Writing Tips

[caraez]

I found this webpage (http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/writefanfic.htm#characters) that I'd thought I share. I've found it a really good reasource when it comes to writing. It's directed towards 'fanfiction' but it really is advice that can be applied everywhere. Some of the chapters may be too basic to be of any use, but some would be useful to most writers, I believe.

[Dwiesel McAllister]

Good find, caraez!

[caraez]

thanks

[PamesLied]

Indeed, really nice find. I'd argue some of the device is debatable though.

[MichaelB]

Interesting. Certainly a lot of useful tips, but not a site I'd personally go to for advice. I'll just go through the 'charactrs' section, bcause the entire thing is too long for me to dissect.

I especially find fault with this tip:

52. AVOID SELFISH AND ALTRUISTIC HEROES. Heroes shouldn't act totally on their own behalves, unless they're the only ones threatened. It makes them look self-centered. They shouldn't act purely altruistically either. That makes him seem too good to be true. Both cases create characters the reader will not take to heart. Combining some of each of these characteristics will make your hero seem more real.Sometimes the best characters are completely self-centered. In fact, I believe that Heroic Heroes are well on the way out, as are Shining Paragons of Virtue. Selfi9sh characters are, in my experience, far more believeable, more fun to read about, and progress the story in a much mopre interesting and uniusual (and sometimes unconvetntional) fashion, becase they're not following the Hero Plot or doing What Is Expected/Right, but their own selfish desires.

I find this site, on the whole, generalises too simplistically and too widely:

52. VOLUNTEER OR DRAFT HEROES. If a character's going to do something brave that costs him significantly, have him volunteer so he appears noble. If he's going to profit from his actions have him be drafted or trapped into it to avoid making him appear self-serving.See, this is is a hugely sweepng generalisation, and should be taken with a rather large tablespoon of salt.

Make names look interesting. The easiest way to do this is to use an unusual spelling for a common name.That's funny, this very thing appears on MichaelB's Top Ten List of What The Hell Not To Do in Worldbuilding, You Idiots. Fairly close to the top of the list. In fact, there are many people I know of who would gladly beat you around the face and neck with a rusty chainsaw chain just for thinking of it. Especially if you're writing a fantasy.

However, the penultimate two points of the 'characters' chapter I definitely agree with:

63. VILLAINS DO WHAT THEY THINK IS JUST. When portraying the villain's point of view, make it clear he believes what he's [d]oing is right. This gives him conviction and credibility.


64. GIVE HERO[E]S DOUBTS. Readers won't identify with a character who knows how and what to do in every circumstance. No one's that good. Giving your hero a few doubts makes him more appealing, believable and increases suspense.
These two are very good points indeed, although they could both fall under a single heading, "All characters must have character".

On the whole, it's very much a site for amatuers-- people who are just learning how to write and who may not be very experienced with characterisation or avoiding cliches. However, anything written that follows this model woud probably be, in my opinion, cringe-worthy material that should never see the light of day after it is written. But it could definitely prove useful for inexperienced and beginning writers.

[caraez]

Indeed, really nice find. I'd argue some of the device is debatable though.

I'd say everything with writing is debatable. Haven't you heard the saying "There are three rules to good writing... but no one's found them yet."? It's entirely opinionated.

There is definitely stuff there I disagree with, though.