Fic Talk > General Discussion
2 Writing 2 Thread
RokofAges75:
I'm impressed with your ability to come up with all these questions, Dee! You are on your way to becoming the next Oprah of Fanfiction! LOL
How do you come up with character names for your stories? (Other than the obvious, "Well, Nick is "Nick.")
I hate coming up with character names because I usually spend way longer than necessary thinking about them. To avoid this problem, I name most of my minor characters (typically nurses, doctors, police officers, etc.) after readers who have given me feedback on that story or people who have helped inspire the idea, like authors of other stuff I read for inspiration. I put more thought into naming important characters. I try to pick a name that says something about the character. For example, with Claire in Broken, I wanted a "plain Jane" kind of name - simple and classic without being overly feminine or Mary Sue-ish because Claire was meant to be a down-to-earth, no-frills kind of gal. The name Claire means "bright and clear," so I thought it worked for her being a bright spot in Nick's life. I actually didn't like the name Claire at all back then; I thought it was an old lady name. After using it so much, it's grown on me since then.
What are the essential characteristic s of a hero you can root for? Are there certain aspects of the Boys you play up if they're in the hero role?
Heroes need to be both likeable and relatable. They have to have some vulnerability, not be completely superhuman. I typically write Nick or Brian in the hero role, so I'll answer this for them. With Nick, I play up his loyalty and love for the other boys, as well as his temper and tendency to get emotional and wear his heart on his sleeve. With Brian, I play up his faith by having him turn to God and the power of prayer in tough situations (or, in the case of Song for the Undead, have him turn away from God and lose his faith). I use his strength and athleticism as well. He's small, but mighty.
What do you do to get inside your characters' heads?
I think, "What would I do in this situation?" and then consider if my character(s) would react the same way or differently and why. I try to picture scenes like a movie and imagine the Boys acting them out to see if they seem realistic. If I can't picture them acting a certain way or saying a certain line, I usually change it.
If you could be a character from one of your stories, who would it be and why?
Obviously my 00Carter alter ego Red Jewel because she gets to take care of sexy secret agents who look like the Backstreet Boys. Dream job!
Otherwise, I would be Cary in Curtain Call because she has a lot of characteristic s I admire - a nurturing personality, a job as a nurse practitioner, a cute vintage sense of style, and musical talent. I just wouldn't want to go through the heartbreak I put her through.
What's the trickiest thing about writing characters of the opposite gender?
Not making them seem too feminine LOL.
Does one of your characters hold a special place in your heart? If so, why?
I will always have a soft spot for Broken Nick. He lived in my head for five years of fanfic bliss, and I loved writing him and all his drama. He was endearing at a time when real life Nick was rather disappointing, going through his ghetto fab phase and dating Paris Hilton.
Now describe that character in three words.
Emo, romantic, resilient
Which of your characters do you relate to the most?
Gretchen in Song for the Undead is probably the character I've put the most of myself into, so she's most relatable to me.
Do you often put aspects of yourself into your characters?
As writers, I think we all put little bits of ourselves into our characters, whether we realize it or not. I have intentionally put aspects of myself into characters, like being a teacher, living in Illinois, or liking the same things I like.
And just for fun:
Go back to that character you said holds a special place in your heart and think about the other characters in their story. They can only use each character once, so which character from their story would they pick to:
a. be trapped in the wilderness with? (can be frigid or tropical wilderness) Why? Kevin because he's outdoorsy and probably has the most survival skills
b. spend the night in a haunted house with? Why? Claire because they would just end up laughing and making fun of the whole experience
c. have for a boss? Why? AJ because he would be a fun boss
d. pull off a heist with? Why? Howie because he's smart, and no one would ever suspect him
e. be on the Amazing Race with? Why? Brian because they would have fun together. Frick and Frack for life!
And because these are fun anyway, just answer for yourself with the Boys. You can only use each one once. Cheesy
Which Boy would you pick to:
a. be trapped in the wilderness with? (can be frigid or tropical wilderness) Why? Brian so we could snuggle together for warmth (or so he could be shirtless on the beach in a tropical wilderness situation).
b. spend the night in a haunted house with? Why? Nick because I think he would be fun to go ghost-hunting with. He would get into it and have good reactions to seeing or hearing anything remotely scary.
c. have for a boss? Why? Howie because he's business-savvy and would be a nice, fair boss
d. pull off a heist with? Why? Kevin because I think he would be good at coming up with a plan and carrying it out stealthily
e. be on the Amazing Race with? Why? AJ because he and I would just have fun with it and enjoy the experience without getting too competitive
RokofAges75:
--- Quote from: nicksgal on January 30, 2021, 04:16:53 PM ---This is how my mother feels about the Backstreet Boys to a T.
