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Post by Brownie on Aug 25, 2017 14:04:58 GMT -5
those things that you do and keep doing but are really bad/cheap ways out and you want to break these bad habits.
Some habits I want to break:
Using many antagonists - I usually layer my stories with three or four conflicts going on at once. Because of this my conflicts are usually very surface level and not developed, as I have other conflicts to mask or bury these really crappy, hardly thought out antagonists.
Writing when I want to - I only really write when I have an idea. This is BAD and I need to start forcing myself to write in different points in my life to put different flavors into my writing instead of the sameness that is inspired-me.
Writing in order - I write scenes in order of chapter. This is because of writing on places like here and other sites where updates come out as I write them type deal. This isn't a good habit to have, as now I'm afraid to write scenes that I have ideas for just because it's not in chronological order. I should be feeling more free to write as it comes, not necessarily because this scene is next.
Over description of setting/characters - self explanatory.
Characters all sound the same - also self explanatory. I need to learn to vary my characters' habits, quirks and speech patterns.
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Post by » ѕнαdσω ⚔️ on Aug 25, 2017 16:38:24 GMT -5
Brownie Those are all habits I have/do have trouble with! :'O Here are mine: Dark Atmosphere - All of my stories have this dark overtone. I use descriptive language that usually deals with blood, darkness, ect. Of course, this can be tied to the content of my stories: unbreakable Curse that kills off everyone that the main character loves and causes them physical, emotional, and mental pain; a love story that ends in tragedy; a dead main character who is trying to get back to her missing daughter and has a very dark history; a revenge and hate filled main character who wants total control over everyone and everything; a mentally ill main character who is forced to fight in a war...it goes on.. o3o' Though I hope to break this with my story Wanderer which has lighter content. It's an adventure/discovery/road trip story so it better be. x'D Breaking out of Line - I tend to steer away from my pre-planned summaries and plots as I write, so sometimes my stories develop secret plot holes or create more questions than are necessary. I need a way to commit to most of my plot planning at least. It gets a bit ridiculous when you have to go 20 chapters back just to remind yourself of what you wrote. Sticking to a POV and/or tense - I get bored easily so sometimes I'll unconsciously start writing in a different tense or I'll start a chapter off in someone else's point of view that is not my main characters. Sometimes the POV is in an ENTIRELY different PLACE and/or TIME PERIOD. STOP ME. I can only imagine how confused my readers must get. ;-; Thankfully I'm getting MUCH better with my tense shifts, thank the writing gods. I probably have more. I'll put them here when I can think of them. :'3
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Post by mintedstar/fur on Aug 25, 2017 17:32:23 GMT -5
Plot Patches - If I can't think of how a story would end, then I'll just rub a lot of gloss on it and hope no one notices that I didn't put the effort in. This is slightly sad, since I know I can come up with a very good ending if I just have the time/energy to do it.
Writing out of order (and then not using the bits I write when I get there) - I need to learn that my story changes as I write it, and I like those changes, so writing key points ahead of time doesn't work for me and draws away from the main plot.
Foreshadow better - Or, you know, I could just bother to edit. x.x
Don't worry about what others think - I did this with the deeper stuff in Mortality and it really took away from the writing. I must not do this with my Will C. Morgen story, as if that means I'll make the story just like everyone else just to 'please' some people will not work for me. I need to do better at this one above all.
I also want to up my vocabulary when I write. This means that I need to learn to spell the words that I'd like to use. I can say them just fine, but otherwise...
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Post by Dingoleap on Aug 25, 2017 17:50:53 GMT -5
Writing when I want to - I only really write when I have an idea. This is BAD and I need to start forcing myself to write in different points in my life to put different flavors into my writing instead of the sameness that is inspired-me. This. Only writing when I feel motivated to write is a huge one for me. - only writing stories with really dark themes - I should probably actually include romance at some point (I have a deep-rooted hatred for unnecessary romance. It's kinda turned my stories into anti-romance campaigns) - varying my settings. Literally everything is set in the same place.
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Post by [~Ghost Writer~] on Aug 25, 2017 18:26:15 GMT -5
Making the main character have some sort of mental illness- I need to understand that Characters can be mentally sane and still be a good Character
Making all of the characters some sort of gay- even when they're straight, they're gay.
Bad grammar- enough said.
