Fun writing meme
Aug. 23rd, 2014 02:29 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
Ahh ... I can't resist this writing meme. Pick a letter:
A. Describe your comfort zone—a typical you-fic.
B. Is there a trope you’ve yet to try your hand at, but really want to?
C. Is there a trope you wouldn’t touch with a ten foot pole?
D. How many fic ideas are you nurturing right now? Care to share one of them?
E. Share one of your strengths.
F. Share one of your weaknesses.
G. Share a snippet from one of your favorite pieces of prose you’ve written and explain why you’re proud of it.
H. Share a snippet from one of your favorite dialogue scenes you’ve written and explain why you’re proud of it.
I. Which fic has been the hardest to write?
J. Which fic has been the easiest to write?
K. Is writing your passion or just a fun hobby?
L. Is there an episode section of canon above all others that inspires you just a little bit more?
M. What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever come across?
N. What’s the worst writing advice you’ve ever come across?
O. If you could choose one of your fics to be filmed, which would you choose?
P. If you only could write one pairing for the rest of your life, which pairing would it be?
Q. Do you write your story from start to finish, or do you write the scenes out of order?
R. Do you use any tools, like worksheets or outlines?
S. Stephen King once said that his muse is a man who lives in the basement. Do you have a muse?
T. Describe your perfect writing conditions.
U. How many times do you usually revise your fic/chapter before posting?
V. Choose a passage from one of your earlier fics and edit it into your current writing style. (Person sending the ask is free to make suggestions).
W. If you were to revise one of your older fics from start to finish, which would it be and why?
X. Have you ever deleted one of your published fics?
Y. What do you look for in a beta?
Z. Do you beta yourself? If so, what kind of beta are you?
AA. How do you feel about collaborations?
AB. Share three of your favorite fic writers and why you like them so much.
AC. If you could write the sequel (or prequel) to any fic out there not written by yourself, which would you choose?
AD. Do you accept prompts?
AE. Do you take liberties with canon or are you very strict about your fic being canon compliant?
AF. How do you feel about smut?
AG. How do you feel about crack?
AH. What are your thoughts on non-con and dub-con?
AI. Would you ever kill off a canon character?
AJ. Which is your favorite site to post fic?
AK. Talk about your current wips.
AL. Talk about a review that made your day.
AM. Do you ever get rude reviews and how do you deal with them?
AN. Write an alternative ending to a fic you've written (specify by title, link or general description].
A. Describe your comfort zone—a typical you-fic.
B. Is there a trope you’ve yet to try your hand at, but really want to?
C. Is there a trope you wouldn’t touch with a ten foot pole?
D. How many fic ideas are you nurturing right now? Care to share one of them?
E. Share one of your strengths.
F. Share one of your weaknesses.
G. Share a snippet from one of your favorite pieces of prose you’ve written and explain why you’re proud of it.
H. Share a snippet from one of your favorite dialogue scenes you’ve written and explain why you’re proud of it.
I. Which fic has been the hardest to write?
J. Which fic has been the easiest to write?
K. Is writing your passion or just a fun hobby?
L. Is there an episode section of canon above all others that inspires you just a little bit more?
M. What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever come across?
N. What’s the worst writing advice you’ve ever come across?
O. If you could choose one of your fics to be filmed, which would you choose?
P. If you only could write one pairing for the rest of your life, which pairing would it be?
Q. Do you write your story from start to finish, or do you write the scenes out of order?
R. Do you use any tools, like worksheets or outlines?
S. Stephen King once said that his muse is a man who lives in the basement. Do you have a muse?
T. Describe your perfect writing conditions.
U. How many times do you usually revise your fic/chapter before posting?
V. Choose a passage from one of your earlier fics and edit it into your current writing style. (Person sending the ask is free to make suggestions).
W. If you were to revise one of your older fics from start to finish, which would it be and why?
X. Have you ever deleted one of your published fics?
Y. What do you look for in a beta?
Z. Do you beta yourself? If so, what kind of beta are you?
AA. How do you feel about collaborations?
AB. Share three of your favorite fic writers and why you like them so much.
AC. If you could write the sequel (or prequel) to any fic out there not written by yourself, which would you choose?
AD. Do you accept prompts?
