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Author Topic: Question of the Day - Part 4  (Read 135647 times)

Rose

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Re: Question of the Day - Part 4
« Reply #450 on: July 23, 2012, 06:39:01 PM »

When you are writing a story, do you ever intend it to not go past a certain amount of chapters? Or what makes you decide to make something really long or really short?

Usually I have an amount in mind. Though I'm flexible. HWS I planned to do ten chapters though I think that might be 11 as I transition to them going to London. RMTW I didn't have a number attached, but I knew it'd be over thirty chapters based on the plot alone. Undead - I don't think we knew for awhile how long it would be till the last few months when we finally outlined the rest of it. We just knew it'd be lengthy. So sometimes I have a specific number, and other times I just have a general idea.
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RokofAges75

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Re: Question of the Day - Part 4
« Reply #451 on: July 23, 2012, 06:51:02 PM »

I never put limits on myself, nor do I set out to make a story a certain length.  However many chapters it takes me to write the story I want to tell is how many chapters long the story will be.

The type of plot, the way I go about planning it, and my writing style tend to dictate the length.  With most of my stories, I plot the major points in advance, but don't necessarily plan in great detail how I'll get from Point A to Point B to Point C.  I think that's why stories like Broken and BMS got to be so long, because I let my writing take more of the long and winding road between those points LOL.  They would have been shorter if I'd gotten rid of  the subplots and just focused on the main storyline.

With Curtain Call, I really did stick to one storyline, and it was still long.  With that one, I just had a timeline, and for each point on the timeline, I had to decide if that was an important enough event to warrant a scene in the story or if I could just summarize it and skip past it.  I wrote the ones that I thought added something to the story I wanted to tell and let it go on as long as it needed to.  That story was about a journey, and it was important for me to show that journey from beginning to end.

Secrets of the Heart is the first story I plotted out literally chapter by chapter.  I knew I needed to plan it out in advance because of the way I wanted to weave together two intertwining storylines and make sure they worked together.  With that one, I always knew it was going to be a set number of chapters, and that number was a lot smaller than in previous stories.  I think my outline started out as 27 or 28 chapters, and I've since revised it and pared it down to 25.  Shocking, I know! LOL

I will say, I have this OCD thing about numbers, where I like stories to end on round numbers.  Like for Secrets, I was glad to get the outline down to 25 chapters because 25 is a better number than 27 or 28.  For Broken and BMS, I worked really hard to make each part 50 chapters long, even if it meant making the chapters leading up to each 50 a little longer or shorter than normal.  I was so determined to end BMS on an even 200 chapters and not 201 that I invented a "Post Epilogue" to go after the Epilogue LOL.  I have this thing with numbers in real life too, especially with the volume on my TV.  I prefer it to be set on a multiple of 5, but an even number will work too... never a prime number, though! *shudder*
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Sakabelle

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Re: Question of the Day - Part 4
« Reply #452 on: July 23, 2012, 07:07:01 PM »

I missed a whole bunch of questions today! I'll try to summarize my answers.

Music is a big inspiration for me, and I have definitely been in the position where songs have come on, inspired a scene and that scene ended up changing the entire course of the story. The most recent time that has happened was with Girl by The Beatles and I'm sure that I'll never be able to listen to that song again without thinking of that scene. Not only did I envision the scene once when I heard it the first time, I replayed it over and over again trying to flesh out the scene in my mind, and then again as I wrote it out. So yeah, the song and the scene will be forever tied together for me now lol.

I try not to put limits on myself, but my stories do end up usually coming in at 20-25 chapters. The only exception to that I guess would be when I have no choice but to go over, like when writing a story that takes place day by day. I've done that twice now, and each time they come in at 40-45 (Running Up That Hill will end up being 45 when it's done I believe)

Julie, I'm so glad you mentioned the numbers thing, because I'm exactly the same way! I need the stories to end on a round number! I have one that ends on 26 chapters, and it still bugs me when I go look at it. When I outline, I definitely try to make my stories fit into that constraint. Oh, I also have a story that's sitting at 199 reviews and has been for a week or so. It's actually driving me kind of nuts. I don't care so much about getting another comment, I just need the number to flip lol. If it could get to 200 and then stay there, I would be very happy. My friend joked that she was going to make an account just to post a review that says "You're welcome." haha
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mare

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Re: Question of the Day - Part 4
« Reply #453 on: July 23, 2012, 07:10:12 PM »

I am kind of like that too with even numbers. LOL Everything has to end on an even number.

