Black dribbly candles... yep it's necromancy time again

This time two things, but first a few words of explaination. I have been writing fairly solidly since ther last thing I posted. But recently I found myself on the fifth reworking of what I was sure was a good idea, I had 25k words down (again) and a good idea of where to go. But it was the fifth rework for a reason, it had taken ages and wouldn't flow so ultimatly I packed it in because it was no fun any more.

I looked here and followed Destri's advice on finding an interesting bit of lore and filling it out. And the new one is going swimmingly, but I have rather hammered it down to push through the block with internal editor set to 'off' (I'm kinder to my internal editor than Haute... ) so it's very rough. Which brings me to my first question:

How do people redraft? Any tips? I generally tend to write fairly close to a finished product first time and then just edit descriptions, word choice and balance things a bit. But this needs more than that and I wondered if anyone had any effective methods. I lack patience and have a tendancy to resort to cut and paste.

The second question is more one of taste. What do you listen to while you write? I tend towards soundtracks and (some) classical which don't interfere but create a mood but am interested in what other people listen to, especially as I'm getting bored of my limited collection.

I wish I could offer some better advice about my redrafting process, but all I really do is read though the piece and look for things like continuity errors, repeated words, misspellings, things like that. Like you, I try to get it very close to how I want it in the first draft. Hence I spend the most time on that.

I do keep a outline, and I also check it against the piece when I do my redrafts. I sometimes find things I missed that way, and add them in. Or I might find that I really did not need them in the first place, and leave the story without it. Here again, I always have a solid outline with all the major events in the story before I start writing.

As far as music goes, I listen to all sorts of things. Most of the time just whatever cds I am in the mood for in general at the time. Lately I have been listening to a lot of Kamelot. Or I start winamp and put in on shuffle, and listen to my mp3s. Once in a while I will go for specific albums when I want to help myself get in the mood. For example, when writing The Battle of Bruma, and later editing one of the Vols chapters, I listened to the Gettysburg soundtrack.

If I'm writing something and I feel it needs a redraft, I make a new paragraph directly under the one I want to re-do. I look at what's in the paragraph that's important and keep it, rewording if necessary and then add or subtract things based on the flow. I do it one paragraph at a time until I'm satisfied. Then I delete the original and go from there



I usually leave my ipod on shuffle. Its mainly thrash and black metal with some love songs here and there and older pop. If I really feel like I need to get in a specific mood, then I find songs that fit the situation. For example, for Wrothken in the Shivering Isles I listen to a lot of Mindless Self Indulgence or sad break-upy songs, depending on what he's doing. For Kirsty, I play Lady Gaga, Alicia Keys, or anything kind of "light." Lilitu gets Cradle of Filth or JOJ (<---their full name isn't forum friendly, but the first word is Jack and the third is Jill...use your imagination). Basically anything that will give me a feeling similar to what's going on in the story.

I tend to the "make the first released draft near as damnit to the last draft" style of writing myself.

Currently I'm revising the FanFiction.net editions of my works, partly because of style (FF's filters eat most conventional section breaks) and also because sometimes I make massive clangers:

1. Calling Caranya Caminalda - who was offed in chapter 2
2. Referring to the same day with three different dates - and two different eras!
3. Referring to the Bruma guild in the present tense and making Volanaro the new guild head.
4. First, indicating Ancotar is at Black Plateau, then suggesting he was killed several chapters on.

Most of these are flubbed sanity checks, relying on my imperfect memory instead of going over what I've written.

This is particularly vexing, since I have so much catch-up to do on the crossover fiction.

As for listening material, I tend not to listen to anything. I need all the concentration my braincell can handle.

If you think the Crossover is hard now, wait till Ra'jirra leaves the Captital Wasteland and visits the Mohave Desert area !!

Which he won't be, mALX. The end point for that fiction is just after [redacted]. He'll leave further exploration to the younger, more expendable types.

Does that mean you will write it, but use a different character? Lol.

Let's just say I'm playing with the idea of an alternate universe "Freaky Friday"-style swap. If I go through with it, Slippery Elmer's going to hate me.

Something else I want to do is write the biography of Zul gro-Radagash, as a nonfiction document countering the terrible guff expelled by his fan. Ra'jirra is very eager for the truth to be known >;)

SPEW !!! Er... Slippery Elmer ...