AE. Do you take liberties with canon or are you very strict about your fic being canon compliant?
AF. How do you feel about smut?
AG. How do you feel about crack?
AH. What are your thoughts on non-con and dub-con?
AI. Would you ever kill off a canon character?
AJ. Which is your favorite site to post fic?
AK. Talk about your current wips.
AL. Talk about a review that made your day.
AM. Do you ever get rude reviews and how do you deal with them?
AN. Write an alternative ending to a fic you've written (specify by title, link or general description].
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Date: 2014-08-23 08:34 pm (UTC)I'm gonna be greedy and ask for B, T and AE
♥ x
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Date: 2014-08-23 10:24 pm (UTC)B. Is there a trope you’ve yet to try your hand at, but really want to?
I've always kind of envied people who write porn with ease, and I felt like I couldn't do it at all, but the novel I'm working on now has a whole explicit-sex thread running through it and thanks to reading all the glorious porny fic out there, I'm finding it infinitely easier to write now! :-D
T. Describe your perfect writing conditions.
Peace and quiet, mainly, and plenty of inspiration, feeling good about the value of what I'm doing, which isn't always easy to come by, hence why I haven't really been writing fic lately.
AE. Do you take liberties with canon or are you very strict about your fic being canon compliant?
Heh, now see, given the fact that recent canon isn't even canon compliant, it seems an impossible task .... I have in fact tried to be as canon compliant as possible, within any given fic as it connects to related episodes, but lately I'm becoming more interested in fics that deviate strongly from canon (like
Fun!
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Date: 2014-08-23 08:54 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-08-24 09:04 pm (UTC)C. Is there a trope you wouldn’t touch with a ten foot pole?
Wincest. It makes me very happy that, in this fandom especially, anything goes, but personally I just can't go there.
N. What’s the worst writing advice you’ve ever come across?
There are these self-congratulatory lists of "what not to do" (such as this one (http://www.plainlanguage.gov/examples/humor/writegood.cfm)) that are so all-inclusive that imo any work that really avoided all these dubious no-nos would have to be the most self-conscious, boring crap ever written. Lists like these may be entertaining, but if you took them too seriously, they would be utterly paralyzing. I hate lists like that! They only serve to make it even harder to get past one's insecurities and just write. Which leads to:
M. What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever come across?
Ironically, the person who gave this advice mostly gave terrible writing advice (my sucky high school English teacher, who lived to criticize everyone for every little thing, especially me for some reason), but somehow he did come out with this nugget, I suppose because in so doing he was able to criticize someone in another way. We were reading Camus' The Plague, in which there's a character who spends the entire novel honing the first line of the book he's writing. My teacher pointed out he needs to just START WRITING and get on with it, that if he spends his whole life fixated on perfecting a single line, he'll never complete the novel. I've actually encountered a lot of great writing advice in my life, I'm happy to say, but that's one I think of when I start fussing over some small detail--just keep writing and come back to it later (when usually the fix is way easier than if I'd kept beating my head against the wall right then, whether because in writing more the solution has become clear, or simply because I'm in a different headspace that makes it easier).
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Date: 2014-08-25 02:33 pm (UTC)And omg, those lists. I hate those list, too! They're self-congratulatory, but the people who actually live by them and feel superior for adhering to those rules indefinitely or quoting them at other people are so irritating. It's just like, omggggg. /O\ Half the things on that list are my favoritest things ever. XD
JUST START WRITING is a great piece of advice. Hard to follow sometimes, but seriously, it works every time. I'm trying to get into the habit of just writing for an hour every morning--who cares what, who cares how many words, etc.--to get that flow going, and that 'it's just writing it's not scary' mentality going, and it's been really great so far. <3
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Date: 2014-08-26 07:23 am (UTC)Yes, yes!! Half the things on that list are my favoritest things ever, too!! "Avoid alliteration always"? Gimme a break. Especially since I've totally seen literary critics swooning over writers that love their alliteration.
It really DOES work every time! And YES, making it not scary; that's been the key for me, too. That's actually what I really gained from NaNoWriMo, was the "just write!" mentality.