I didn't link up my pivitol scene response but I saw most of you did. I am too lazy to go back and find these chapters.

As far as length, since I don't really outline, I usually go in blind as to how many chapters something is going to be. In my head I can pretty much figure it out by scenes I picture.
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RokofAges75

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Re: Question of the Day - Part 4
« Reply #454 on: July 23, 2012, 07:19:07 PM »

Julie, I'm so glad you mentioned the numbers thing, because I'm exactly the same way! I need the stories to end on a round number! I have one that ends on 26 chapters, and it still bugs me when I go look at it. When I outline, I definitely try to make my stories fit into that constraint. Oh, I also have a story that's sitting at 199 reviews and has been for a week or so. It's actually driving me kind of nuts. I don't care so much about getting another comment, I just need the number to flip lol. If it could get to 200 and then stay there, I would be very happy. My friend joked that she was going to make an account just to post a review that says "You're welcome." haha

I'm glad it's not just me! LOL  I'm like that with reviews too!!  I just went to your AC profile to see if I could find that story and fix the problem for you, but it looks like it's not on AC. 
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Sakabelle

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Re: Question of the Day - Part 4
« Reply #455 on: July 23, 2012, 07:33:46 PM »

I'm glad it's not just me! LOL  I'm like that with reviews too!!  I just went to your AC profile to see if I could find that story and fix the problem for you, but it looks like it's not on AC. 

Nah it's not on AC, but I appreciate the thought :)
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kevmylove

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Re: Question of the Day - Part 4
« Reply #456 on: July 23, 2012, 08:38:40 PM »

I'm really bad when it comes to the amount of projects I'm working on. I get an idea and I feel that I have to post immediatly cause it runs from beginning to end in my head, then I get stuck getting the whole middle done.

As of now I am continually working on...
Bound by Honor
The Body Shop

Ones that I've started but I'm having a hard time finishing are...
Nobody's Baby
Underneath Your Clothes

This one I have on hiatus cause my muse and I just couldn't keep going (this is where I really wish I wouldn't have started a sequel) I made a big booboo by starting that :(
Undying Devotion- sequel to Sinister Devotion

Pivotal scenes I've written I'm gonna say
Bound by Honor- chapter 28 When Sophia fights with Nick because he wants her to come to terms that he's going to die.

Fight Me- Chapter 24 when Nick actually puts up a fight for the first time in a long while against his opponent. Then he wins and doesn't even realize it since he's exhausted.

All my old stories took me about three or more years to finish. Which sucked!!! sinister Devotions, Fight Me and Just One Kiss were all written within four months because I outlined them. So I guess that's the key to being able to finish a story faster for me.

I do tend to set a chapter limit on myself most of my stories are about 30 chapters long, with exception of Ray of Hope which I somehow doubled. Ugh. lol.
« Last Edit: July 23, 2012, 08:40:30 PM by kevmylove »
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FrickingKaos

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Re: Question of the Day - Part 4
« Reply #457 on: July 23, 2012, 10:16:45 PM »

I have mild OCD so I can't stand odd numbers. When writing I usually don't plan how long it is gonna be, I just decide to end it where it seems fit. My longest story is 46 chapters long I think. The uneven review count bugs the hell out of me, also when I am really excited for my readers to see an update and nobody reads...that bugs me a bit too.
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kevmylove

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Re: Question of the Day - Part 4
« Reply #458 on: July 23, 2012, 11:44:00 PM »

I agree with the updating and no one reads. Although I notie the read count go up really fast but no reviews. Odd. I have a lot of readers that don't review...they send me DMs or emails instead. I guess they are shy or busy.

Question: Does anyone else get stuck on the ending of a story, even if you had already planned it out?
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RokofAges75

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Re: Question of the Day - Part 4
« Reply #459 on: July 24, 2012, 02:53:04 AM »

That's always annoying, when you know people are reading but not reviewing for some reason.  I just expect less readers and reviewers with certain stories, though.  When I'm writing Nick/BSB drama and updating consistently, I get a good amount of feedback.  With stories that are not about Nick, not BSB but AU, and not updated regularly, the number of reviews drops quite a bit.  It just goes with the territory, though.

