@rose-colored-fancy
Active 2 years, 8 months agoForum Replies Created
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Hey Scoutfinch!
This is a pretty familiar question to me, I’ve been there XD
So, I currently use an Intuos pressure-sensitive tablet without screen display. I’ve used a Wacom Bamboo in the past and it also worked great, it’s just smaller.
I was saving up for a big display tablet, but I ended up not getting one. My dad got a smallish one for his work, and I tried it out. By this point I’d been working on a non-display tablet for a few years, and I found switching to a display one really jarring. My hand got in the way, the screen was smaller than my computer and I found navigating harder.
I’m sure if I’d practiced with it more, I would have gotten the knack for it, but atm I’m perfectly happy with my non-display one and stopped saving for a display one. I picked up the skill of looking at the screen but working with your hand quite easily.
My advice is that if you’re just getting into digital art, a non display one works perfectly well and it’s a tenth of the price XD
So, just some more input for you, hope this helped!
Without darkness, there is no light. If there was no nighttime, would the stars be as bright?
Hi Kristen!
This sounds right up my alley, it’s similar to the story I’m writing! I’d love to beta read it, I have some experience with writing and critiquing short stories, and fantasy is my main genre.
My email is rose (dot) everdeen (dot) author (at) gmail.com, please do drop me an email to discuss the critique you need!
Without darkness, there is no light. If there was no nighttime, would the stars be as bright?
You know, I had just assumed I was bored, but … what if you’re right? What if it’s that paralysis thingy that weird-brains do when we’re trying to brain something it doesn’t want to brain?
*Nods sagely* I know exactly what you mean. For me, boredom and “I don’t know what the next step is so I can’t do it” often feel the exact same way, which is just my brain balking like a stubborn shetland pony. Cath’s tips of “make the good thing easy and the not-now things hard” is great advice. Sometimes even just… putting my phone behind me while I’m writing will make it too many steps XD So, that kinda technique is effective for me.
Last night, I cracked my knuckles and ended up revising a little of what my friend sent back to me … THEN I KEPT GOING.
I can’t believe it, Rose, but I got 35 scenes outlined. Thirty-five. THIRTY.FIVE. And it was easy. WHAT?? Who even am I?
WHOOOO Good job Natalie!!! That’s amazing!!
Without darkness, there is no light. If there was no nighttime, would the stars be as bright?
Hey Book Dragon! (Awesome name btw XD)
I am absolutely still looking for advice, it’s always welcome! Thank you so much for it, that makes a lot of sense! Thankfully I am definitely an outliner, so that part comes naturally to me at least XD
Thank you, and nice to meet you!
Without darkness, there is no light. If there was no nighttime, would the stars be as bright?
Heya Natalie, it’s Rose again!
I’m positive I’m undiagnosed ADHD, but whatever. Would ADHD make a difference in optimal writing method choices?
Well, short answer, yes XD I’m neurodivergent myself, and it DEFINITELY affects the way I write and my process. On the ADHD front let me drag Cath out of the shadows… @this-is-not-an-alien you know more about this than I do, dear human tornado. Any advice?
For me, discovering my writing process is a combination of trial and error, and stealing friends’ processes and Frankensteining them together into something functional.
For the problem you have, in how much detail do you outline? Do you think it might help to outline very loosely? Like, just the major plot points of three-act/fifteen beat? That way you can still pants in between that, but you have a goal.
Is boredom the main reason why you get stuck, or is it more of a not knowing where to go?
Also, take heart, this is a continuing process of figuring out what works. I don’t think you ever reach optimal writing process, it necessarily has to shift and change with the seasons!
Here’s a video that might help you! It’s about figuring out your writing process, and it might have some good advice.
All he sent back was, “I think the answer to your question is ‘butt time’.” In other words, put your butt in the chair and get to work.
He’s always told me it’s really as easy as that … Butt in chair. GET TO WORK! He said I know everything I need to know. I’m just spending way too much time NOT writing.
Honestly, it’s very good advice. It’s the way I managed to finish my first book XD Just push through, and you will be able to manage it!
Without darkness, there is no light. If there was no nighttime, would the stars be as bright?
YAS YASSSSSSSSS MY ARCH NEMESISSSSSS!!!! ARISE FROM THY COFFIN!!!!!!
*coffin where I was taking a nap bursts open in a shower of pink glitter and I emerge carrying coffee and eating a cupcake*
Your days of ruling this city are over, my personal supervillain!!!
Without darkness, there is no light. If there was no nighttime, would the stars be as bright?
So often my ideas come to me in a single glimpse of a single scene. When I sit down to describe the scene, everything else before and after that scene suddenly appears. The more I write it out, the deeper it goes, and more unfolds.
