Obsolete: Fic/Author of the Month

[Gama]

Re: Fic of the Month - February-Striking Back: Memoirs of a Clone by Dai

Who is March fic of the month? *hint hint* hehe

Apologies on behalf of the entire Writer's Workshop staff for the delays on this. Organising the awards etc. has thrown this a little behind schedule. There will be a March Fic of the Month, @LightningTopaz is working on selecting it.

 

[Kelleo]

Re: Fic of the Month - February-Striking Back: Memoirs of a Clone by Dai

I was wondering when the March fic would be selected. Can't wait to see what's chosen this time! :3

 

[LightningTopaz]

Re: Fic of the Month - February-Striking Back: Memoirs of a Clone by Dai

I'm working on selecting it--should have my choice made later today

 

[LightningTopaz]

Re: Fic of the Month - February-Striking Back: Memoirs of a Clone by Dai

March's Fic of the Month is Llama_Guy's Crystal of the Elements!

S/he may be a new writer, but s/he's got a lot of potential that I felt was worthy of this honor.

Watch this space for an interview!

 

[TheLlama]

Re: Fic of the Month - Crystal of the Elements - Llama_Guy

I'm really, really proud to be selected for this, only a few hours after posting my first work ever :crush: Hopefully I can now gain a lot of readers so I can fulfill my shameless need for attention a lot of people will find their way to and enjoy the fic!

Also, I'm a guy ;P

 

[LightningTopaz]

Re: Fic of the Month - Crystal of the Elements - Llama_Guy

Again, I was very impressed with the story, and felt it was worthy of the honor.

Here's the interview:

Why did you decide to create a fantastic Pokeworld?

I decided to create it for several reasons. The first is that I'm not particularly fond of the world as it is portrayed in the anime and the games - it seems too child-friendly. Pokemon has so much potential, and they've only touched it. AS for why I chose a fantasy setting in particular, is more random. I've had three major plot bunnies regarding Pokemon for some time now. One includes a more futuristic sci.fi.-setting, a "Pokemon in Space" if you want.

The other is a fanfic more inspired by the likes of Mushishi, a fantastic anime about a traveling expert on some strange creatures ("Mushi") that inhabit that series' world. It would be about a traveling pokemon biologist who discovered pokemon, who observed them in their natural habitats - a deeper look into pokemon as the animals they are - a subject hardly touched by the pokemon media so far. There's tons of references to pokemon biology, to them hunting other pokemon for prey, and so on and so forth, but you see so little of it. I wanted to expand more upon it.

The third bunny is the CotE storyline and setting - which is basically pokemon put into a more conventional fantasy setting with wizards, sword-fighting, the conflict of good and evil, and all that. I've always wanted to expand the Pokemon media into something like that, as it provides ample grounds for doing so. The reason for choosing this particular bunny over the other two is probably nothing more than coincidence; I ended up developing it more and decided I'd write this one. Keep your eyes open, though, as the other two are still potential candidates for writing.

What was the most challenging part of building your world?

It is always challenging to build something; but the fun involved in it overcomes that by miles! I've made a large map of the world, and I've had lots of fun creating the individual cities and villages that will appear - they all have very unique cultures that will hopefully give a different and interesting experience as the story moves and touches the different parts of the Auricu region. The challenge mostly lies in making it realistic, making it dynamic. Anyone can create a world and a setting, but very few can create a world and setting that captivates by itself , that is interesting in itself, even without the actual story (the Tolkien unvierse is probably the finest example of that). I aspire to be one of those few.

And when creating fantasy, that is even ore challenging, because the world and its setting is so important; history, culture, how it all plays together, it needs to be dynamic, it needs to be genuine, feel realistic. A war happened long ago may have soured relations between two states - even to this day. How would this affect their culture? Why was a city built in this particular location? And how did this affect the inhabitants? What should I include, and not? Fantasy often have alternate humanoid species such as dwarves, and elves. Should I have them included? Or not? You can't have fantasy elements simply because they're fantasy elements. And then there's the mages. The main character is a mage, so I need to focus on and create an entire culture and history around this, that actually plays into the story.

For most of the stuff probably won't go into the story. There's only so much you can include without dragging down the story - and that's also a challenge. But it's much easier picking what to include when you have all the background material beforehand, compared to when you just have to make up things on the fly. It feels more genuine, done right of course.

What was the most enjoyable part of building your world?

The different cultures, and the mythology. To create so many different places, to imagine what the people there are like, how they have adapted to their natural surroundings, what they live off of, how they interact with others. To plan the history, to create and create and create until I'm sick of it - only I don't get sick of it! Again, I won't include even half of all the stuff I write and create, but I will create a large compendium of history and background stories for mostly everything as it appears in the story.

