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Posts by Alexandro Chen‭

147 posts
71%
+3 −0
Q&A What to do with cliched metaphors?

Example from my own writing: "Please take care of yourself," she replied. "Health is the most important thing in life, remember that." "I know, Mom." I had already lost count of the numb...

5 answers  ·  posted 8y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by Mark Baker‭

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Q&A Will my readers feel like they are reading a children's storybook if there are illustrations in my novel?

I'm writing a novel. I also have good drawing skills. I would like to add illustrations of the setting, locations, and characters. I may include 8 or 10 illustrations (the novel is approximately 20...

5 answers  ·  posted 13y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

Question novel fiction artwork
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Q&A Do characters sound too similar if they use the same words/expressions?

This is the draft of a story I'm writing (I removed the descriptions): “Sure they allow visitors?” I asked An-Mei as we headed to the pond. “It's OK,” she said. “It's not solitary confinem...

0 answers  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

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Q&A When to be specific and when to let context fill in the holes?

Some examples: Half-crouching, I went over to the railing and pointed my flashlight down (to the ground). It was approximately a two-storey fall. Not incredibly high, but high enough to kil...

3 answers  ·  posted 9y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

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Q&A Pros and cons of using real brand/company names?

Examples: Mary sat in front of the computer and fired up Google. Mary sat in front of the computer and fired up the search engine. Jack started up his old car. Jack started up hi...

2 answers  ·  posted 9y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

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Q&A How does the placement of transition sentences affects the meaning/tone of a piece?

Example: Finally, I began questioning the kid. What was her name? Where were her parents? And most important, what was she doing outside in this horrible weather? She replied to none of tha...

1 answer  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

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Q&A Listing items in fiction

What sort of criteria should I consider when listing items in fiction? For example: He was wearing a knit cap, a flower-patterned shirt, and faded jeans. I ordered the items from top to botto...

0 answers  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

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Q&A Should I make the gender of the narrator more obvious?

This is the opening of a short story I'm writing: 1996 was the year I became obsessed with animal suicide. I guess you can say it became my reason to live—the sun in my sky, the very air I ...

3 answers  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

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Q&A Using "he/she" instead of "it" for animals

I'm writing a short story. The main character is visited by a strange black bird during the night (first draft): I glanced around but there was no sign of the bird. I didn't spot it in any ne...

1 answer  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

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Q&A What can I use instead of "but" and "however"?

I just noticed I tend to use "but" and 'however" in almost every paragraph. Examples (all of them are from the same story): I almost let everything out. But, funny, I didn't. I didn't want him...

0 answers  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

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Q&A Is the following extended metaphor/group of metaphors too overwhelming?

I bought a box of sushi, and sat at the round table beside me. Opening the plastic container made me feel as though I was unlocking a treasure chest. I peeked inside to admired its conten...

3 answers  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

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Q&A When to use pronouns, and when to repeat yourself?

This is a quote from one of my favorite movies: "There are nearly thirteen million people in the world. None of those people is an extra. They're all the leads of their own stories." - Synecdoc...

1 answer  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

Question word-choice
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Q&A Procrastination on a Crucial Scene in my Book

I think there are two reasons you might be procrastinating on the scene: You are afraid of doing it wrong (in that case follow Lauren Ipsum's advice). It's boring and you don't feel like writing ...

posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

Answer
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Q&A What gender do you think the narrator is?

Once again, I traveled three hours only to eat sushi, alone. Cars passed by and people streamed along the sidewalk. Hanging in the air, I could feel the faint scent of spring. Or maybe it was ju...

2 answers  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

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Q&A Should I italicise when the protagonist quote other character's words?

For example in a story I'm writing a character says the following: “Be careful,” An-Mei said, ignoring my question. “No matter what, don't get close to her.” Later on the protagonist thinks...

1 answer  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

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Q&A Should I get rid of short sentences that don't provide much information?

I realized I have the habit of adding small sentences that don't provide much information: Eri searched her memory, but came out blank. She couldn’t even remember what she was doing at that t...

0 answers  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

Question creative-writing
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Q&A As an new author, how important is to have a personal website?

I'm planning to create a Facebook page where I can (hopefully) build a small fan base. I've seen many authors who have a personal websites. I'm not very sure, though, how important this is, and whe...

0 answers  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

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Q&A Rhythm in a list

I think I don't have problems establishing a rhythm in a "normal" paragraph. I usually just go: short, long, long, long, short, long or something like that. But when it comes to lists, I always ge...

0 answers  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

Question creative-writing
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Q&A Mixing dialogue and action tags

In my case, I never use dialogue and action tags in the same unit of dialogue (sorry, I just call them units because I had no idea what they are called). So I would never write something like this...

0 answers  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

Question creative-writing
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Q&A Should I use present or past tense when the narrator talks about an universal/most-often-true statement?

Eri raised her eyes to the screen again. What a terrible thing it must be for an earthquake to hit right on your birthday. She wondered how often that happened. Maybe earthquakes are complet...

1 answer  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

Question creative-writing
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Q&A Ways to replace the phrase "after all?"

I recently noticed I use "after all" very often. But unlike other phrases, I never seem to find a way to replace it. Some examples: Like the books, they hadn't moved a single inch. Erin found t...

1 answer  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 7mo ago by Mithical‭

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Q&A Is repetition justified in the following piece?

Eri kissed her dad on the cheek, and waved goodbye to him. He entered back into the car, and then drove off, disappearing gradually at the far end of the street. Once he was gone, Eri glance...

1 answer  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

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Q&A When to use semicolons and when to use em dashes?

Sometimes I can't decide whether to use a semicolon or a em dash. Usually, I start with semicolons and, once I notice there are too many of them, I start replacing a few with em dashes (as I read s...

1 answer  ·  posted 10y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

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Q&A Is it a bad idea to use a culture-specific word in the title of a story?

I wrote a short story long ago called The End of the World. I thought the title was too common so I renamed it to The Kid with the Gigaku Mask and the End of the World. But then, I found that title...

0 answers  ·  posted 11y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭

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Q&A Placing similes at the beginning and at the end of a sentence

Would the following sentences have different effects on the reader? He washed his hands thoroughly, like a surgeon after an operation. Like a surgeon after an operation, he washed his hand...

2 answers  ·  posted 11y ago by Alexandro Chen‭  ·  last activity 4y ago by System‭