Tips For Starters

I love stories and have recently started trying to write my own. I have ideas but I have some problems putting all of them on the page or fitting them together. I thought, that since there are some writers on this site that maybe it would be a good idea to give out tips to people like me.

Well, what seems to be your problem area? Do you have trouble with getting the ideas started? Bringing them to fruition? The characters? We are always willing to help another writer in need.

Well, I really like how you bring your charecters to life but mine just don't seem to work and i think I hav maybe gone for a bit of a hard story for a starter so i might put it aside for a bit and try another more simple story.

Dialogue is the best way to bring characters to life, but always creating back stories with them and sticking to their personalities and the stories that you have made them. It can be a little tough sometimes, because you come up with a great idea, but it doesn't fit the character. One has to set the idea aside for another story that has a character that would do such a thing.

I found the best way to start out was the make the main character me. I don't mean putting your own person into the story, but instead putting your personality into that character. My novel Lies in the Blood: Inception is me and many people that I knew back when I started the novel. Kailin's personality was very much a kin to my own, however as the rewriting began her own personality evolved. She became darker and more of a loner.

Always remember that when you first write a story it's a first draft, and you can change things later. What I try to do, but lately it's not working out too well, is I try to write 3-5 pages a day. Don't worry about what it says, don't read over it, just write your story. I would suggest maybe trying an easy plot, and writing a 10-15 page story... like Becoming Nardaria's Queen or Angel of Hell. My two short stories.

Just think of a beginning and let the character tell you their story, it doesn't have to be anything amazing. Like for instance, you can write about say boy or a girl, who watches their family home burn down one night... maybe their family was inside... tell how that character deals with the loss of their loved ones. You could set this in modern times or in your own medieval world or beyond. Or if you prefer happier tales, then you could write about a male or female who just graduated from their classes and how they begin their journey. Again this could be set in modern day with college, medieval/fantasy with military camps, or beyond.

Practice really does make perfect, the more you try, and look at your problem areas the better you will become. The most difficult part is making sure your characters dont do anything out of character, and try to make dialogue as smooth as possible. When you are done writing, set it aside and come back to read it over. Say all the dialogue outloud, and think if I was listening to this conversation would it sound real or like a bad play script. Be honest with yourself, but don't be overly critical... there are enough people out there that want to stomp on your toes, don't do it to yourself.

Linus Pauling put it best, however with "The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas."... hence the signature.

Anyway, that's all I have right now as I am a bit sleepy. There is always more then one way to do this though, and I am sure Jude has different ways that she has created and developed her own characters, but odds are against hearing from her until Monday.

Thanks for the tips, I'll try them as soon as I can.

The guest is me, forgot to log in!

Hey! It's Monday! LOL...good call, Becca!

Yeah, I don't tend to log in at home, since I have dial up (yuck)...Anyway, that's all really good advice, Pollz...and Rhunt really knows what she's talking about. I never had any rules about writing, like a minimum number of pages or anything. What's always worked for me, is to wait until I get this spark of an idea. Then I sit in front of the computer with hands on the keyboard...and I just start typing. Like Becca said, you don't care if it makes sense or is really all that good, since you can always go back and edit it later. You just want to go with whatever inspiration is fueling your story or idea. I have gotten so into my story, that it will be bedtime and I started in the afternoon. I've had roommates ask if I wanted them to turn on a light, since I would be working in darkness (except for the light from the monitor)...It's really strange to be possesed by your writing. Don't know if everyone is like that, but it's kind of a natural high. Like someone (a muse perhaps) is hovering over me, giving me these ideas. That's when my writing is at its best.

I'm having a bit of writer's block right now, which is why I wrote Altered States. I pulled from my own feelings to write that one, since I wasn't being inspired to write anything else...but I did the same thing. Just put my fingers on the keyboard and let them go...but it's a very good idea to start small and easy if you want to get started writing. That's how I started all those years ago. Short stories are a great way to start. The plot is simple and you don't have to worry about complex plots and subplots. Just one idea from start to finish...and if you're meant to write (which not everyone is), it should be relatively easy. Good luck!

Jude

Amen to that. Not saying that you aren't a good writer, Pollz. However, there is so much trash out there from people who think they are good writers and they really aren't. Hell, there are some published writers out there that are the most terrible writers that I have ever read.

Problem with some people is that they get alot of people telling them that they are good, family and friends, when they aren't. Then you post on the internet, and some 12 year old reads the story and tells you that you are good, when really they have no idea what they are talking about.

Some publishers get harassed and death threats sent to them for rejecting their materials, especially if they explain what the problem with the story is. Which is why they have those lame rejection letters that explain nothing to the writer, because they don't know if the person is a pyscho. I hear alot (and I am no publisher) "You don't understand..." insert lame excuse, or a slew of curse words. You have to take the good with the bad, and I have gotten a few bad reviews in my time. The ones where the people were actually trying to be helpful, I keep their advice in the back of my mind, but then again there are people who are just trying to be hurtful. They always bother me for a while, until I realize that these people are just out to hurt you.

So... I kind of went off topic there. Some people just aren't meant to be writers. Anyone can make up characters and a plot, but not everyone can make those characters real and keep the plot alive and fresh. However, one just has to keep writing, don't stop... if one is a true writer then one will always want to write, one will always have ideas they want to write down, and one will not get detoured by the venom of a sour reader.

Thanks for all the tips. I see what you mean by not everyone is meant to be an author but if you never try you'll never know. Maybe in the end I will find out I'm meant for something else but you never know!

Oh yes, definitely do try...just don't feel too bad if you can't.

Jude

Yep, do try. There is always room for one more in this cramped writer's shack! You may not get alot of head or leg room, but we can always squeeze ya in.

Might not be alot of head room but there is a lot of great advice being given out.
Thanks so much, you are really helping me out here!