I like the idea of a freaky friday type switch, but will Ra'jirra be in the wasteland while ... Slippery Elmer is ... er ... slipping it to Cyrodiil? Or willl Ra'jirra help him deal with the shock of the alternate universe?

Nope. This is a completely different splay of the Bethesda multiverse, because Zul already did the main quest in a radically different fashion.

Elmer's going to find himself in the body of a Dunmer (an Urshilaku barbarian, actually) and vice versa. The entire prologue is just an excuse for doing this.

Part of the fun here is the two getting acclimatised to radically different bodies, parts of which have been [UNTRANSLATABLE: TYPE III CONCEPT] through judicious application of handwavium compounds. Apart from that, it's really rather routine; Elmer (technically) becomes a courier again and Theldyn Assurnibipal becomes a courier, period.

Obviously I'm writing it now, but Theldyn is proving more difficult to write.

Here are several of the thoughts that go through my head when I'm typing away...

-How much information do I want the reader to know at the time? This is what creates tension, that feeling of not knowing exactly what's going to happen. Info-dump, as I've read, is a hurdle that many must learn about and avoid, because giving away too much means the tension gets spoiled. That tension is what keeps your audience interested. They want to find out what happens next. That is why I strive to only write into the chapter the plot information necessary, and make the rest filler.

-On that topic, I also strive to ensure all that extra filler has real meaning. Every word that is inserted into the tale needs to belong there, because pointless filler is just that: pointless. Having too much random babble makes readers bored. What do I mean by filler that has a reason for being there?
>Describing the setting
>Chatter, so long as it builds character
>Getting a quick chuckle out of the reader

I'm sure I can think of more, but not at this time (and that's filler for I ran out of ideas ).

Essentially, I write the plot to make the readers need to read more, and write the filler to make the readers want to read more.

-I always keep the overarching conflict in mind. Writing a good fanfic is like writing a good TV series, where every episode has its own little picture to paint, but the combined pictures provided by all the episodes form the overarching main plot of the conflict between the protagonist and the antagonist.

-On the topic of antagonists, I feel that better results are obtained if the readers are aware of his presence, but know nothing else about him for a considerable time other than he's trying to make life difficult for the protagonist. This ambiguity helps to build the tension, as the readers will never truly know who the big bad is until you out and tell them.

-I try to have two strong characters at the forefront of the story, the protagonist and a good side-character. This opens up so many options for storytelling that often cannot be accomplished with a lone wolf protagonist. Things such as learning about each other (which incidentally gives the readers a reason to care about the story), to help each other grow into even better versions of themselves, and finally, it gives me a viable reason to... perhaps... pull a fast one on one of them, which can make for one heckuva plot twist and completely change the course of the story.

-Oh, and don't introduce both at the same time. The Star Wars prequels made that mistake and it resulted in the viewer being unable to figure out who they were supposed to support, or who's story was being told. Stagger the introductions, it will make your story easier to read.

There's more, but that should do for now...

I am so glad I found this thread. As I stated in the Author's Notes of my FF thread (shameless plug), I am not a writer at all. Heck, my education level is a G.E.D. that I got when I was 16. In the 33 years since then (everyone get their calculators out now), I have read a lot, but written precious little. I started reading some fan fiction and "got bit by da bug", thinking that it sounded fun to try. I was right. So far I have found it to be very enjoyable.

I am babbling...

I really appreciate all of the material in this thread. My "writting style"...have I been writing long enough to have a style?...has been make it up as I go. I do have a plan of sorts, but I never thought to outline ahead of time, or storyboard, or use any of the other techniques mentioned in this thread. I want to thank Treydog for starting this thread over 4 years ago. And I gotta give a shout out to Acadian for helping me get started.



Unreal...That is EXACTLY what I did, albeit for lazy reasons. I didn't want to come up with a backstory before I started writing. Since starting my thread, I have read Linara's FF and I freaked out because her beginning was so similar to mine.

