Food is a vital part of culture, whether it's family dinners during the holidays, your mum's madeleines, or a lukewarm cup of coffee at the diner you and your ex used to visit. When was the last time you wrote about it?
This thread is about writing and writing related things.
Feel free to post samples of your writing but keep in mind that this is not /critique/ and no one here is obligated to critique anything you post. "Write what's on your mind"/blogposting belongs on /r9k/.
Previous thread:
I haven't had a good meal for years. Been about two years since I've been to any restaurant.
which authors do you guys try to imitate in order to improve your writing?
Food is disgusting, digestion is disgusting.
The process of consuming other living beings - animal or otherwise - to fuel your body... It sickens me. It is the biggest reminder of my own mortality. Every time I have to open my mouth to eat I am reminded that I will die.
Murakami, Tolkien (until I realized that adding a fuckton of filler that didn't need to be there was stupid), that's basically it. I haven't read that many books, so I just write how I write.
Picrel, it's an excerpt from the novella (?) I'm writing.
>tfw watch Tarantino movies to study how to write dialogue
I'm working on a novel about a small band of pan American socialists with revolutionary pretensions travelling across the shattered continent in search of a place to realize their vision.
I'm trying to focus more on the people than on the politics.
I'm about 30k words in which is probably around 10 percent completed.
Ive also been working on a smaller project about a cheating ring in a high school chemistry class told in 5 sections of varying format that form a coherent story in any order, but the order would define how one experiences large sections of it. It sounds pretty dumb, and I'll concede that it probably is but Im writing it to get into the habit of writing a lot more without butchering my other thing as well as to just enjoy the experiment. That has 19k words rn . I'm hoping to finish the rough draft in the next ten days whereupon i'll evaluate its potential and go from there.
This probably means I'll end up deleting the document and either starting over, or just quitting
does anyone have any tips for fantasy world building?
I'm starting to write some fantasy short stories that explore common tropes and such, but I need to actually have a world to set it in.
you could use an already existing fantasy world you like as a base for your short stories to practice. You can always come back later to them and translate them in your own world when you create one.
Has anyone from Yea Forums ever had any actual success in publishing?
Won the first place with a short comic in a national magazine about stuttering. Felt pretty awkward and is probably the only instance which makes my name google-able.
what are some books with good food descriptions?
the one that instantly comes to mind is The Hobbit
What are your editing techniques? I mean detailed ideas. I feel like I just can’t see what’s wrong with my writing to know what to fix.
>review a printed copy
>go through for unneeded words like “that” and “of”
>check proper usage of words
>check tense of words
>review sentences individually
I just don’t have a decent checklist I guess.
>write first draft that ideally has a functional story
>let it rest for half a year while working on another book
Basically stage zero.
Afterwards I had an organised approach in mind, first doing the plot/order of scenes/characters etc, etc, then doing the finer round two with line edits and more attention to the filler words, active voice and all that shit, and lastly checking for typos/grammar.
In reality it didn't work too well because it's all so interconnected; a single sentence can affect how you perceive the development or the character, sometimes even a single word – and sometimes you can fuck it all up but still want to read on and feel like it works despite some obvious flaws.
Now at the forth and final draft I'm going from chapter to chapter and reading until I hit a bit that pulls me out; sometimes it's a filler word, sometimes a weird tense, sometimes the entire description feels tacky or pointless.
Absolutely.
look at specific places at times in history, then replace elements with fantasy tropes, while adapting the tropes to the original setting.
look for books about traveling, they usually rely on diverse settings to tell the story and describe those settings well.
go through a few times, not caring about the small things at first and narrowing down your focus every time
>is the plot well paced
>do the characters get their necessary development at the right time
>are the settings fleshed out
after those readthroughs, focus on the writing
>anything that ruins the flow of the sentences
>any words that stick out as unnecessary
>proper tense/person/number
>wrong words that are close (than/then, or affect effect)
sometimes extraneous words like "that" or "of" make sense for the tone, want to express boredom or monotony? use them.
Start with the rough story you want to tell, eventually you'll touch elements that are important and can work from there.
Say the party has to steal an artefact from the village of X, you have to figure out the name of the place, how things are named, why and so on. The size of the village and what people do there, what do they wear; forces you to ask the questions about the larger world. And then there is the whole environmental factor and figuring out why the village is built there in the first place. Then there is the culture, what approach would be the most effective to steal the shit? Could the party pretend to be some religious fucks who want to look at it? Entertainers on the road? Soldiers? How believing is the population, what customs do they have, how do they approach strangers?
