Fic Talk > General Discussion
Writing & Thread (aka The Writing Thread 4)
RokofAges75:
This is a great thread from the Writing subreddit. "The most painful lessons I've learned about creative writing": https://www.reddit.com/r/writing/comments/o9l1rh/the_most_painful_lessons_ive_learned_about/
There's a lot of great advice in there. Some of it is stuff we've already talked about, but I also took away some new tidbits. Like changing the font when I'm rereading/editing to help my eyes catch missing words and other mistakes? We were just talking about that in the WTF Google thread, so I'll have to try that as I give my chapters the final proofread before posting them. I did try the writing in Comic Sans thing and didn't find it made much difference, but it's hard to tell from only one trial.
The one about outlining too much and treating your characters like puppets, forcing decisions and conflicts that don't really work for the sake of the potentially faulty plot, definitely hit home for me. That is one problem us planners and plot-driven writers tend to run into. I think I've gotten better at being flexible with my outlines and not forcing my characters to act uncharacterist ically, but it's still hard to change directions and go one way when I really wanted to go another way.
What advice stands out to you, and what would you add to it?
RokofAges75:
Here's another good one I found on editing, with specific things to look for when proofreading a story: https://www.reddit.com/r/writing/comments/o9mi1k/run_a_consistency_check_on_your_work/
RokofAges75:
Our conversation about how the stage is transported overseas for a tour gave me an idea for another question for whoever wants to answer. What are other aspects of celebrity/musician/rich people life you've wondered about while writing and never found a definite answer for (or maybe never even tried to find out)?
This sounds so dumb, but I don't really understand how gated communities and homes work. Like for a gated community, is there a code you enter to open the gate, or is there a guard on duty all the time to let residents through? What about the gates celebrities have in front of their driveways? Do people have to enter a code to get through, or is there an intercom they can use to call the person who lives there to let them in? Could it be either? I don't live in an area with gated communities and don't know anyone who has a gate in front of their driveway, so this is something I'm completely unfamiliar with.
I also googled the question "Do celebrities have health insurance?" earlier in the writing of this story LOL. I didn't know if really rich people needed it, or if they just paid out of pocket for whatever medical expenses came up. The answer I got was probably yes, so that's what I went with. It makes the most sense. I mean, why would you pay way more than you needed to for healthcare, even if you could afford it?
mare:
Most celebrities have health coverage from wherever they are most employed by. Usually the artist or the actual record company supplies the coverage. That’s how it has worked for my friends in the music/movie industry.
nicksgal:
--- Quote from: RokofAges75 on June 29, 2021, 12:15:42 AM ---This is a great thread from the Writing subreddit. "The most painful lessons I've learned about creative writing": https://www.reddit.com/r/writing/comments/o9l1rh/the_most_painful_lessons_ive_learned_about/
There's a lot of great advice in there. Some of it is stuff we've already talked about, but I also took away some new tidbits. Like changing the font when I'm rereading/editing to help my eyes catch missing words and other mistakes? We were just talking about that in the WTF Google thread, so I'll have to try that as I give my chapters the final proofread before posting them. I did try the writing in Comic Sans thing and didn't find it made much difference, but it's hard to tell from only one trial.
The one about outlining too much and treating your characters like puppets, forcing decisions and conflicts that don't really work for the sake of the potentially faulty plot, definitely hit home for me. That is one problem us planners and plot-driven writers tend to run into. I think I've gotten better at being flexible with my outlines and not forcing my characters to act uncharacterist ically, but it's still hard to change directions and go one way when I really wanted to go another way.
What advice stands out to you, and what would you add to it?
--- End quote ---
That is a lot of good advice, even if it's stuff we've talked about here. For the different font, this is part of my editing process! It's a lot of why I do use "suggest mode" to edit because it makes everything green. If I'm editing, I leave it all until I finish the chapter, then reread back the whole chapter with the green bits and it will usually end up helping me catch things I missed because I'm switching back and forth between the colors. Then the final step is posting to AC and giving it a cursory skim while I format. Since the AC font is so different, I will still catch a few things or notice a place the text is awkward. :)
The one that really resonated with me (I won't say stood out) was "If you start to hate writing or you feel like something isn’t right, STOP." I've said it before, but I think I honestly needed time off from writing to really get back into a creative head space. There were times fandom was lonely because of it, but it all worked out for the best. I think this is scary advice if writing is something anyone spends a lot of time on, but I think there's definitely a point where forcing through it just isn't worth it. All that said, I do think making writing a habit is a good thing, but if I was truly unmotivated, I think I would let the streak die for at least a little bit.
I can't think of other advice that isn't in there and painful. I guess it's that the times I've been happiest writing were when I tempered my expectations, "dance like no one is watching" if you will (except I will always dance even when people are watching, lol). There was something really freeing about telling myself "Chances are high that no one will read what you're writing." And of course it makes me happy that people do (I would love to talk to them more), but just still being interested in writing even if that was a high chance was enough to keep me going. I'm not explaining this well, lol.
--- Quote from: RokofAges75 on June 29, 2021, 12:32:13 AM ---Here's another good one I found on editing, with specific things to look for when proofreading a story: https://www.reddit.com/r/writing/comments/o9mi1k/run_a_consistency_check_on_your_work/
--- End quote ---
I laughed so hard at the comment later on about listing colors of furniture with semicolons. I am an ellipses nut! I should be better about them, but...
:biggrin:
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