For me the rough draft is just that, rough. It is little more than an outline, an antiseptic relaying of events with maybe a dozen lines of dialogue to lend it flavor. I work differently from most writers I know in that my subsequent re-writes expand on the rough draft (most writers I know tend to write fat and pare down in the re-writes). I use my rough draft to 'get to know' the chapter. After that I try to find the 'voice' of the chapter. That isn't to say that I am looking for the narrator of the chapter (although that does happen from time to time). What I mean is that I am looking for the best way to tell the events of a chapter. Some of the questions that get me there: Whose eyes are we seeing the chapter through? What is the overall mood of that character through these events? What cadence of speech best communicates both the mood and the events?

Once I have found the 'voice' of the chapter, the writing tends to take care of itself.


Most of the time I don't listen to anything at all. I like hearing the sounds of life going on around me. Most of the time the soundtrack of my writing sessions are birdsong . . . screaming, shouting children . . . insistent lawnmowers and leaf blowers, and the crunch of gravel as cars pass by.

Ah, those were the days! I miss that more than I thought I would!

Right now it's the occasional yowling when the two cats decide to wassle each other. In the summer when the windows are open, it's the sound of tires on pavement. Not quite the same as gravel, though.

What I really miss, though, is the smell of coal smoke that tells me there's a live steam locomotive in the vicinity. That's what you get for practically growing up on railroad museum grounds.

ROFL!!!! Oh yes, the whole reason I have a playlist that I listen to. Now if I could find a way to stop:

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the youngest from giving repeated signals to get your attention and when he gets it asking something like, "Do you wish I was _____________ (fill in the blank with anything from Elvis to a pencil eraser)?"

-

Or springing _________________ (fill in the blank with anything from "Herkimer" snakes to fake spiders) at you -

-

and the husband that sneaks up behind you every time his ball game/Friday Night Fights/Nascar/etc. goes on commercial - and either runs his hands across the keys so you have to find where you were and delete the mess he made - or else makes like a spider is crawling on you - or jabs you in the ribs suddenly - or signals the dogs to leap on you -


-

all while you are typing.


*


PS: And Grits - I KNOW you know what I'm talking about, lol.


*

LMAO!!!!! now THAT is funny!!

We have no younglings about in this household, just the cats. However, the fill in the blanks could still work.

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The first would be; "After sharpening my claws on your computer chair, do you wish I was________________ (fill in the blank with anything from jumping into your lap to walking across your keyboard)?"

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The second would be; or springing ______________ (fill in the blank with anything from a hairball to the ocassional nasty feline flatulence) at you.

-

The third distraction comes from my fiance (spellcheck please). Since I am so new to this and have been going at it like a junkie that found some better crack, she doesn't quite get the interruption thing. She will come in and just start talking to me about daily stuff, what I want for dinner, etc. I remain patient, after all she does deserve my time, but there is always a sigh of relief when I get my solitude back. She questioned me about what I was doing, and when I told her, she just kinda rolled her eyes and said, "Oh my God, I really have become engaged to a geek!" I just laughed and reminded her how much time she spends in Facebook apps...nothing like a well fitting shoe to make an effective point.

People would be punched. -shudder- Though the fake spiders, I have to tell you about this.

We normally go to my grandma's house to Thanksgiving. My little cousin (he was about 7 or 8 at the time) knows of my phobia so usually he hides the fake spiders left over from Halloween. My brother and uncle LOVE spiders to death and just so happened to come across one of the fakes. That day I wore my hair curly and one of them threw a spider at me while my back was turned. I didn't know what it was and the spider actually got caught in my hair! The entire house was laughing and it took a long time (at least ten minutes) for me to catch what they did!




Wrothken says this to me all the time, especially when I cry over the Skyrim trailer

And my little tuxedo cat loves to sit right in front of the screen as I type or lay flat on the keyboard

You know it!! The kids usually try to sneak stuff by me when I’m writing, since I can see the stairs from where I sit. So I listen to THUMP THUMP THUMP tiptoe tiptoe tiptoe THUMP THUMP THUMP and then I have to chase them down and search them.

Mr. Grits has learned to give me some time during the day unless he wants a repeat of this at night:

Grits: *typing throughout*
Mr. Grits: I’m going to bed.
Grits: Huh.
Mr. Grits: The kids are asleep.
Grits: Uh huh.
Mr. Grits: Are you coming up?
Grits:
Mr. Grits: *sighs*
Grits:
Mr. Grits: *goes upstairs*
Grits: Did you say something?