>>review a printed copy
If you don't want to waste loads of ink I find changing the font has a similar effect.
One can also make some voice assistant read it to you.
Dang man. Bump
keeping this thread alive.
>tfw you found out you accidentally ripped off something you didn't know existed again
>tfw literally stopped reading for like 3 months now so I won't get influenced by the shit I read
It's actually really helpful to just block everything out when you write and you get a lot better consistency out of it too.
Also accept the fact that somewhere out there someone has probably already thought about what you were going to write about and "originality" is overrated as far as premises go.
Got 15 short stories published so far, made around $300 so far. Been writing for 2 1/2 years. Currently shopping a novella around, we’ll see what happens with that
I'm stuck with one of my plots. For /write/ regulars it's me the humans and monsters guy.
>monsters go on big campaign to kill the humans
>monsters split forces in two. main character leads one force, secondary character leads the second
>second force is defending the back of the first force while it sieges the human capital
>second force gets btfo and the second force commander starts torching the countryside with the idea of delaying the human flanking force long enough to give the main character and the first force a shot at the human capital
>main character has to decide between abandoning the siege and moving to engage the human flanking force, thus losing his shot at the capital (and abandoning his quest for revenge against its feudal Lord), or letting his monsters torch the countryside and butcher the peasants (which he doesn't want to do)
That's where I've plotted it out to. I don't know what decision he should make.
For reference, here are the characters available and their goals:
>main character
Get revenge on feudal big bad but minimise collateral damage because he's not all bad.
>secondary force leader
A bit of a runt and enjoying the first bit of real power he's ever had, enraged that he was defeated, hates humans, viciously trying to claw back his self-concept as a successful military commander and warrior. His subplot needs to be concluded by the outcome of the main character's decision.
>main character's sidekick and sidekick's brother
Sidekick recently got turned into a demon and is coping with the side-effects. His brother is concerned for him. They just concluded a subplot and kinda have nothing to do at the moment so I'm keen to find a use for them.
This is coming towards the end of Act 3 so I need a climax. I feel like this choice makes a good climax but I can't see how to use it to resolve the main character's story.
Pic related is the map. The secondary force was at Ferlangen, and the main force is at Dassel threatening Wolfenburg. Human forces are occupying Ferlangen preparing to march South to Dassel, and defending Wolfenburg licking their wounds.
Pick a time in history that interests you and then add the fantasy things that you like.
> I don't know what decision he should make.
Is there a general theme in your book? Can this choice play in that regard?
>Is there a general theme in your book?
Not really. Friendship and camaraderie, maybe? The main character has a small circle of very close friends (including the sidekick and his brother) who function as his very trusted advisors. A large part of the book is given over to these relationships, and the plot exists to drive those along.
The secondary character (the runt) exists to provide a kind of outsider's perspective on that circle of friends and how they act to "normal people" who aren't part of the circle. I wanted to show two sides of the main character - the person the reader knows, because the reader has a position inside the circle, and the person that the world of the book knows.
you could use this opportunity to find a point you want to drive home and use this character to do that.
>very weak sore throat 2 days ago
>got worse
>liver fucked up, woke up 3:40 am to throw up
>go back to bed, fucking storm outside, fall asleep praying 'our father'
>now that I'm already fucked up, decide to quit coffee
>headache
>internship interview yesterday
>afraid of still being fucked up if I pass it
Well, how's this for an idea.
Seeing as sidekick just got turned into a demon, he is willing to assert himself a bit more. He thinks that the runty secondary character is doing nothing wrong and wants to burn the humans and assault the human capital too. Him and the main character get into conflict over this, and the sidekick makes it clear that he's not backing down. Main character has to choose between his old attachments to humanity and his new friends?
I like this idea and your question about theme really drew it out of me. It sets the stage for the big climax where the main character has to urgently make the choice. I want him to choose his new friends: what could precipitate him making such a choice?
I have a vague idea: the main character decides to kill his friend and go back to stop the secondary character from burning the countryside but just before/after (depending on how tragic I want to go) he strikes the mortal blow he learns that the human commander and antagonist has also gone scorched earth on his own people to try and delay the monsters. He realises that .........
I dunno. Something about learning that all his efforts at avoiding collateral damage were thwarted by the humans he was trying to protect causes his to say "fuck it" and choose his friends over humans, but I can't find the right way to articulate that.
