What is your biggest question about fanfic in general?

[AzureBlaze]

What would you most like to know about the process of writing fanfics? Your biggest question about fan fics themselves?

I am curious to see what people most want to know about writing about PSO (or anything). Has it already been answered in that sticky topic up there? If it is, that's ok, ask it anyway...is there something that totally stumps you when you try to write, or you wish you could get rid of in fics you see?

Do you have any pet-peeves that really annoy you when you read them in fics? (no not that little thing the forum posts do that turn people's punctuation into "?"s)

It doesnt matter if you have a jillion questions, the more the better! I'm working on a project of fanfic and I'm curious about what other people think goes into both goodfic and badfic. I'm also interested in being as helpful as possible to here and everywhere...so if you ask, I'll try and answer right away. And since I have been on an info gathering spree, chances are I have the ability to answer. I am trying to improve what I am doing by looking at what people want. Are you trying to improve what you are doing/seeing? It'll all be accomplished at once!

[Sagasu]

How come some of the fan fic writers here lack a love for the art?

You cannot expect to be able to write a substancial piece of liturature without some sort of cause within yourself..

So tell me, why do so many people have no spirit in their words? I find no pleasure in reading a hollow fiction.



<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Sarunakai on 2004-06-27 21:39 ]</font>

[MQuantum]

Why is it that when I want to write, the nearest pencil and paper are over several mile away, yet when I have no inclination do do so, they seem to fall from the sky; and how is this together affected by the unending sea of procrastination that only lets me write mere words at a time?

I somehow feel that that's not what you mean about Fanficcie questions. http://www.pso-world.com/psoworld/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/anime2.gif Nor is 'Where have all the ficcers of yesteryear gone?'. Nor 'why do people change?'.

Hmmm... The unanswerables...

[dude3282]

Are there any majorly overplayed ideas or topics I should stay away from when writing my story?

[dude3282]

On 2004-06-27 21:38, Sarunakai wrote:
How come some of the fan fic writers here lack a love for the art?

You cannot expect to be able to write a substancial piece of liturature without some sort of cause within yourself..

So tell me, why do so many people have no spirit in their words? I find no pleasure in reading a hollow fiction.

My guess is that you have people who honestly want to write PSO fiction but really aren't writers. So, they have the willpower to write but not the skills to write well. Writing interesting fiction can be tough, it takes practice. I'll take writing a quick little poem over a substantial story any day of the week, unless I'm somehow inspired that way and that doesn't happen very often, unfortunately.

[Sharkyland]

I draw the actions better than I can write because:

a) my vocabulary sucks (according to Microsoft word, I am a 4th grader when writing and reading)

b) I can't think of the right word when I want to

c) I only like doing fighting scenes and get extremely bored when doing the boring scenes

d) my imagination keeps on changing so keeping something constant is very difficult to do because I can always find a hundred ways to improve it (as for critiquing art, I dont comment much because people are still originating their own style and since anime is deformed, it would be nice to see how the artist tinker with it to make it become their own work of art instead of being compared to other art)

e) I am perfectionist which irritates me

f) The main character of my stories WILL get inflicted with the most pain than the other characters.

g) Since I was raised by being serious (who cant seem to take jokes lightly), I dont do comedy or romance that well... if my characters do fall in love then there is no lovey-dovey wishy-washy stuff.

---

As for other people's fanfictions:
a) I have difficult reading 1st person "I", "me" stories. I cannot find myself being that character.

b) Something rather different from the PSO storyline.

c) Easy to read. If you have like those 12th grade words or $1.00 words, I will seriously have a hard time reading it.

[will add more later if I remember what they are]

[dude3282]

a) I have difficult reading 1st person "I", "me" stories. I cannot find myself being that character.
Writing good first person fiction is hard. I'm probably not trying that route for a while. Although I have some really cool ideas for first person stuff.


b) Something rather different from the PSO storyline.
I figured that anything slightly interesting mentioned in the game would be played out already.


c) Easy to read. If you have like those 12th grade words or $1.00 words, I will seriously have a hard time reading it.
Mean-spirited as this sounds, I'm not dumbing down my writing for this audience. I'm not going to make it so you need to grab the dictionary and wade through looking something up every other sentence, my vocabulary's not quite that extensive and reading that will make most people a bit aggravated and totally ruin the entire effect. I guess what I'm trying to say is this: Mark Twain said that the difference between the right word and almost the right word is like the difference between lightning and the lightning bug. I like getting precisely the right word.


