(no subject)
…Once more, 24 Hour Comics Day manages to sneak up on me! Tomorrow ajfdlkj this will probably be just as successful as last year SO. Uh. My aim will be to try for pencils for at least three or four pieces.
Also, a very belated 'what the hell' at Tsubasa. I… what? (I signed up for 'fun road trip', why am I getting 'break my brain into itty bitty pieces'?)
I like time travel a lot better when it's not trapping people in really weird loops. (Side effect? :\) …Which reminds me, I still have to figure out my headcanon about Zeal. And at some point who's what gender there, and who went where when, and… mm.
…why do the Three Wise Men think kidnapping Gwendolyn will help anything? I hate fighting through Titania, it is one of my least favourite areas ever.
…maybe that's why.
The How's My Driving? Meme
For the record, I still do not like driving. If I have to walk across suburbs for services, then… I guess I'll do that. *shrug!*
I'll probably come back to these over time- this is just me, now, how I feel about this at the moment. I'm not sure I'm being completely clear in some places, so…
Taken from cofmanynames
Are you a "pantser" or a "plotter"?
Excuse me while I just explode over terminology for a bit here. I mean. ‘Pantser’? Seriously, what? Is the writer trying to sound cute or hip or something, what? Because- look, I know what they mean (flying by the seat of one’s pants), but that- that is not what immediately springs to my mind, what springs to my mind is people ‘pantsing’ others; that is, pulling their pants down.
I just… using words like that, to seem cutesy or ‘in’ or what the hell ever… that irritates me. Mondo.
Now that that’s done, back to the actual question! Let me just grab a definition of plot: ‘Also called storyline. the plan, scheme, or main story of a literary or dramatic work, as a play, novel, or short story.’
Now, I tend to write short fiction- 100-500 words, mostly- and that, I think, tends not to look so much as though it has a plot, which I don’t think necessarily the case, but it is something that lends itself to making it up as I go along rather than really plotting it out. I do have an idea of where I mean to be going when I start out, but it’s not always something I follow, and that’s something I need to work on, given there’s longer ideas as well.
Detailed character sketches or "their character will be revealed to me as I write"?
Oh, yes! Absolutely!
But other than that. I tend to do the latter more than the former, although I do believe that the former is helpful. It’s simply that I don’t always write that- I think I write silly short things more than character sketches.
Do you know your characters' goals, motivations and conflicts before you start writing or is that something else you discover only after you start writing?
Oh, very much a mix! It’s not entirely clear with everyone, is it? But I generally hold that actually writing the characters helps with that sort of thing, because you’ve got to get some idea of that sort of thing as you go along with them.
Books on plotting -- useful or harmful?
I haven’t touched any in a while, but… in theory, helpful. I’ve sort of got an idea as to what I should be doing. Implementing it, on the other hand… that’s the tricky bit, isn’t it?
Are you a procrastinator or does the itch to write keep at you until you sit down and work?
Hahahaha. I’m a terrible procrastinator, I’m afraid.
Do you write in short bursts of creative energy, or can you sit down and write for hours at a time?
Mainly bursts. I could, I think, but… distractions. But that kind of thing’s necessary for longer pieces, I think, and I’ve been struggling a bit with those lately, so.
Are you a morning or afternoon writer?
Not exactly either. More of a ‘when I’m operational and not distracted by other things’ writer. Which means, yeah, not mornings- so afternoons and evenings, mostly- and definitely not Wednesdays.
Do you write with music/the noise of children/in a cafe or other public setting, or do you need complete silence to concentrate?
The radio’ll usually be on, or I’ll have music on. Something in the background.
Computer or longhand? (or typewriter?)
Mostly computer at the moment, particularly for things I’m thinking of sharing, or just doing really quickly. Longhand is useful for giving pieces a basic edit, though, in transfer from paper to screen, and it’s still something I’m comfortable with. I used to use a typewriter, when there was one available, but… not for ages.
And shorthand is one of those things I haven’t learnt. Someday, possibly.
Do you know the ending before you type Chapter One?
Again, long fics aren’t… so much my thing, but if you scale it down… Most of the time I’ll have some idea of where I’m headed, or where I want to be headed, but I don’t always have notes, so it slips my mind, or it changes. And it can and does occasionally change while I’m writing- because while I know I want to get from this point to that point, I don’t have the details on the journey between those points and then little details crop up that change the destination a little. Or I’ll decide to add a few things in order to try to explain what’s going on in the piece a little more.