The mythology was really fun, but also challenging - and I'm one of those who relish a challenge. The Pokemon franchise has a lot of legendary pokemon - and I've played around with them, created my own stories about their roles in this world, how it was created, how it all plays together - one might find that the legendaries has many similar roles, but put into a very different mythological setting. And who knows, maybe some will appear later on in the story?

Any advice for anyone looking to write a story like yous?

Be creative. You don't have to make it fit with existing pokemon media if you don't want to. You can if you want take pokemon and throw them into an entirely foreign setting, and that's fine. Make an interesting world, an interesting setting - many fantasy stories are made or broken based on the appeal of their setting. But don't overdo it, show moderation. Fantasy for the skae of fantasy is enver good - that is, don't throw in elements like elves, dwarves, etc., simply for the sake of having fantasy element to your story. That will detract rather than add to your story.

What is your biggest inspiration?

I don't know, I don't directly reflect on what I take inspiration from as I write, so long as I avoid plagiarizing something. But large fantasy worlds typically inspire me. I admire the complexity of the Lord of the Rings universe, the painstaking detail put into the foreign elements of the Mass Effect universe, and I love creating settings like that myself - those that are deep, complex and vast. Thematically I probably draw a bit from Lovecraftian literature. I have not read any of his works, but the themes present - cosmicism, the futility and pointlessness of our existence, the angst and depression that occurs when faced with something you simply can't overcome, something that's just so overwhelming you feel utterly powerless and pointless, are themes I like myself. I have a rather nihilistic outlook on the world, and that reflects in my writing.

Any advice to young writers?

Heh, I'm a young writer myself (this story is my first serious attempt at actually writing a longer story), but I'll give advice as best as I can. The first thing I notice, is that it's very easy to give up - and rightfully so, writing takes time, and it's frustrating to become good at. Why? Everyone can write, but not everyone can write well. And being able to do something, but not being able to do it well, can be frustrating. And the learning curve is such that you often don't notice yourself if you've become better. You are in many ways very dependent on feedback from other people to see your own improvement. So my advice is to just keep going even if it seems hard and difficult. Share your stories, because that's the best way to get motivation - and also the best way to improve. If you receive negative feedback, don't get disheartened, instead, use the suggestions posted to improve yourself; take what advice you can get. But for many simply sharing their stories is hard - we're all a bit insecure, and most writes (and creative people in general) have this thing where they are never satisfied with their work. That's probably the biggest hurdle. Know that people who aren't involved in the making of something rarely sees all the apparent flaws you see yourself. It might be goo even if there's a thousand small things you want to fix. SO share it, see what people think. If they don't like it, use that as a motivation to improve. If people like it, then use that as a motivation to improve. Writing takes time, so find motivation everywhere you can!

 

[Kelleo]

Re: Fic of the Month - Crystal of the Elements - Llama_Guy

Congrats!

But Pokemon is supposed to be child-friendly...

 

[TheLlama]

Re: Fic of the Month - Crystal of the Elements - Llama_Guy

Congrats!

But Pokemon is supposed to be child-friendly...

I know, and I really love it for what it represents! But I feel that fanfiction gives an opportunity to throw Pokemon into a less child-friendly setting, or just generally do wild things with the media at hand. That said, a fantasy setting can also be child-friendly, but I like the darker stuff better P:

 

[Kelleo]

Re: Fic of the Month - Crystal of the Elements - Llama_Guy

Congrats!

But Pokemon is supposed to be child-friendly...

I know, and I really love it for what it represents! But I feel that fanfiction gives an opportunity to throw Pokemon into a less child-friendly setting, or just generally do wild things with the media at hand. That said, a fantasy setting can also be child-friendly, but I like the darker stuff better P:

Ah, I see. When it comes to darker stuff, it depends for me. Sometimes I like it, sometimes I don't.

You know, I'm kinda envious of you. You got an award with your first story and I've been writing for a long time lol. I thought I was a quick study, but you, sir, must have true natural talent.

 

[LightningTopaz]

Re: Fic of the Month - Crystal of the Elements - Llama_Guy

To be honest, I had low expectations going in, but once I saw the detail of his world and his characters, I knew he was worthy for the award.

 

[Kelleo]

Re: Fic of the Month - Crystal of the Elements - Llama_Guy

To be honest, I had low expectations going in, but once I saw the detail of his world and his characters, I knew he was worthy for the award.

