9961 réponses à ce sujet

[Lilivati]

hot_heart wrote...

At that point where I have to go back over my old chapters and check the details. But I don't wanna...I've already found those instances where I'm in the wrong friggin' tense. *cringe*

For the sake of discussion, do you think it would be out-of-place or just weird if I wrote that Miranda had a few scars and such from her 'early days' with Cerberus? Just toying with ideas for a later flashback.

The only thing I can think of is her mention that she heals better than "ordinary" non-engineered humans.  That doesn't necessarily imply no scars, though it could also see it making scar tissue less prevelant.   Even in the real world, some people just don't scar or don't keep scars indefinitely.

[hot_heart]

Lilivati wrote...
The only thing I can think of is her mention that she heals better than "ordinary" non-engineered humans.  That doesn't necessarily imply no scars, though it could also see it making scar tissue less prevelant.   Even in the real world, some people just don't scar or don't keep scars indefinitely.

Thanks, yeah. I was considering things like that, too. I wasn't thinking anything major or unsightly; more little things that Shepard might notice.

[Lilivati]

I think if you want to do it, you're totally within your bounds. If you're really worried about it, you could toss in a one-liner about how she heals up like a treat but it doesn't prevent the wounds from showing- but I don't think it's strictly necessary.

[dpMeggers]

@hot_heart: I've had a few surgeries and I didn't treat the scars with any magical "make them invisible" creams.

The scars from 9 years ago are now barely visible, the scars from 3 years ago are a sort of purply-brown still.

Now if Miri heals better than most humans, and the scars are from a long time ago, they're probably going to be of the slightly shinier than the rest of the skin around them but invisible without close inspection variety. And they might be smaller than the average person's scars would be. But I think that it would be reasonable for her to have them.

[hot_heart]

dpMeggers wrote...
@hot_heart: I've had a few surgeries and I didn't treat the scars with any magical "make them invisible" creams.

The scars from 9 years ago are now barely visible, the scars from 3 years ago are a sort of purply-brown still.

Now if Miri heals better than most humans, and the scars are from a long time ago, they're probably going to be of the slightly shinier than the rest of the skin around them but invisible without close inspection variety. And they might be smaller than the average person's scars would be. But I think that it would be reasonable for her to have them.

Oh, thanks very much for the info (and I hope you're OK)! I wasn't thinking 'magic creams' but more whatever advanced medical tech she might have access to as well.

That's useful to know though, especially the type of thing to expect. It was my intention that they'd be little things that only someone more 'intimate' with her might find, each with their own little story. Of course, I'm getting ahead of myself; still got to write this 'gruelling' chapter...

[dpMeggers]

I'm fine now, thanks, they were sort of one-offs. I used to play soccer and I did some damage to my knees that needed repairs, so it's not a continuing health issue. I had to quit playing because of the risk of re-injury but the joints themselves are more or less normal now.

On the other hand, I now have the experiences of using crutches, losing the use of your leg for a time, minor reconstructive surgery, what it feels like to be under anesthesia, physiotherapy, being under the influence of painkillers, seized joints, attachment to scar tissue (I earned them!), the scarring process, the boredom of recovery and some minor identity loss to draw from. So it might make writing easier - especially if I delve into ME2 at some point.

Edit: Or if anyone is writing about any of the above and wants some tips, I'll be happy to oblige. 

Modifié par dpMeggers, 11 avril 2013 - 03:53 .

[dpMeggers]

 Well, I've finally renamed Conversations in a Bar (which was a godawful name) to Fortunate Son (which isn't). The content is unchanged (and hopefully also not godawful ).

Which inspired today's question of the day: What is the worst title you've ever come up with? (Could be a serious one, or something you made up because you were annoyed by having to come up with a title).

For me Conversation in a Bar definitely wins. It was just...bad.

Modifié par dpMeggers, 11 avril 2013 - 06:16 .

[MrStoob]

dpMeggers wrote...
What is the worst title you've ever come up with?

I'm generally okay with mine so far...

"There were never such devoted." is probably the most convaluted/contrived.  A one-shot about the rachni queen working with Shep to rescue a queen clone.  The title is from the old song 'Sisters':


"Sisters, Sisters,
There were never such devoted sisters."