It’s like a true pantser way of doing things. For YEARS I’ve tried to train myself to plot and write linear and chronologically.
Ah, that’s really cool! I occasionally get the ‘single scene’ ideas, but so far those have always been for short stories! For novels it usually starts with a world or concept idea, and then I plot from there.
I very recently discovered that even though I am very much a plotter for long-form work, I am a pantser when it comes to short-form work. I used to be completely unable to write short stories because I couldn’t ‘come up with all of it’ before writing. Recently, I took those scene glimpses and just sat down and wrote a story in one or two sittings, even without knowing anything about the story itself! It’s been a great joy! It hasn’t made me less of a plotter for long-form work though XD
A very good writer friend said, “I don’t like pantsers. I don’t trust them.” He says it with a smirk because he knows I fight so hard against my pantser ways. He’s a detailed plotter (spends like 2 months outlining before he drafts the first page)
Lollll I relate to that, I both admire and fear pantsers. They do what is impossible for me, plunge into the darkness of an idea with more courage than I could ever manage XD I need to Know Things XD
From that book I gave myself permission to just write the way I write. To just let it flow the way it flows. Because God wired my brain that way.
I’ve fallen in love with writing all over again, and it has been YEARS since I’ve felt this way. It feels like coming home.
I’m so glad you found a way that works for you! Figuring out how your writing process looks is always one of the biggest and hardest parts of writing, but it’s so rewarding!
I also saw you have some short stories on your website! I’ll probably read some of them later, I’m really curious!
How long have you been writing?
Without darkness, there is no light. If there was no nighttime, would the stars be as bright?
I have been summoned from the depths of school-induced digital hibernation!!!!
Hi Natalie, I’m Rose! I’ve been very inactive here recently, but it’s lovely to meet you!
Welll… Gilded Blood jumps wildly between a fun, light “Chaos teenagers on an adventure” fantasy and some extremely dark subjects XD However, overall the tone is pretty light, so I wouldn’t exactly call it a dark fantasy XD
Like Cathy said, a lot of writers here have some very dark subjects they’re handling, so you sure aren’t alone!
I love your story idea, especially the idea of the monsters having once been human, that’s a really interesting concept! How did you come up with it?
Without darkness, there is no light. If there was no nighttime, would the stars be as bright?
Hellooo!!
So, I’m not super well-versed in comics, it’s actually something I’m looking into because I’m going to apply to a comic design course later this year.
But, I do want to recommend Haikyu! It’s a manga and an anime, the writing is AMAZING and so is the art. (That anatomy and perspective, BEAUTIFUL) I love the way the paneling is done, and it shows how to show complicated action shots without confusing the audience.
It’s also clean, which is a great advantage! The fandom is weird and loves shipping everyone, which is gross and weird, so avoid them, but the manga itself doesn’t have any romantic subplots! There’s a very very minor one but it barely gets screentime.
I’m also currently watching Yona of the Dawn, which is clean so far! I haven’t gotten to the manga yet, but I have a Christian friend who read it and she said it’s really good!
I’m also currently reading “The Golden Age” by Cyril Pedrosa and Roxanne Moreil. I haven’t finished it, so I can’t give a good answer on how clean it is, but the art is BEAUTIFUL and the character design is super unique! I’ll tell you how it was once I’ve finished it!
Another comic that’s really beautiful is “Beatrice” by Joris Mertens. It’s a ‘silent’ comic without words, and I haven’t read it attentively yet, I just flipped through, but the art and color use is BEAUTIFUL and it’s great for ‘show don’t tell’.
Another book I recommend is “Making Comics” by Scott McCloud. It explains a lot of things like character design, process, paneling, and all kinds of stuff! It’s comic-style, so it’s easy to follow along and read through! It’s helped me a lot!
Without darkness, there is no light. If there was no nighttime, would the stars be as bright?
Okay, everyone’s advice so far has been great!
Do y’all know of any complex, yet immersive and suspenseful battle/skirmish scenes? Any problems you’ve run into and fixed?
So… none come to mind, except maybe the battle scenes in Skyward, I know you’ve read that one. Brandon Sanderson had a lecture about battle scenes iirc… Something like that, don’t quote me on that XD
It also occurred to me that a long time ago, I wanted to write a newsletter on how sports movies write better battle scenes than actual fantasy writers XD I forgot my main points, but I’ll probably circle back to it someday XD I did have a point…
However, I do have some pointers from the like five times I’ve rewritten my battle scenes, so here goes XD
I know your individual fight scenes are really solid, so I’m not going to expand on that! Everything there still applies to battles.
