Activity for Summerâ€
| Type | On... | Excerpt | Status | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edit | Post #18423 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #17906 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #17838 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #17831 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #17598 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #17589 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #17522 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #15903 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Edit | Post #15858 | Initial revision | — | almost 5 years ago |
| Answer | — |
A: How to describe an angry voice in dialogue? Generally speaking, "said" will be the most effective choice. As a writer, "said" might sound repetitive or too boring, but it's one of those few invisible words that the reader will just glide over. Anything else draws attention to itself. If you're relying on one specific word to convey the emotio... (more) |
— | about 8 years ago |
| Question | — |
Pitfalls for writing a talkative character? I wouldn't say he's bland by any means, but this character is definitely talkative, and he's supposed to be. He's not the main character but does show up quite a bit. He tends to lecture and ramble on about things that don't really matter to the main character. What are the dangers of having a charac... (more) |
— | over 8 years ago |
| Question | — |
Is there any risk of being published in the wrong genre? From this question: > However, unless you're an established author, you don't have the luxury of declaring your work to be fantasy or science fiction like Fowler does; someone else has to do that for you. That means your editor, publisher, your readership, and/or your peers and critics must declare ... (more) |
— | over 8 years ago |
| Question | — |
Is starting a story with dialogue bad? (Apologies if this question has already been asked. I've looked around but can't find this specific question, only related ones.) The general advice seems to be "don't start your story with dialogue." Readers will be disoriented from the start and feel unmotivated to continue reading since they don'... (more) |
— | over 8 years ago |
| Question | — |
Writing scenes that involve two languages (I realize there have been similar questions before, such as this and this, but the answers to those unfortunately did not help much with my specific issue.) I have three characters. Sally speaks both English and Japanese, Bob only knows English, and Shintaro only knows Japanese. The story is writte... (more) |
— | over 8 years ago |
| Question | — |
How many characters can I introduce in the first chapter before the reader gets overwhelmed? Assuming that all of the characters are unique, interesting, and stand out from the rest of the cast, is there a limit to how many characters I can introduce in the first chapter before my reader starts struggling to remember who's who? If not a limit, is there a certain number (or maybe a percentag... (more) |
— | over 8 years ago |
| Question | — |
Is killing a character to further the plot necessarily a bad thing? I've heard quite a few complaints about character deaths being used to further the plot. They say it's boring and overdone and mention that there are plenty of other ways to get to the same point without killing off a character. I am writing a novel that involves the death of an important character,... (more) |
— | over 8 years ago |
| Question | — |
How realistic should dialogue and character voices be? I've heard a lot of conflicting suggestions in the past regarding dialogue, so I'm hoping I can get a solid answer here. Some people have told me that the best way to go about dialogue is to make it as compact and to-the-point as possible. Good dialogue, they said, should not sound anything like the... (more) |
— | almost 9 years ago |
| Question | — |
Where to draw the line between fantasy and reality in a story? I realize this question may sound broad or vague, so allow me to explain. I never knew much about combat or dealing with injuries until I started gathering research for a fantasy novel I'm planning to write, which will have a lot of action and fighting. Prior to obtaining my research, I thought that... (more) |
— | almost 9 years ago |