As far as endings, I usually don't get stuck too much.  Sometimes I psych myself out, like Steph and some of us were saying before, if it's a part I've envisioned in my head so many times that I'm worried I won't be able to do it justice, but I always get over that.  Usually I'm so excited to be almost done that I have a nice writing streak at the end of a story that carries me through the last few chapters.  The actual ending, as in the last few lines of the whole story, can be tough, but I usually find the last line easier than the first line.  A lot of times I have the last line in my head long before I actually write it, but if I don't, it can be hard to come up with the perfect one on the spot.  I love the feeling of having the perfect last line all ready to go and knowing it's going to be the last line when I type it for the first time, so I can stick a period on it and type The End and let out a little sigh of satisfaction and call it done!  Amazing feeling!
« Last Edit: July 24, 2012, 02:54:37 AM by RokofAges75 »
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FrickingKaos

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Re: Question of the Day - Part 4
« Reply #460 on: July 24, 2012, 05:27:30 AM »

I get annoyed with the read count thing too. Like my challenge I posted the other day with Mare's help...the read count jumped in just a few hours...but not the reviews. I don't write for the reviews, I just want to know what people think of it that's all. It helps me know what I can improve upon or if it turned out okay.

As for the endings....whe n I did the ending for FYO I had it planned out, but me and my dad were talking and he suggested something else. I was going to kill a major character off but his idea ended up working better.
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mare

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Re: Question of the Day - Part 4
« Reply #461 on: July 24, 2012, 06:38:15 AM »

Yeah I will never ever understand why people don't review what they read. I know the only time I will ever abstain from reviewing, as I've mentioned before, is when the author doesn't respond to their reviews. Especially if they are selective of who they respond to. It takes five seconds to review, even if it's "loved it! Great job!" & it takes two seconds to respond with a "thanks!" seriously one of my biggest pet peeves ever lol I don't care how much I love the story, I'll  Be done with it.

As far as endings go, I generally don't have trouble with those because I always have a very clear visual in my head of the ending. The last line sometimes is tough, like Julie said because you want to find the perfect thought to leave your readers with.

Which leads me to this question,

What is your favorite last line that you have written?
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Rose

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Re: Question of the Day - Part 4
« Reply #462 on: July 24, 2012, 07:46:57 AM »

I agree with the updating and no one reads. Although I notie the read count go up really fast but no reviews. Odd. I have a lot of readers that don't review...they send me DMs or emails instead. I guess they are shy or busy.

Question: Does anyone else get stuck on the ending of a story, even if you had already planned it out?

It's annoying, or people who tell you out of nowhere that they read a story and loved it, and never left a review. I'll never understand that as it only takes two seconds LOL. But, at least they eventually told me I guess. I have people who randomly tell me what they think on Twitter LOL.  What's worse are people who either don't reply to reviews or only reply to some reviews. Replying is just courteous, especially when people are nice enough to leave feedback. No review is more special than another, even if it's not detailed, everything deserves a "Thanks!" at the least.

I don't usually ever get stuck on endings. I usually get stuck on beginnings LOL.
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"Don't annoy the writer. They may put you in a book and kill you." —Anonymous

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Rose

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Re: Question of the Day - Part 4
« Reply #463 on: July 24, 2012, 07:54:26 AM »

The only time I don't review is either when it's known the author never replies, or I just didn't like the story. I don't give concrit unless asked, I tried once and it didn't go well. So now if I feel like something needs work (the exception being the reading challenge) or is just bad, I click out.

What is your favorite last line that you have written?

Comedy wise...
"It was those grapes!

Those fucking grapes!"

http://absolutechaos.net/viewstory.php?sid=10891

Wins lmfao. I died laughing as I wrote that.


On a more serious note -
The screams I heard that night, the pain, what came next…

They’ll haunt my dreams till my dying breath.

http://absolutechaos.net/viewstory.php?sid=10704

I love that, because it implies a lot of serious gore went down, but it leaves it to the imagination. Normally I go into detail LOL, but I challenged myself by keeping it out since it was a rule for Mare's challenge. It's just so haunting.


And in a novel...
I shut the door behind me.
http://absolutechaos.net/viewstory.php?sid=10108

It's just simple and final. I feel like it's a very suitable last line for such a tragic story.
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"Don't annoy the writer. They may put you in a book and kill you." —Anonymous

“I don’t believe in being serious about anything. I think life is too serious to be taken seriously.” —Ray Bradbury

mare

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Re: Question of the Day - Part 4
« Reply #464 on: July 24, 2012, 08:14:08 AM »

It's those grapes! lol

I have no trouble with my first lines. It's usually somewhere in the middle I get stuck lol
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Writing is something you do alone. Its a profession for introverts who want to tell you a story but don't want to make eye contact while doing it. ~ John Green
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