9960 réponses à ce sujet

[teh DRUMPf!!]

 So some of this recent talk about ME:Next has pulled me back to my Mass Effect fandom again.


Now I'm writing a new story, following the events of ME3 and my canon. I may even share it here this time!

[sH0tgUn jUliA]

You think Asari have everything... long lives, etc, but in a recent turn of events in my story, my protagonist has... ear envy.

[BronzTrooper]

sH0tgUn jUliA wrote...

You think Asari have everything... long lives, etc, but in a recent turn of events in my story, my protagonist has... ear envy.

lol 

[Seracen]

sH0tgUn jUliA wrote...

You think Asari have everything... long lives, etc, but in a recent turn of events in my story, my protagonist has... ear envy.

Yes, but ear slits don't get in the way when putting on a helmet.  Also, your mom can't discipline you by cuffing your ears, so there's that.

[Fatiguesdualism]

Seracen wrote...

sH0tgUn jUliA wrote...

You think Asari have everything... long lives, etc, but in a recent turn of events in my story, my protagonist has... ear envy.

Yes, but ear slits don't get in the way when putting on a helmet.  Also, your mom can't discipline you by cuffing your ears, so there's that.

On the other hand, asari......have trouble......putting on......sunglasses!

[cue The Who]

[sH0tgUn jUliA]

Fatiguesdualism wrote...

Seracen wrote...

sH0tgUn jUliA wrote...

You think Asari have everything... long lives, etc, but in a recent turn of events in my story, my protagonist has... ear envy.

Yes, but ear slits don't get in the way when putting on a helmet.  Also, your mom can't discipline you by cuffing your ears, so there's that.

On the other hand, asari......have trouble......putting on......sunglasses!

[cue The Who]

That was exactly the problem. The look like small flaps to me, not slits. But they could be slits. I guess that's up to speculation. Anyway I said in a story.... because just before the final confrontation your protagonist ... must... look... like ... a ... boss.  Am I right?

From my story: 

They walked by several abandoned shops. The store front windows were broken. Naleena looked over at Marisa and smiled when they passed the Estania Boutique. She shot Naleena a dirty look.

“Shay, Ereba, could you keep watch for just a couple of minutes, please?” Naleena asked, “Marisa, they’re insured, and it’s a Reaper invasion. Who is going to care?”

“I will.”

“Marisa! I’m just going to look. Do you know when the last time I was in a boutique?”

<snip>

Naleena headed straight to the coat rack, and she found a full length black leather coat that buttoned from the waist up and left access for her to get to her sidearm. She tried it on. It was a perfect fit. When she strutted around the bottom of the coat floated behind her.

“Doesn’t this look fantastic? Ordinarily it would cost 3000 CR. Today’s sale price: free. Do you see anything you like? Seriously, I’d grab something to cover that armor,” Naleena said. "The sergeant's stripes aren't becoming to your rank."

“Doesn’t that defeat your cloak?”

“Look, I’ve got a large hole in the cloaking web I’m wearing, so it’s not exactly stealth anymore, and your tearing it more didn’t help it any.”

“Would you rather I let you bleed to death?”

“No. I’m not complaining. You did the right thing. I just need something to cover it up. And looking a bit stylish doesn’t hurt either.”

“Perhaps you’re right. Unfortunately, I don't see one that I like.”

Naleena headed over to the counter with the jewelry. “Do you know what is really unfair, Marisa? Humans have ears. Do you see this case? It’s jewelry. Those are ear rings. Very expensive ear rings. They put them in their ear lobes, and they look fantastic,” and then she turned to the case behind the counter with dark glasses, smashed it, and grabbed a pair. “And these things on the sides of them are made to fit right over their ears. See how good these look with this coat? But no ears. I tried the elastic things before like they told me once, but it slipped right down my neck. The reason? No ears, and they hurt my hearing flaps.”

“Naleena!”

“It’s just not fair. What’s the name of this company? Bahooskh and Lombh. The style is… Ahveeahtor. I’m sending them a letter that they should make a version for Asari after the war,” Naleena entered it into her omni-tool. “Oh well. I guess that’s going to do it in here. You sure you don’t want anything?”

Modifié par sH0tgUn jUliA, 21 février 2014 - 02:48 .