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Date: 2014-08-26 11:11 am (UTC)That on gave me especial pause! Because alliteration is awesome. I mean, you don't want to sound like you're writing a Dr. Seuss book (unless you are, in fact, writing a Dr. Seuss book), but there are so many ways to use alliteration beautifully. I'm a fan.
Also, can I take this opportunity to mention how much I've missed talking to you??? <333333333333
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Date: 2014-08-28 07:26 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-08-23 10:12 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-08-23 11:51 pm (UTC)H. Share a snippet from one of your favorite dialogue scenes you’ve written and explain why you’re proud of it.
This comes from "Stuck" (http://brightly-lit.livejournal.com/1416.html):
“Don’t worry, Sam,” he tried. “I’ll get us out of here soon.”
“How?” Sam asked flatly. “There’s nowhere to go.”
“I’ll page dad as soon as I can get to the phone, and--”
“It’s a long-distance call; they’ll never let you.”
“Like I need permission?”
“They might not even have long-distance service, and you can’t make a collect call to a pager.”
Dean was getting irritated with Sam’s pessimistic hostility. “I’ll find a way, okay, Sam?”
Sam curled in on himself. “Whatever.”
“We have to share body heat!” Dean barked, getting cold inside and out. “Now give it up.”
With palpable reluctance, Sam uncurled enough that they could press their sides together. “Anyway, dad won’t come,” Sam mumbled hopelessly.
“Of course he will! I’ll send him the emergency page.”
I know some people think it's not a good thing ("voices in the void"), but personally, I'm crazy about scenes where just the dialogue can express everything that needs expressing, where you don't even have to specify who's talking because it's clear from the setup and what they're saying. I'm proud of this scene because in a few short lines, so much of the way they each perceive their father is laid out, along with each of their states of mind, their relative sense of optimism; their characters can get more development in a petty, brotherly argument about a phone call than when they're doing other things.
This bit of dialogue also says a lot about the way they were raised, that it wouldn't occur to Dean to need permission to make the call, that they've been taught so many basics of survival (sharing body heat), that young Sam is so aware of how these things work. It also expresses the current state of their relationship, and hints at a time in the past when things were quite different (the way Dean is surprised and confused by Sam's attitude), setting up what comes later in the fic.
This was one of my very first fics, back when I still kind of felt like I had to tell Sam and Dean's whole story in each fic, but looking back on it now, I think that really served the story. Yeah, I'm proud of this one. Thanks for asking! And back atcha--same question.
O. If you could choose one of your fics to be filmed, which would you choose?
It would have to be "Inescapable," because it's much more filmic than most of my fics (sex! action! intrigue! Vegas!).
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Date: 2014-08-24 03:02 am (UTC)I think your meaning and who is speaking is perfectly clear in your snippet and it's a much cleaner read than if it had 'Sam said' or 'Dean said' after every dialogue bit.
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Date: 2014-08-25 07:31 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-08-23 11:54 pm (UTC)This story is short enough that I can include the whole thing. ;-D Called "Of Demons, Monsters, and Squirrels." Here's the original (http://brightly-lit.livejournal.com/26636.html), and here's the one with the alternate ending:
As the evil black Impala coasted into view, Chaz knew it was all over. He'd heard of the Winchesters--God, of course he'd heard of the Winchesters, he couldn't stop hearing about the FREAKIN' WINCHESTERS, and now they were finally onto him. At least they caught him in his squirrel form, where he could scuttle up to the tops of the trees (as he did now) and try--God, try!--to escape, even though no shifter ever succeeded. The Winchesters were ruthless killers. By nightfall, surely they would have high-tech squirrel traps set up all around the canopy and he would be in their grasp.
It wasn't his fault he was a shifter. Why, why did they have to learn about his existence and persecute him so mercilessly?? He didn't do anything wrong! Okay, so he stole the Jagersons' walnuts, big deal! And Mrs. Abbot's tomatoes. And he kind of had a good time pissing all over that brat's mattress when they took it outside to air it out, but what squirrel wouldn't?! Little shit had been throwing rocks at him since he was two! Okay, and maybe he did his level best to drive the neighborhood dogs insane, but come on, it was FUNNY! From all he'd heard, the shorter Winchester enjoyed stupid pranks at least as much as Chaz. It wasn't fair! Life wasn't fair! IT WASN'T FAIR!!!
