop me from trying.
Yeah, that's right, you go for it! I wasn't sure if I was ready to start writing another book when I started writing Alien Poverty. Normally, I get bored while writing the second chapter and give up on the idea. This is the first time I've ever progressed through that break. I was actually going to wait until after college to write it, but after letting the idea sit for two years, I just couldn't wait to write it anymore.

After sleeping on it, I think it would be best for me to go ahead with the mechanical engineering degree, maybe with a minor in writing, because let's face it. Those roller coasters aren't going to design themselves.
 
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After sleeping on it, I think it would be best for me to go ahead with the mechanical engineering degree, maybe with a minor in writing, because let's face it. Those roller coasters aren't going to design themselves.

I must say, I do admire the US education system in that respect. Were I able to I would do a minor in some kind of writing then I definitely would. It's hard having equal interests in literature and science, but chemistry it is.
 

Bay

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Backtracking a bit~

Over the planning topic, I tend to plan a bit of beginning and ending, but the middle I would make up as I go. The ending would then often change, haha. Guess what I'm saying is I would plan a bit and sometimes I'll go with the ideas and sometimes it'll change.

I'm wondering, how much do you guys review the stories of others here compared to how much you post your own?

Kinda depends on fandom for some reason. For Pokemon I reviewed more than post my own, but it's been so long since my last Pokemon fic. Other fandoms it's either the same or I write more than review. The latter I should start commenting more as I can let them know how much I enjoy their work.

Something about narrative though, because that's important in forum RPing as well - don't strain yourself too hard to write well or beautifully or complicatedly. Less is more, sometimes, unless there is a mood or setting you really really want to convey to the reader. But even then, I'd say write what feels right.

Then, there are writers who want to struggle with every word and sentence to make them perfect, I guess. Everyone finds their own style.

I'm one of those writers that wants every word and sentence flow well together haha. Part of the reason is I would see other writers on Tumblr get complimented on their "perfect words" and get frustrated how my writing won't be as good (. I also get nervous over my reputation in fandom (if my work is mediocre I'm a mediocre fan). <.<; Tumblr can make you feel like that sometimes.

But yeah, if I just write and worry about making the words right later I would have gotten a lot more done.

You want to know what I just realized? I just realized that there's nothing like the feeling of being stuck on how to continue for a couple weeks. It's so aggravating seeing the story you worked so hard on collect dust because you can't think of a way on how to continue. Today, I just broke through my writer's block and wrote probably my favorite part of my entire fic. I realized that there isn't a feeling like that and I get a certain rush when I write, a rush that I want to feel again and again. But the most important thing I realized, is that starting college wanting to become a mechanical engineer might not be the best thing for me. I realized that writing might just be the thing I want to do for the rest of my life.

You already mentioned thinking about doing your mechanical degree (yay roller coasters! :P ) and if you think you can also do a minor in writing go for it!

Want to add that I also hate it when I get stuck in a story. Often times I would write another scene or a different story entirely and that works usually.
 
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Nolafus

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You already mentioned thinking about doing your mechanical degree (yay roller coasters!
12.%20tongue.gif
) and if you think you can also do a minor in writing go for it!
I think I'll at least try. What's the worst that could happen? Flush a couple grand down the toilet!

Want to add that I also hate it when I get stuck in a story. Often times I would write another scene or a different story entirely and that works usually.
I'm a stubborn person, so if I have decided to write about a certain scene, then there isn't a single thing on this Earth that could change my mind.

Getting back to reviewing. I wonder why some people don't review, and why some people that do review, don't on some stories.

I'm guilty of leaving some stories out to dry while I give another complete and total attention. For me, if a story has several chapters out, I won't review it because it seems like it would take way too long. On others, if it seems to be an exact copy of a game plot, then I'll skip it. I'll also skip out on reviewing if someone else has already reviewed it, but to be honest, that doesn't happen a lot.
 
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I wonder why some people don't review, and why some people that do review, don't on some stories.
There is that length issue for me. A fic that has quite a bit posted to it already won't be as likely to get a review from me because I don't always have the time to read through all of it and give a decent review. There are also some stories where I don't have something substantial to say for a review about the story, so I read it and then just kind of move on.

I obviously review more than I post my own stories. I've become a terribly slow writer in recent times, and in order to have some presence in this section, I review here and there rather than falling off the face of the planet. But also in recent times I've become slow when it comes to reviewing, and I'm just kind of taking a break from stressing out about fandom things and what-not.

Though I am still working on a fic I've just started. The unfortunate thing is that I planned out this fic last year and didn't get a chance to write it until now, and I've forgotten a few things about what I wanted to do in the story and who I wanted to include. But I remembered and that helped get things back on track. I was stuck like Slayr, where one scene was holding me back from continuing the story, and I didn't know how I wanted to write that particular scene. Remembering a particular character in the story and planning what he was going to do in the story got me past everything, and now I'm doing pretty good.

