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[nicksgal]

We also don't know for sure that he's not a demon.  Maybe his wings are invisible or retract into his back.  You're right, though; Nick has much better reactions than, say, mild-mannered Howie.  Howie fighting a bear would not be nearly as fun to write or read about.  Sorry, Howie.  That's why I prefer you as Dr. Rough.

If he's really powerful, he can suppress his demonic aspects. Or so says PBox. Get a few cocktails in Howie and he'll talk nicely to the bear and try to befriend it, haha.

Great minds do think alike!  Glad we've established our canon.  It turned out to be a fun, chatty weekend!

I do think subverting these "canon" characterizati ons is how you keep things interesting while writing story after story about the same characters in different situations and avoid using the same cliched stereotypes.  Like, Kevin is the big brother of the group, but that doesn't mean he should always be bossing the other guys around, especially in a present day story.  Brian is religious, but that doesn't mean he prays all the time.  Howie does more than wink.  (I forgot to include the winking on my list.  I love how winking is the one characteristic we kept intact in 00Carter LOL.)

I take everyone's silence to mean that they agree.

You know, we need to give villain Howie some redeemable traits from regular Howie, so why shouldn't he wink?

I think there's also ways to lean into the characterizati ons without making them one-note characters, which is where we should be writing them. But I've also been away long enough, that I'm enjoying playing them straight again, but still as reasonable people with many character traits. I had PBox Howie wink once and it was a joyous day to include it that one time (for me writing it, for anyone reading you'll have to wait a little bit to see it still).

[RokofAges75]

I think there's also ways to lean into the characterizati ons without making them one-note characters, which is where we should be writing them. But I've also been away long enough, that I'm enjoying playing them straight again, but still as reasonable people with many character traits. I had PBox Howie wink once and it was a joyous day to include it that one time (for me writing it, for anyone reading you'll have to wait a little bit to see it still).

Yes, I agree with that too.  I played them pretty straight in Bethlehem too - Kevin as the controlling big brother, Nick as the obnoxious little brother, Brian praying, etc.  (I had to look up if I had Howie wink in that one.  He only did once in mine, too.)   It is fun to write them way, especially in a group story that focuses on their brotherly relationship.  At the end of the day, those characterizati ons that we deemed essential exist because that's how we see them and why we love them, so those are the characters we want to read about.  But like you said, they should still seem like real people, not one-dimensional cartoon characters.

[nicksgal]

At the end of the day, those characterizati ons that we deemed essential exist because that's how we see them and why we love them, so those are the characters we want to read about.

Goes back to that connection and feelings! Those characteristic s are, I'm guessing, the ones we feel the greatest connection to/feelings about in their context as Backstreet Boys. It's a lot about who they are, but also a lot about how they relate to each other. That's why I enjoy writing group fanfics the most even if I lean Nick.

[Rose]

This is a good question for anyone else to answer about whichever boy(s) you've written multiple stories about.  Is your characterizati on pretty much the same across different stories, or do you make them different from each other?

I love this question. For me it depends on the story and how old he is. Like in RMTW I shatter Nick but this was a younger more self destructive Nick, so he reacts pretty badly at first.Making bad choices. I shatter Nick in a completely different way in When The Daylight's Gone, but this was a more mature Nick so while still broken he didn't slip back into old habits. In Show Me A Reason he's very angry because he's in such a bad place. In all of them though certain things still shine through, like trying to cope with a bad past, singing randomly (which I love that he actually does in real life and I got that right lol), and a reliance on the Backstreet Family as they're the ones who've been there. My Nick also tends to have a random brain which fits cause real life Nick is like that but truth be told a lot of his random thoughts are shit that just happens in my brain that I pass on to him.

Which, what Boy would you say you put the most of yourself into when you write? Like when you write his character, which comes the closest to how you'd write yourself?

[nicksgal]

singing randomly (which I love that he actually does in real life and I got that right lol)

Which, what Boy would you say you put the most of yourself into when you write? Like when you write his character, which comes the closest to how you'd write yourself?

I always enjoyed you making him sing randomly and that it was true.

Hmmm... None of them? They get some tiny things that I think fit with their personalities. PBox Nick gets a lot of my loyalty over sense, for instance. But I try not to put too much of me into any one of them so it doesn't take away from them. But lately, I've read other Howies and thought "Is Howie me?" So maybe it's Howie, haha.

[nicksgal]

I've been romping back around in the beginning of PBox and was having a hard time reverting Nick's character development, then started listening to some Now or Never again and it was suddenly like "Oh, there you are pre-character development PBox Nick."

Anyone else use method listening to get inspired? Like if you're writing a flashback or a story set in the past for instance?