Oh, I recognize the "THUMP THUMP tiptoe tiptoe" from the earlier years !!! And every now and then, something that wasn't supposed to be ... handled ... came thumping down the stairs as well.

Also, at the early ages a child is sure that if they look you in the eye, you will not see what their hands are doing (for some odd reason). They will try to hold your vision while sliding their hand into (pick one: Cake, Cookies, etc.) - like you can't see their arm stretching over to it!


@ TheOtherRick - the worst part is, he is no youngling - just has a wicked thing for practical jokes, lol. (wonder where they get that from?).

My baby likes to help her mommy the same way!

Gorgeous cat, SubRosa !!!

And who could resist your Freya?

She continues to be adorable!

I generally make a graphical, flow-chart-y outline on blank paper in my spare moments, and then type up a basic draft. After that, I go back in, and start filling in each sequence with the appropriate actions, dialogue, and environmental descriptions. Then I leave it, come back the next morning and re-read it to catch the mistakes spell-checker missed. After that, I go back to the sections that still don't feel right, and re-edit them till they do work.



This one is tricky for me. Usually, I try to get thematic songs based on the nature of the passage that I'm writing. Heavier material from metal and rock for battle scenes, "Gonna Fly Now" and "Hearts on Fire" for any part where intense training is taking place, etc.

For instance, I'm writing Awtwyr as a native of the southern half of the Kingdom of Shornhelm, which includes the Western Wrothgarian Highlands. Being a Highlander Breton, I eschew "Princes of the Universe" for more traditional or thematic pieces. So I tend to listen to a lot of music by Pipe and Drum bands when I get time to actually write his story. That, or the various Celtic Punk and Folk Metal bands out there.

Unfortunately, this has left "Highland Cathedral" on repeat in my brain at times.

A lot of people tend to have a large number of chapters queued up for their tales as they go through them, editing and revising as they post. I, however, do not do that. I focus my full attention onto a single chapter until it gets posted, then return to draft the next segment. The main reason people are performing the former strategy here is because what we are seeing is not the first version of their story, but rather revised versions of chapters that have already been posted elsewhere (I.E., BGSF before the mass-exodus of the major Fan-Fiction authors around this time last year).

I do not have the luxury of having a large backlog of chapters available to me, as I am a rather recent comer to this arena. I have developed my own style with writing a completely new story that ensures that my mind cannot get too fragmented. By focusing on my writing one chapter at a time, it allows me to keep focus, and therefore keep going.

That being said, everything that occurs in the tale has clear direction and purpose. I keep tabs on everything that happens, and my visions for what will happen extend all they way to the distant end.

Like you, I have been writing each chapter new after the previous one posts, (although I can't say it is the way I would choose to if given the option).

When I first moved here from the BGSF I started bringing my character's original story here, just doing some editing to it - but after the first few chapters I realized that wouldn’t work.

The original story was my first experience crafting my game into words. I don’t have writing skills like so many do here, just a love of my game character and an enjoyment in telling her story as she makes her way around Cyrodiil.

That lack is proven notably in the early chapters of the original story (which can easily be seen in the first few chapters on here). Thanks to the help of some Awesome people like SubRosa, Acadian, Foxy, Treydog, Winter Wolf - there has been some improvement in that aspect.

Rather than just revamp the original chapters, (which were based on a previous game I was no longer playing) - I really wanted to start fresh, do things differently this time. Other than the first few chapters, this story is completely different than the original. (anyone who has read both will testify to that).

SubRosa advised me to break free from the linear game mold, shape the story out of my own imagination and creativity. That is what I have been trying to do with this version. (SubRosa didn’t earn the title Sage idly, her knowledge is amazing and her advice sound).

I think we all draw inspiration from our own lives, or our lives can sap the ability to feel inspired. The beginning of June last year was when we found out Steve (my X) was dying from cancer, we barely had six weeks with him before he was gone. His illness and death consumed our family even for months after he passed. I couldn't wrap my mind around fiction when reality was overwhelming. For anyone wondering why I didn’t post between June 6 and August 20 last year - that is why. The only thing I wrote during that time was a poem dedicated to him.