[Ignis Mors]

 Back from the Titanfall Beta, and playing a lot of dragon age, I have another question for you guys. Do you like dinosaurs? I've been thinking about dinobots a lot lately since the Generations AOE line dinobot figures have been revealed. (strafe's figure looks particularly interesting IMHO.) 

[sH0tgUn jUliA]

Dinosaurs are cool.

[BronzTrooper]

(in little kid's voice) I like dinosaurs!

[fluffywalrus]

I used to be all about the Ankylosaurus when I was younger. I haven't really thought much about dinosaurs since I was in grade school, though, mostly because they just don't really come up in discussion or in my studies. And I'm not in contact with young earth creationists, so its not like I have an excuse to dip into the material.

[MrStoob]

Gamer072196 wrote...

(in little kid's voice) I like dinosaurs!

I like trains. (uh-oh!)

[teh DRUMPf!!]

Yup. Dinosaurs FTW! And the Troodon was my favorite one when I was a kid. Still is, I suppose.

[Seracen]

Fatiguesdualism wrote...

Seracen wrote...

sH0tgUn jUliA wrote...

You think Asari have everything... long lives, etc, but in a recent turn of events in my story, my protagonist has... ear envy.

Yes, but ear slits don't get in the way when putting on a helmet.  Also, your mom can't discipline you by cuffing your ears, so there's that.

On the other hand, asari......have trouble......putting on......sunglasses!

[cue The Who]

Hmmm...yes...good point.  To wit, I have this suggestion...Morpheus' shades



 BWAHAHAHA!!! 


Also, I loved Dinobots before even knowing the story, simply b/c DINOSAURS!!!  Hell, I managed to enjoy that crappy Stephen Spielberg cartoon as a kid.  My fave dino as a kid was the Brontosaurus.

Modifié par Seracen, 21 février 2014 - 06:55 .

[Seracen]

In other news, I finally figured out how I want to tackle the mess of having my Male Shep meet my Female Shep in my "Thane Resurrection Fic." The story is still so cumbersome, and not something I'd have done originally.  Still, my beta challenged me, and my imagination went rampant on a myriad of scenes, pretty much everything but the bloody beginning!!!

Anyhoo, it's amazing how easier it is to plot some things out when you are willing to let go of certain preconceptions. For the longest time, nothing worked b/c I just HAD to include certain plot beats. Yet when I allowed myself to think of alternatives, things just fell into place.

I've mentioned such occurrences before (such as when I nixed certain characters from my previous work), but it's always funny how such things pan out.

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


So my question: Anybody else have moments like this, where things just fall into place when you allow yourself to change a key fact you were too stubborn to change before?

Modifié par Seracen, 21 février 2014 - 06:38 .

[hot_heart]

Seracen wrote...
So my question: Anybody else have moments like this, where things just fall into place when you allow yourself to change a key fact you were too stubborn to change before?

Kill your darlings.

I mean, nope, not me. I am flawless, yep.

[Ignis Mors]

Seracen wrote...

In other news, I finally figured out how I want to tackle the mess of having my Male Shep meet my Female Shep in my "Thane Resurrection Fic." The story is still so cumbersome, and not something I'd have done originally.  Still, my beta challenged me, and my imagination went rampant on a myriad of scenes, pretty much everything but the bloody beginning!!!

Anyhoo, it's amazing how easier it is to plot some things out when you are willing to let go of certain preconceptions. For the longest time, nothing worked b/c I just HAD to include certain plot beats. Yet when I allowed myself to think of alternatives, things just fell into place.

I've mentioned such occurrences before (such as when I nixed certain characters from my previous work), but it's always funny how such things pan out.

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


So my question: Anybody else have moments like this, where things just fall into place when you allow yourself to change a key fact you were too stubborn to change before?

NOt really. My main problem is I don't know where to jump to from the current transition I'm in for Crucible Effect.

[Seracen]

hot_heart wrote...

Seracen wrote...
So my question: Anybody else have moments like this, where things just fall into place when you allow yourself to change a key fact you were too stubborn to change before?

Kill your darlings. 

I mean, nope, not me. I am flawless, yep.

Hah, you know, about that...

I have an easier time of killing original characters, whereas I am loathe to kill off the existing creations from Bioware (with a few exceptions).