[RokofAges75]

I love this question. For me it depends on the story and how old he is. Like in RMTW I shatter Nick but this was a younger more self destructive Nick, so he reacts pretty badly at first.Making bad choices. I shatter Nick in a completely different way in When The Daylight's Gone, but this was a more mature Nick so while still broken he didn't slip back into old habits. In Show Me A Reason he's very angry because he's in such a bad place. In all of them though certain things still shine through, like trying to cope with a bad past, singing randomly (which I love that he actually does in real life and I got that right lol), and a reliance on the Backstreet Family as they're the ones who've been there. My Nick also tends to have a random brain which fits cause real life Nick is like that but truth be told a lot of his random thoughts are shit that just happens in my brain that I pass on to him.

I love how you're all about shattering Nick at any age LOL.  Angst angst angst!

Age definitely seems to be a big factor in how we all portray Nick.  Is it the same with the other Boys, or do we mainly do this with Nick because he seems to have changed the most as a person over the course of the Boys' careers?

Which, what Boy would you say you put the most of yourself into when you write? Like when you write his character, which comes the closest to how you'd write yourself?

I'm sure I put some of myself into all my characters, but different sides of myself into different characters.  The one that comes closest to how I'd write myself is probably Howie, just because I think he's most like me in real life.

But lately, I've read other Howies and thought "Is Howie me?" So maybe it's Howie, haha.

Howie is all of us. LOL

[nicksgal]

Age definitely seems to be a big factor in how we all portray Nick.  Is it the same with the other Boys, or do we mainly do this with Nick because he seems to have changed the most as a person over the course of the Boys' careers?

I said this yesterday with portraying Kevin as "the only sane man" among the others, but that seems more like 90's BSB than current BSB. I definitely think age affects Nick the most just because we've seen him at so many different ages and a sixteen year-old is vastly different than an early twenty-something who is vastly different from a early thirty-something (Or at least in my personal experience, I cannot speak on what it's like to be forty, but I'm happy to take another hiatus and let you all know when the time comes. ). And by the time we really got a Kevin in the states, he was already mid-late twenties, so the difference probably seems so much smaller than if we'd been following them since 1993. I bet everyone watching them in Germany in 1995 would have a slightly different opinion about Kevin back then, haha. I'm sure a 90's era AJ would seem pretty different from a present day AJ too. And a 90's era Brian would likely lack some of the political undertones he gets now. If anything, Howie gets some secret sass and well-roundedness added as time goes on.

Realistically though, most of us tend to lean "Group featuring Nick," so we have the most varied character archetypes with major character development to draw from and speak on for Nick, regardless of what age he happens to be in the story. So maybe it's age compounded with that.

Howie is all of us. LOL

lmao The more time goes, the more I also think this is true. Maybe that's why I keep pushing for a Howie trend, I just want us all to feel represented in a BSB fanfic and still have it be about BSB, haha.

[RokofAges75]

I've been romping back around in the beginning of PBox and was having a hard time reverting Nick's character development, then started listening to some Now or Never again and it was suddenly like "Oh, there you are pre-character development PBox Nick."

Anyone else use method listening to get inspired? Like if you're writing a flashback or a story set in the past for instance?

Sure!  I'm almost always listening to something when I write.  Usually it's instrumental music that fits the mood of the scene, but sometimes I change it up.  I found this ambience video on YouTube a few years ago called "Beside Life Support" that is literally just a heart monitor and ventilator sound effect looped for an hour.  I laughed at it at first, but then I tried playing it while I was writing an ICU scene, and it actually did help me focus and get into the scene.  So I bust that out for scenes where it's appropriate.  One of the top comments says "Who's here because they're writing fanfiction?" so I guess I'm not the only weirdo who does that LOL.  I also listened to the ER score when I was writing my ER crossover; it made my trauma room scenes feel so much more dramatic LOL.  And of course I listened to Harry Potter music while working on my HP crossover.

If I'm writing about BSB from the past, I sometimes play their songs from that time period.  My current story is set in the Unbreakable era, so I listened to that album last week, and one of these weekends I'll watch the concert.  I'm waiting until I'm closer to the tour part of the story.  I think I posted about watching interviews from that era, which was helpful in reminding me of specific details I can include at some point, like Brian's big-ass white high-tops he wore all the time and AJ's guyliner.

[RokofAges75]

My writing update for today:

I was hoping to finish Chapter 6 this weekend and did not, but now I'm thinking that may actually be better because it means I'm more likely to write during the week.  I went to bed last night wishing I could stay up longer and finish my scene.  I woke up this morning still feeling inspired, so I pecked out about 200 more words while I was drying my hair.  I left off in mid-sentence, but I think leaving myself hanging like that actually helps me pick back up on it later... whereas if I was actually at a good stopping place, like the end of a scene or chapter, I would have a much harder time getting started next time I sat down to write.  It's nice to know what comes next.

I feel like I always start out the work week really inspired and motivated from writing over the weekend, and then as the days ago on, that feeling wanes until Saturday morning, when I can sit down with a cup of coffee and build it back up again.  That has been my routine lately.

[FrickingKaos]

I haven't really written a whole lot in the past week, I sprained a muscle in my neck last Sunday so for a few days it hurt to look down at my iPad or phone for long periods of time. Thankfully I had chapters done already that I could post so I'm glad I wrote ahead, it comes in handy for situations such as that.