Does what's selling in the market influence how and what you write?
Ehhhh… More along the lines of affecting the way I feel about the potential audience/readership/people who will buy what I’m working on/look at it. Because the message I’ve got a lot of the time is that you’re probably very fucked unless you’re very lucky and pushy and… yeah. That’s… not hella comfortable.
Uh, but in actual answer to the question! Uh, not so much unless that’s the sort of thing I’m reading (which it isn’t right now).
Editing -- love it or hate it?
I’m a terrible editor. I don't focus very well, so.
Taken from misskalloway
Do ideas come in little tiny pinpricks and then get expanded, or do they start great big and scopy and then get refined?
Mainly small ideas, but there’s a couple of bigger ones I might work on at some point.
Why do you choose to write in the tenses you do (present tense, or first person POV, or third person) and how do you choose particular styles for particular stories?
I usually prefer third-person past tense, though I’ve been writing in third-person present tense on and off over the last few months or so. Third-person past is essentially what I grew up reading, so it’s what I’m most comfortable with… Some stories just feel better in third-person present, or- infrequently- second person (usually present tense) or first-person. However, I’m not comfortable writing first-person- I’m not really comfortable reading first-person as story, either, so.
…RP, however, is a different story. Ahaha.
Do you have music that inspires your writing? (That you listen to while writing, or certain songs that remind you of certain characters.)
Ben Lee, the Priscillia soundtrack- musical, I kind of lost the movie soundtrack-, some Disney stuff, a few other bits and pieces. It’s usually shuffling, so.
How do you brainstorm what comes next in a story?
…I try to figure out what needs to be done in the story, how the characters would react… What does that mean, ‘how do you brainstorm’? I… imagine, mostly. Getting it down… that's slower. Be more useful, I expect, though.
What do you do when you hit a road block?
Do something else- different fic, source material, something entirely different.
How often do you end up deleting a whole bunch of already-written stuff, and how hard is it to let that stuff go?
It’s pretty hard for me to let stuff go, so I don’t delete massive chunks of stuff so often.
What if you really, really want to include something but part of you is saying it's not right for that particular story?
Cut-paste to a different document, deletion… yeah. I don’t really do much with that sort of thing.
Do you take notes longhand, and if so, when?
Occasionally, yeah, I’ve got a few things written down somewhere. It’s a very intermittent thing, though, so.
Do you use challenges by other people to inspire you?
Yeah. I’m currently kind of struggling with my prompt sets for runaway_tales (…I do have two open slots, one of which is probably going to get filled soon, and the other probably soon after, but…), but that’s… vaguely easier, since there isn’t a time limit. I do have other issues, which are basically about me and my problems, and those… well, that’s not really interesting, is it. I’ve done some fics for prompts for Are You Game and Springkink in the past, too… might be picking up a couple these rounds, if I can find something.
On the other hand, though, telling myself that I have to do something by a certain date/point/whatever is pretty much a surefire way of killing my enthusiasm for the project. :\
Do you do anything in particular to get you into the right mindset to write a certain character or characters?
Music helps. Taking another look at whatever it is they’re from helps, too, mostly.
Which characters are easiest for you to write, and WHY?
Riku, Roxas, Magus. They talk and talk and talk and talk and- yeah. Basically, they talk.
Uuuuh Xephos also tends to talk a lot! His head is just a bunch easier to get into that Dahy’s (with occasional exceptions?). So I guess basically people who are giving to talking (if inside their heads)?
Which ones are hardest, and again, WHY?
Bright, chirpy, confident, to an extent. That point of view’s kind of… hard for me to get into.
Which characters are most like you emotionally?
Ehh… it kind of varies. Right now I feel like I’m stuck on the first week, though, so…
How often do you feel like what you're writing is fulfilling some emotional need - ie, when you're writing comfort, is it because you often feel that you don't get it IRL?
Catharsis? I’m not sure it works for me. Writing to try and hit something emotionally… there’re a couple of pieces that I’ve written with that sort of intention, but I don’t think it really helped much.
…But it hasn’t been fluff. Maybe that would help next time? I dunno.
What about writing smut - do you find it easy, difficult?
I struggle a bit- it’s not something I write that often, and it’s a little embarrassing. Things that draw back from the details are easier, though.
What kinds of smut are easiest for you to write, and WHY?
Humans. Or… people who are mostly human. I don’t know about aliens. But… human bodies I’m familiar with, or familiar with the idea of, the mechanics of them and all that, so human sex makes sense to me. Beings that aren’t entirely human are a little… I don’t know, it’s awkward.