...and so on.  Okay, it is pretty bad.  And possibly even a bit camp... 

Modifié par MrStoob, 11 avril 2013 - 08:01 .

[hot_heart]

dpMeggers wrote...
Which inspired today's question of the day: What is the worst title you've ever come up with?

My current one.

[fluffywalrus]

MrStoob wrote...


"Sisters, Sisters,
There were never such devoted sisters."

...and so on.  Okay, it is pretty bad.  And possibly even a bit camp... 

Dear lord, I had to sit through that film three times this past christmas break. That song was funny in like, an old timey campy way for the first time. The second and third...

Certainly not the WORST title I've seen, but one that brings back haunting memories for sure XD

[MrStoob]

fluffywalrus wrote...

MrStoob wrote...


"Sisters, Sisters,
There were never such devoted sisters."

...and so on.  Okay, it is pretty bad.  And possibly even a bit camp... 

Dear lord, I had to sit through that film three times this past christmas break. That song was funny in like, an old timey campy way for the first time. The second and third...

Certainly not the WORST title I've seen, but one that brings back haunting memories for sure XD

In my defence, it was a tongue in cheek story. 

[AustereLemur799]

I've figured that I should leave well alone from here.

Just before I go; I just want to personally apologse to everyone for all the crap I've said in recent months (all the regulars on here know me for talking crap). 

The truth is that I first turned to writing as a means to cope with crap in my life. I know now that I've gone about things all wrong. I do things for personal, crappy reasons; whereas all you guys have real talent.

I'm sorry for being a screw-up. I've learned a lot from you guys; I really wish you all the best for the future - I am reading (and with any luck; I'm not posting anything embarrassing!).

Thank you, all, for providing a little slice of hope.

You guys are awesome; I just regret that I couldn't keep up with you.

Thanks for everything, and all the best for the future.

Long live fanfic! Cheers to you guys!

Modifié par AustereLemur799, 11 avril 2013 - 11:34 .

[dpMeggers]

On the off-chance you're still lurking, Lemur, I hope you to read this.

You are not alone in turning to writing to cope with crap. Between poetry, journals and fanfic, I've been doing it for years. If you read back through some of the early pages in this thread, a number of people have said that they did the same.

There's a reason the tortured artist/writer stereotype has perpetuated for so long - there is an element of truth to it. The most brilliantly creative people, whether because they are creative or because they become creative as a coping mechanism, are more likely to suffer from mental illness than the average population. There is our so-called fine line between genius and madness.

We all choose to write for personal reasons - there are stories inside us begging to get out, the characters in our heads won't be silent until exposed to the world. We're writers, not because we're good at it, not because someone pushed us into it, but because we have to, to get those stories out of our systems. Your story, your characters are no less valid, no less valuable than anyone else's. Anyone who tries to tell you differently is more wrong than you could possibly know.

Here's another secret - there's no such thing as talent, only practice. It takes 10,000 hours of practice to gain mastery of a skill. If you wrote three hours a day, every day, it would take over 9 years to master, really master, writing. That's why we have so few masters of anything - it takes a lot of time and a lot of work. These are people who do their thing to the exclusion of all else.

We're no exception here - everything we do on this board, everything that's on topic, is us practicing our craft. We talk about writing, we ask questions about writing, we bounce ideas off each other, we edit each others work. It's all just practice, it's all to make us better writers.

I can speak only for myself when I say that I've heard the same voice you are hearing now - the one telling you that you're talentless, that your work has no value, that it's time to stop writing. I still hear it sometimes- when I read something far beyond what I think I'm capable of writing, when I can't word something properly, when the words stop coming. Sometimes I can tell it to shut up. Other times I have to take a step back and wait until it's gone before I can write again. But I always end up writing again. Even if it takes months, or years, I inevitably find myself with a pencil in my hand.

So by all means take a step back. Let go of some works if you think they're holding you back, or if you have nothing left to give to them.

But don't give up. It might take weeks, it might take months, it might even take years, but one day you'll find yourself walking down a street, or washing dishes, or doing any one of a million mundane things, and an idea will pop into your head, and you'll think to yourself "I need to write that down."

[Seracen]

dpMeggers wrote...

@hot_heart: I've had a few surgeries and I didn't treat the scars with any magical "make them invisible" creams.