--- End quote ---
LOL Same with my family!
--- Quote from: nicksgal on January 30, 2021, 04:36:18 PM ---So there's the good news, I suppose. Editing PBox did not derail PNecklace from being written, even after about two months off. I also have two friends that would be willing to beta read an OF version of PBox, so now I need to decide if I want to focus on that or keep writing PNecklace. I think at the moment I'm going to go with writing PNecklace since I have some pretty solid plans on the next ten chapters or so.
--- End quote ---
I'm glad your editing project did not derail PNecklace! Hopefully you can get back into the writing groove.
RokofAges75:
--- Quote from: nicksgal on January 30, 2021, 05:06:38 PM ---My brain was determined to not move on until I found the correct word instead of the general vibe. Sometimes writing is exhausting. I found it, so carry on, y'all.
--- End quote ---
I hate that feeling! What word did you go with?
RokofAges75:
--- Quote from: nicksgal on January 30, 2021, 04:36:18 PM ---How does it feel officially starting a new thing? I feel like a first line is always daunting. I always get stuck on what would be the perfect opening. I slept late too and it's totally sunny out. Maybe the full moon a couple days ago was just exhausting for all of us.
--- End quote ---
It feels good to get that first line out of the way! I agree; it is daunting. I've been imagining the opening scene of this story for a long time, but I hadn't figured out how to actually start it, so now I feel better about things.
It's been a gloomy day here - freezing rain with snow on the way later tonight. It's a gross, slushy mess outside. Perfect day to stay in and write (or sleep and catch up on TV LOL).
--- Quote from: nicksgal on January 30, 2021, 04:36:18 PM ---I like fanfic related dreams, they happen to me a lot while writing and then I hope I can remember the scenes in the morning! What don't you like about fanfic related dreams? Is it that yours are less "interesting plot elements" and more "I forgot table 34's ranch!!"? Because I hate those "I forgot table 34's ranch" moments. They will still wake me up in the dead of night and I haven't worked at a restaurant in five years at this point.
--- End quote ---
I guess it's because my stories are mostly all sad and/or horrifying, so I don't want to have nightmares about them that feel real. Luckily I rarely remember my dreams anymore, so this has never really been a problem for me.
I have never worked in a restaurant, but I have back-to-school nightmares every August that are probably similar to the "I forgot table 34's ranch" dream. I'm guessing you probably do too - every teacher I know does. Mine are usually some version of "It's the first day of school, and I forgot to prepare, and also no one has a sharpened pencil" or "The class is out of control, and I can't get them back."
--- Quote from: nicksgal on January 30, 2021, 04:36:18 PM ---If all the Boys worked at a school... Hmm... Is this a high school, an elementary school, or a middle school? I think that would change my answers. Please note, I'm actively avoiding "music education" for their roles, because obviously they could do that. But offhand I could see Kevin as the principal, Nick strikes me as wacky science teacher material complete with DNA tie and lab coat for fun (today we get to blow stuff up, muahaha), Brian would be a math teacher (I went Econ originally, but couldn't think of what other History classes he would teach), AJ some sort of creative arts teacher (I can't decide between visual arts or theatrical arts), and Howie would make a great English, History, or Foreign Language teacher (pick your poison).
--- End quote ---
I guess junior high or high school because I was thinking in terms of them teaching different subjects, too, as opposed to grade levels. I totally agree with Nick as the fun science teacher. I was thinking Kevin or Howie would make a good principal too, but I could also see Howie being a math teacher because of his financial smarts. I would make Brian the P.E. teacher/coach because he's always said he would probably be a P.E. (or music) teacher if he wasn't a Backstreet Boy. I had the hardest time with AJ, but I agree that he would probably be some kind of arts teacher - I was thinking theater.
nicksgal:
--- Quote from: RokofAges75 on January 30, 2021, 05:20:37 PM ---I'm impressed with your ability to come up with all these questions, Dee! You are on your way to becoming the next Oprah of Fanfiction! LOL
--- End quote ---
I would accept that role proudly, I learned from the best! (Mare, of course.) Topics tend to pop in my head and then I come up with questions or google question ideas based on it (so I can't take all the credit for all of these questions).