<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: dude3282 on 2004-06-28 17:22 ]</font>

[Nai_Calus]

So just what the heck is it that people have against commenting? Especially constructive commenting. ._.

Ok, you like the fic, good. So... Why? >_>; What, specifically, is pushing your happy button? And what little things are bugging you? I want to know. >_>;

Not that I don't appreciate the ego stroking. I do. But occasionally I just want... Well, a little more. If you've actually taken the time to bother reading 25,000+ words, can't you once in a while find something more to say than "Cool fic"?

But go ahead with the "Cool fic" posts, they make me feel better. http://www.pso-world.com/psoworld/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_wink.gif

-----

Hmm, let's see... I personally don't see first-person fics as trying to get you to 'be' the character. That would be second-person, like... Hmm, well, anyone remember the 'Choose Your Own Adventure' books? The premise there was that you 'were' the character, and you made decisions that would influence the outcome of the book. They were usually second-person, reffering to the main character as "you". First-person, on the other hand, has the author stepping into the role of the character. They're writing it as if they themselves are Rico/Bernie/Random Scientist J/etc.

And I realize some people think non-fight scenes or romance are 'boring', but they're IMO necessary for a fic to be truly 'good'. Maybe not romance, but if there's no character development outside of fights... Why do you care if SSJAeris is stabbed through the head with a spork? What's she mean to you, besides not a whole heck of a lot if all you've ever seen her do is whack enemies? Oh, well, she died, so what. And then what if you've seen her interact with other characters and think over the course of the fic? You know what she's like, who she 'is', what motivates her... Then the fight scenes have more meaning, and provided you don't hate her, you'll probably on some level actually care when she gets stabbed with that spork.

Don't forget the gritty psychological drama/suspense/non-fight conflicts people tend to ignore. Excitement does not necessarily need to come from a huge battle.

[Sagasu]

On 2004-06-28 18:50, Ian-KunX wrote:

And I realize some people think non-fight scenes or romance are 'boring', but they're IMO necessary for a fic to be truly 'good'. Maybe not romance, but if there's no character development outside of fights... Why do you care if SSJAeris is stabbed through the head with a spork? What's she mean to you, besides not a whole heck of a lot if all you've ever seen her do is whack enemies? Oh, well, she died, so what. And then what if you've seen her interact with other characters and think over the course of the fic? You know what she's like, who she 'is', what motivates her... Then the fight scenes have more meaning, and provided you don't hate her, you'll probably on some level actually care when she gets stabbed with that spork.

Don't forget the gritty psychological drama/suspense/non-fight conflicts people tend to ignore. Excitement does not necessarily need to come from a huge battle.



Internet surfers today have a very limited attention span. Most of em like the semi-short fictions with lots of words cause they are easy(and dont take much time) to read and are understandable.

But fictions that I prefer make you think about thoughts or ideas that one does not usually notice/consider. But many people don't like thinking nowadays.

So to many, they are boring. The the selected few, they are magnificant pieces of art. The thing is, the people that get bored by this kind of stuf, are the ones you are not targeting your story towards. If you write lots 'o psycological stuff, then your going to need a mature minded audience to recieve decent feedback. Those that like reading such ficcies for a better story but don't really understand its true meaning, are the ones that say "cool ficcie"

Either that or their just to lazy to give non-flame crits and inspiring comments.

etc..

[dude3282]

Good, good, I like this. I like this part of my audience, the part that actually gets literature, not just PSO. That's what I'm saying; I'm writing for you guys.


And I realize some people think non-fight scenes or romance are 'boring', but they're IMO necessary for a fic to be truly 'good'. Maybe not romance, but if there's no character development outside of fights... Why do you care if SSJAeris is stabbed through the head with a spork? What's she mean to you, besides not a whole heck of a lot if all you've ever seen her do is whack enemies? Oh, well, she died, so what. And then what if you've seen her interact with other characters and think over the course of the fic? You know what she's like, who she 'is', what motivates her
Right, exactly what I'm going for, character development. Except with what I had in my head, I was worried that some of it was a bit too boring even for me. I'll explain later, I guess. Once I actually finish the darn thing.