Dropping the plot for something else- I get too distracted by a side story going on to focus on the main plot. Lots of times I just drop it.
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Post by » ѕнαdσω ⚔️ on Aug 25, 2017 21:22:31 GMT -5
I feel like there is a lot we could learn from each other. x'D
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Post by Brownie on Aug 25, 2017 21:48:04 GMT -5
I feel like there is a lot we could learn from each other. x'D yep the point of the thread: reflection.
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Post by [~Ghost Writer~] on Aug 25, 2017 23:57:57 GMT -5
By all means, if you guys know any bad habits of mine in writing that I haven't brought up yet, please tell me so. I'd love to know what I need to work on.
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Post by Sησω on Aug 26, 2017 8:15:14 GMT -5
I have a bad habit of thinking of new ideas when I'm already working on different stories. This often causes me to abandon the stories that I was already working on to work on the new ideas.
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Non-binary
eph 💕
transed my gender 👍
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Post by eph 💕 on Aug 26, 2017 11:25:15 GMT -5
not so much habits i want to break but habits i want to adopt:
- write actual complicated, compelling conflict and solving conflict in ways that aren't cheap or rushed
- boy characters who aren't Sad and girl characters who aren't chaotic neutral
- lgbt inclusion that isn't mlm or based on stereotypes (this especially with trans characters. i want to do them more respectfully and have their stories not be centered around being trans). also to include more nb characters
- rediscover the poetic prose i used to have
- allow myself to get silly and include ridiculous things and take the silly things seriously and meaningfully (see: the adventure zone)
- allow myself to write what i want to write, not what i think people want to read or what might get published. write because i want to and because i'm passionate about it, not because i want it to match up to someone else's standards
- stop abandoning plots/wips i like
- stop waiting for creativity to strike. just write. just do. to paraphrase justin mcelroy, creativity favors those who show up
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Post by ~Sapphire~ on Aug 26, 2017 12:23:52 GMT -5
Getting stuck on the same sentence while drafting because it's not "perfect".
Not having an actual villain
Failing to plan subplots
Not giving characters proper motivations
Writing filler scenes which don't advance either plot or character
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Post by phantomstar57 on Aug 26, 2017 13:44:16 GMT -5
Bad writing habits--
Well even I have a few LOL, tho some listed here are not really bad. Writing out of order is not always bad. Getting the 1st draft or even rough draft down is important but you can always add other chapters later by slipping them in where they belong to flesh out a novel. Sometimes the ending comes to you and you need to fill in the rest as it comes to you.
Having too many antagonists is not always a bad thing if the tale is complex, and has a cast of many protagonists.
Writing when you don't want to is not a bad thing either. Sometimes, you sit and force yourself to do so, the flow comes back and the prose flows, but more often than not you sit., easily distracted and not able to focus. This one is a rarity for me but happens if I am sick or upset by something in life.
My bad habits- not poofreading as well as I should, and giving myself more work! Instead of proofing thru maybe 2-3 proofs I end up doing 5-6! Sometimes more because I don't slow down and compensate for my horrendous eyesight. Bet NEW BLOOD still has typos in it after all this time. My 2nd scifi novel OMG I think I had 6 proof books here because I missed so much, and then I accidentally deleted the updated file and had to reproof from the last printed one. OMG it was a nightmare.
Start way too many projects and freak when I feel I can' finish them. But as time marches on, I am slowly completing them. At least the writing ones. . .
I have to mention my pet peeves, and my pet peeves in writing are:
Numero UNO! Rdundant phrasing such as using things like "it started to, she began to, it seemed to, he/she/it/they was/were verb+ing, and one that sometimes overwhelmed the prose so much I want to scream, is overuse of the she/he/I could/would + verb. I see it in professional writing too and I think well known writers sometimes get sloppy because they have to rush out the book and just let it slide. This "I could see her, or I could feel the flames", etc simply should read I saw her, or I felt the flames. Otherwise the he/she/it could do this or that repeats so much it slows down the action. Over using things like "it began to, or started to, or seemed to" lessens the impact of that phrase for when it is needed to show something is indeed just starting to happen, or seems to be something that may not be. And the over use of was/were plus and "ing" verb like "he was walking, they were swimming, her fur was bristling"-ugh-when it is overused just sloooowws everything down. Simply say, She walked, They swam, and her fur bristled. In action scenes this is a MUST. Leave the was/were for when nothing else will work properly in conveying what happens.
