Re: One Line of Advice
#21Ralts Wrote: Read a fucking book.Tolkien, Lovecraft, Dickens. My god could these guys use words and build sentences.
And not necessarily the modern stuff.
Go back to the old "problematic" literature.
Anyone that says the Old White Men of yesteryear can't teach you anything is probably functionally illiterate and has never read any of them.
Re: One Line of Advice
#22thelejendaryj Wrote: Write a lot.
Yes. Sir Write-A-Lot is the knight you want to have on your side.
Re: One Line of Advice
#23Smuts Wrote:Old White Women weren't half bad either. Jane Austen gets dismissed as a "romance author" and "a bore", but anyone who would like a slice of life scene done right should use her as a guide on how to make astute, biting observations about their peers.Ralts Wrote: Read a fucking book.Tolkien, Lovecraft, Dickens. My god could these guys use words and build sentences.
And not necessarily the modern stuff.
Go back to the old "problematic" literature.
Anyone that says the Old White Men of yesteryear can't teach you anything is probably functionally illiterate and has never read any of them.
And talking about acerbic and astute writers, you should never disappear Ursula Le Guin. Her writing technique is also extraordinary - she needs three phrases and hits the nail on its head, where lesser authors would spend three pages and never get to the point.
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Re: One Line of Advice
#24
That one is from me. Writing is karate-do for the brain - it makes you develop even if you never get notable success as an author.
It's not "just a hobby". It teaches organization, executive functions, resilience, empathy and it makes you survive bad times. All kinds of things to thrive as a human.
It's not "just a hobby". It teaches organization, executive functions, resilience, empathy and it makes you survive bad times. All kinds of things to thrive as a human.
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Re: One Line of Advice
#25
IMO edit as you go, at least a little. Take fifteen minutes and reread what you've already done, just a couple of pages even, to keep consistency in the mood and flow between when you last stopped writing and when you started. It evens me out and sort of sets the tone of my sessions.
Re: One Line of Advice
#27Ralts Wrote: Read a fucking book.I read a fucking book once. It was a little 'How To' manual of the Kama Sutra, explaining the sixty-odd sexual positions described therein, with photos of a cute blonde guy and girl performing them in full color.
Well, my girlfriend may have read the book. All I did was look at the pictures.
🔥
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Re: One Line of Advice
#28a_cornerstone Wrote:Smuts Wrote:Old White Women weren't half bad either. Jane Austen gets dismissed as a "romance author" and "a bore", but anyone who would like a slice of life scene done right should use her as a guide on how to make astute, biting observations about their peers.Ralts Wrote: Read a fucking book.Tolkien, Lovecraft, Dickens. My god could these guys use words and build sentences.
And not necessarily the modern stuff.
Go back to the old "problematic" literature.
Anyone that says the Old White Men of yesteryear can't teach you anything is probably functionally illiterate and has never read any of them.
And talking about acerbic and astute writers, you should never disappear Ursula Le Guin. Her writing technique is also extraordinary - she needs three phrases and hits the nail on its head, where lesser authors would spend three pages and never get to the point.
Oh, absolutely.
Reading Frankenstein should be mandatory too.
Re: One Line of Advice
#29
Hello everyone! I just want to say, thank you all for taking the time to respond and share your wisdom. I appreciate it, and I'm positive that many others do, too! =)
Re: One Line of Advice
#30
Always remember to scrub the area down with bleach so as to destroy any DNA evidence. It would be a good idea to shave your body beforehand as well.
Re: One Line of Advice
#31Ziggy Wrote: If you're using "true" and "truly" more than once a chapter, stop.Really that should be the case for most common phrases, segues, and descriptors.
Re: One Line of Advice
#32
Of course. But a lot of writers on RR have a problem specifically with those. You'll see even some of the most popular writers on the site use them a half a dozen or more times in one chapter. It's especially noticeable because they're redundant. The default assumption is what is written on the page is true. They quickly stop emphasizing and become a repetitive annoyance.
I'd recommend using them even less than that. But not more than once a chapter is a good start. Ctrl + F or sites/software to get around editing blindness is your friend.
I'd recommend using them even less than that. But not more than once a chapter is a good start. Ctrl + F or sites/software to get around editing blindness is your friend.
Re: One Line of Advice
#33Ralen Wrote: Always remember to scrub the area down with bleach so as to destroy any DNA evidence. It would be a good idea to shave your body beforehand as well.
And burn your clothes, for the cri yi yi. What is more important? Your freedom or your Yeezy Skechers?!?
Re: One Line of Advice
#34
Don't worry about good writing. Write shit until you've written enough to edit.
Re: One Line of Advice
#35
If you're ever trying to figure out the realistic heights and weights of a character in your head based on how they look, this chart is really useful: https://height-weight-chart.com/
Re: One Line of Advice
#36When inspiration strikes, note it down IMMEDIATELY.
If you suddenly get a good idea/scene/character to add to your story, write it down.
Don't let it escape.
You don't have to make a full on essay with illustrations and stuff. Just enough to jog your memories when the time for writing comes.
Don't let it escape.
You don't have to make a full on essay with illustrations and stuff. Just enough to jog your memories when the time for writing comes.
Re: One Line of Advice
#37
Don't spend hours and hours learning how to write unless you're going to spend a longer amount of time writing. You should spend more time applying what you learn than learning it.
I used to watch hours of videos and read dozens of pages of articles on how to write minor details in my story, then put 200 words in a document and stop because I was overwhelmed at that point. I've recently stopped and it's made writing so much easier.
I used to watch hours of videos and read dozens of pages of articles on how to write minor details in my story, then put 200 words in a document and stop because I was overwhelmed at that point. I've recently stopped and it's made writing so much easier.
Re: One Line of Advice
#38
Critique / edit your own work. Then, critique someone else's work. You'll notice that you find much more mistakes in theirs vs yours. After, critique yours again.
Re: One Line of Advice
#39
Learn to separate good advice from the rest or you'll pull your hair out trying to figure out what you should be doing. Especially when two pieces of advice directly contradict one another.
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Re: One Line of Advice
#40
Writing a lot doesn't make you a good writer, writing five words a day is still progress to be proud of.