Here's another thing: one thing I was going to try was to plow through the entire thing before I start posting chapters one by one. Why? Because I can look at the thing as a whole and change stuff to make it better. When doing in piecemeal, I'm guessing that quality control becomes a pain in the butt, or non-existant on the level I'm looking for.

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: dude3282 on 2004-06-28 20:25 ]</font>

[Mixfortune]

I think that is one of the problems with my fic... :|
The chapters started out not needing much thinking, as I was still new to the whole "full length fiction" thing. Now in the later chapters, it began to grow and expand in my mind, making more thinking involved in order to figure out what the hell is going on.

So I'm trapped. Those looking for something more serious and challenging are not as interested after the first 3-4 chapters, while those looking for something a bit easier to understand stop after the 4th or 5th, if I'm even that lucky...

That and 30+ long chapters posted by about 2 weeks to 4 months apart doesn't help keep readers... -_-



<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Mixfortune on 2004-06-28 20:24 ]</font>

[Nai_Calus]

Eh, I'm just going to shove mine out of my brain as it comes, and after it's done I'll go back and annoy the piss out of everyone by editing it then, forcing everyone to re-read the entire thing. http://www.pso-world.com/psoworld/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_wacko.gif

Besides, if I waited until I was done... I'd make the first post about six years from now. ^_-;

[Mixfortune]

On 2004-06-28 20:35, Ian-KunX wrote:
Eh, I'm just going to shove mine out of my brain as it comes, and after it's done I'll go back and annoy the piss out of everyone by editing it then, forcing everyone to re-read the entire thing. http://www.pso-world.com/psoworld/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_wacko.gif

Besides, if I waited until I was done... I'd make the first post about six years from now. ^_-;



Oh, definitely. I think I'm the same way.
I just write the chapter all at one time, as I think of it, going back in mid-write to add in some details I might need, or change the order of the statements a bit.

I think I may end up regret doing that. -_-

[Sagasu]

On 2004-06-28 20:23, Mixfortune wrote:
I think that is one of the problems with my fic... :|
The chapters started out not needing much thinking, as I was still new to the whole "full length fiction" thing. Now in the later chapters, it began to grow and expand in my mind, making more thinking involved in order to figure out what the hell is going on.

So I'm trapped. Those looking for something more serious and challenging are not as interested after the first 3-4 chapters, while those looking for something a bit easier to understand stop after the 4th or 5th, if I'm even that lucky...

That and 30+ long chapters posted by about 2 weeks to 4 months apart doesn't help keep readers... -_-



<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Mixfortune on 2004-06-28 20:24 ]</font>


Ha! ^_^

That reminds me so much of how I started off! http://www.pso-world.com/psoworld/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif

Now it boils down to my 15-26 page long chapters which I can produce at the rate of two days a piece(that is if I lose some sleep over the matter http://www.pso-world.com/psoworld/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_wink.gif)

Experience is the greatest teacher. For both readers and writers alike http://www.pso-world.com/psoworld/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_razz.gif

[Solstis]

On 2004-06-28 21:15, Sarunakai wrote:


On 2004-06-28 20:23, Mixfortune wrote:
I think that is one of the problems with my fic... :|
The chapters started out not needing much thinking, as I was still new to the whole "full length fiction" thing. Now in the later chapters, it began to grow and expand in my mind, making more thinking involved in order to figure out what the hell is going on.

So I'm trapped. Those looking for something more serious and challenging are not as interested after the first 3-4 chapters, while those looking for something a bit easier to understand stop after the 4th or 5th, if I'm even that lucky...

That and 30+ long chapters posted by about 2 weeks to 4 months apart doesn't help keep readers... -_-



<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Mixfortune on 2004-06-28 20:24 ]</font>


Ha! ^_^

That reminds me so much of how I started off! http://www.pso-world.com/psoworld/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif

Now it boils down to my 15-26 page long chapters which I can produce at the rate of two days a piece(that is if I lose some sleep over the matter http://www.pso-world.com/psoworld/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_wink.gif)

Experience is the greatest teacher. For both readers and writers alike http://www.pso-world.com/psoworld/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_razz.gif



I never did get to reading your chapter (a.k.a. all that I've written for my fic so far +10 pages).

http://www.pso-world.com/psoworld/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_razz.gif

[KodiaX987]

Here's my 64$ question:

Why is it that the fics featuring the author's own character as the almightly hero of PSO will have everyone flocking over to it and covering it with good reviews, while fics that go off the beaten path will generally get ignored and die within a few days?