Which of your stories is your favourite and WHY? Least favourite?
…hmm! I actually have a really silly fondness for a couple of the D.N.Angel pieces I’ve written. Of Dancers is one I like, too, and the one that involved various Nobodies and the shower of hearts post-explosion-thing.
Ones I don’t like… ones where I wasn’t feeling it, for whatever reason. And the ‘step closer’ one, because… just that’s not bratty enough. :|
Which of your titles do you like the most/least, and why?
Titles are such a pain, so generally I’m not terribly enamoured of them. I like the ones that are boring the least. *salute~* Ones I like have some kind of rhythm to them, I suppose.
How do you choose titles for your stories?
I’ll go with the basic idea of the piece, try to encapsulate something of what’s going on.
Do you write differently with a cowriter than you do alone? Is it easier or harder?
I haven’t cowritten.
For series and long works, do you decide a goal in advance to stop at or are they open ended? If you do choose a goal, how often do you stick to it?
I’ve sort of got an idea. How it’s going to get there I’m not totally clear on, and it might change, but… I’ve an idea. For one, anyway. Others… we'll see.
Some things have changed for that one, but I'd say that the basic idea's still there. The only problem is that I hadn't entirely sorted out the ending in the beginning, so… I've still got that to do. And if it changes on me in the meantime… well, we'll just see, I guess.
How do you deal with characters going a different direction than you want them to?
Sometimes try to round 'em up, usually just end up going along with that and seeing how it goes.
When a scene feels forced, what are the first few tricks you try to fix it?
Generally giving it another shot from the top, trying a different start.
Are most of your fixes deletions or additions?
A mix of both, usually to correct/hopefully further explain something or other.
How long does it usually take you to write a story? How many revisions do you go through?
…It depends on the story, honestly. Shorter ones I don’t bother with too much- I’ve got maybe two I’d think about rewriting? And one that’s a bit longer (…ficlet length? I don’t know) that yeah, needs some rewriting. Just because of when I wrote it and what I was thinking about those characters at the time. (I… don’t think people are going to be entirely happy with that, but… whatever.)
…and I don’t really do longer pieces, so!
I do tend to rewrite beginnings a lot, though, so.
Do you use beta readers?
I probably should, but I fret too much over asking people to do it.
Also, a very belated 'what the hell' at Tsubasa. I… what? (I signed up for 'fun road trip', why am I getting 'break my brain into itty bitty pieces'?)
I like time travel a lot better when it's not trapping people in really weird loops. (Side effect? :\) …Which reminds me, I still have to figure out my headcanon about Zeal. And at some point who's what gender there, and who went where when, and… mm.
…why do the Three Wise Men think kidnapping Gwendolyn will help anything? I hate fighting through Titania, it is one of my least favourite areas ever.
…maybe that's why.
The How's My Driving? Meme
For the record, I still do not like driving. If I have to walk across suburbs for services, then… I guess I'll do that. *shrug!*
I'll probably come back to these over time- this is just me, now, how I feel about this at the moment. I'm not sure I'm being completely clear in some places, so…
Taken from cofmanynames
Are you a "pantser" or a "plotter"?
Excuse me while I just explode over terminology for a bit here. I mean. ‘Pantser’? Seriously, what? Is the writer trying to sound cute or hip or something, what? Because- look, I know what they mean (flying by the seat of one’s pants), but that- that is not what immediately springs to my mind, what springs to my mind is people ‘pantsing’ others; that is, pulling their pants down.
I just… using words like that, to seem cutesy or ‘in’ or what the hell ever… that irritates me. Mondo.
Now that that’s done, back to the actual question! Let me just grab a definition of plot: ‘Also called storyline. the plan, scheme, or main story of a literary or dramatic work, as a play, novel, or short story.’
Now, I tend to write short fiction- 100-500 words, mostly- and that, I think, tends not to look so much as though it has a plot, which I don’t think necessarily the case, but it is something that lends itself to making it up as I go along rather than really plotting it out. I do have an idea of where I mean to be going when I start out, but it’s not always something I follow, and that’s something I need to work on, given there’s longer ideas as well.
Detailed character sketches or "their character will be revealed to me as I write"?
Oh, yes! Absolutely!
But other than that. I tend to do the latter more than the former, although I do believe that the former is helpful. It’s simply that I don’t always write that- I think I write silly short things more than character sketches.
