Fanfiction Lounge

[Sgt Shock]

Do you follow the normal rules of battling when writing a Pokemon battle, or do you hold a no-rules fight that can involve guns and the such?

No holds barred. Throughout my fan fictions the pokemon are capable (and encouraged) to attack the trainer if possible. Guns are involved heavily throughout the story along with sharp pointy objects (knifes, swords, etc.)

It's fun writing battles. I look forward to them.

[Haruka of Hoenn]

Do you follow the normal rules of battling when writing a Pokemon battle, or do you hold a no-rules fight that can involve guns and the such?
I usually have my characters follow the rules of a battle. I write Pokemon battles as competitions with their own set of rules. Just as you might cheat in a board game, my characters might cheat in a Pokemon battle occasionally. They could command their Pokemon to attack another trainer, or etc. But they usually don't, unless they're purposely trying to cause permanent harm.

[bobandbill]

If you could write your fic in another language, what language would that be, and why?

Polish because that's a language I know. Only if I did such a thing I'd have to brush up on it. A lot. XD It's a fickle language, it is.

Do you follow the normal rules of battling when writing a Pokemon battle, or do you hold a no-rules fight that can involve guns and the such?

For me, it depends on the situation, I suppose. Sometimes I will follow the 'normal' rules, but often my battles tend to involve something beyond just beating up other trainer's Pokemon, but also snagging (stealing) Pokemon as well from said trainers. Obviously this may result in some events as said trainer who's Pokemon was stolen may feel indifferent about the whole matter and so forth. XD

A few times things have changed up as well, such as a full-out war between Pokemon trainers breaking out (lots of trainers' Pokemon against a few), and once I've had a battle in which something had to be protected from the opponents breaking it during the battle. Usually however in 'normal' circumstances, battles take form of the double battles format, as that's how it's done in Pokemon Colosseum and my fic aims to follow the events there...somewhat. It's the generally accepted format for battles in Orre.

[Misheard Whisper]

If you could write your fic in another language, what language would that be, and why?
That would have to be Spanish, definitely. It's such a fun language.

And lol, Haruka of Hoenn. The text in your sig reminds me of the Ceiling Cat meme.

[walasaka]

Do you follow the normal rules of battling when writing a Pokemon battle, or do you hold a no-rules fight that can involve guns and the such?

It really depends on the fic. In rise of a ranger it's usually a bit more similar to a normal battle, but in Remembering the Horror, where there is a war going on (in some chapters), the Pokemon ARE the weapons. I kinda figure that guns are kinda useless if your opponent can blow you away with his Pokemon's Hyper Beam, paralyse you with a Thunderwave and so on.

[Redstar]

How do you feel about prologues in fics?
I've noticed that most fics on here have a prologue of sorts, and I've never really liked that. While some of some of my favorite parts of novels are the prologue and appendixes, it's usually a sign of a bad writer when they write a prologue that sets up the background of the story and/or universe.

The best kind of writer doesn't tell you what state the world is in via a prologue. Rather, they show it by developing the story and characters. Tolkien did this in the Lord of the Rings. He didn't start out with a prologue explaining the history of the One Ring, or even a summary of the Silmarillion... He started with Frodo and made hints here and there, and only told exactly what was going on at the Council of Elrond, a few hundred pages in. At this point you actually cared about the world, when in the case of most prologues you're just getting a history lesson, and who cares, right?

This is especially obvious in many movies... If there's a prologue of sorts, especially a long one, then you can probably bet that the movie itself will be near-incomprehensible unless you're familiar with the source-material. If you really need a prologue to set up a movie, then you're probably not developing the characters or plot in the right way. Most books these days, particularly bad fantasy, have a habit of doing this. Usually they're trying to pull a Tolkien by establishing a mythos, but do it all wrong.

Ha. Looks like I rambled on there... Well, getting to the point, how do all of you feel about use of prologues in fics? How do you feel about your own use of them? Do you do anything to avoid the usual pitfalls associated with them, or do you just not care and set up the world so you can jump right into the action? (Ironically, I can't seem to work around writing a prologue for my epic fic. It's not really a "This is the state of the world" kind of prologue, but it sets some things up regardless)

[Elite Overlord LeSabre™]

How do you feel about prologues in fics?
I don't mind them as long as they're not info-dumps. I spend a paragraph of mine briefly describing the region, then shift into a tactical team executing a late-night raid on a research facility. The main character is not even mentioned in it.