Glad I was somewhat of help, try to build on that idea and don't try to use just that scene to explain it, let it be a gradual process
>tfw can't work hard to improve your writing when you can't come up with anything to write about
Someone should come up with writing prompts for the thread
Not me of course
You're doing it wrong mate. You should really look into watching old classic movies, the dialogue is great for learning. Plus older movies have far more dialogue than modern movies, even tarentino movies where he focuses on dialogue.
What is this highschool?
Tarantino is very good at two things that translate well into writing:
Dialogue.
Building tension.
Take the setting.
Add the fantasy elements.
Make sure the fantasy elements are printed out in a separate document and follow this to the letter even if its not explicitly covered in the material.
rolling
Write about food.
i nailed the internship guys lmao
A few days ago I submitted a short story to a writing competition for a literary magazine. They emailed me back asking if it was submitted anywhere else because they were interested in publishing it. I didn't expect to hear anything back and was excited and confirmed that my story was available.
Here's the part that I'm not sure about. There was no discussion about payment. They did say they would get back to me in a week or two, so maybe it will come up then. I haven't signed anything yet, but I did say I would like to be published in there magazine.
Should I bring up payment if they don't? I'm just happy somebody has shown interest in my shitty little story and maybe it's worth getting published just to have something in paper.
>write story that probably could be classified as YA since I find that stage in life the most promising
>youtube.com
>this is the type of person I'll have to appeal to for any chance of making it
I don't like this feel, lads.
To make it more general: How do you deal with audience expectations or do you completely ignore it?
Also bump.
>gay dialect
lisps by themselves are fine, but fucking God I hate Gay English. Please either speak Normal English or don't say anything at all.
>How do you deal with audience expectations or do you completely ignore it?
I pick an audience that I want to write for, and then write for them.
Basically as I write I'm thinking "what does the reader want to read?"
But I'm happy to write what he wants to read because I picked a reader I want to write for.
Good for you man. How about quitting coffee?
I'm stuck /write/. My character interactions seem artificial at best and dimensionless at worst. I know these characters can have fun interactions, but what interactions they can have are limited by the circumstances they find themselves in. The only way I can think of to fix it is to radically change said circumstances, but doing so would mean completely dismantling 3 years of work
>I know how to fix my problem but it's so much wooorrrrrrkkkkkk
>what interactions they can have are limited by the circumstances they find themselves in
And limitations are great for creativity. Writer harder.
Completely ignore it.
Other people liking my work is a bonus.
“Hear me. Propelling out sound. Being the quake. Everything that resonates. Their composures broken up. Fallen out of orders. Your plans out of whack. Fuck all going this route. Forced-off because of such challenges. This human cannot do them here. That relies upon the layout. Room produced for it to access. A section acutely available to this. That is fostering it the heaviest. Amassing the least deterrence. Ready for no other’s circumstances. Confined to this spectrum. Banded to its magnitude. The result of its superiority. Its increase. More which is pooled with it. Adapted into affiliating. Secured into a side. Accredited by the defender.”
Writing a sex scene without it turning into YA fantasy fulfillment or smut is fucking difficult.
Hit 6 pages today. I normally only manage a couple.
Anyone whos got a minute, would appreciate a second eye on this.
docs.google.com
what do I do if I cant imagine character interactions playing out?
Take it step by step.
Character 1 does something.
Character 2 reacts to it.
Character 1 reacts to that reaction.
Repeat.
For example, Mat is going to trade sex for drugs from Kai, but he's uncomfortable with it. So how would Mat choose to this? Well, the easiest way for him to get in contact with Kai is through their mutual friend, but Mat doesn't want anyone to know he's sucking cock for E so he's gonna have to do it some other way. He doesn't have Kai's phone number. But they both live in the same university dorm, so Mat waits until he knows that Kai is in his dorm, and then just goes and knocks on the door.
Now, Mat is a cocky piece of shit that finds Kai pretty disgusting and pathetic. So he's gonna be rude. He's also not very smart, so he's not gonna be able to show restraint even though he needs Kai on side. When I first wrote this scene I wrote Mat too smart - I wrote him like someone who knows how to negotiate. That's not true to Mat - he has no idea how to negotiate. Instead he just makes arrogant demands and expects the world to deliver for him, and then gets punchy when it doesn't.