Do you know your characters' goals, motivations and conflicts before you start writing or is that something else you discover only after you start writing?
Oh, very much a mix! It’s not entirely clear with everyone, is it? But I generally hold that actually writing the characters helps with that sort of thing, because you’ve got to get some idea of that sort of thing as you go along with them.
Books on plotting -- useful or harmful?
I haven’t touched any in a while, but… in theory, helpful. I’ve sort of got an idea as to what I should be doing. Implementing it, on the other hand… that’s the tricky bit, isn’t it?
Are you a procrastinator or does the itch to write keep at you until you sit down and work?
Hahahaha. I’m a terrible procrastinator, I’m afraid.
Do you write in short bursts of creative energy, or can you sit down and write for hours at a time?
Mainly bursts. I could, I think, but… distractions. But that kind of thing’s necessary for longer pieces, I think, and I’ve been struggling a bit with those lately, so.
Are you a morning or afternoon writer?
Not exactly either. More of a ‘when I’m operational and not distracted by other things’ writer. Which means, yeah, not mornings- so afternoons and evenings, mostly- and definitely not Wednesdays.
Do you write with music/the noise of children/in a cafe or other public setting, or do you need complete silence to concentrate?
The radio’ll usually be on, or I’ll have music on. Something in the background.
Computer or longhand? (or typewriter?)
Mostly computer at the moment, particularly for things I’m thinking of sharing, or just doing really quickly. Longhand is useful for giving pieces a basic edit, though, in transfer from paper to screen, and it’s still something I’m comfortable with. I used to use a typewriter, when there was one available, but… not for ages.
And shorthand is one of those things I haven’t learnt. Someday, possibly.
Do you know the ending before you type Chapter One?
Again, long fics aren’t… so much my thing, but if you scale it down… Most of the time I’ll have some idea of where I’m headed, or where I want to be headed, but I don’t always have notes, so it slips my mind, or it changes. And it can and does occasionally change while I’m writing- because while I know I want to get from this point to that point, I don’t have the details on the journey between those points and then little details crop up that change the destination a little. Or I’ll decide to add a few things in order to try to explain what’s going on in the piece a little more.
Does what's selling in the market influence how and what you write?
Ehhhh… More along the lines of affecting the way I feel about the potential audience/readership/people who will buy what I’m working on/look at it. Because the message I’ve got a lot of the time is that you’re probably very fucked unless you’re very lucky and pushy and… yeah. That’s… not hella comfortable.
Uh, but in actual answer to the question! Uh, not so much unless that’s the sort of thing I’m reading (which it isn’t right now).
Editing -- love it or hate it?
I’m a terrible editor. I don't focus very well, so.
Taken from misskalloway
Do ideas come in little tiny pinpricks and then get expanded, or do they start great big and scopy and then get refined?
Mainly small ideas, but there’s a couple of bigger ones I might work on at some point.
Why do you choose to write in the tenses you do (present tense, or first person POV, or third person) and how do you choose particular styles for particular stories?
I usually prefer third-person past tense, though I’ve been writing in third-person present tense on and off over the last few months or so. Third-person past is essentially what I grew up reading, so it’s what I’m most comfortable with… Some stories just feel better in third-person present, or- infrequently- second person (usually present tense) or first-person. However, I’m not comfortable writing first-person- I’m not really comfortable reading first-person as story, either, so.
…RP, however, is a different story. Ahaha.
Do you have music that inspires your writing? (That you listen to while writing, or certain songs that remind you of certain characters.)
Ben Lee, the Priscillia soundtrack- musical, I kind of lost the movie soundtrack-, some Disney stuff, a few other bits and pieces. It’s usually shuffling, so.
How do you brainstorm what comes next in a story?
…I try to figure out what needs to be done in the story, how the characters would react… What does that mean, ‘how do you brainstorm’? I… imagine, mostly. Getting it down… that's slower. Be more useful, I expect, though.
What do you do when you hit a road block?
Do something else- different fic, source material, something entirely different.
How often do you end up deleting a whole bunch of already-written stuff, and how hard is it to let that stuff go?
It’s pretty hard for me to let stuff go, so I don’t delete massive chunks of stuff so often.
What if you really, really want to include something but part of you is saying it's not right for that particular story?
Cut-paste to a different document, deletion… yeah. I don’t really do much with that sort of thing.
Do you take notes longhand, and if so, when?
Occasionally, yeah, I’ve got a few things written down somewhere. It’s a very intermittent thing, though, so.