As for how to handle the bigger scope of things, the best thing that worked for me is to divide and conquer. Break it down into individual scenes and tackle them one at a time.
One caveat is that this works for me, but might not work for someone else. I like a lot of structure and plotting everything, and this technique is informed by that.
It does keep the battle from wandering or dragging.
So, what I usually do is plot a few key turning points, either for the battle at large or the MC specifically. I’m going to use the midpoint battle of Gilded Blood as an example because I just finished writing that and you read it so it’s not a spoiler XD
I think I have two individual fight scenes in that whole battle, but there are a few scenes where Liorah is faced with a problem and has to find a solution.
So, you’re essentially setting up a series of events that all have the structure “catalyst-problem-solution-result” where the result causes the next problem. If you do this, it’ll keep the battle in motion.
For example, you might have a scene where the character is attacked. That’s the catalyst. They’ll die if they don’t do something. That’s the problem. Solution: they defend themselves. Result: The easiest one is ‘they win and move on’ but that hasn’t shifted anything in the battle or for the MC themselves. So, it might be something like ‘they get injured’ or ‘they lose their weapon’ or ‘They’re aided by an ally’.
To keep a view on the larger battle, focus on things the MC can actually see. For example, they might not know the enemy is retreating, but they can see everyone around them is surging forward. They might not notice they’re losing because it’s such chaos, but they might notice there seem to be more enemies.
If you keep up that structure, the emotions will accompany the problems, so they won’t overwhelm the story and make it confusing.
Also, keep in mind your end result for your MC. The battle is supposed to shift something, either for them or for the plot, so make sure that happens.
And to keep everything clear, you can be pretty explicit about the problem and solution. You can pretty much state the problem.
Suspense relies on how well the audience understands the problem and anticipates the solution.
You can have these scenes pretty close together, but in the breaks, it’s a good idea to take the time to throw in a quick description to show if anything has changed in the general battle or any relevant introspection. Though, no need to go too heavy on these, you can get away with neglecting them a bit in a battle XD
Don’t worry about your first draft being really tell-y, battles are like that because they’re complex. Just tell in the first draft, that’s the easiest thing to fix while rewriting.
Maybe, but my brain likes to write everything in order–no filling things in after I write the bare bones. But perhaps I will try it.
I’m the same way, but Cathy’s technique has helped a ton! Something that helped me was to rewrite, so use it as an outline instead of filling in details.
Also, I can give absolutely zero advice on how to come up with good overall battle techniques that are plausible and interesting. Every time I have to do it I pretty much get a headache, I loathe it so XD
Actually I really dislike drafting battles so… take my advice for what it is XD
Without darkness, there is no light. If there was no nighttime, would the stars be as bright?
Whoo! Coolio, I signed up!
Without darkness, there is no light. If there was no nighttime, would the stars be as bright?
Count me in! I’ll try to join in!
Also, tell Merie over on discord about this, it sounds right up her alley, and she’s a great beta-reader!
Without darkness, there is no light. If there was no nighttime, would the stars be as bright?
I’m already over on the discord group, it works way better for me than email! So, that has my vote 😀
Without darkness, there is no light. If there was no nighttime, would the stars be as bright?
Random but today was my 18th birthday!
Congratulations!! I hope you had an awesome day!! Also, this is hilarious to me, it’s my eighteenth birthday tomorrow, you’re exactly one day older than I am XD
Also @emily-waldorf
I LOVED that Tullian entry with Frey! It’s so fascinating that Tullian can feel what Frey does, I can’t wait to see how Frey reacts to that! Though, he’s interacting with Val rn, so I’ll wait until they’re done and then I’ll follow that up 😀
Without darkness, there is no light. If there was no nighttime, would the stars be as bright?
Frey
My regular joke has never worked this well. Mara looks as though she’s seen as ghost. Usually, people just laugh and ignore it for the rest.
”Isaias always talked about miracles. He said they were still possible, but I didn’t believe him. But —“ Mara’s eyes are wide with shock as she gestures toward my legs. They still ache, though it’s slowly fading down to manageable.
Wait, she really believes me? Hadn’t the sarcasm been obvious? It takes everything in my power not to laugh. If I told her gullible had been taken out of the dictionary, she’d go check.
“You never know what’s possible,” I say. I consider it a miracle that I manage to keep my voice even without breaking into laughter. I relish the look of shock on her face.
She frowns and my heart drops. She’s figured it out.
“Why do you need the cane if you’re cured?”
“I keep it around as a manner of self-defense,” I say, somehow managing to keep my face straight throughout. I give a demonstrative sweep at someone imaginary and instantly regret it. The extra weight on my right leg sends another flash of pain through it. I grit my teeth and look down, before managing to flash Mara another grin.