[FrickingKaos]

I sometimes listen to music when I'm writing at home, or I'll put a movie on for background noise. When I wrote If I Knew Then I basically watched Titanic every night and got super motivated that way. Not even sure why but I guess the love triangle of Nick, Brian and Leighanne was a little inspired from that towards the second half of the story. But with this new story I find that I'm watching old interviews and things from whatever time period I am working on since it's got so many flashbacks. Most of the time I write with no music.

[RokofAges75]

I haven't really written a whole lot in the past week, I sprained a muscle in my neck last Sunday so for a few days it hurt to look down at my iPad or phone for long periods of time. Thankfully I had chapters done already that I could post so I'm glad I wrote ahead, it comes in handy for situations such as that.

I bet!  I have done that before, and it hurts so bad.  Hope you're feeling better!

I sometimes listen to music when I'm writing at home, or I'll put a movie on for background noise. When I wrote If I Knew Then I basically watched Titanic every night and got super motivated that way. Not even sure why but I guess the love triangle of Nick, Brian and Leighanne was a little inspired from that towards the second half of the story. But with this new story I find that I'm watching old interviews and things from whatever time period I am working on since it's got so many flashbacks. Most of the time I write with no music.

I love how much Titanic inspired you for the end of the story!  I listen to Titanic music sometimes while writing, but I've never tried playing the actual movie in the background.  I think it would be like music with lyrics and just distract me because I would end up reciting all the lines along with the actors, which I already find myself doing when I watch that movie LOL.  I watch movies to get inspired before writing, but not usually while I'm actually writing.

[nicksgal]

Sure!  I'm almost always listening to something when I write.  Usually it's instrumental music that fits the mood of the scene, but sometimes I change it up.  I found this ambience video on YouTube a few years ago called "Beside Life Support" that is literally just a heart monitor and ventilator sound effect looped for an hour.  I laughed at it at first, but then I tried playing it while I was writing an ICU scene, and it actually did help me focus and get into the scene.  So I bust that out for scenes where it's appropriate.  One of the top comments says "Who's here because they're writing fanfiction?" so I guess I'm not the only weirdo who does that LOL.  I also listened to the ER score when I was writing my ER crossover; it made my trauma room scenes feel so much more dramatic LOL.  And of course I listened to Harry Potter music while working on my HP crossover.

I know you enjoyed ambient mood type stuff while you write. I love that the top comment is "who's here writing fanfiction" because I can't really think of a reason to listen to a looped heart monitor/ventilator for an hour unless it was for setting a mood while writing, some sort of art project, or other creative outlet that needed that immersion inspiration. I thought of a couple half way through writing this, but I still feel like creative pursuits would be the primary reason.

If I'm writing about BSB from the past, I sometimes play their songs from that time period.  My current story is set in the Unbreakable era, so I listened to that album last week, and one of these weekends I'll watch the concert.  I'm waiting until I'm closer to the tour part of the story.  I think I posted about watching interviews from that era, which was helpful in reminding me of specific details I can include at some point, like Brian's big-ass white high-tops he wore all the time and AJ's guyliner.

ARok had to contrast each other! big-ass white high-tops and guyliner are opposites! Oh 2007... What a time the late 00's were. That was back when I rocked a bumpit and hair poufs to high heaven -- there's pictures from a friend's wedding where it was larger than my forehead!

I sometimes listen to music when I'm writing at home, or I'll put a movie on for background noise. When I wrote If I Knew Then I basically watched Titanic every night and got super motivated that way. Not even sure why but I guess the love triangle of Nick, Brian and Leighanne was a little inspired from that towards the second half of the story. But with this new story I find that I'm watching old interviews and things from whatever time period I am working on since it's got so many flashbacks. Most of the time I write with no music.

What a great movie to inspire a love triangle from. There was a legitimate argument on each side and not just "Oh noes, two boys are in love with plain old ordinary me! I must brood about it instead of spending time with both of them and choosing one!"

I haven't really written a whole lot in the past week, I sprained a muscle in my neck last Sunday so for a few days it hurt to look down at my iPad or phone for long periods of time. Thankfully I had chapters done already that I could post so I'm glad I wrote ahead, it comes in handy for situations such as that.

Sorry you've been hurting! Neck sprains and tweaks are the worst; I never realize how much I use my neck until I can't. I hope you're feeling better!

[FrickingKaos]

Lol the way you replied to the love triangle makes it sound like Nick was into Leighanne too but I just want to point out that he was NOT haha. Nick loves Brian, Brian loves Nick but is in denial and loves Leighanne. Leighanne and Nick are friends but she secretly hates him, and Leighanne loves Brian. If that makes ANY sense at all. It's just very complicated lmao

I'm still in pain but I'm taking the injury day by day. It's definitely getting better but it's going to be a bit before I am back to normal again.