In my original works, nobody is safe.  If it's the right story, even the "main character" isn't safe.  But in fanfics, most of the characters tend to be protected, no matter the amount of pain and toil the must go through (sometimes to the point that they WISH they'd died).

Ignis Mors wrote...

NOt really. My main problem is I don't know where to jump to from the current transition I'm in for Crucible Effect.

Man, transitions are a pain.  That's part of the reason I start the first paragraph of my next chapter on the hells of writing the last one.  It's a lot harder for me to build up momentum otherwise.

BTW, I'm more than willing to lend a critical eye, if you need a 2nd opinion. :happy:

[Seracen]

hot_heart wrote...

Seracen wrote...
So my question: Anybody else have moments like this, where things just fall into place when you allow yourself to change a key fact you were too stubborn to change before?

Kill your darlings. 

I mean, nope, not me. I am flawless, yep.

Hah, you know, about that...

I have an easier time of killing original characters, whereas I am loathe to kill off the existing creations from Bioware (with a few exceptions).

In my original works, nobody is safe.  If it's the right story, even the "main character" isn't safe.  But in fanfics, most of the characters tend to be protected, no matter the amount of pain and toil the must go through (sometimes to the point that they WISH they'd died).

  

Ignis Mors wrote...

NOt really. My main problem is I don't know where to jump to from the current transition I'm in for Crucible Effect.

Man, transitions are a pain.  That's part of the reason I start the first paragraph of my next chapter on the heels of writing the last one.  It's a lot harder for me to build up momentum otherwise.

BTW, I'm more than willing to lend a critical eye, if you need a 2nd opinion. :happy:

Modifié par Seracen, 21 février 2014 - 10:21 .

[hot_heart]

Seracen wrote...
Hah, you know, about that...

Huh, whoops, what have I done...

Hehe, 'kill your darlings' isn't literal. It's writing advice. Should you find yourself stuck or simply unsure about the direction of your story, the exercise is to remove the bit(s) you've been most fond of, most unwilling to change. Favourite lines, favourite moments, even whole scenes/chapters: your 'darlings'. In removing - 'killing' - them, you might find, actually, they did nothing for the story or you 'freed up' other ways to improve the story by not fighting so hard to keep that stuff in.

I mean, I guess it could involve killing a character, but that's not what I meant.

[sH0tgUn jUliA]

I was at one of those cross roads last night.... My protagonist can be so endearing at times. She's a boss level powered biotic who could easily clear a kill zone with them, but for some strange reason prefers using a sniper rifle, dual wielding pistols, or using an old suppressed .22 pistol up close and personal instead of her biotics.

I had everything mapped out. I was on my way home from the gym. I wrote the scene. I was satisfied. So I sat back and lit a cigarette. Naleena protested vehemently.

"What you *****? You lived. You kicked ass," I said.

"It was stupid," Naleena replied, "While it wasn't out of character, I would never do it that way. You wasted a valuable intelligence resource."

"Naleena, listen. The way the room was laid out, it made sense."

"Then lay out the room differently."

"I can't."

"Has anyone ever seen this room before?"

"No."

"Then make it happen," Naleena said with a defiant look on her face, but then softened. "You know I'll keep after you until you do. Or just do things a little bit. Come on. Do it for me. Please? For old times. It's not that difficult. Just change two things in the room."

Okay, so I rewrote the scene. It flowed better. As usual, Naleena was right. It made better sense, but now it created a new dilemma.

While I do tend to protect characters of Bioware's creation. I was at that point where she had just kicked ass in all of her finery, and did the impossibly accurate shot... she's the protagonist and I'm pulling a Tarantino in this scene... So does she go Jack Bauer on a Bioware character or not? She doesn't really have to, but it endears the character to the reader especially considering she's a nominal hero with a cause.

Does anyone ever have a case where ones character is equally stubborn and argues with you?

[Redbelle]

Hmmmmm. Well, We've already killed off one BW character when Naleena killed off the Cat..... (Opp's, not the Cat.... just a big computer thingeemajig).

And let's be honest.... Harbinger's on the list too. That's two of the opposing side..... but not the alliance side?

Seems that the time has come to bring balance to the Bioverse and stay true to Naleena's character.