Often times I would write another scene or a different story entirely and that works usually.
When I was stuck on my current story, I wrote the ending chapter because it was stuck in my mind. It's the one part of the story that's remained with me, and I just wanted to get it out of the way. I'll edit it when I write the rest of the story to fit in any changes. Doing that did tempt me to write the entire story backwards, starting from the last chapter and ending at the beginning. But I decided against that for a few reasons.

I'm one of those writers that wants every word and sentence flow well together haha. Part of the reason is I would see other writers on Tumblr get complimented on their "perfect words" and get frustrated how my writing won't be as good (. I also get nervous over my reputation in fandom (if my work is mediocre I'm a mediocre fan). <.<; Tumblr can make you feel like that sometimes.
Tumblr can be kind of treacherous to poke around, and there are some writing blogs there that made me feel bad about some habits I have about writing. Of course, there are some blogs on Tumblr that could just make you feel bad in general, so...
 

Bay

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Getting back to reviewing. I wonder why some people don't review, and why some people that do review, don't on some stories.

I'm guilty of leaving some stories out to dry while I give another complete and total attention. For me, if a story has several chapters out, I won't review it because it seems like it would take way too long. On others, if it seems to be an exact copy of a game plot, then I'll skip it. I'll also skip out on reviewing if someone else has already reviewed it, but to be honest, that doesn't happen a lot.

Like Astinus the length can be an issue if I jump into a story late. In forums I'll probably just do an overview review of what's posted and maybe thoughts on the last chapter or two. However, if FFnet or AO3 I might be able to do chapter by chapter as the system made it for the readers to review that way and the story will still be there.

Though I am still working on a fic I've just started. The unfortunate thing is that I planned out this fic last year and didn't get a chance to write it until now, and I've forgotten a few things about what I wanted to do in the story and who I wanted to include. But I remembered and that helped get things back on track. I was stuck like Slayr, where one scene was holding me back from continuing the story, and I didn't know how I wanted to write that particular scene. Remembering a particular character in the story and planning what he was going to do in the story got me past everything, and now I'm doing pretty good.

I usually try to write/post my story ideas if I have my notebook/computer with me (I like saving my ideas on google docs now these days). However, can understand if you got your ideas from work/commuting and weren't able to write it down somewhere.

When I was stuck on my current story, I wrote the ending chapter because it was stuck in my mind. It's the one part of the story that's remained with me, and I just wanted to get it out of the way. I'll edit it when I write the rest of the story to fit in any changes. Doing that did tempt me to write the entire story backwards, starting from the last chapter and ending at the beginning. But I decided against that for a few reasons.

Don't think I can do an entire story backwards, haha. Writing out of order I can do as I'm usually good at stringing scenes together later.

Tumblr can be kind of treacherous to poke around, and there are some writing blogs there that made me feel bad about some habits I have about writing. Of course, there are some blogs on Tumblr that could just make you feel bad in general, so...

It's less of writing blogs and more of blogs from fanfic writers that have others complementing on their writing (long version under spoilers).

Spoiler:


I only follow two writing blogs (one is Jax's and the other is more so positive writing advice), but I do know a couple people that would get upset over the writing blogs, especially those that talk about media representation. You don't have diverse characters in your fantasy world? You should feel bad because fantasy worlds rarely get person of color. You're a white person that has diverse characters and researched their culture well? You should feel bad because there are PoC writers that aren't able to break out in the publishing world. I'm all for social justice and media representation is good, but it seems you can never please a certain crowd on Tumblr, and this is coming from me who is a person of color.
 
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I write a lot. I have written as science fiction, fantasy, as well as horror and romance. Some times I get an awesome idea for example pirates in our time and if the idea is just like that, I'm looking for ALL the information I can get on the Internet, in books, interviews etc. :)
 
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I don't at all look up enough background information for my settings. I just go with my imagination and don't bother much if something is historically or realistically incorrect. Maybe I should work on that, haha.
 

Nolafus

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I don't really do much research either. Considering most fics I attempt are original fictions and some even take place on other planets, I don't think that's necessary. At least for geographical locations, you could still get some inspiration for the creatures that inhabit said planet through creatures here on earth. Basically, when I do research, it's mostly for inspiration rather than facts.
 

CoffeeDrink

GET WHILE THE GETTIN'S GOOD
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CoffeeDrink's 60 second poem, koff~

I fly in the sky as even people die
Through the poison dye I am so high
Nigh is the word for the end of times
I am evil
I am explode​

Poem makes not much sense but I did type it in under a minute, koffi~

edit: oh, I do have some work strewn about the place. I wonder if anyone would like to see it?
 

Nolafus

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If you have other works, why not create your own poetry thread? Threads on each individual poem aren't allowed, unless the poem is insanely long, but a thread containing several poems is. Why not give it a shot?
 
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