[Solstis]

On 2004-06-28 21:44, KodiaX987 wrote:
Here's my 64$ question:

Why is it that the fics featuring the author's own character as the almightly hero of PSO will have everyone flocking over to it and covering it with good reviews, while fics that go off the beaten path will generally get ignored and die within a few days?



Yeah, I'm surprised that I've finished any of mine.

http://www.pso-world.com/psoworld/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif

Escapism?

[Sagasu]

On 2004-06-28 21:44, KodiaX987 wrote:
Here's my 64$ question:

Why is it that the fics featuring the author's own character as the almightly hero of PSO will have everyone flocking over to it and covering it with good reviews, while fics that go off the beaten path will generally get ignored and die within a few days?



Cause most ideas that stray off the beaten path are crappy, since most writers wont hink things through.

An awfull stereo type, if you ask me http://www.pso-world.com/psoworld/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_cry.gif

[Zzzzzz]

To tell you the truth, I make PSO fanfics because I'm a wee bit too lazy to create me own universe. =/
The thing that bothers me is detail. Detail, detail, detail. D.E.T.A.I.L. I get inspired, get to it, put the important points down, and then the inspiration slows down when I start having to put in detail inbetween point A and B. It bothers me because I don't know how much detail to put in.

I love doing character development and "epic" fight scenes. Showing this guy is smart but rude because of this and that and his past yadda yadda is fun to me because I love it if the audience knows the character. Of course, I can't really do a full-fledged fic, so I usually do shorts about random people.
I put "epic" in quotation marks because you can make almost anything epic if you tell it right. From eating cheese and chackers to fighting off a dozen Ill Gills with a peice of stick. It's just that, well to me my writing seem dull, so I have a hard time to myself writng anything "epic."
Ugh. Head hurts. Stupid weather.

[Digi-Dolphin]

Continuity and stability. I think those are what help to make a good fic and I try to keep it in all the ones I've written.

I follow a 'Hit-Point' system to write many of my fiction. Before starting the actually story, I write out the major points that will happen during the length, as many of them as I can. Then I can weed through and see which ones will add to the story and which ones will just make it too long.

From there I jot down quick notes on what the characters can do to hit the point and progress. Not only does it let me plan my story in advance, but it gives me leeway during the actual writing to go back to the chart and change a few notes around to emphasize what's happening with one character or create a whole new path to the next point.

It's helping a bunch with Phantasy Crossing Ep2 and maybe it will help others as well.

As for the fics with main characters of the author as the 'Be All' hero, I find those to be somewhat lacking in originality. Sure my own player characters are in my PSO fics, Mako Tiburon and Dol Fina, but they aren't the main heroes. They are the ones who help the main characters by providing information or a powerful bit of support in battle. But I try to keep them out of the story's focus as much as possible.
The main hero of the Phantasy Crossing series is Valentine Hart, the Animal Crossing traveler with the defective GameCube. The PSO heroes are Dular, Perrinetta and Elliot. Mako joined them late in the first story and became the link to Val and Perri's triumph over Falz.
In the second story, Dol is guiding and fighting alongside them in the seabeds, but her nature keeps things unpredictible and somewhat unreliable. This Dol is not one to truly count on in a major battle so stick with the main team.

If people can maintain a realistic or at least sensible focus on who the characters are to themselves and the story's plot, then the fiction has stability, continuity and most of all, some originality.

[Solstis]

On 2004-06-29 07:37, Digi-Dolphin wrote:
Continuity and stability. I think those are what help to make a good fic and I try to keep it in all the ones I've written.

I follow a 'Hit-Point' system to write many of my fiction. Before starting the actually story, I write out the major points that will happen during the length, as many of them as I can. Then I can weed through and see which ones will add to the story and which ones will just make it too long.

From there I jot down quick notes on what the characters can do to hit the point and progress. Not only does it let me plan my story in advance, but it gives me leeway during the actual writing to go back to the chart and change a few notes around to emphasize what's happening with one character or create a whole new path to the next point.