So, Mat knocks on the door and says something demeaning to Kai straight up when Kai answers it because that's how an arrogant person reacts to someone they don't like, and Mat is too dumb to realise it's not a good idea to piss off someone you want to do a deal with.
Kai has already forgotten who Mat is because they only interacted for a few minutes three weeks ago and Mat is worth less than garbage to Kai He doesn't respond well to some random stranger interrupting him and starts firing back his own insults because he's not good at human interaction.
This only makes Mat angrier and they start yelling at each other. Because Mat is an arrogant bully and because Kai is an arrogant ""intellectual"" too smart for his own good it quickly escalates. Mat lays hands on Kai because Mat is a big tough guy and when Kai only mocks him instead of being frightened his only response is to step up the violence because he's too dumb to restrain himself, too arrogant to allow slights against his pride to go unanswered, has come from a pretty rough life and is comfortable with violence.
Kai backs down at this point because he's not comfortable with violence. Now that the pissing match is over and Mat feels like he's getting the respect he deserves he moves on to business. Mat sets out his non-negotiable terms because in his mind he isn't negotiating.
But because Kai is smart and wants to offload product and get free sex he pretends to let Mat control the situation while getting what he wants.
Proceed to sex scene.
I don't know how helpful this is for you, but the key to writing good interaction for me is to give your characters a strong voice. Exaggerate their character - not to the point of parody, but to the point where it is clear what is motivating them to do the things they are doing.
>tfw lifetime record for words written in a day is 1000 and all were garbage
Left some comments for ya bae. Lemme know if you've got questions. I tried to give a mix of direct feedback and structural/pacing feedback. Hope it didn't come off too harsh.
>Write
>edit
>wake up next day
>reread
>total dog shit
>delete in fear of anyone ever seeing it
How do I stop this?
Never delete.
Just start a new blank document, or even just make a bunch of blank lines and start over. But never delete anything. Keep it all.
I got curious about that pic the other day.
I expected the one of the bottom to shatter pretty early on but it actually didn't. The length and shape of them made them pop out once I had 15 in there, though.
Don't forget to include trans and POC representation.
Is this pasta?
Yeah, it's penne
if it takes 25 drafts to get it good, then so be it. so long as there's a germ of something good in there.
Nah, its good. Didnt come off as harsh to me. I prefer harsh and honest over soft and fuzzy anyway. You make some good points, especially about the 'x, y' clauses. Gonna have to add that to my little list of things to watch out for. Should probably condense down the 'tailing' part as well. That was the section that I was primarily unhappy with so that gives me a bit of direction.
Appreciate the in depth look user.
user that is possibly the worst character interaction I have ever read in my entire life. Stop giving advice.
to be fair when you're describing the interaction like he is by telling you the mechanics of how it should go down rather than just writing the interaction, it's not going to look very good.
Anyone have some pointers or books on how to write for children?
It has nothing to do with the mechanical nature of the description, the interaction itself is wooden and doesn't follow natural human behavior at all. It's basically a really bad porno script.
Don't treat the readers like they're stupid. The most successful books have always treated the kids reading them as being able to understand mature topics.
I had a gay, and stronk black female POV characters before Rowling even did that fake coming out (yeah, I'm taking my sweet time), never thought about the shit that much before it became cool ... representation is important as fuck and diversity obviously does enhance stories, at least when you do the story first and don't do a checklist a la "shit, I only have two retards, and no fatties... and still gotta make someone gender-fluid"
It's not like I mind the politics, I'm more progressive than any of the yt faggots combined, and would still get crucified for this post ... which is fair enough.
It's the completely uncritical attitude towards dogmas and obedience to groupthink in the potential readers that worries me. Dismissing bits one doesn't want to engage with as problematic instead of figuring out what exactly irks you about something, being overly careful not to offend anyone and get offended on behalf of others; that type of shit. The whole self-righteous, self-hating white liberal caricature. (Plus the whole Gay English ^2, what the fuck is even the thinking behind it)
Oh well, guess I can still hope that yt influencers and the likes are just extreme examples.
With every press of a button, with every touch, small pieces of you fall off, forever lost to tiny insects feasting on your still living, breathing corpse.
This
150 screenplay pages into my serial fantasy adventure series. Two completed scripts 69 pages and 59 pages, with the third script in the making currently at 22 pages in length.
Alan Moore's Watchman graphic novel is around 416 pages. I think I'd like to match that length by the time I'm done with the series.
name?
'k