Tense shifts - forgetting the tense the story is written in and lapsing to another. Only time this works is when a character in present tense is remembering or recalling an event. I am pretty lenient tho, and a few simple mistakes here and there are not going to flip me out or stop me from reading, but if it gets several times in a chapter or page-then it may stop me if it gets confusing.
Weird POV shifts - like going from first person to third in the same story. It is hard to pull off, unless it is obvious who the "I" character is and its consistent throughout the book when scenes and chapters shift to other characters. I did do this once, with THE SECRET LIFE OF MODEL HORSES with the main character telling her story in the very 1st chapter in first person, then every chapter afterward is 3rd. Not sure if it really works well, and sometimes I think about changing it, even after all these months since I released it. 2nd person in fiction, nah-does not work for me. It is way too weird. Works fine tho in poetry, song lyrics and some nonfiction.
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Post by phantomstar57 on Aug 26, 2017 13:54:32 GMT -5
not so much habits i want to break but habits i want to adopt: - write actual complicated, compelling conflict and solving conflict in ways that aren't cheap or rushed - boy characters who aren't Sad and girl characters who aren't chaotic neutral - lgbt inclusion that isn't mlm or based on stereotypes (this especially with trans characters. i want to do them more respectfully and have their stories not be centered around being trans). also to include more nb characters - rediscover the poetic prose i used to have - allow myself to get silly and include ridiculous things and take the silly things seriously and meaningfully (see: the adventure zone) - allow myself to write what i want to write, not what i think people want to read or what might get published. write because i want to and because i'm passionate about it, not because i want it to match up to someone else's standards - stop abandoning plots/wips i like - stop waiting for creativity to strike. just write. just do. to paraphrase justin mcelroy, creativity favors those who show up Always write about what YOU want to write. Writing to please others never works well. Sometimes one can be sucessful with that, but the best stuff comes from the passion the author has for it. I write, I publish and if nobody likes it, well its still out there for the few that may enjoy the work. I've long given up the notion of being the next Robert Heinlien or Anne McCaffrey LOL It just pleases me when ONE reader says "I loved it" or "Wow great story". At my age now, that is all I need, tho the better royalties would not be a bad thing LOL.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 26, 2017 14:19:08 GMT -5
- getting too many ideas and leaving out details - not editing bc I'm lazy - getting bored with a project and starting another, leaving 24028493 drafts
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Post by Ginz on Aug 27, 2017 2:36:33 GMT -5
- procrastinating (srsly ive been wanting to write for a few days but have i even gone into pages? lolnope) - not planning a plot — plot is my weakness, so why don't i try to take care of it first? the world may never know - i need to stop making sentences so long b/c short sentences are good too - dialogue sounding like real people instead of how the writing sounds. characters can actaully say "me and __" even though it's not grammatically correct - editing AND writing????? doesn't work????? i need to write and then edit
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2017 2:37:46 GMT -5
tSUNDERES
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2017 6:31:42 GMT -5
some of many things I should stop
writing in general, I suck lmao recycling the same ideas over and over again every time I scrap something and start something new spoiling my own crap making it so l o n g having characters info dumping al the time (I do the same thing so it's hard for me to get them to stop as well) trying to write something for kids and it ending up being insanely dark not being able to write anything about people??? like animals? Easy. people??? Cannot Do. How Do Normal People Do Things And Think??? the goddamn opera references falling back on 7 basic character archetypes and then developing their personality more uniquely from there until they don't really resemble the original archetype some damn political allegory working its way in again?!?!? somehow there's one in a freaking comic about opera and cats. your guess is as good as mine never being able to write like a fully normally-functioning character? they all end up having my bizarre thought process and NONE of them don't have something like depression or anxiety or PTSD or whatever. these are just animals we're talking about jeez writing for myself and not other people, it alienates others and often just leads to my social life becoming worse. I need to write for other people having 23372829 subplots going on at the same time, even if they all end contributing to the plot somehow making every character bisexual making everything unusually terrifying for stories about cats FORESHADOWING EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS IN THE STORY TO AN ABSURD LEVEL
tldr: everything
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2017 7:53:34 GMT -5
The overuse of - / , and ; as punctuation. In a way it does give my writing a certain flavor and none of it would read as incorrect however I frequent them too much.