Stability? Wtf is that?

My problem is that I HATE planning a fic, and write my chapters just how I would write a poem.

I wait for random inspiration. This often happens while eating, showering, or preparing for sleep.

http://www.pso-world.com/psoworld/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif

Of course, this can lead to problems in the long run, but I'm a spontaneous person. For my new fic tho, I might actually try to plan SOMETHING ahead of time.

The ending, perhaps? (there was no set ending for the "Origins of Solstis")

[Sharkyland]

Well, I'm good at giving constructive critisism because I don't know how to make it better, but I know awesome fanfics when I read them. It just makes me want to stay up all night and read the hell out of them. It's like telling me how can I tell people to improve on their drawing. I am one of those people who want them to find their own style that they like because if I say something I don't want them to become more of me than themselves.

Yeah, I have a short attention span. I hate philosophy and psychology, and I seriously like battles. I know character development is needed and I usually have serious problems with that. I also have a stupid disability where I can forgot what I can read.

I haven't been reading fanfictions, and I should go back to reading them. I used to love fanfictions when I was a wee younger, but I'm more into drawing now. I will read fanfictions, but there's been popping out left and right that I'm like, what do I read?

What really gets me to stop writing fanfictions is that I brainstorm until I finish the storm because I have so many details on how I want to finish the storyline and I want to pick the best idea for that fanfiction/comic (as well as being a perfectionist). My current project is a PSO comic that will span through ep1, ep2, and ep3 (though I'm pretty sure not a lot of people are going to like what I did to some parts of it). Since Sega is planning to end PSO and start PSU. I have decided to put an end to the PSO saga the way I see through it.

---

Kodiax987, seems to have a somewhat of a point. When the famous people write, all the people flock to it and puts commments on it. It guess it's how popularity works. If I become friends with him/her, I'll be famous like them. I dunno. It's just psychological, but I don't know anything. I'm dumb.

[KodiaX987]

Actually I wasn't even counting popularity, though I admit it can play a role.

Just check stories on Fanfiction.net. Badly written super hero PSO fic: 100 reviews. Intense PSO thriller with brilliant mind games and character development: zero.

[AzureBlaze]

This topic turned out great!
I am so glad as many people are asking and answering as there are now. But, I said I'd provide or try, some answers to questions so here goes!

Sarunakai- Lack of love...or just too easy? I think that a lot of the fics you say lack polish or depth, may be that way because it's so easy these days to put up a fic. When someone doesn't have to think too hard or really pass items by an editor, a LOT of stuff gets posted up to various places that's in no condition to go up yet. This probably gives it the feel you don't like, the lack of spirit. There is no reason really to write a fic about something you're not a fan of...it's not like they can make money.

Dude3282- Overplayed ideas...YES. I would definatly say the MarySue angle is overdone in PSOfic. This is also what KodiaX hit on in the other post. Some fandoms have more MarySue problems then others, and PSO is fairly low key on that--because the game is literally -composed- of 'invitation-sues', which provides a spectacularly unique angle to go from in the first place.
**Finishing a fic before posting it. Yes yes yes. I think that ALL fics should be finished before posting to anywhere, unless they are: "Pick your own adventure", or Groupfic. Why? There's too much that can go wrong along the way, leaving the postings/chapters too spaced out (readers forget) or just dropped all together. Also, running it by a beta reader pal first never hurts to polish it up.

Sharkyland- Ease of reading is important, and so is choosing your perspective and sticking to it. Some perspectives are harder then others to do; such as first person. It is very easy to blab something the "I" of the story CANT know, and wreck the continuity. Chosing which perspective to use varies the ease of reading the story, right along with formatting. There's not much you can do about stopping people from using flowery words. A thesaurus is a good thing to keep about though...

[AzureBlaze]

Whew, it didn't double post!
Man the last post so didn't want to load right, nearly lost the thing 2x trying to get it to go. Anyway, here's the rest of the answers that were missed.

Ian- The comments...sometimes people just want to read something, and not do a critique, or they think it's already been said. It's the old "Why doesn't everyone in America vote?" Because they don't think their vote counts. But, on places like this encouragement is important, and so is helpful critiqueing, even if someone's said it one way before, people still like to hear from the forum.