The scars from 9 years ago are now barely visible, the scars from 3 years ago are a sort of purply-brown still.

Now if Miri heals better than most humans, and the scars are from a long time ago, they're probably going to be of the slightly shinier than the rest of the skin around them but invisible without close inspection variety. And they might be smaller than the average person's scars would be. But I think that it would be reasonable for her to have them.

My ancestry hails from the middle asian countries.  As I have a tan complexion, scars tend to be fairly easy to cover up.  I heal fairly well, thank goodness, so scarring and sunburns (when I get them) aren't readily visible.

Then again, Miranda is positively pale compared to me.  However, her genes probably render her immune to horrible scarring.

Modifié par Seracen, 12 avril 2013 - 02:21 .

[Seracen]

hot_heart wrote...

dpMeggers wrote...
Which inspired today's question of the day: What is the worst title you've ever come up with?

My current one.

It isn't until I looked back that I disliked my titles...here's a few horrible ones...

Darkness Falls
Angelic Vices (to be fair, I was going for slight camp on this one...)
Creator's Gambit

Heck, half the time, these titles were bad b/c I was trying to make it sound cooler.

@ Lemur: I've seen you on the forums from time to time.  I never shied away from healthy debate, so I for one wasn't upset by you at all.  Totally with you on using writing as a mode of escapism.  All the best to you on future endeavors!

[Lokiwithrope]

Give me five different multiplayer characters that are not the Fury, Demolisher, or Shadow. I'm going to use them for a short story.

[dpMeggers]

Lokiwithrope wrote...

Give me five different multiplayer characters that are not the Fury, Demolisher, or Shadow. I'm going to use them for a short story.

Here are all of the Multiplayer Character Options. Happy writing.

[Seracen]

Lokiwithrope wrote...

Give me five different multiplayer characters that are not the Fury, Demolisher, or Shadow. I'm going to use them for a short story.

Turian Havoc, Volus Adept, Salarian Infiltrator, Quarian Engineer (Female), Geth Juggernaut.  You asked for 5, but I think adding a Human/Phoenix Vanguard (M or F) as leader would also be good.

Lemme know if you want names, as I could just give you the ones I use in MP.

As a unit, all the bases are covered, and would be devasting.  More importantly, I feel like the opportunity for comedic gold is rife with this combo... 

From a writing perspective, I'd pair up the people that could set off each others' attacks.  So tech burst teams and biotic explosion teams would go together.  The standard soldiers would be your tanks, and could be mixed around.

From my experiences with writing battles, this works well to ensure the combat stays varied, and adds to the sense of time, without adding length.

***************

One more message for the night, before I get back to writing...

Unfortunately, my primary beta readers have been dealing with personal stuff, so I'm not about to make them read my stuff.  It's only been a week, but from 200 views, I've not gotten any comments.

No guilt trips or begging, I'm just curious if anybody would be willing to give me their honest opinions! :happy:

I know all of us have multiple irons in the fire, so no worries if nobody can.  The beta is a good 20 chapters, while I've only posted 8 (check the sig).

If anybody's got the time, please feel free to PM me, and I'll send the file, or you can try to read the 8 chapters that are up.  Obviously, I've crafted the story and read it as I saw it, which means I'm not going to be the best critical eye.

Again, not fishing for cookies here, I just want to make sure the story works, b/c the flow here effects the entire rest of the story.

Thanks again, and best of luck on all your projects too!

Modifié par Seracen, 12 avril 2013 - 03:24 .

[fluffywalrus]

Lokiwithrope wrote...

Give me five different multiplayer characters that are not the Fury, Demolisher, or Shadow. I'm going to use them for a short story.

Vorcha Hunter, Turian Havoc, Quarian marksman, Volus protector, N7 Paladin

Modifié par fluffywalrus, 12 avril 2013 - 03:19 .

[fluffywalrus]

Seracen wrote...

One more message for the night, before I get back to writing...
Unfortunately, my primary beta readers have been dealing with personal stuff, so I'm not about to make them read my stuff.  It's only been a week, but from 200 views, I've not gotten any comments.