I don't blame you. I just about always have low expectations when I start reading a fic posted on a forum. It's because most of what I've found was mediocre or just plain terrible. xP

This is one reason I started writing. So I could put out some more good fan fiction out there. It pleases me to know that I've received much more praise than negative feedback so far. I'd like to publish original work someday too.

But I've only won a writing award once. xP

 

[LightningTopaz]

Re: Fic of the Month - Crystal of the Elements - Llama_Guy

I have a feeling we will be seeing a lot more from Llama_Guy in the future

 

[TheLlama]

Re: Fic of the Month - Crystal of the Elements - Llama_Guy

Know the feeling about low expectations. As I mentioned earlier, I've done a fair bit of reviewing, and trust me, most of my reviews have been for horribly written stories that never ventured beyond the first chapter, if it could even be called a chapter :dumb:

And I do hope y'all will see more of me in the future, I most certainly plan to stick around

 

[an illegible mess.]

Re: Fic of the Month - Crystal of the Elements - Llama_Guy

wow, i've actually never heard of this story! xD. i may go and read it because of the award it got now. it sounds really interesting and creative!

also i've been wondering... to get into the hall of fame, does your story HAVE to be a pokemon fan-fiction, or can it be of another fandom/an original story? just curious. it's probably an obvious answer xD.

anyway, i hope i'll be featured in here sometime soon, and congrats to the people who already have!

 

[Lugion]

Re: Fic of the Month - Crystal of the Elements - Llama_Guy

^It's brand-new.

And no, non-Pokémon fics are eligible as well, if past winners are anything to go by.

 

[TheLlama]

Re: Fic of the Month - Crystal of the Elements - Llama_Guy

Mmh, I'm sorry if I'm disappointing anyone, but I might discontinue the fic. Not because I have a writer's block or anything - on the contrary, I have a ton of great ideas for the fic, and its universe. But I guess, in the end, when it comes to pokemon, I want to write something a bit more... pokemon-y. Pokemon battles, a modern era, beautiful nature and the experience of adventure... stuff like that. Stuff I cant' portray so well in the story I was writing.

If you liked it, then a small remedy may be that I'm looking into adopting it into an original story, because, as I said, I really liked it and have tons of ideas of what I want to do with it.

Also, I'm immediately starting work on a new fic. It'll be set in a more contemporary pokemon setting, and will, in its own way, deal more with the traditional pokemon adventure, pokemon battling and all that. Still with a twist though, as the main character is not a pokemon trainer per se... ;P and it'll still be more mature than the pokemon franchise at large. I'll leave it at that, and hope you'll wish to read this new story instead - one I'm much more motivated for and inclined to actually write! The result might just turn out for the better as well, quality-wise.

And. Yeah. Long post. I'll leave it at that.

 

[LightningTopaz]

Re: Fic of the Month - Crystal of the Elements - Llama_Guy

Our Fic of the Month this month is harryheart's Max's Hoenn Journey!

What made you decide to write a story about Max?

My initial inspiration came solely from the AG era and the fact I disliked some of the writer's decisions involving Max's plot, or lack of. I knew before I began writing it that I wanted to do a Pokemon fanfic of some sorts, and it just made sense to fit Max into that story because, at the time, there appeared to be few to no stories based on him and I wanted to do his character justice. Once the decision was made it was a pretty straight forward job in creating a story based on him, and looking back at it I'm glad I chose to go with an established character as well because I had something to base my story off. Although, with an original character you do have the option of creating their entire history, but I felt I could relate to Max (which I must admit was another compelling factor to write about him) and therefore do him justice.

How did you plan his journey?

Being honest, when I first sat down to write his journey there was no plan at all, or a very basic structure at the most. I knew I wanted to give him Charmander and try and create an interesting 'evil' team, and also do justice to Team Rocket, but besides that I didn't have any other plan. It was only when the first chapter was written that the first arc set in Oldale appeared and then things developed from there and I had an ongoing plot created around the 'evil' team (reason for not stating their name is that it's yet to be revealed in the story on BMGF) and eventually other things fitted into place.

Originally, from this point onwards, the plan was to do something similar to the anime and do a 'different Pokemon appears in each episode' sort of thing, but it was obvious from the word go that this idea was never going to work because a story is a lot different to a weekly show!

So once I discarded that, I just tried a few simplistic ideas and the initial chapter came together (in planning stage at least). Once I had all that created, however, I began to form an actual plot as I realised that having just a basic and almost non existant plot wasn't going to work well. And almost a month after I started writing it back in 2008 I had the first 50 odd chapters created and it was a solid basis to what I have now. From there things developed as I wrote, so I could see how characters interacted and could plan accordingly, I could evolve new storylines related to what had appeared on tv etc. And now, almost 4 years on, I have 120 chapters planned, one chapter off planning completion, and a lot of long running plot devices, mini arcs and the potential to develop characters and plots further, which is quite nice actually as I do still have overall creative control. And I guess, in some respects, it also leaves the door open to potential futher stories...