This is a problem in the way I roleplay and type in general too.
I also find it difficult to balance what I believe to be actually necessary in detailing the beautiful visuals of the land or characters I have in my head on to paper without it becoming large amounts of fluff text and purple prose. I feel like most people are just apt to skim or not find it worthwhile to the story but after 6 years of worldbuilding I have to find a way to make a reader give a damn. Because the planets are a crucial part to the story, albeit not directly.
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Post by 𝕡𝕖𝕡𝕡𝕖𝕣𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕥 on Aug 27, 2017 7:56:57 GMT -5
Some things I need to stop doing:
- Not bothering to describe anything. I often don't even bother with visualization, and when I do I tend to use simple, brief language to get it out of the way quickly. I need to remember that the readers don't have the foreknowledge of the setting that I do. - Writing cynical/dark stories. Even when I try to write "lighter" stuff, it always ends up being heavy. - Basing my characters off of archetypes. I tend to create my characters by thinking of an archetype and then deconstructing it. If I stop doing that, perhaps my characters could be a lot more original. - Rushing my characters' motivations and development. It's unnatural and unrealistic. Enough said.
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Post by Maplestone360 on Aug 27, 2017 8:56:36 GMT -5
- Procrastination. I need to stop telling myself "Oh, I'll write tomorrow" and "But what about blank roleplay" and "But I don't feel like it". Really. At this rate three years will pass and I'll still be on chapter 1 of a fan fic. - Having tons of other ideas that distract me from my main ones. - PATIENCE. I really need to learn patience. - Writing out a plot for fan fics, then not doing anything else for them. - Writing super vague and short plots and forgetting every idea I had for them. - Getting distracted when I actually get around to writing. - Terrible plots - Terrible writing in general
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Post by Brownie on Aug 27, 2017 9:55:40 GMT -5
idek why this was moved to OTD but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
greetings OTD people
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Post by Brownie on Aug 27, 2017 9:57:51 GMT -5
@roswell can I ask why this thread was moved?
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Post by Alpha on Aug 27, 2017 11:00:27 GMT -5
- Probably motivation
- Prose. I am horrible at descriptions, especially emotional descriptions. I tend to leave things vague so my readers can infer things.
- Beginnings and the inbetween parts of the plot.
- Pacing
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#add8e6
Name Colour
*Ravenpaw*
Warrior Fanatic
*reads books in a corner*
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Post by *Ravenpaw* on Aug 27, 2017 18:29:38 GMT -5
I sometimes tend to take too many breaks while writing, thus getting hardly anything done.
And writing in the summer. Summer is not a good season for writing, especially when there's no air conditioning. >.<
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Post by ℜust ℜed ℜose on Aug 27, 2017 19:02:22 GMT -5
-Focusing too much on dialogue and just kinda going back and forth between brief descriptions of setting when characters are traveling and their bickering. -Long sentences that probably aren't gramatically correct but I think look cool and get the point across, even if they don't read well aloud. -Being far too subtle with major plot twists. Some of them I fear the reader will completely miss when reading, because they're written as casual things, as the characters wouldn't be shocked by many of them. -Too many branches of sidestory. -Killing off a main character or very lovable side character just to get that strong emotional reaction from the reader. -Two page chapters and 20 page chapters, back to back. -Random deep quotes about life coming out of nowhere. -Trying to describe a dude being buff without being like "DAMN, THOSE BICEPS. Oooh gurl them abs!" because it's not supposed to be sexual. Or whatever.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2017 20:57:30 GMT -5
A bad habit of mine:
I write for other people, and not for myself. I value what everyone else wants rather than what I want, and I shouldn't be doing that. It's my story to tell, so I should be writing to please myself rather than everyone else
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Post by Salted Squid on Aug 27, 2017 22:18:13 GMT -5
I need to learn how to actually plan out my stories before I write them, rather than just jumping in headfirst. It doesn't work for me and I never get past the first chapter, if that
Also I need to start writing more for new characters. Like I have Skylar who I've had for several years and I use her for absolutely everything, to the point where I'm nearly incapable of roleplaying or writing POVs for any characters other than her.
On that note, I need to get better with male characters
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2017 22:49:12 GMT -5
my sentences always end up being way too long
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