KodiaX and the 64$ question: MarySues! The all-mighty author-char in any fic is called a MarySue. In most fanfics, they're really shunned because they mess up the story. Being "Super Greater" then everyone else in that particular 'universe' is not really the way to win fans. (Ex. Someone is more powerful then every other DBZ character yet seen, and all the other chars are written as weak goons...this is going to irritate fans of say...Vegita and Trunks, two people who's strength is very important to their character)

But PSO is different. The game purposely is vague on "You do this and that" plot so you can create your own MarySue and have it be free to act at will. Notice how 'you' don't respond to NPC's questions in quests? That's why. You make your OWN way, and it's encouraged. You're not "Bernie the Ranger" you're your own person, which is part of the thrill. However, when the people's story characters start getting out of hand, as you said, with extranious powers above that of every other character that has appeared in the game since.....they can get to be a bit of a pest.
But why so many feedbacks for Sues? Gangs of friends, possibly. MS writers tend to be rather socially vocal, and can amount a bit of a reviewer 'following' from a clan. Or the old "Gimme action I'm too impatient to read about things like 'talking' and 'plot'!11" crowd is also posting on a fic like that because they know the Sue will do something action-ey in fairly short order. 'think before you post' comes into play as well. Depth-oriented, intelligent, critique-inclined readers of a fic are unlikely to go "It B good". Some even wait until something is finished, before posting.

Personally, I like new idea fics, and stuff off the beaten path. Because I come from the Sonic Fandom first, I've got a serious anti-sue view, because MarySues are a big plague for the fandom. Not all Sues are bad, but...a lot of the time they're just not necissary.

Still, this topic is all interesting, it is great to see what everyone thinks.

[Sagasu]

Sarunakai- Lack of love...or just too easy? I think that a lot of the fics you say lack polish or depth, may be that way because it's so easy these days to put up a fic.

Its true that things have become easier nowadays, and the aspiring writers increase every week. But they fall at the same rate. In becoming more self sufficient, we take less of an example from the veterans, so someone might not think twice bout the hollow words that they write. Maybe its just personal preference, but most people aren't willing to take the time to write decently. And if they want to start with that attitude, I shall give them little sympathy when their fictions burns away.



When someone doesn't have to think too hard or really pass items by an editor, a LOT of stuff gets posted up to various places that's in no condition to go up yet. This probably gives it the feel you don't like, the lack of spirit.

As the fiction writers become younger and younger, the grammar usually becomes worse.(I happen to be one of the youngest writers on this forum) Mispelled words and such usually just make something harder to read, and enjoy. But I have read in depth ideas written by somone that used horrible spelling, and I still could find it enjoyable. Like Skett has said, writers seem to be a rarer type of breed, being that not everyone can just sit down and pop up brilliant ideas by thinking for a few minutes. I myself do little to no planning, and chapters written in a relatively short amount of time. And so far the fictions I created have gone through as a success. So maybe I don't have the most readers, but as a person just starting off, I still managed to write more or less in depth stuff, and still attract peoples attention.

So thats me, and everybody has to start somewhere. But age is no excuse, and being new to the area is no excuse, my hypothesis is that humans are becoming more and more accustomed to a lazy life. Writing in the past wasn't a part time freelance job, it was a fulltime workout of the mind. It saddens me to this day people no longer try to excersise their most powerful tools, the human brain.



There is no reason really to write a fic about something you're not a fan of...it's not like they can make money.

So true..

Okay, your inspired to write a fiction after hearing/seeing/playing something really cool. You run off to the computer, thinking that your going to re-invent the entire plotline and post it at some forum or another to share your 'wonderful' creation. Your excited, your rushing, you aren't thurough, but with an idea fresh in your head you can still portray something unlike any before. But the younger are often more easily swayed by outside influences, and that often reflects in their writing.

So the wheel keeps on turning, and most don't think about what their doing. If these are the new generation writers of tommorow, I fear the worst for this proffesion.



<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Sarunakai on 2004-07-03 08:36 ]</font>

[Nai_Calus]

Hey Saru, am I one of the authors you're talking about? No, seriously, I'm curious. I have no feelings or pride, so you can't hurt them. XP

[Newdroid]

Why would people look at the fanfic and not reply?I can't get any better without some constructive critism.

