Fanficwriting meme
Aug. 14th, 2016 10:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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tellshannon815 I have done similar memes before, but I always think they are fun. Please snag, I’d love to read your answers!
1) is there a story you’re holding off on writing for some reason? Yes. A lot of what I write are written as a way to deal with stuff. After the death of my niece I have written several fics that that deals with grief and loss are real. But I outlined a Peter Pan fic where Peter Pan is a child who dies at birth and his mother’s way to cope is to make up a story that he has really just run away. Way too close to home- I will never really write that story. But apart from that I don’t purposefully hold off writing something.
2) what work of yours, if any, are you the most embarrassed about existing? Not embarrassed, but my first fics were very dark and violent, which, at the time, was very therapeutic for me to write. And as I know a lot of people feel uncomfortable about the subjects and I feel protective about them, I only feel comfortable having them here on my LJ and not on any archives out there.
3) what order do you write in? front of book to back? chronological? favorite scenes first? something else? Here and there. I usually have a very clear idea of a scene of a piece of monologue and I start with writing that. Then I jump around a lot, writing a bit here and there. Usually the dialogue comes first. At one point I start to write chronologically, though I still skip bits. Then I go back to the beginning and write front to back, usually several times over until the fic is done.
4) favorite character you’ve written I like to write bad guys, which I guess anyone who had read my fics has figured out. I think I have had most fun writing Delgado!Master.
5) character you were most surprised to end up writing I don’t think I’ve ever been surprised for wanting to write a certain character. I’m still pretty surprised that I have managed to write explicit slash, though.
6) something you would go back and change in your writing that it’s too late/complicated to change now Nothing that springs to mind.
7) when asked, are you embarrassed or enthusiastic to tell people that you write? Hmm, IRL only my husband, M, K and C know I write fanfic, and only M had ever read any of it. But it’s pretty common knowledge that I love to write and I can be very enthusiastic about the non-fictional articles I have written. Online, well, that’s you, folks!
8) favorite genre to write I find genre hard to pinpoint, but I write character driven fics, mostly with a hefty dose of angst. Quite a bit of darkfics, but I’ve also written stuff that is just for fun.
9) what, if anything, do you do for inspiration? Nothing in particular, but taking long walks with the dogs is a good way to figure out plotlines.
10) write in silence or with background noise? with people or alone? Preferably in silence and alone. But I can write with people around and don’t mind if people talk or watch telly. But I can’t write at all with music on.
11) what aspect of your writing do you think has most improved since you started writing? My grammar! As I’m not a native speaker of English I know this is my weakest point, but also something I spend a lot of time trying to get as good as possible. I still need improvement, but I do feel my language flows so much better now.
12) your weaknesses as an author I’m not good with plots. I mostly write shorter, character driven fics and even when I write something longer, the plots is fairly simple. I almost always keep to one POV and only one plotline. I know some readers think I end my stories too abruptly, but that’s usually on purpose- I like somewhat open endings and don’t always feel the need for a happy ending.
13) your strengths as an author I think I have a pretty good knack for getting a certain character. Sometimes I manages to write something that’s emotionally gripping.
14) do you make playlists for your current wips? Not as a rule, but it has happen. I also often feel that one particular song “belongs” to a particular fic in my mind.
15) why did you start writing? I have always made up stories, but I started to write completely out of the blue in 2004. I stumbled over this promo pic of Jason Isaacs as Captain Hook and suddenly I was writing Peter Pan-fanfic. It took me some time to realise it was actually theraphy for me. Writing helped unlock memories of a date reape that happened when I was eighteen and which I managed to suppress, though it warped me up in a lot of other ways. When I started to write I was very deep into a depression and writing did as much to help me deal with and eventually get better that medication and therapy did.
16) are there any characters who haunt you? Not characters so much as stories. The first fics I wrote couldn’t be written fast enough- I scribbled on anything and there never seemed to be enough time to write it all down. Some stories comes to me late at night and I can’t sleep until I get up and at least write down a synopsis. The story which had hounded me the most in the last year is Professor Keller, but also Darkness and Light, Solace and the Mummy fic I’m currently writing.
17) if you could give your fledgling author self any advice, what would it be? Don’t wait with starting to write until you are 33...