Prologues need to be a way to draw the reader into the story, not tell them intricate details about the setting and characters.

[Haruka of Hoenn]

How do you feel about prologues in fics?
Prologues are good to ease the reader into the story and get them hooked right away. Basically, a prologue is something significant that happened before your main plot begins. But not all stories need prologues. It all depends on the type of story you're writing. If your plot starts out nice and calm, but then elevates into something much more exciting and terrifying, you could do a bit of foreshadowing in the prologue. If your beginning chapter is strong enough, you might not need a prologue to back it up.

I personally like reading prologues, since they give me more insight into the world of the story. A turn-off for me is when the author crams in too much information. Then, the prologue might as well be the first chapter.

[walasaka]

How do you feel about prologues in fics?

I really don't mind them as long as they're not the only thing there. For example when someone posts a prologue that is 300 words, and then a week later the first chapter... I don't get it. Not enough to catch my attention.

[Konekodemon]

Here's an idea. This isn't for Pokemon, it's for Naruto. Write a fanfic about how different Sasuke would of turned out if he hadn't of found out about Itachi killing his parents, and Itachi had just ran off after killing them so that when Sasuke got home Itachi was already gone.

[Sgt Shock]

How do you feel about prologues in fics?

I use prologues mainly as a prerequisite for things to come or just to introduce the main character. I believe strongly in prologues because it gives the reader look on what is going to happen.

[Mizan de la Plume Kuro]

How do you feel about prologues in fics?
I don't condemn prologues nor do I support them. To me, if you're substantially good in writing, then you may be able to insert snippets of the setting of your story in the story without detracting from the main storyline by using up a chapter for that.

However, if you're not confident in your ability to do that, you may consider writing a prologue by outlining the setting of the story without revealing plot details, or you may choose to show something that happened prior to the beginning of the story.

Conversely, you may choose to do both. Write a prologue and add little snipets of history and setting about your story at the beginning and throughout the story.

Originally Posted by Konekodemon

Here's an idea. This isn't for Pokemon, it's for Naruto. Write a fanfic about how different Sasuke would of turned out if he hadn't of found out about Itachi killing his parents, and Itachi had just ran off after killing them so that when Sasuke got home Itachi was already gone.

Are you planning on writing this? If not, then may I suggest the Plot Bunny thread which has been inactive for quite some time. Wait, scratch that, Astinus might just lock the thread becasue it's probably been a whole month since it was last posted in. I'm not sure, it's up to Astinus' discretion.

The idea sounds interesting though. I would imagine that Sasuke would be a very different person indeed. Although he's naturally talented, I doubt that he would have had the motivation to do anything.

***

On a friendlier note adhering to the FFL's Do-not-tl;dr Posts Policy, I have something to say.

Today I saw a boy(about sixteen years old) giving a talk about how Fiction Novels(Harry Potter, Twilight, ect.) actually made you more stupid than you actually are. He said this because whenever he asked someone why they read these books, they would reply with, "to improve my English." It annoys me to no end that he accused the books that have helped inspire writers and get some kids interested in reading, to actually make you even more stupid. The alternative, that he stated, would be to read something beneficial such as Law or complicated Physics. In my opinion, these kind of books would most likely turn off some people from reading at all.

Which brings us to our next topic:
Do you think reading fiction is beneficial if well written. Why?
You should already know my answer based on the above. Yes.

Also,
What do you base your non-canon fic characters off? Yourselves, Sentrets with flamethrowers? People in the FFL?

Who did not tl;dr this raise their hand... XDDDD

[Abnegation]

How do you feel about prologues in fics?
Personally, it depends on the type of fic the person is writing. If they were to write a straightfoward pokemon journey to achieve a certain goal, there is often not a desire for a prologue, however I would say that they really help to portray the theme and set of the fic. For example. something I'm writing at the moment, happens to be loosely based on elements of theories within philosophy and psycology, so I feel the need to display a prologue to give the reader more of an insight on the theories. In my opinion they can be great for explaining things in a fic without gong into too much detail. If I were to explain the term "Duality" in a fanfic, it would be long and drastic. Instead I would use the word in a story, or implement it into my prologue thus explaining it, whilst setting the scene for the rest of the fanfic. Prologues however, take a certain style of writing and almost require the writer to jump out their skin a little so that they can stick with a nice structure. They cna certainly add depth to a fic. It's hard to find a right balance with a prologue, it's hard to know whether or not it's too short or whether to lengthen it without giving too much of the plot away.

