Writers' Workshop General Chat Thread

[CrystaI]

Not constant inspiration. Currently it is just an instantaneous explosive urge that I felt like want to write it out so badly. I won't guarantee I'll drop into writer's block for another long period once this chapter is finished.

 

[Time Breaker]

Yeah, I've been having difficulty trying to make myself make any more episodes of my fic. Today I added a considerable chunk to the outline, so I just have to make more actual episodes.

 

[Kharixi]

As I said, I have a bazillion ideas but I need to get writing...

 

[Instrutilus]

Hey, when writing for characters thinking to themselves, do you give them more than one mental voice that tend to fight with one another, or would you consider that more of a comedic element left solely for lighthearted stories?

 

[Kharixi]

Eh, usually it's just one voice, but that is actually a good idea IMO.

 

[Time Breaker]

I guess it depends on the situation, really. You could have a scenario where the hero/ine needs to choose who to save, and he/she could have conflicting thoughts on which one.

 

[Flaze]

I AM ALIVE

 

[Kharixi]

I have actually thought of a difficult scenario:
Something huge happens. Your best friend and a major villain both grab on the ledge of a cliff.
I know, you're thinking, "Obviously, I'd save my best friend."
But the villain was just coming to his senses and maybe turning good.
But your best friend has been by your side for years.
But you can only save one.

...so yeah, there you go.

Oh, and welcome.

 

[Instrutilus]

I AM ALIVE

-throws out window- There we go.

 

[GastlyGibus]

Forget inspiration, I say - easy come, easy go. Sometimes you just have to work at it and push through the temptation to do absolutely anything rather than write

QFT. Inspiration is fleeting. Discipline is forever.

Hey, when writing for characters thinking to themselves, do you give them more than one mental voice that tend to fight with one another, or would you consider that more of a comedic element left solely for lighthearted stories?

The protagonist in my fic does that sometimes, partly for comedy, but mostly because he's very indecisive and antsy. For characters that are anxious and worrisome, it can be used as a tool to show their difficulty in making decisions. That's where the whole shoulder angel and devil gag comes from, after all.

 

[diamondpearl876]

Hey, when writing for characters thinking to themselves, do you give them more than one mental voice that tend to fight with one another, or would you consider that more of a comedic element left solely for lighthearted stories?

Depends how it's written, I suppose. I mostly see people go for it as a comedic element. I personally think of that as a way to express a character's internal conflict, because that's how I roll as a dark fic writer. I could also see a philosophical twist put into it as well, though you don't see a lot of that in pokemon fanfic.

 

[Jaye]

QFT. Inspiration is fleeting. Discipline is forever.

Very true. This is something I've cottoned onto recently despite being told for years by my tutors. You just have to muddle through sometimes, and if what you write is rubbish you just re-write it until its good.

So I'm curious now: I usually aim to write at least 1,000 words a day, but what about you guys? Do you do something similar?

 

[AceTrainer14]

So I'm curious now: I usually aim to write at least 1,000 words a day, but what about you guys? Do you do something similar?

BAHAHAHAHA I usually get to about quarter to one in the morning and decide to write something before I go to bed, and throw down every thought and line of dialogue in my head, and do that over a few days until finally piecing it together, throwing it at the beta, editing, posting, and then waiting another few weeks before repeating.

 

[Beth Pavell]

Hey, when writing for characters thinking to themselves, do you give them more than one mental voice that tend to fight with one another, or would you consider that more of a comedic element left solely for lighthearted stories?

It would be more difficult to get away with, the more serious you intended to to be, I suspect

So I'm curious now: I usually aim to write at least 1,000 words a day, but what about you guys? Do you do something similar?

I've never been able to stick to wordcount quotas. I just make sure that I write something every day, be it getting words down on paper or fiddling around with the planning and so forth

 

[Instrutilus]

It would be more difficult to get away with, the more serious you intended to to be, I suspect

But then you have things like Red vs Blue, which shows it's possible for it to be done (relatively) seriously.

 

[Beth Pavell]

But then you have things like Red vs Blue, which shows it's possible for it to be done (relatively) seriously.

Well, yes - Terry Pratchett gets away with it in the Tiffany Aching books. It's not impossible, but I'm pretty sure you'd have to be a lot more careful to avoid it coming across as silly

 

[AceTrainer14]

I think that writing of that nature works better in film/television where you can kind of see it play out. In text form, I don't think that intended purposes would really come across. Split personalities tend to work best in a visual medium, I feel, or at least when the personalities are separate enough that you don't realise that they are the same person/it's happening inside their head until later on: doing it where you have three clashing voices right from the get go (the character, internal voice 1 and internal voice 2) would likely get distracting, messy and confusing if not handled properly.

 

[Instrutilus]

"Well, this is a rather sticky situation," he mused aloud to himself.

"Really, that's the best we can come up with?" a mental voice commented, sounding particularly unamused.

"Let's not focus on that. We need to get out of this as soon as possible," replied another urgently, "can you see any point of escape?"

"Maybe. Have we thought of that passage below us?" the first queried.

"Too risky, could end up coming down on us," the second replied mournfully.

---​

You could probably get away with acting as if it's two seperate characters talking between themselves, with a small visual cue (such as my use of italics) to indicate that it's just playing out in their head. Stories are a visual medium, after all, the text can portray things when used well.

 

[AceTrainer14]

One example isn't enough to really show if its maintainable across a long period though, and, frankly, if it was written like that, that sort of back and forth would bore me after a while. You could do the same thing but just with one voice - and the fact he has to 'muse aloud' to himself things he could think is another dent.

If we are moving onto specific examples though, we would need to move this over to Plot Bunny Zoo.

 

[Instrutilus]

-shrug- worth a try, at the very least.

Regardless, how are people's days going?