I can see her being soft when the wars over..... but if there's something she needs while the wars on, I think she'd have her game face on and let everyone around her know it.

I guess though, the question is..... does anyone else need the character?

Modifié par Redbelle, 22 février 2014 - 12:33 .

[Seracen]

hot_heart wrote...

Seracen wrote...
Hah, you know, about that...

Huh, whoops, what have I done...

Hehe, 'kill your darlings' isn't literal. It's writing advice. Should you find yourself stuck or simply unsure about the direction of your story, the exercise is to remove the bit(s) you've been most fond of, most unwilling to change. Favourite lines, favourite moments, even whole scenes/chapters: your 'darlings'. In removing - 'killing' - them, you might find, actually, they did nothing for the story or you 'freed up' other ways to improve the story by not fighting so hard to keep that stuff in.

I mean, I guess it could involve killing a character, but that's not what I meant.

Ah yes, good point.  Funny enough, I am not always as attached to a concept or scene, as I am to a character.  My stubbornness in refusing to change a plot beat in a story is less about wanting to keep it, and more about simply not looking at it differently until my head is against the wall.

It's certainly something I've tried to identify and address as my writing continues to progress.

As for characters themselves, I have said it before, but I always try to "use" their deaths in the most meaningful way possible, like a missile in my arsenal that cannot be retracted.

How effectively my machinations play out, however, is a different story, haha!

Modifié par Seracen, 22 février 2014 - 12:53 .

[Seracen]

sH0tgUn jUliA wrote...

Okay, so I rewrote the scene. It flowed better. As usual, Naleena was right. It made better sense, but now it created a new dilemma.

While I do tend to protect characters of Bioware's creation. I was at that point where she had just kicked ass in all of her finery, and did the impossibly accurate shot... she's the protagonist and I'm pulling a Tarantino in this scene... So does she go Jack Bauer on a Bioware character or not? She doesn't really have to, but it endears the character to the reader especially considering she's a nominal hero with a cause.

Does anyone ever have a case where ones character is equally stubborn and argues with you?

If the dying char serves no other purpose later on, then I see no reason against it.  More of concern for me would be whether the death itself came across as cheap, or gimmicky, or for "shock value" and nothing else.

Your writing doesn't strike me as such.  You seem more meticulous and considered, and I am sure you've played out all ramifications.  So, I say go with your intuition.

[BronzTrooper]

I only have one time where I wanted to do one thing for a scene that resulted in me getting stuck, which I eventually gave up on and the rewrite flowed much, much better.

In chapter 3 to my third DA fanfic, Finding a Home, I originally planned to have Solona (female human mage) being sent to the Circle be somewhat of a secret in the Hawke family, one that Leandra never told Hawke, Carver, and Bethany about. This idea caused me to get completely jammed after a page of it. It took a while, but I eventually decided to abandon that plan, and when I rewrote the scene in my head, I was able to imagine how the whole chapter would play out.

I'm not sure how many of these moments I'll have later on, but I guess they'll only make me a better writer, huh?

Modifié par Gamer072196, 22 février 2014 - 04:28 .

[YurigirlzCrush]

Minor and mostly off-topic rant incoming. *sigh* this semester is driving me insane. midterms next week, tons of papers/assignments due, not enough time to do everything involved, I'm positive my grades over midterms are going to take a huge dip, and I'm stressing over the tiniest things in my day... which I know I shouldn't but can't stop doing. plus, I haven't touched either of my stories in like two solid weeks. I just don't have the time or energy. when I manage to snag an hour of free time, I'd rather just read. *pout* which I guess is my long and unnecessarily whiny way of saying.... I hate school! *glare* /rant


on topic: I have the opposite problem from what you're talking about. when I stopped writing to focus on schoolwork I was into my third rewrite of the beginning of my ME story. and I keep completely changing everything except the basic plot (and characters, of course). every time I write something and move on, two days later I get an idea I love a hundo p more. so I rewrite. I can't stop.

side note, The Walking Dead this past week broke my heart. something they did in that episode, combined with the apparent direction of their new game, totes preempted my TWD story idea. might have to scrap it, otherwise it'll just look like a lame ripoff. *superpout* not that I'd done anything more than outline it, but still. I was looking forward to writing it.