If you could write your fic in another language, what language would that be, and why?

Binary. It would be quite interesting.

[Mizan de la Plume Kuro]

Originally Posted by Abnegation

If you could write your fic in another language, what language would that be, and why?

Binary. It would be quite interesting.

Lol at that. Let me try.

01001111011011100110001101100101 01110101011100000110111101101110 01100001 01110100011010010110110101101101, 011001010110001101110100...

Translation: Once upon a time, ect...

XD

[Bay Alexison]

How do you feel about prologues in fics?
Like Haruka of Hoenn said, prologues usually are set up a while before the real start of the story and NE needed that prologue. Basically the prologue sets up four years prior to the main events of the story and is needed because that prologue give in some clues as to what happened between those four years and also what's going to happen throughout the story. Ah, the beauty of mystery. :3

As for my feelings for it, depends on the story. I actually kinda agree with Redstar that if the prologue is just infodump, it's better off being mentioned here and there throughout the story. Also, if it's to introduce a few characters, also there's character development throughout the story too. Other than that, I'm cool with them as sometimes prologues can be intriguing.

Do you think reading fiction is beneficial if well written. Why?
Of course. Reading is what made me improved my English skills and also I learned there are different writing styles you can use to express yourself.

What do you base your non-canon fic characters off? Yourselves, Sentrets with flamethrowers? People in the FFL?
All kinds, both fictional and non-fictional. I base characters off my internet friends, real friends, family members, professors, and even ones from anime, movies, TV shows, games, and books. No matter what, real or not, I always am able to find someone interesting. XD

Dang it Abnegation, you reminded me I have to study for my information systems class. D:

[Feign]

Originally Posted by Mizan Nix Zamnie

Today I saw a boy(about sixteen years old) giving a talk about how Fiction Novels(Harry Potter, Twilight, ect.) actually made you more stupid than you actually are. He said this because whenever he asked someone why they read these books, they would reply with, "to improve my English." It annoys me to no end that he accused the books that have helped inspire writers and get some kids interested in reading, to actually make you even more stupid. The alternative, that he stated, would be to read something beneficial such as Law or complicated Physics. In my opinion, these kind of books would most likely turn off some people from reading at all.

There was an article in the paper recently about the increase of students taking Latin at universities across Canada, one prof speculated that it was because of such movies like Gladiator, while another prof suggested it was because of Harry Potter. I had to chuckle though... Cause the latter was my reasoning to learning the language. Though, it was also Harry Potter (and the Matrix) that got me interested in Philosophy.

Hmmm here is a thought though, would it matter if the story were written in third person vs. first person?

How do you feel about prologues in fics?

I think it is good to have them, to get your reader interested in the story, as well as allowing for a short introduction, seeing as some people don't have all time in the world.
Do you think reading fiction is beneficial if well written. Why?

Might be answering the wrong question but, of course reading (even in general) is beneficial to a well written fanfic/something in general. That is of course you are not reading something done by a 5 year old, or intended for a 5 year old, assuming your English skills are more developed at that point. XD
What do you base your non-canon fic characters off? Yourselves, Sentrets with flamethrowers? People in the FFL?

My non-canon character currently in my fic, isn't based off of anyone, however, and it is unfortunate that I have to admit this as it was not intended... But it would seem like he is somewhat a cross between Darth Vader and Voldemort... However it would seem that 'Aura' is the main cause of this, that even in an article I read (online somewhere) that Pokemon's aura is akin to that of the Force in Star Wars...

[Misheard Whisper]

YES FEIGN AURA = FORCE. THIS PLEASES ME.

/me remembers his short-lived, untitled Pokemon/Star Wars crossover fic

[Redstar]

What do you base your non-canon fic characters off? Yourselves, Sentrets with flamethrowers? People in the FFL?
I create my non-canon characters out of necessity. If I need a character to fill a certain position, I'll find a stand-in and develop from there. None of my characters are explicitly "non-canon", though my interpretations of them can stretch the term. For example, one of my characters is Krystal's mother. She obviously doesn't have one in-canon, though I've appropriated someone for the role that does exist in one area. This work is all about alternate character interpretations, so I'm free to do anything I like with characters as long as I feel they meet my personal standards for continuity.