As usual, I'm not quoting the ones where I have nothing to say except "yup" because then my answers would be very short and boring, haha.
--- Quote from: RokofAges75 on January 30, 2021, 05:20:37 PM ---How do you come up with character names for your stories? (Other than the obvious, "Well, Nick is "Nick.")
I hate coming up with character names because I usually spend way longer than necessary thinking about them.
For example, with Claire in Broken, I wanted a "plain Jane" kind of name - simple and classic without being overly feminine or Mary Sue-ish because Claire was meant to be a down-to-earth, no-frills kind of gal.
--- End quote ---
Same. I am forever blighted by the curse of "meaningful names" for major characters. I like all those reasons for "Claire". It's a good fit for the character (and now I remember why I misquoted you re:romance, my fanfic memory is a bit hazy after all these years away and I think I was conflating my memories of the Nick/Claire romantic aspects with the rest of your body of work at the time).
--- Quote from: RokofAges75 on January 30, 2021, 05:20:37 PM ---What are the essential characteristic s of a hero you can root for? Are there certain aspects of the Boys you play up if they're in the hero role?
Heroes need to be both likeable and relatable. They have to have some vulnerability, not be completely superhuman. I typically write Nick or Brian in the hero role, so I'll answer this for them. With Nick, I play up his loyalty and love for the other boys, as well as his temper and tendency to get emotional and wear his heart on his sleeve. With Brian, I play up his faith by having him turn to God and the power of prayer in tough situations (or, in the case of Song for the Undead, have him turn away from God and lose his faith). I use his strength and athleticism as well. He's small, but mighty.
--- End quote ---
I love all of this and might just quote it as my answer, haha. You're right, Brian is small, but mighty. That's a perfect way to describe how I write him as well.
--- Quote from: RokofAges75 on January 30, 2021, 05:20:37 PM ---If you could be a character from one of your stories, who would it be and why?
Obviously my 00Carter alter ego Red Jewel because she gets to take care of sexy secret agents who look like the Backstreet Boys. Dream job!
Otherwise, I would be Cary in Curtain Call because she has a lot of characteristic s I admire - a nurturing personality, a job as a nurse practitioner, a cute vintage sense of style, and musical talent. I just wouldn't want to go through the heartbreak I put her through.
--- End quote ---
Obviously Carter Girls, haha. Do you often find you project your stronger characteristic s onto your characters or do you tend to give them characteristic s you wish you had?
--- Quote from: RokofAges75 on January 30, 2021, 05:20:37 PM ---Does one of your characters hold a special place in your heart? If so, why?
I will always have a soft spot for Broken Nick. He lived in my head for five years of fanfic bliss, and I loved writing him and all his drama. He was endearing at a time when real life Nick was rather disappointing, going through his ghetto fab phase and dating Paris Hilton.
Now describe that character in three words.
Emo, romantic, resilient
--- End quote ---
It is like they take up residence in our brains next to a nice, cozy synapse, isn't it? Broken Nick is way more endearing than ghetto fab Nick. Hands down. Even when he's emo. :D
--- Quote from: RokofAges75 on January 30, 2021, 05:20:37 PM ---And just for fun:
Go back to that character you said holds a special place in your heart and think about the other characters in their story. They can only use each character once, so which character from their story would they pick to:
--- End quote ---
I loved all of these, but there were a couple of times I thought, am I Nick? Because some of those are my answers for the same reasons.
--- Quote from: RokofAges75 on January 30, 2021, 05:20:37 PM ---And because these are fun anyway, just answer for yourself with the Boys. You can only use each one once. Cheesy
Which Boy would you pick to:
a. be trapped in the wilderness with? (can be frigid or tropical wilderness) Why? Brian so we could snuggle together for warmth (or so he could be shirtless on the beach in a tropical wilderness situation).
--- End quote ---
I know they're cheesy, but fun. If you had a good time thinking and laughing about it, then I accomplished my goal!
I loved all the answers, but especially that the wilderness one was Brian so he can be shirtless on the beach or huddled for warmth, haha.
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