The first grains of doubt are appearing on her face. But before I have the chance to address them, the stone wall beside us cracks, like a bone breaking. I flinch, placing too much weight on my hurting leg again. It’s coming closer, advancing at a speed I instantly tell I won’t be able to manage while walking, not now at least.
I make my decision and sit back down in my wheelchair, my cane still awkwardly splayed across my lap. I flick the locks off the wheels and push, right before the wall collides into us. Mara is strides ahead of me, her eyes wide with alarm.
“The room is shrinking?” she says. It’s the first time I’ve heard her truly rattled. So that’s something that will do it. She doesn’t like small spaces.
I’ve gotten into an odd habit of categorizing other people’s weaknesses. I mentally file this away. Who knows when it’ll come in handy.
“Undoubtedly,” I say. I’m not even surprised at this point, anything can happen here, it seems.
My shoulders ache with how quickly we have to move. I can keep up, but not by much. Mara is ungracefully close to scrambling away.
We hurry into the next room, right as the wall crashes into the doorway with a resounding, final sound. I’m grateful I didn’t get between the walls.
This room isn’t empty. People cluster around something that looks like an elongated stage, their anxiety knotting them together into clumps.
The room is dark, the only light is the artificial glare surrounding the stage.
Mara is wringing her hands, rocking from one foot to the other in her fear. It can’t possibly be that bad.
I grip the rails of my wheelchair. I hate the feeling that something is pushing us from one place to another, writing our stories for us. It has plans, and I don’t want to hear them.
The voice comes from the stones, echoing around every corner of the huge, empty room. The vibrations pulse through my fingertips like electricity, as though my wheelchair is shivering with fear. I shove down the urge to talk to it like it’s a worried beast.
“Well done!”
I don’t want any compliments from a disembodied voice that’s shoving us around. The vibrations seem to bounce around my chest, making me feel sick to my stomach.
“For this next challenge, I’ll be requiring each of you to part with your most prized belonging – and no, money doesn’t count. Refusal to comply will result in mandatory participation in my upcoming fashion show.”
The lights flicker on, cutting through my eyes and seeming to lodge directly in my brain. I close my eyes, but the glare remains, and I cover them for good measure. The headache throbs through me and I mentally curse. That’s all I need, another headache.
Prized belonging? The phrase bounces around my mind, without sticking to anything. What do I value most? I don’t even know. I’m not that attached to my things. If I lose something, it’ll be inconvenient, but that’s it. Everything is replaceable, after all.
The names of others buzz around me, voices echoing it, complying or not. I don’t much care. I have myself to focus on.
“Frey Spurling.” The voice is as sharp as the light. I finally open my eyes. I will face whatever comes next, and I will win. I don’t lose.
“Yes?”
“Make your choice?”
“What choice?”
When in doubt, play dumb. That voice is so unnerving.
“You are perfectly aware of what I mean.”
“I am?”
Don’t agree to anything, and don’t give them ammunition.
“If you don’t comply, it will be assumed you choose for the fashion show.”
I run my hand through my hair. Now it probably stands up in strange places.
“Right, fashion show. What idiot chose that anyway? That’s the most juvenile punishment I can imagine.”
“The other choice is your most prized possession.”
I flick my hand, dismissing the statement.
“I caught that. But really, I believe this arrangement won’t work for me.”
“You’re in no place to argue.”
I knew I wasn’t, but that had never stopped me before. I could and would argue to my last breath.
“I’m glad you asked why,” I say, undisturbed. I steeple my fingers and purse my lips, thinking over how to phrase this. I take my time about it, the silence thick in the room.
“The ‘fashion show’ would be a far harsher punishment for me than for any of the others,” I say. “For the others, it’s mild humiliation at worst. For me, it would cause considerable pain in any case, if I can even get on the stage.”
“I’ll help!” Someone chirps from the wings of the stage. He’s peeping around the corner, clearly eavesdropping. He has bubblegum-pink hair and an excited expression. He reminds me of an over-eager puppy. I shoot him a glare. I didn’t want help, I wanted to argue.
“As you’ve heard, you will receive help from the others, therefor this argument is invalid. Considering the fact that you have not complied, your choice will be made for you.”
A ramp slides out on the far side of the stage. I could make it up there with my wheelchair, but I don’t want to. My face feels hot, mostly with anger, but at least partially with humiliation. I hate being forced into a situation like this. I was going to find some way to take back control, and the voice would be sorry.
@calidris XDWithout darkness, there is no light. If there was no nighttime, would the stars be as bright?