Okay. The jig was up. It was only a matter of time. He knew from the first time he heard of the Winchesters that their very existence spelled his doom. He may as well pull himself together and face it like a man ... who spent most of his time as a squirrel.
"COME AND GET ME, YOU SONS OF BITCHES!" he screamed at the top of his lungs. "FINE, YOU WANT TO KILL A HARMLESS LITTLE SQUIRREL? GO AHEAD! I DON'T CARE! I'M READY TO DIE!!!"
Sam and Dean climbed out of the Impala and slammed the doors shut, looking around the nice suburban neighborhood.
"Gah," Dean complained, covering his ear. "This would be a really nice place if it weren't for all that racket. What the hell is that?"
Sam looked up. "It's a squirrel."
"SHUT UP!" Dean yelled at it. It only got louder.
"It probably thinks you're after its nuts," Sam said mildly, and Dean turned to stare disbelievingly at Sam, who realized belatedly what he'd just said and rolled his eyes. Dean pounded the roof of the car, howling with laughter, which for some reason only seemed to make the squirrel more upset.
Dean took his gun out of his waistband, already loaded with silver bullets for the hunt, took careful aim, and blasted the little bastard off its branch. Sam just sighed, unsurprised ... until the impact of a human body hitting the ground made them both flinch.
Both blinking at the naked man at the tree's foot for a long few seconds, Sam then turned the full force of his bitchface on Dean. Nothin' like a body to take care of in broad daylight in suburbia. Dean tried a winning grin at Sam. "Think I got the shifter!"
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Date: 2014-08-24 03:05 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-08-25 07:29 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-09-04 04:05 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-08-23 10:34 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-08-25 07:27 am (UTC)I feel like I get across everything I'm really trying to--mood, theme, emotion, atmosphere--like I tell a complete story.
G. Share a snippet from one of your favorite pieces of prose you’ve written and explain why you’re proud of it.
From "Boundless Love" (http://brightly-lit.livejournal.com/21947.html):
"Dean hadn’t meant for all his barbs to go so deep into Sam, so deep they nicked his heart and bled away his will to live. He hadn’t meant to destroy his will to live! He’d only meant to destroy his will to leave. Turned out they were the same."
I love when I find a way to express a complex concept in as few words as possible, when it just kind of comes right out, and I also love prose that has a poetic rhythm and beauty. Add that to deep emotion, and I'm a happy camper. :-)
And I answered O for
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Date: 2014-08-23 10:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-08-23 11:56 pm (UTC)I'd like to shoot that question right back at you, and anyone else who might read this ....
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Date: 2014-08-26 12:44 am (UTC)Another notion I have about these mystical processes has to do with film and TV because it's a freakin' miracle when the perfect story and cast and crew come together to make something sublime. I felt that way about The Lord of the Rings films, and I feel that way about Supernatural - just in awe that it can be SO GOOD.
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Date: 2014-08-24 08:21 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-08-25 07:28 am (UTC)My bff/roommate betas all my fics, so I have a beta to hand all the time! Ideally, someone who gets what I'm trying to do with the fic and so can give me the kind of advice I really need--who can also point out canon inconsistencies and stuff like that. What about you?
AE. Do you take liberties with canon or are you very strict about your fic being canon compliant?
Ahh--AJ asked that one, too, so you can see my answer to her above.
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Date: 2014-08-25 11:23 am (UTC)Ohhh handy, having some one right there! :D
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Date: 2014-08-25 01:41 am (UTC)F. Share one of your weaknesses.
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Date: 2014-08-26 07:22 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-08-27 03:15 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-08-25 10:13 pm (UTC)T? :)I seeno subject
Date: 2014-08-28 06:36 pm (UTC)Yeah--that glorious stretch toward the end of S4 of one unbelievably great episode after another: "It's a Terrible Life," "The Monster at the End of This Book," "Jump the Shark," "The Rapture," and "When the Levee Breaks." I've referenced every one of these episodes (except "Jump the Shark") in at least one fic, and it's probably the core of canon from which I draw most of my understanding of the show.
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Date: 2014-08-28 07:10 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-08-28 07:15 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-08-28 07:18 pm (UTC)I'm rewatching S5 and staring 'Swan Song' in the face. *whimper*