18) were there any works you read that affected you so much that it influenced your writing style? what were they? Oh, absolutely, though not always consciously. Perfect would never have been written if I hadn’t read John Fowles’ The Collector as a teenager. The brothel scene in Man’s Greatest Joy owns it existence to the depiction of the brother in Erica jong’s Fanny Hill (though more so in its original version.) Sometimes I notice that I change my writing style a little bit after reading something that I have liked.
19) when it comes to more complicated narratives, how do you keep track of outlines, characters, development, timeline, etc.? I don’t really write complicated narratives, but I often write an outline for a story so I won’t forget what I want to put in it.
20) do you write in long sit-down sessions or in little spurts? Often snatched time, but even if I have a longer period to write in, I rarely write for more than 15-30 minutes on the same thing. Then I either do a break or write on something else for a while.
21) what do you think when you read over your older work? Some things are cringe-worthy, but surprisingly often I think my old stories are quite good. I’m especially proud of The Haunting of Mrs. Darling and Silence, which are among the first fics I ever wrote.
22) are there any subjects that make you uncomfortable to write? Loads. It’s changeable too, I have written things I will never touch again.
23) any obscure life experiences that you feel have helped your writing? Nothing obscure, I think, just life. I do draw a lot of my own feelings when I write and I’ve noticed I often leak my own life philosophy into my protagonist: that you are the only one who can save yourself.
24) have you ever become an expert on something you previously knew nothing about, in order to better a scene or a story? No, not really. I do research, but I can’t say writing has made me an expert. Rather the other way around- I often incorporate something that I know a lot about. I often mention scent, for example, and as I have an interest in perfume history, my characters always smell period appropriate. Last thing I did research on was 17th century remedies for poisoning.
25) copy/paste a few sentences or a short paragraph that you’re particularly proud of
“Tell me about time,” she asks him as they sit in the garden. And he speaks about the infinity of it and above them the stars moves and time moves there as well. Here is past, present and future visible, flickering over the sky like auroras, only so much more. She leans against him and closes her eyes and then it doesn’t matter what colour the velvet under her cheek has. She can’t remember anymore how Tremas’ voice sounded, but she pretends that she does. The Master rests his chin against her head and she supposes he wishes that she is someone else as well. Neither one of them is what the other one truly wants, but each other are the only thing they can get. Sometimes that has to be enough./Solace
tellshannon815 I have done similar memes before, but I always think they are fun. Please snag, I’d love to read your answers!1) is there a story you’re holding off on writing for some reason? Yes. A lot of what I write are written as a way to deal with stuff. After the death of my niece I have written several fics that that deals with grief and loss are real. But I outlined a Peter Pan fic where Peter Pan is a child who dies at birth and his mother’s way to cope is to make up a story that he has really just run away. Way too close to home- I will never really write that story. But apart from that I don’t purposefully hold off writing something.
2) what work of yours, if any, are you the most embarrassed about existing? Not embarrassed, but my first fics were very dark and violent, which, at the time, was very therapeutic for me to write. And as I know a lot of people feel uncomfortable about the subjects and I feel protective about them, I only feel comfortable having them here on my LJ and not on any archives out there.
3) what order do you write in? front of book to back? chronological? favorite scenes first? something else? Here and there. I usually have a very clear idea of a scene of a piece of monologue and I start with writing that. Then I jump around a lot, writing a bit here and there. Usually the dialogue comes first. At one point I start to write chronologically, though I still skip bits. Then I go back to the beginning and write front to back, usually several times over until the fic is done.
4) favorite character you’ve written I like to write bad guys, which I guess anyone who had read my fics has figured out. I think I have had most fun writing Delgado!Master.
5) character you were most surprised to end up writing I don’t think I’ve ever been surprised for wanting to write a certain character. I’m still pretty surprised that I have managed to write explicit slash, though.
6) something you would go back and change in your writing that it’s too late/complicated to change now Nothing that springs to mind.
7) when asked, are you embarrassed or enthusiastic to tell people that you write? Hmm, IRL only my husband, M, K and C know I write fanfic, and only M had ever read any of it. But it’s pretty common knowledge that I love to write and I can be very enthusiastic about the non-fictional articles I have written. Online, well, that’s you, folks!
8) favorite genre to write I find genre hard to pinpoint, but I write character driven fics, mostly with a hefty dose of angst. Quite a bit of darkfics, but I’ve also written stuff that is just for fun.
9) what, if anything, do you do for inspiration? Nothing in particular, but taking long walks with the dogs is a good way to figure out plotlines.