As a final side note on this one, when Unova was introduced I did make a little bit of reshuffling to try and work around it, and I feel that it has added something to the story that potentially lacked in the original plan, and will help my characters deal with many new situations I hope.

Is there anything you wish you could've done differently? If so, what?

Yes! I really wish I could've stuck to a writing schedule and have been able to be half way through the bulk of 121 chapters, but that's not that crucial to the overall plot I suppose.

Regarding the plot, the only change I probably would make would be the development of Max as a character and try and make less foolish mistakes in the first few chapters. I'd also really like to make the first 10 chapters a higher quality, and also make a few plot tweeks which I can't really do now due to them being well established. Saying that, I have made a few little changes such as the development of the Pendant plot, which I'm really really excited about, and so I had to go back to the early chapters and edit in accordance to what happened in Chapter 12.

Another slight change, although not really a huge difference, would be the cradting of the chapters and the way they were written. I feel I could do a better job on them now, but nevertheless they're still a part of me now and a part of where the story is so I feel quite nostalgic about them.

Were you pleasantly surprised at how a chapter came out?

I'm always pleasantly surprised at how a chapter comes together and is eventually completed. Often, it feels as if it develops before me and I'm a lucky viewer that gets a sneaky peak before everyone else. The characters definitely have a life of their own, and that's what I love about them, so sometimes they do things which really surprise me but are just natural developments of who they are. I love Harriet solely for this reason, she's always doing unexpeted things for me, especially considering she was never going to be a main character but made such a crucial decision that she eventually became Max's travelling companion and replaced the part time Roxanne (who was always going to be that way). I wonder whether anyone that's read it can tell who the original choice of a travelling companion was going to be before Harriet made her fateful decision?

One thing I love with the recent chapters is how the writing style brings the chapter together. I really feel that over the course of these 3 1/2 years my writing style has improved and the way I convey ideas has done so as well, so I really am loving my present writing as it feels like an accomplishment and a culmination of all these years of work, and it does surpirse me because I never believed I could write some of the things I do.

How did you design Max's party?

I knew what the core memberswould be since the first chapter, bar a last minute change to one of his later captures.

Because I felt I could relate to him and that we were similar (back then at least), I felt that the Pokemon with which I could relate to, he could relate to as well. So it seemed very simple to match them together, which was inevitably the reason why I needed to introduce Max to a Charmander from the first chapter. There's also been an arc with Shuppet, which is why I love using Max's history so much because it can influence the way I write, and rest assured, another iconic Max Pokemon does appear!

With the introduction of Unova, I was able to make some fitting changes to some other characters party's, but I knew that with Max I didn't want to make any changes as it seemed like it was forced to me, so it was obvious how the reader's would perceive the decision. However, saying that, I could see a very big plot point that I could use if I tried something out, so there may be a few surpirses later on in the story that will help Max grow! Inevitably, it's always to help the plot develop, thicken and deepen and to help the characters grow.

Any advice for new writers?

Oh yes... Don't ever be put off by other writers! We're all different and it can often take time to develop plots, characters and even writing styles, so we often may have to go through many a draft, many different stories, to get to a certain place. That's what happened with me and I'm glad I didn't give up or scrap the story like some people suggested, if I did I wouldn't be where I am today.

On a writing note, however, do listen to experienced writers... and read!!! Firstly, experienced writers are often experienced because they had to overcome their own mistakes and really deal with some hard craft issues, so they have numerous helpful tips that can make starting out an easier task than it may seem. And secondly using the age old saying: 'reading never hurts anyone!' That's so true, it doesn't. In fact, for a writer it's more of a help than a hinderance as your own ideas, plots, characters and craft can subtly grow without much effort on your part because you're absorbing so much from just reading a few crafted sentences that someone else has written.

There are probably a lot more technical things to write here, but I'm not really one for all of that, so I think I'll end it here with just a few helpful pointers that will hopefully help anyone venturing into writing - oh, and one final tip. Try it!

 

[Kelleo]

Re: Fic of the Month - Crystal of the Elements - Llama_Guy

You forgot to change the thread title. xP

 

[LightningTopaz]

Re: Fic of the Month - Crystal of the Elements - Llama_Guy

I'm about to do that

 

[Pride]

Re: Fic of the Month - Max's Hoenn Journey - harryheart

Congrats harryheart!!