Fanfiction Lounge

[Bay]

What do you guys do with your un-postable stuff?
It's going to be a mixture of all of your guys' answers. D:

Like Astinus, not posting it. Heck, I won't post a story or chapter until I'm satisfied with it. I mentioned a billion times I didn't post the original version of NE (and glad I never did XD). Like Giratina, however, sometimes I try to incorporate the ideas from the stories I didn't post and put it in my new story. Did that with the new version of NE. XD

As for the inspiration question...*points to solovino's bold topic index*

 

[Shrike Flamestar]

Hi guys, I randomly feel like posting and using actual words in my greeting for once.

What do you guys do with your un-postable stuff?
Post it anyways. Seriously, Haunting at the Old Chateau would probably be considered un-postable by many due to its unspeakable violence and gratuitous gore but does that stop me? Hah, I think not.

Of course I do have the more "traditional" un-postable stuff of a more sexual persuasion (although not lemon or even lime flavored, at least. I'm not much for that sort of hardcore stuff), but even those tend to be posted. Just not here. Hey, you didn't specify.

One was even posted at Jax's forum (in my sig! Say I referred you people!) despite it being just as un-postable there as it is here. Perhaps slightly less so, but still, it's completely out of place and I only posted it because I'm crazy and insane like that.

 

[Sgt Shock]

What is the weirdest place you've ever been struck by inspiration?

Mine is always in the sleep. My current original story, S.T.R.I.P.E.S came to me in the middle of the night. XD It woke me up so I was irritated but I'm was so excited t the same time. I might post it here.

 

[Miz en Scène]

I'll find time to read it Shrike. XD

Hey guys, a question about my fic if anyone is willing to help me. XD
This is the FFL after all. XD

How should I describe the red cloth that Steven Stone wears in place of a tie?

and

How would you explain the plethora of Anime hair color?
It seems to me that anything on the visible spectrum of light is a hair-colour in the anime-verse. It's normal and barely noticeable when watching anime, but it sounds kinda weird if you try to put it into serious writing.

It also makes no sense to people who don't watch anime.

EDIT:Ninja'd, dang you Sergeant. XD

Mine is always in the sleep. My current original story, S.T.R.I.P.E.S came to me in the middle of the night. XD It woke me up so I was irritated but I'm was so excited t the same time. I might post it here.

I also had a dream about a great, non-related to Pokemon, idea. I was hoping to incorporate it in next year's NaNoWriMo. XD

Finally,
Happy Eid al-Adha everyone! :D

 

[Giratina ♀]

So, I've got a question. It's not a bold-worthy question, but a question nonetheless. It's on Pokémon battles. Now, if any of you remember back in Metal Coat, I didn't actually put many battles in - the max was two or three, counting the whole Medicham and Sneasel thing. So anyway, I was wondering about how to write a battle. I've realized recently that what makes battles so hard for me is the Trainers constantly butting in and breaking the flow of the fight. So would it be too bad for the story if the Trainer commands were removed entirely, and if they only spoke when they needed to comment?

 

[Bay]

How should I describe the red cloth that Steven Stone wears in place of a tie?
Just like the question, but in prose form. XD An example:

Instead of a red tie, a red cloth was wrapped around Steven's neck.

BAM! Thought of that just a minute ago! XD

How would you explain the plethora of Anime hair color?
I don't. If an anime has people with wild hair colors, like in Naruto, I just describe that person has pink hair and such. If you're writing fanfiction, the audience already knows things like weird hair colors is normal in the anime show's world.

And Giratina, I wouldn't say remove them completely. Sometimes the way they say the commands can show the characters' personality. However, if you believe the comments break the flow of the battle, you can say, "After Jack commanded Vaporeon to use Water Gun," and etc.

 

[Feign]

So, I've got a question. It's not a bold-worthy question, but a question nonetheless. It's on Pokémon battles. Now, if any of you remember back in Metal Coat, I didn't actually put many battles in - the max was two or three, counting the whole Medicham and Sneasel thing. So anyway, I was wondering about how to write a battle. I've realized recently that what makes battles so hard for me is the Trainers constantly butting in and breaking the flow of the fight. So would it be too bad for the story if the Trainer commands were removed entirely, and if they only spoke when they needed to comment?

Firstly it depends on what point of view your are going at, and even the location of both opponents.

If you are close to your opponent, you'd perhaps hear what they were going to attack with. With the point of view, if it were first person, we'd definitely know what the main character would have to say, and like above, depend on location, as to what the opponent does.