Do you use challenges by other people to inspire you?
Yeah. I’m currently kind of struggling with my prompt sets for runaway_tales (…I do have two open slots, one of which is probably going to get filled soon, and the other probably soon after, but…), but that’s… vaguely easier, since there isn’t a time limit. I do have other issues, which are basically about me and my problems, and those… well, that’s not really interesting, is it. I’ve done some fics for prompts for Are You Game and Springkink in the past, too… might be picking up a couple these rounds, if I can find something.
On the other hand, though, telling myself that I have to do something by a certain date/point/whatever is pretty much a surefire way of killing my enthusiasm for the project. :\
Do you do anything in particular to get you into the right mindset to write a certain character or characters?
Music helps. Taking another look at whatever it is they’re from helps, too, mostly.
Which characters are easiest for you to write, and WHY?
Riku, Roxas, Magus. They talk and talk and talk and talk and- yeah. Basically, they talk.
Uuuuh Xephos also tends to talk a lot! His head is just a bunch easier to get into that Dahy’s (with occasional exceptions?). So I guess basically people who are giving to talking (if inside their heads)?
Which ones are hardest, and again, WHY?
Bright, chirpy, confident, to an extent. That point of view’s kind of… hard for me to get into.
Which characters are most like you emotionally?
Ehh… it kind of varies. Right now I feel like I’m stuck on the first week, though, so…
How often do you feel like what you're writing is fulfilling some emotional need - ie, when you're writing comfort, is it because you often feel that you don't get it IRL?
Catharsis? I’m not sure it works for me. Writing to try and hit something emotionally… there’re a couple of pieces that I’ve written with that sort of intention, but I don’t think it really helped much.
…But it hasn’t been fluff. Maybe that would help next time? I dunno.
What about writing smut - do you find it easy, difficult?
I struggle a bit- it’s not something I write that often, and it’s a little embarrassing. Things that draw back from the details are easier, though.
What kinds of smut are easiest for you to write, and WHY?
Humans. Or… people who are mostly human. I don’t know about aliens. But… human bodies I’m familiar with, or familiar with the idea of, the mechanics of them and all that, so human sex makes sense to me. Beings that aren’t entirely human are a little… I don’t know, it’s awkward.
Which of your stories is your favourite and WHY? Least favourite?
…hmm! I actually have a really silly fondness for a couple of the D.N.Angel pieces I’ve written. Of Dancers is one I like, too, and the one that involved various Nobodies and the shower of hearts post-explosion-thing.
Ones I don’t like… ones where I wasn’t feeling it, for whatever reason. And the ‘step closer’ one, because… just that’s not bratty enough. :|
Which of your titles do you like the most/least, and why?
Titles are such a pain, so generally I’m not terribly enamoured of them. I like the ones that are boring the least. *salute~* Ones I like have some kind of rhythm to them, I suppose.
How do you choose titles for your stories?
I’ll go with the basic idea of the piece, try to encapsulate something of what’s going on.
Do you write differently with a cowriter than you do alone? Is it easier or harder?
I haven’t cowritten.
For series and long works, do you decide a goal in advance to stop at or are they open ended? If you do choose a goal, how often do you stick to it?
I’ve sort of got an idea. How it’s going to get there I’m not totally clear on, and it might change, but… I’ve an idea. For one, anyway. Others… we'll see.
Some things have changed for that one, but I'd say that the basic idea's still there. The only problem is that I hadn't entirely sorted out the ending in the beginning, so… I've still got that to do. And if it changes on me in the meantime… well, we'll just see, I guess.
How do you deal with characters going a different direction than you want them to?
Sometimes try to round 'em up, usually just end up going along with that and seeing how it goes.
When a scene feels forced, what are the first few tricks you try to fix it?
Generally giving it another shot from the top, trying a different start.
Are most of your fixes deletions or additions?
A mix of both, usually to correct/hopefully further explain something or other.
How long does it usually take you to write a story? How many revisions do you go through?
…It depends on the story, honestly. Shorter ones I don’t bother with too much- I’ve got maybe two I’d think about rewriting? And one that’s a bit longer (…ficlet length? I don’t know) that yeah, needs some rewriting. Just because of when I wrote it and what I was thinking about those characters at the time. (I… don’t think people are going to be entirely happy with that, but… whatever.)
…and I don’t really do longer pieces, so!
I do tend to rewrite beginnings a lot, though, so.
Do you use beta readers?
I probably should, but I fret too much over asking people to do it.