No guilt trips or begging, I'm just curious if anybody would be willing to give me their honest opinions! :happy:

I know all of us have multiple irons in the fire, so no worries if nobody can.  The beta is a good 20 chapters, while I've only posted 8 (check the sig).
If anybody's got the time, please feel free to PM me, and I'll send the file, or you can try to read the 8 chapters that are up.  Obviously, I've crafted the story and read it as I saw it, which means I'm not going to be the best critical eye.

Again, not fishing for cookies here, I just want to make sure the story works, b/c the flow here effects the entire rest of the story.
Thanks again, and best of luck on all your projects too!

Not sure i'd be a great beta, and I'm certainly not available right now, but at the end of April, I won't have anything on my schedule.

Now, I say i'm not a great beta because honestly, I respect and read a lot of different story structures, a lot of different writing styles, and my understanding of flow is simply "Do I ever stop hearing/seeing what I'm reading in my head? No? Good.". And usually, if the writer's halfway skilled, it makes things pretty easy and for the most part I correct grammar and spelling with the odd structural comment. I only very rarely question events in the story, or ask about progression, or give tips on that kind of thing. Unless there's a huge mary-sue character, or they totally write a character OOC without adding an author note about it beforehand, I'll pretty much be silent on anything conceptual, because i'm not about to tell anyone how to write their story. 

So yeah, like I said, I probably wouldn't be anyone's first choice for a beta, because I don't take writing super seriously. I point out things that ****** readers off, or ward them away from the story, for the most part.
But if you need someone to do a one-time look-see over your stuff at the start of May, I can do that (no commitment to beta-duties, though, because I have my own stuff to read/write/etc. and won't make that commitment only to break it)

[Lokiwithrope]

Seracen wrote...
Turian Havoc, Volus Adept, Salarian Infiltrator, Quarian Engineer (Female), Geth Juggernaut.  You asked for 5, but I think adding a Human/Phoenix Vanguard (M or F) as leader would also be good.

I need names then for the Havoc, Volus, Salarian and Quarian (who I'm deciding will be a male). I can think of the Juggernaut's name.

[Seracen]

fluffywalrus wrote...

Not sure i'd be a great beta, and I'm certainly not available right now, but at the end of April, I won't have anything on my schedule.
...

Thanks for the offer, I'll definitely hit you up come May.  More content critique than anything else, but any critical eye is a welcome addition!

Lokiwithrope wrote...

Seracen wrote...
Turian Havoc, Volus Adept, Salarian Infiltrator, Quarian Engineer (Female), Geth Juggernaut.  You asked for 5, but I think adding a Human/Phoenix Vanguard (M or F) as leader would also be good.

I need names then for the Havoc, Volus, Salarian and Quarian (who I'm deciding will be a male). I can think of the Juggernaut's name.

Havoc: Tassidus Pytar (altho I am using the name in one of my stories)
Volus: Nikto Van
Quarian: Javol vas Rannoch
Salarian: Harmon Ferix

[hot_heart]

@ AustereLemur799

...what dpMeggers said (beautifully, I might add). I don't recall you saying anything that remotely resembles 'crap', and I hope you don't feel the need to 'keep up'. Anyone is welcome to pop in at anytime; it's why we're here.

[Obsidian Gryphon]

Haven't been in for the past week. Didn't update fanfic, haven't been working on it...just too worried and tired (RL) to fiddle with it. However, I've returned to GW2 and spending hours and hours in it, partly due to a needed tool to stay awake and also to catch up.

And I've to say...I've left the ME game totally. Before, I spent hours in MP. Now, no interest. Perhaps I would return to the SP, years later but probably not, in view of how spectacularly it nosedived. Nostalgia. Yes. Fullsome fond memories? No.

As it is, returning to work on fanfic and listening to the main theme of an old FPS MP. The first one, along with Quake 3, to spawn the genre. The Golden classic. It's no RPG but I had a fantastic marvelous time with it. Unreal Tournament 1999 I still return to it to play.

Modifié par Obsidian Gryphon, 12 avril 2013 - 09:45 .

[MrStoob]

hot_heart wrote...

@ AustereLemur799

...what dpMeggers said (beautifully, I might add). I don't recall you saying anything that remotely resembles 'crap', and I hope you don't feel the need to 'keep up'. Anyone is welcome to pop in at anytime; it's why we're here.

Indeedly.  We all come here to 'brain spew' from time to time but as said above, dont' recall anything out of order.