[Newdroid]

Will someone please rate Love Ailita.This is my first fanfic.I have chapter one and part one of chapter 2 done.Just go to Fanfict:Love Ailita Revised.

[Garanz2]

What's the best way to plan out a coherent plot that I can stick to without becoming sidetracked by different ideas? How should I map out how events happen in my writing before actually typing it up?

[Sagasu]

On 2004-07-03 18:36, Ian-KunX wrote:
Hey Saru, am I one of the authors you're talking about? No, seriously, I'm curious. I have no feelings or pride, so you can't hurt them. XP



No, Ian, your a rough cut diamond.

You just need some polish, thats all.

[AzureBlaze]

Planning out plot...
There's a couple ways to do it, and hopefully one is right for you!

1. Some people just have the ability to think up the entire thing, then write it.

2. Some people can think it up as they go along, and it does not wander, because the story comes to you, it seems as though you are not making it up, and everything is as it should be. (this is my catagory)

3. You can make an outline, like that darn thing they told you in skool...but it would go like this instead:

A) Introduction
---1. Intro chars A, B, and C
---2. Explain plot element, introduce conflict
---3. Begin plot point/dialogues as appropriate
B) Progression
---1. Heroes A and C are looking for/fighting for/escaping from whatever
------a. But meanwhile! Person B is trapped in the East Tower, due to nefarious plans of a villain that the audiance won't know about until "X" occurs.
------b. Wacky rappy sub-plot progresses
C) Conflict
And just keep going with it like that.

Freely write down things you KNOW but aren't revealed in the story yet. Mystery writers have to have solved the whole thing before they write the first page. You can bet that all the clues are mapped along the way for ease of use. You can too. If you make up that type of outline, then stick to it, you'll do well.

3. The maze approach: This one's really creative and I thought it was cool when I saw it. Draw a 'maze' onto a paper, and write down different times along the way. The times can be years apart, or just minutes, but they are points at which *you want something to have happened BY* in your fic. Use different colored pens for different characters and put them thru the maze. If they go to different locations, split up their paths. If they die, their path stops with an X. Along the way are written different events in the story. Each char that takes part in an event has to pass that way thru the maze.

The key is to keep in mind to not just throw in everything cool you see along the way. Writing a fic takes time, and you've got to be prepared to give up throwing in the latest sparkly idea you found along the way.
These are only 3 ways to try it. You could also come up with something that works better for you, but so long as you make a plan, detail it out and stick to it, success is highly likely.

[DezoPenguin]

Man, I go away for a few weeks and--bam! A topic right up my pet alley (ahh, mixed metaphors) hits. Anywhoozits:

1. Probably the most important thing to remember when you are writing, whether it be fanfiction or otherwise, is that you are writing for yourself. You are not writing for others. You are not writing for the ego-stroking adulation of others. You are not writing to get 1763 "Whoa! Great Story!" reviews on fanfiction.net. If this is what you are looking forward to, then stop, put your pencil (or computer) down, and go back to playing PSO. Your story will suck. If I ever see something that says "If I get X positive reviews I will continue" or "Tell me if you want to see more!" then I quit.

Notice that it's not the same as asking for feedback a la Ian. After all, you're posting the story on-line so that people can read it. But if you don't want to finish the story unless you have people telling you how great it is at every step, don't bother, because you don't really want to finish the story.

2. Read critiques critically and objectively. If someone takes the time to critique your fic, take the time to read the critique. They may have good ideas. But be careful--especially if they are critiquing after a chapter or two and make unwarranted assumptions. And don't let a bad review crush your spirit, especially a mean-spirited, cruel "parody" review. So many people on the 'net have depression issues, so it becomes especially important to read criticism with an objective eye--not being crushed by the negativity and not being closed to suggestions about what you may well be doing wrong. This may be the hardest thing about submitting your creative work to any kind of public forum.

