Activity for Erk
| Type | On... | Excerpt | Status | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edit | Post #36423 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #36107 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #36083 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #35985 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #35974 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #35521 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #35158 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #28691 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #24997 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #22246 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #15144 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #13925 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #11285 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
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A: How do I write "Show, Don't Tell" as a person with Asperger Syndrome? Writing isn't really about showing what character's feel. It's about making the reader feel. You could even have a cold-hearted unfeeling robot (Terminator?), as long as that character makes your audience have the emotions you want them to have, you're doing it right. I'd suggest reading books, wat... (more) |
— | over 5 years ago |
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A: How can I convey something without going into details? I'm not at all sure what you mean with "a perverse pit of debauchery". Apocalyptic Mad Max/Dark Angel, or what a school teacher from 1850 would say about the sexual habits of millennials–or pretty much anyone from the 21st century? But I hope my answer will be applicable regardless! Even if society... (more) |
— | over 5 years ago |
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A: Using too much dialogue? First Drafts, Writing and Rewriting This is your first draft, right? Your process could be that you produce a lot of dialog. You can fix that when you edit the text. To quote Hemingway (or Arnold Samuelson?): "The first draft of anything is shit." Go back (now or once the first draft is done) a... (more) |
— | over 5 years ago |
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A: How do you earn the reader's trust? There must be logic I believe it is important to always let the readers understand the logic of your character's actions. Even if the character is super evil, his motivation should be one the readers can sympathize with. Rather his methods are what could be despicable. For instance, a villain wan... (more) |
— | over 5 years ago |
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A: Are there any established rules for splitting books into parts, chapters, sections etc? I understand you have short and long chapters. How about splitting the longer ones into several smaller chapters? The only rules I can come up with for chapters are: - The reader uses them as a "reading unit" so they should probably be about equal in size and not too long (but I've seen books with... (more) |
— | over 5 years ago |
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A: What are the components of a legend (in the sense of a tale, not a figure legend)? Apart from Campbell's "The Hero's Journey", another source of archetypal knowledge is folktales. You could take a look at the work of Vladimir Propp and his analysis of Russian folktales. Both Campbell's and Propp's works describe a structure common to many stories of each category: the repetition o... (more) |
— | over 5 years ago |
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A: How much indirection is too much? Try it as dialog... and then you'll also realize the situation could be seen as very prejudiced (code smell?) Let me show you: > Groff: I'm leaving before those Grobschookas get here. > > Doff: Why? I mean, they seem a bit violent, but who isn't? > > Groff: You don't get it, they are horrible. > ... (more) |
— | over 5 years ago |
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A: Beyond letters and diaries—exercises to explore characters' personalities and motivation Voice Making the character tell something in their own voice is generally called a "Voice Journal" or "Voice Journaling" From your question, I understand you don't necessarily mean to use what you create in your actual text. If that is the case, you can get as creative as you like in order to fin... (more) |
— | over 5 years ago |
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A: How is simplicity better than precision and clarity in prose? You need to be precise, clear and uncomplicated. When writing fiction, you want your text to have all the depths and layers you can add to it without forcing your reader to stop and think too much since that will end suspension of disbelief. Think reading trance. You want them to be in one if there... (more) |
— | over 5 years ago |
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A: How to write repeated actions You have this problem a few paragraphs into the first chapter. Don't stop and think now! Accept that you'll get into the rhythm after a few more paragraphs and that you may even produce a couple of scenes/chapters that aren't much for the world. The thing is, you will write your first draft badly.... (more) |
— | almost 7 years ago |
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A: How much heed should we pay to writing advice Treat advice as a smorgasbord. Pick what works and leave the rest. Make sure you test the advice you get. That way you will know if it works or not. It may sound great in your head, but it's what happens on the paper that counts... I look at my writing as a dual task: 1) Write books and 2) create m... (more) |
— | about 7 years ago |
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A: What writing process should I use to produce the kind of writing I want? You basically have two options: 1. Write the first draft, edit, edit, edit 2. Outline, write the first draft, edit, edit, edit (but possibly a bit less editing than in 1). And, as Lauren Ipsum already has mentioned: allow yourself to suck. Your motto should be: "I'll fix it in editing... moving on!... (more) |
— | over 7 years ago |
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A: Is it OK to invent as I write, or should I plan the entire story first? In my experience it goes both ways. Either you start with an outline and write chapters and scenes from it, or once you've written your first draft "by the seat of your pants" you might end up creating what looks pretty much like an outline, or a scene list, just to get a grip of the often chaotic m... (more) |
— | about 10 years ago |