Lets say they were far enough apart, so then all you'd have to worry about, is your character's dialogue to initiate your pokemon, then follow through with the various actions and descriptions. You can also punctuate the monotony of the fight by including actions done by the trainer, like that the trainer was shocked or surprised by a particular act, and quickly called out a counter-attack.

Now if it were a third person fight, you could decide to have them hear the battle (hearing both opponents call out their moves), or you could be more like a spectator, and watching what you describe. This way it will be more fast pace. But sometimes, doing it this way, seems to shorten the battle. To slow this down perhaps, you can include the trainers that are fighting in the match too, like what they are doing, what their current emotions are saying etc.

Something like that anyway.

 

[D. Lawride]

So, I've got a question. It's not a bold-worthy question, but a question nonetheless. It's on Pokémon battles. Now, if any of you remember back in Metal Coat, I didn't actually put many battles in - the max was two or three, counting the whole Medicham and Sneasel thing. So anyway, I was wondering about how to write a battle. I've realized recently that what makes battles so hard for me is the Trainers constantly butting in and breaking the flow of the fight. So would it be too bad for the story if the Trainer commands were removed entirely, and if they only spoke when they needed to comment?

I don't think it would be bad for the story, as long as you kept it explicit that the Trainer commanded it, by including the command in the narration instead of the dialog, as it was mentioned above.

I usually round that problem by making the interventions short and generic, and then adding the move's description and effects. I think it keeps the story going that way, but that's just me.

How would you explain the plethora of Anime hair color?

Hum, a fashionable sense? ._.
Seriously now, I don't really know how to answer that properly, because I think the anime has that plethora of hair colors just to keep the characters apart. You don't quite run into a person with a real big, round, red and white afro every day, right?
I probably didn't even answer the question. Sue me. <.<

What is the weirdest place you've ever been struck by inspiration?

During a Maths class just before the exam. I got that sudden inspiration that wasn't too handy in that situation. And most of my ideas come when I'm at school. ._.

 

[bobandbill]

Hum, a fashionable sense? ._.
Seriously now, I don't really know how to answer that properly, because I think the anime has that plethora of hair colors just to keep the characters apart. You don't quite run into a person with a real big, round, red and white afro every day, right?
I probably didn't even answer the question. Sue me. <.<

Nay, you have not. *sues*

Crazy/weird hair styles/colours tend to be common-place in the Pokemon world in various places, so it depends... I'd imagine a character in a place with people having weird hair-styles often would find it common-place, although giant afros like that tend to take the cake. XD Pity there is no Miror B in the anime though...

What is the weirdest place you've ever been struck by inspiration?

I'm not sure... school or foriegn countries during holidays, really, but nothing really all that out of place in my mind, anyhow...

 

[Astinus]

So anyway, I was wondering about how to write a battle.

Y'know, Feign did have a thread that was supposed to help people learn to write Pokemon battles. Poke him repeatedly.

Anime hair colors are like the skin colors of the American cartoon Doug. Howtf do you explain someone with purple or blue skin? Radioactivity, like the Nostalgia Critic suggested?

The only time I've seen a weird hair color explained was in a Digimon fic, where the character has purple hair, but it was found to be dyed. Still doesn't explain how her kids wound up with purple hair, though.

 

[Feign]

Y'know, Feign did have a thread that was supposed to help people learn to write Pokemon battles. Poke him repeatedly.

Anime hair colors are like the skin colors of the American cartoon Doug. Howtf do you explain someone with purple or blue skin? Radioactivity, like the Nostalgia Critic suggested?

The only time I've seen a weird hair color explained was in a Digimon fic, where the character has purple hair, but it was found to be dyed. Still doesn't explain how her kids wound up with purple hair, though.

Its been past a month mind you XD

But also that and no one needed help it seemed (since no one was posting in it), if I recall anyway.

I do hope the preliminary advice does help though. :)

As for anime hair... I wonder why it existed to begin with (I assume its origins can be traced to DBZ)... I suppose it makes them look more cool (if anything else)...

Also on another note I am taking ear poison medicine for my itchy left ear... very fun...

Those who don't get the scratched out reference will unfortunately have to duel me in a sword fight. Come on! Double reference!

 

[Redstar]

Japanese people generally have only black hair. Manga/anime artists typically also draw their characters with the same facial structure and body type. In conjunction, this would lead to characters looking nearly exactly the same. To counter-act this, it has become standard form to dress characters up in funky clothes and non-natural hair colors to set them apart from each other. It's a necessity.