Things that effect your life do tend to come out in your story. Agronak's evilness was the cancer; the vampire armies converging on the Imperial City was the rapid spreading of the disease. The war in the Imperial City was the battle Steve fought, the battle we all fought against the evil of that cancer that could destroy a man as strong as the Imperial City itself.

Anyway, everything added to my story since the beginning chapters has been written chapter by chapter as it posts with the exception of Foxy‘s characters, they have to be sent ahead to him for his edit-in and approval.

What I’m trying to say, I don’t know if writing as you post is a good or bad thing, because your mood can effect the tone of the chapter as you write it. (As can periods of inability to focus due to distractions that can occur readily in a house with a teenager, two dogs and a cat…or worse, a husband). Then again, one day you may be overflowing with inspiration and have a quiet house - if that ever happens I would like to write a few chapters ahead, lol.

Anyone else have trouble focusing and has some tips to get around it, I’m all ears.


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I sit at the opposite end of the spectrum. Until the entire thing is written I post nothing. The main reason is that if a piece gets stuck, and mine do around the 20-30k mark, people won't have wasted their time reading something which I'm simply not going to finish.

Another reason is that it lets me go back and tweak things. The whole I need such and such now is rather easier to insert with less planning. Likewise if a character changes (and if they don't it's a sure sign the piece will die) I can foreshadow it, or even rewrite sections. So basically it's about producing a tighter end result. It also means that there won't be vast gaps in my posting when RL gets too heavy.

On the minus side it does mean that I go long times wihtout having anyhting going up, and at the current rate it will be next year before I finish the TES piece I'm working on. Basically it comes down to choice: if you like having people comment in real time, and there are advantages, posing as you go is great, if you want more freedom to hack things around holding it all works better.


Agreed. Characters tend to have some of the writer in them, or even become avatars of aspects of the writer's psyche.

Having written something quite so pretentious I shall stop.

EDITED for typos

I am also of the "pre-write several chapters ahead" ilk. This is my first attempt at writing fiction for someone else to read, so I had no preconceived plan on how to do it.

I found that once I started, it was like turning on a faucet. The words just poured out. Acadian and mALX actually had to get me to shut the valve some because I was posting massive installments at a dizzying clip. So instead of posting as I wrote, I just continued to write and diminished the posting rate, and size. This resulted in the aforementioned pre-write style, quite by accident.

It has already helped me in way that was probably inevitable. Pre-writing provided a buffer between a bout of writers block and being able to continue posting anyway. Where at one time I was eight chapters ahead of my posts, that number has dwindled to one. Definitely a handy by-product.

I tend to be the opposite, I like to be quite careful with my word choice and sentence structuring; sometimes a bit too careful and this can lead to the occasional overly-complex sentence. I've found that the 48 to 72 hour delay for me is quite a reasonable time-frame, as that is usually the amount of time it takes for me to draft and redraft, and my proofreading skills continue to improve, as well. If you find a significant delay between chapters in my tale, it's usually because I was struggling with how I wished to tell the story at that point in time.

By the same token, I usually spend the time after posting a new installment reading the comments and thinking about how I wish to approach the next part. Although I usually have the big picture for my stories well in hand very early on, I like to develop the smaller pictures of the individual chapters as I go along. This allows me to keep my ideas fresh.

Out of curiosity, when most of you folks are talking about a chapter, what exactly do you mean? It may seem like a stupid question, but I have found that people often have very different ideas of the definition.

For example, often I see people comment in the TF and use the term chapter to refer to a single post. OTOH, when I say chapter, I mean something much larger. My chapters take up multiple posts (the current one, Inheritance, will take 7 posts to put up. The one I just finished will take 25 posts to put up.). Obviously, I have gotten long-winded in my sunset years.

I ask this because for example, I write an entire chapter at a time rather than a single post at a time. I write it as long as it needs to be to tell the story. Then I split it up into digestible increments and start putting it up every few days. Because putting 10-15k words in a single post would be insane. That is why I not only number the chapters, but put a decimal point to increment each post within the chapter. (The first post of Inheritance was Chapter 31.1, the second 31.2, etc...) Haute does the same, as she has the same view. This is also why I carefully use the term "episode", or "segment", when I refer to a single post, and never the term "chapter".