10) write in silence or with background noise? with people or alone? Preferably in silence and alone. But I can write with people around and don’t mind if people talk or watch telly. But I can’t write at all with music on.
11) what aspect of your writing do you think has most improved since you started writing? My grammar! As I’m not a native speaker of English I know this is my weakest point, but also something I spend a lot of time trying to get as good as possible. I still need improvement, but I do feel my language flows so much better now.
12) your weaknesses as an author I’m not good with plots. I mostly write shorter, character driven fics and even when I write something longer, the plots is fairly simple. I almost always keep to one POV and only one plotline. I know some readers think I end my stories too abruptly, but that’s usually on purpose- I like somewhat open endings and don’t always feel the need for a happy ending.
13) your strengths as an author I think I have a pretty good knack for getting a certain character. Sometimes I manages to write something that’s emotionally gripping.
14) do you make playlists for your current wips? Not as a rule, but it has happen. I also often feel that one particular song “belongs” to a particular fic in my mind.
15) why did you start writing? I have always made up stories, but I started to write completely out of the blue in 2004. I stumbled over this promo pic of Jason Isaacs as Captain Hook and suddenly I was writing Peter Pan-fanfic. It took me some time to realise it was actually theraphy for me. Writing helped unlock memories of a date reape that happened when I was eighteen and which I managed to suppress, though it warped me up in a lot of other ways. When I started to write I was very deep into a depression and writing did as much to help me deal with and eventually get better that medication and therapy did.
16) are there any characters who haunt you? Not characters so much as stories. The first fics I wrote couldn’t be written fast enough- I scribbled on anything and there never seemed to be enough time to write it all down. Some stories comes to me late at night and I can’t sleep until I get up and at least write down a synopsis. The story which had hounded me the most in the last year is Professor Keller, but also Darkness and Light, Solace and the Mummy fic I’m currently writing.
17) if you could give your fledgling author self any advice, what would it be? Don’t wait with starting to write until you are 33...
18) were there any works you read that affected you so much that it influenced your writing style? what were they? Oh, absolutely, though not always consciously. Perfect would never have been written if I hadn’t read John Fowles’ The Collector as a teenager. The brothel scene in Man’s Greatest Joy owns it existence to the depiction of the brother in Erica jong’s Fanny Hill (though more so in its original version.) Sometimes I notice that I change my writing style a little bit after reading something that I have liked.
19) when it comes to more complicated narratives, how do you keep track of outlines, characters, development, timeline, etc.? I don’t really write complicated narratives, but I often write an outline for a story so I won’t forget what I want to put in it.
20) do you write in long sit-down sessions or in little spurts? Often snatched time, but even if I have a longer period to write in, I rarely write for more than 15-30 minutes on the same thing. Then I either do a break or write on something else for a while.
21) what do you think when you read over your older work? Some things are cringe-worthy, but surprisingly often I think my old stories are quite good. I’m especially proud of The Haunting of Mrs. Darling and Silence, which are among the first fics I ever wrote.
22) are there any subjects that make you uncomfortable to write? Loads. It’s changeable too, I have written things I will never touch again.
23) any obscure life experiences that you feel have helped your writing? Nothing obscure, I think, just life. I do draw a lot of my own feelings when I write and I’ve noticed I often leak my own life philosophy into my protagonist: that you are the only one who can save yourself.
24) have you ever become an expert on something you previously knew nothing about, in order to better a scene or a story? No, not really. I do research, but I can’t say writing has made me an expert. Rather the other way around- I often incorporate something that I know a lot about. I often mention scent, for example, and as I have an interest in perfume history, my characters always smell period appropriate. Last thing I did research on was 17th century remedies for poisoning.
25) copy/paste a few sentences or a short paragraph that you’re particularly proud of
“Tell me about time,” she asks him as they sit in the garden. And he speaks about the infinity of it and above them the stars moves and time moves there as well. Here is past, present and future visible, flickering over the sky like auroras, only so much more. She leans against him and closes her eyes and then it doesn’t matter what colour the velvet under her cheek has. She can’t remember anymore how Tremas’ voice sounded, but she pretends that she does. The Master rests his chin against her head and she supposes he wishes that she is someone else as well. Neither one of them is what the other one truly wants, but each other are the only thing they can get. Sometimes that has to be enough./Solace