The same thing is done in comics: so many females in comics have red hair because it stands out and lets the reader focus immediately on her in panels without having to "scan the crowd".

Note: This only works for the visual medium. It has to be done as a mechanic of the visual experience... If these characters were in the real world, it's likely the majority would have natural hair colors. They're not trying to be "special" or anything, they're just trying to be noticed by you because they all look the same.

Therefore: have some creativity and don't be creative in your writing. Since you can't see them, they don't need purple hair to stand out.

 

[bobandbill]

Depends I suppose who you're writing about - if it's a canon character they probably should be keeping that crazy hair of theirs, obviously. XD But yeah, it is a technique of visual products after all, and not just Pokemon. Heh, Fire Emblem characters like their different-coloured hair, they do...

Whatever the writer chooses though, they should probably stick with it, and if the rest of the world has normal hair but then a particular character has outlandish, crazy hair, then maybe an explanation may be in order, if needed. Eh, depends on the context of the story and setting and all that jazz.

 

[Haz]

What is the weirdest place you've ever been struck by inspiration?

Sleeping. No joke :P

 

[Ninja Caterpie]

Depends I suppose who you're writing about - if it's a canon character they probably should be keeping that crazy hair of theirs, obviously. XD But yeah, it is a technique of visual products after all, and not just Pokemon. Heh, Fire Emblem characters like their different-coloured hair, they do....

Oh lordy. If you can name a colour, FE has a character with that hair colour. xP

Actually, Pokemon has some pretty tame colours. Black, brown, orange, brown, black, brown and blue? Sounds normal to me.

 

[bobandbill]

What is the weirdest place you've ever been struck by inspiration?

Sleeping. No joke :P

Eh, I suppose I find sleeping a prtty common-place way to get ideas... but then again I haven't really gotten much from dreams. (But some crazzzzzzzzy stuff has gone down in them at times). Far more often, come to think of it, I get ideas just before I go to sleep... hmm. Is it a good thing one gets ideas and uses them sometimes when they were acquired in a sleep-deprived state?

...oh well. XD

Oh lordy. If you can name a colour, FE has a character with that hair colour. xP

Actually, Pokemon has some pretty tame colours. Black, brown, orange, brown, black, brown and blue? Sounds normal to me.

I raise you by the aforementioned (or afromentioned?) Pokeball-themed hairdo of Miror B's, along with his peons Folly and Trudly (just look at this pic). But yeah, overall there's not TOO many crazy colours... although blue isn't normal to begin with - some have those, and there's some greens (like Aaron, D/P/Pt E4), pink (Whitney, GSC/HG/SS), and many purples as well if memory serves. It's got nothing on FE though - crazy colours there are definitely the norm. XD

 

[Haz]

Eh, I suppose I find sleeping a prtty common-place way to get ideas... but then again I haven't really gotten much from dreams. (But some crazzzzzzzzy stuff has gone down in them at times). Far more often, come to think of it, I get ideas just before I go to sleep... hmm. Is it a good thing one gets ideas and uses them sometimes when they were acquired in a sleep-deprived state?

Yeah probably :P. I don't tend to get ideas while sleeping I try and think of ideas and they end up being dreams. I could make a list as long as my arm of ideas-turned-dreams that have been turned into events, characters etc, in my various crappy fanfictions. I also tend to get ideas at school during class or at work. :P

 

[Giratina ♀]

It was in third person... well, okay, the first person narrator wasn't actually doing anything at the time, but that's unnecessarily complicating things. xD So it'll be called third person. Yes, I was planning to say something along the lines of 'Spheal fired an Ice Ball at the opponent...' and so on and so forth, instead of explaining what they were doing but not what the attack was. Trainers, as I said earlier, would only speak at all if they were responding to the battle or their Pokémon - "Ugh, thought Jack, I can't believe he used Flamethrower to counter that..." or something like that.

So yes, thanks, guys! : D

 

[Feign]

Might just want to be careful with the use of 'ice ball' because it is not the name of a move, you might want to do that for the rest of the moves... But that may cause it to sound generic (of course except the moves where you hear the trainer calling them out).

It could work much better too, if an opponent is using a move your character is unfamiliar with.

Definitely, those thoughts do work best. :)

 

[Giratina ♀]

Actually, yes it is. But yeah, I was going to capitalize all moves to make it easier for the reader to notice that they were moves, not just the clumped-together remains of a frozen Bubble or something.

Another question on it, though. Would it be okay to sort of switch between attack commands and description for each battle? Sometimes fights just get so intense that you feel like giving commands would sort of break it up, if you all know what I mean, so...