Well since December, I've been doing a rewrite, so most of the chapters are already lined up. Though on my current one, its still in the works...somewhat (I'm a bit burned out on it at the moment :/ )

To answer SubRosa's question, generally I refer to a chapter as a post, but that's only because my chapters are generally one post long. However, this last one I'm doing is two or three parts so I refer to it as a section, rather than the chapter.

First, I'll give my disclaimer again. I am by no means an author. I have never had schooling in writing. As a matter of fact, English and Literature classes were the ones I detested the most in school. I give this disclaimer because of how I started out here and where I am now.

At first, I was writing chapters in the literal sense, meaning that they were meant to centered around a topic. Such as the escape from the prison. So I orinigally was numbering as you have said...1.1, 1.2, etc.

Now I number and name the posts (or episodes, if you prefer) as individual chapters. That means that when I refer to a chapter, it now means a post.

I have learned so much since I started this. The education has been just as rewarding as finding this new hobby. Everything from punctuation, to sentence structure, to actually having a plan to the story. The latter may wind up being the downfall of The Talendor Chronicles, because I started it as nothing more than a game play narrative. It still is today. I worry that readers will tire of it and grow bored. Especially now that I am reading so many of the great stories here. There is so much talent in this forum. The authors are great at writing imaginative "off-game" adventures. Perhaps I will become that talented with practice and experience.

Sorry about the off topic rambling in the last paragraph there...

Off-topic rambling? I must disagree with you there, Rick.

Also, just because yours is a gameplay narrative does not mean that will be the downfall of the tale. Look to Old Habits Die Hard for a case-in-point example of what I'm talking about. We don't care about the plot nearly as much as we do the characters here (which may mean I am in trouble, because characterization is not one of my strong suits). Talendor is delightfully endearing, and that alone is enough to make every title you bring forth to us worth every second of our time.

For me, I write my story in a chapter, sub-chapter format, and each one is numbered right at the beginning. I do not title the full chapters, only the sub-chapters.

Due to my inherent weaknesses with reading people, it is rather difficult for me to characterize in my writing. That is why my story instead take the approach of a complex, adventurous plot that tugs at the mind and (in some cases) the heartstrings. I live off of the idea of hooking my readers into the tale so thoroughly they can't help the urge to find out what happens next. My strength lies in action and immersion, so that is where I will be playing from. My hope is that I can develop good characterization skills as things progress. Then, once I finish, I might go back and create a revision alongside whatever else I might have planned.

You are an author. Schooling does not matter. Just the will to do the work of putting the words down on the screen. As The Duke might say: Get used to it Mister.

And quite on topic I would say. As Captain Cook said, your characterization of Talendor is very strong, making him shine from the page. That makes reading him washing clothes interesting! Praise Zenitor! As you spend more time writing in general, and writing him in particular, you will doubtlessly begin to find ideas for plots outside of the normal game structure bubbling in your brain. That just comes from developing the character, because soon you come to find that certain things are personal to him. Be it ideals, or people, etc... These things will begin to tug him in one direction or another, and off you go!







I'll tell you a secret. We all have an inherent weakness with reading people. The only one who really knows what is going on in a person's head and heart are themselves. And even then there's often a lot of confusion!

So if you want to work on characterization skills, look at yourself. How you would think, how you would feel, how you would react. What makes you tick? I am not saying to literally write about yourself "The Mithril Chef of Cyrodiil! ". But pull from your own emotional experiences to make the characters you write richer. Use that to build empathy with them.

Agreed. Add to that the fact that you tuck humor into your story - that is a draw in itself, to me.

I have a quick question, when your character recalls back to the past mid scene, how do you handle this?

It's just, the chapter I'm writing now really requires it, and I'm not sure how I can make it clear that Helena is thinking back. Especially as it happens in the middle of dialogue.

One way is to use a different font- I generally use italics- and I think some of the others do as well.

Immodest example from my own work- since it was the easiest to find:



Notice that there are also "verbal cues"- by this time the reader knows the "current" Athlain is more than 7. And of course, the words "reminded me" in the first sentence.

Anyway- set off a flashback or memory typographically and frame it with a lead-in and an exit that make the transitions in time clear.

Thanks Trey! That's wonderfully helpful.