[Mizan de la Plume Kuro]

Originally Posted by Misheard Whisper

YES FEIGN AURA = FORCE. THIS PLEASES ME.

/me remembers his short-lived, untitled Pokemon/Star Wars crossover fic

/Is reminded of the time he tried to have a Pokemon/Gundam/Star Wars crossover involving Espeon.

[Haruka of Hoenn]

Do you think reading fiction is beneficial if well written. Why?
Yes! Fiction helps stimulate the imagination, and will help readers expand their thinking. Fiction stories can be more powerful than nonfiction if their themes are powerful. Harry Potter is fiction, but a lot of people can relate to its theme.

What do you base your non-canon fic characters off? Yourselves, Sentrets with flamethrowers? People in the FFL?
I just make them as real as possible. I imagine them as real people, and give them personalities that 'fit'. Sometimes, I can base their personality off of someone I've met or seen before. That makes it especially interesting.

[Feign]

Originally Posted by Misheard Whisper

YES FEIGN AURA = FORCE. THIS PLEASES ME.

/me remembers his short-lived, untitled Pokemon/Star Wars crossover fic

Lol it's not that I am trying to cross over the two... But my fic will be dealing with dark aura as well (in Coliseum I believe). I really should try finishing this chapter today...

Now that I think of it there is a bit of 'The Mummy Returns' in this plot too X_x

Oh well. XD

Harry Potter meets Star Wars meets The Mummy Returns meets Pokemon?

[Sgt Shock]

What do you base your non-canon fic characters off? Yourselves, Sentrets with flamethrowers? People in the FFL?

Most of my secondary characters are based off of real life people, my main characters are never based off of myself. My main character are mostly either something that I wish to be or a concept of a person that I found interesting.

[Elite Overlord LeSabre™]

Do you think reading fiction is beneficial if well written. Why?
My opinion on this might have been different if not for the craptacular choice of literature in English class, but I get more benefit out of reading non-fiction. Now, going back to the Harry Potter example, I'll admit never reading a book in the series, but I can say with confidence that Harry Potter won't let you know how far down the road it is to the nearest Quality Inn, or how to calculate your earned income credit on your tax return, or how to overhaul the transmission in your 1985 Regal.

What do you base your non-canon fic characters off? Yourselves, Sentrets with flamethrowers? People in the FFL?
Mostly people I know. Myself, my friends, teachers, anthropomorphic Persians who strike down flamethrower-wielding Sentrets with their LeSabres...

[txteclipse]

Holy craaaaaaaap. Why is everyone suddenly so active? I mean, I'm not complaining, but I demand an explanation!

Also, *raises hand*. You'll understand that if you're supposed to.

Do you think reading fiction is beneficial if well written. Why?

Yes. It got me into fiction writing, which has taught me so much that it's not even funny, as has been reiterated at length here. XD

On top of that, and I don't intend to brag or anything, but I've been actively reading fiction most of my life and I have an IQ of 135. English is also my best subject. So either I should have an even higher IQ, or it's actually helped me in the long run.

What do you base your non-canon fic characters off? Yourselves, Sentrets with flamethrowers? People in the FFL?

All of my characters have at least one of my personality traits in order to help me relate to them. Otherwise, I base characters off of what I think would make a good character, or off of living people or animals I know.

How do you feel about prologues in fics?

They can be good if used well, but like EOLS, I hate infodumps. The less information the better, imho.

[Dagzar]

Do you think reading fiction is beneficial if well written. Why?
‘Benefit’ is a bit of a vague term, but I’d say not really. Fiction is more of a form of entertainment, like movies are. Other than teaching people random facts in a very fun way, people could probably benefit more just by studying or something. And then maybe they wouldn’t fail Biology tests. <_<

What do you base your non-canon fic characters off? Yourselves, Sentrets with flamethrowers? People in the FFL?
Mostly people I know or other fictional characters. However, as I write and plot, they never stay that way, instead evolving into completely different people (though their appearances usually stay the same).