3. Concerning Kodiak's question...I have no idea. ^_^ But I'm going to bet that the people reviewing the fics are the same people who write the fics (i.e. "fanfiction.net members") and therefore the audience is going to be looking for stuff they can identify with. The most common PSO fanfic idea goes something like this:

"I had such a great time playing this game, so I'm going to write a story about how *I KICKED BUTT!!!*"

I won't write stories about the PC of PSO on general principle because of that. I figure my audience is made up of PSO players, so that each person reading my fiction has the experience in their own head of how *their* character kicked Dark Falz or Olga Flow's butt. Unlike many other fandoms, where we have a shared experience of watching "set" characters like Alis, Chaz, Hiro, Cloud, Tidus, or so on defeat the enemy, PSO lacks that commonality. I might have stepped into the shoes of a RAmarl, while someone else might use a HUcast--and certainly everyone has a different perspective on what their character's personality like. So, my PSO fics either focus on the characters that exist in the world (Elenor, Nol, Montague, etc.) or on original characters that do *not* take the place of the PC (In the Sejanus fics, for example, you'll occasionally hear him mention how some quest from the game was finished by some other, unnamed hunter).

4. Fight scenes. Many people like writing action scenes. Ian covered this point very well, but there's another point to add. In an action game or action movie, lack of plot depth can be made up for by fun gameplay or by kick-butt special effects. When you write a story, you don't have a special effects budget. All you have is your ability with language to paint a picture for the reader and let them imagine what's going on. This merely emphasizes the point that the emotional tension the readers feel in any action scene will be highly dependent on their empathy with the characters. (Love the spork metaphor, Ian!)

5. Present tense. Don't use it. Fanfiction is not literary fiction, ever. At best, it's like good science fiction or mystery or horror, where literary overtones can combine with genre plot conventions to create first-class work. In the English language, present-tense writing is used *only* in literature. Writing your story in the present tense is like clipping a big flashing neon sign to it that reads "I Probably Don't Know Basic Rules Of English Grammar; Reader Be Warned." You don't want to do that.

(By the way, I say "probably" because authors can use present tense and still write a good story -- Nyx Smith, for example, wrote his Shadowrun novels in the present tense. Nonetheless, I found even in these works, published in the real world by a professional author, the present tense impaired the story more than it helped. And don't think that you are the one exception who can use the present tense and pull it off. You aren't.)

5. First-person versus third-person. Either is perfectly acceptable; choose the one that best suits your story. First-person is harder to do, because it limits the perspective through which you view the story's events. Sloppy first-person writers have the narrator include their knowledge of events which they have no way of knowing...or worse yet, start talking about what other characters are thinking! If you need to switch perspectives even once in a story to make it work, don't use the first person (I've broken this rule in the past, and the results were inevitably bad. Third-person cutscenes in a first-person story just don't work.), use the third person.

Remember at all times when writing that first-person is the literary equivalent of the narrator sitting at a campfire telling his/her story to the audience (in fact, back when first-person was the "norm" in literature, that was a common device used, that it was the narrator that was publishing the story in the magazine or book being read by the reader).

6. Outlining is key. You'll find a method that works for you (thanks, AzureBlaze, for pointing out a few), but if your fic is more than a chapter or two long, you need to do *some* kind of outline. Knowing where your story is going does two separate things for you:

a. You're more likely to finish. If you just have a cool character idea and start to write, but don't know what's going to happen next, more than likely your fic will grind to a halt, unfinished, either because you write yourself into a corner or because you just don't know what happens next.

b. It allows you to foreshadow and introduce character concepts early on that you need to be significant later. If you know that your otherwise courageous HUmar is going to have a panic attack at a key moment when facing a Pouilly Slime, you can introduce early on how he's squeamish around blood (say, in a scene at the Medical Center when he visits a wounded friend) and then describe that Red Slime as blood somehow animating and coming after him. If Dark Falz is going to tempt the character psychologically by offering her what she most dearly wants, it's good to have what that is established early. And as AzureBlaze mentioned, if your plot contains any kind of mystery elements, you're going to want to introduce clues at the appropriate points in the story early on.

7. Grammar and spelling. Use proper punctuation and capitalization. Employ sentence and paragraph structure. Take the time to at least use your word processor's spellchecker. Read the story over for mistakes before posting. Learn the difference between common homophones like its/it's, your/you're, and their/there/they're. Mistakes like that are like sudden "jolts" to the reader, disrupting their experience in the imaginary world you are creating for them. Do it too many times and they can't get past the repeated errors to enjoy the characters and ideas.

[Kadavreski]

well, i couldnt agree more with the guy above me....but he didnt need to say it because theres the fic guide. but anyway.