I use italics for the voice in her head though, so I'll have to think of something.

I wouldn't worry about people confusing the flashback with Helena's inner monologue. Remember, a flashback is Helena's inner monologue. It is her own memory being replayed for the reader. Using italics in this case would be perfectly fine.

I use italics for both flashbacks and inner thoughts in my writing. But I use different verb tenses to differentiate between them. I use the past tense for the flashbacks (same as in the main narrative), but present tense in the inner thoughts.

Let me give you a couple of examples from my own. First I set up the flashback to follow naturally out of the current events/thoughts my protagonist is experiencing:


I do the same thing with Julian's inner thoughts, only I use present tense instead of past tense:
You can see that not only the italics but also the tense change clue us in that these are her inner thoughts.

All I can do is agree with the above comments. I use italics for any "inner head" expressions, whether they be thoughts or dreams. Unfortunately, Talendor cannot remember his past, so the idea you are asking about doesn't apply to him...yet. Still, I think italics will work just fine.

I’ve been writing each post separately with a rough chapter outline, and I think it shows. I’ve rushed some sections, and I’ve tossed out others because they didn’t fit within a reasonable word limit. For the next chapter I want to write the whole thing, then break it into posts. Maybe that will help me learn how to develop a plot. I find that I’m often confused about what fits in the story as opposed to what’s there because I like it.

If it is there because you like it - keep it. You have proven your taste is beyond excellent in what you have offered up on your thread - proven your abilities and capabilities. Your characters are strong and developed without being Uber or Mary-Sue/Gary-Stu in any way - they easily draw the readers hearts and interest in them. You have an incredible talent, and I love your story!

What mALX said. Rule one for writing fiction (or poetry or whatever is not "work-related")- HAVE FUN!

So- if you have something that you like- make the story fit that part! I cannot tell you how much I have changed my original concept because I realized there were things I (and my long-suffering readers) really wanted to see.

Case in point- Athynae, who has basically become the "co-star" was originally just going to be a cameo so I could test my ability to write a more "romantic" subplot. The story would suffer terribly if I had forced myself to "stick to the plan."

Yes, poor Treydog was inundated with poems about Athynae - do you realize how many words rhyme with her name ??? Like billions! I could have gone on forever with them ... but thankfully Treydog resurrected her into the story to save himself the grief I was causing him with my attempts at poetry, lol.

Binder clips are my new best friends. I have a notebook that I write in when I’m out somewhere without my laptop, and a tiny notebook so I don’t get stranded without anything to write on when I don’t think ahead and bring the regular notebook. But sometimes the tiny notebook and the regular notebook both get left behind (sitting next to the laptop), so I write on gas receipts, napkins, envelopes, and the like. Then I often throw these things away without checking the back for scribbling. But no longer! I sprinkled a bunch of binder clips around wherever I might have access to a pen and a scrap of paper, so now I binder clip the scrap and don’t toss it! Woo hoo!

Sometimes it’s the little things.

Oh my....you're all so very talented here....like professionals, and I can't even dream about catching up...yet. So I will lurk around for now.

I'm not sure I dare continue Serene...with this massive competition, then again, I normally finish what I start even if it take ages!

The great thing is- we do not compete- we cooperate. So we have all won. I WILL catch up on my reading (shakes fist defiantly at RL).

And as for you- you simply MUST continue Serene's story.... Don't make me deploy the "Puppy Dog Eyes of Extreme Begging!"

There is no competition, just wonderful stories! Besides, you could hold your own on any stage, minque. You are Serene's mother and Serene is Athynae's mother. Athynae inspires dear Athlain. Athlain inspires dear treydog. And so on. . . . And you all inspire the rest of us so very much.

Who else could possibly tell the story that we all so fervently hope will continue?

QFT !!!!

Minque - do you know what is amazing about this forum? We all learn from each other, we all inspire each other. There is no competition here, but rather a brother/sisterhood of writers who are very passionate about the TES world and who share that passion with each other. Since coming here and posting my story here, my writing skills have developed so strongly and so much that I can see a distinct difference between the novel I wrote for Nanowrimo last year and the stories I wrote five, seven, ten years ago.

No doubt this will reflect in your own writing, when you are once again inspired to sit before your computer monitor and start beating on your keyboard.