A Short Guide to Writing Fantasy

[dragoncmd]

A Short Guide of Common Writing Mistakes.

 

 

 

Firstly, a disclaimer; I reserve the right to make all the mistakes listed in writing this guide. This is meant to be a list of things to avoid when possible, but remember, any rule can be broken as long as it is understood. This guide will concentrate on sci-fi/fantasy, and poems because they are the two most common genres in the Varrock Library.

 

 

 

1. Spelling and grammar.

 

Try to correct spelling/grammar errors as much as possible. If possible, get an editor, though itÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢s not imperative. Read everything through out loud at least once before posting, its just not fun to read something that has obviously been written by someone with no grasp of the English language (ironically, that includes more native English speakers than foreigners).

 

a. Capitalize ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãâ¦Ã¢â¬ÅIÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬ÃâÃ

[Geordiequeen]

There is actually no way to write poety and stories, poems do not have to Rhyme and stories can be wrote in any way that suits the authour. I have seen many potentially good stories go down the drain because the authour has tried to write how everyone else writes. In my opinion if you are going to write a story or a poem just for the fun of it the only thing you need to watch is your spelling, grammar and punctuation and obviously have fun writing it.

[archimage_a]

A short guide to READING fantasy

 

 

 

1. Spelling and grammar.

 

Try to correct spelling/grammar errors as much as possible. If possible, get an editor, though itÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢s not imperative. Read everything through out loud at least once before posting, its just not fun to read something that has obviously been written by someone with no grasp of the English language (ironically, that includes more native English speakers than foreigners).

 

a. Capitalize ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãâ¦Ã¢â¬ÅIÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬ÃâÃ

[Xewleer]

Were not as stupid as you seem claim we are. Especially me!

 

 

 

Now, I am incredibly offended with this! People can write fiction in any way they darn please! I noticed that you said something about languages...

 

 

 

I have a personal affinity for languages, thus said, I take a perverse enjoyment out of butchering the English language for my own gain. My own stories have this quality to them, examples.

 

 

 

Toosh: surfer dude like things, righteously/dude etc. added at random intervals.

 

 

 

Kun: Modern English

 

 

 

Zai: "N" gets a "aga" added, if double, then on the last "n" hard endings get a "y"

 

 

 

Karmand: Words that start with a vowel get a "H" added to it. (H'I)

 

 

 

Damath: A mix of modern and middle English, depending on the breeding of the sayer.

 

 

 

I have quite a bit of others too! A writer's style is his soul! And no one in your position has the right to detract from that! I admit that not all people have a way with words. But those who try, those who attempt the best they can do, are good enough for these forums

[Zonorhc]

You forgot to add a section on pacing and suspension of disbelief.

 

 

 

Personal styles are all well and good, but that doesn't stop some styles being flat out inappropriate for prose. A lot of the stuff here lacks structure and is simply too hard to take seriously.

[archimage_a]

However part of writing is experimenting. You know what you mean so thats what you write. If you try to write something interesting the chances are it will be boring. If you try to write down something you don't know the chances are that you will change view points and make 'tomes' of mistakes.

 

 

 

Most of the time people write because they have something to say, and decide to write it, post it, and forget about it. Yeah it clogs the forum but thats what happens. Very are few stories that actually grab you on here, and sustain that the whole way though, most of the time they either grab you at the beginning and get boring, or they start mildly interesting and stay that way.

 

 

 

Also there is no real way to write a story. If you try to reduce English down to a set of key skills then you get vague skills like Suspence. Suspence is great to have in a story but for some people its just dragging it out and for others its just story. The author has to write a story that is relative to what they feel, not what the reader feels. So they write a story and move on. The people who are publishers by profession don't sit down write a story and its a master piece, most of the time its written page by page with people checking them, or the author having a really good sense of the world. People who post on here just want to write a story, and post it. They don't want to spend two years of their lives writing a novel, just to give it out freely.

 

 

 

Alot of writing takes time to develop and can't be repeated. Something like the "I have a Dream" Speech(Ok not techniquely a story but it is a narration so...) the term 'I have a Dream' is that powerful and bold, but if you use it again its just a quote or slight humor, its not got the same effect. If you try to use a variation it loses its meaning or is not as effective. Not so much down to the line, but down to the whole script, the script is built around it like a bridge around the keystone. Take one out of the other and you have a lump of stone.

 

 

 

The same with a style. If you try to write a shakespearn play, the chances are you will either write a different play, or you will write a close copy of one of the original plays. This is down to the story being Shakespearn so it has a conatation, and down to the fact that you are not Shakespeare, so to write in the same style and have the same writing skills in the same places is almost impossible. The same way that if you tryed to build a bridge in the style of the Romans, you wouldn't get a Roman bridge, you would get a modern variant, even if you followed it exactly.

 

 

 

 

 

So yeah. Have things like Dialogue in a guide, but remember that it can't be exact. If you try to follow the rules exactly you end up with something your not happy with, and readers don't like any more than anything else.

 

 

 

P.S. Sorry for the long and repeative posts.

[dragoncmd]

I was going to bother posting again because of the overwhelmingly negative response, but I think I understand what archi is trying to say now. First, Zonorhc, I would have included it, but then again I said this was a SHORT guide, that would take multiple pages.

 

 

 

Second, Xewleer, seems to have missed my first paragraph where I said, "any rule can be broken as long as it is understood" I would say your stories show an understanding. You said, "A writer's style is his soul!" And I would agree with that. Nothing I said should detract from personal style in any way. Misspellings aren't misspellings if they emphasize a strange pronunciation. Also, poetry is like music, its definition is so vague, almost anything can be poetry. I am trying to stress that it is importance of showing the reader how it is meant to be read.

 

 

 

Archimage, I think I understand what your trying to say, but I don't understand how it relates to the guide. These are more general rules than any sort of guide telling people how to write.

 

 

 

Any suggestions on how to change it?

[archimage_a]

A short guide to READING fantasy

 

 

 

There is always two sides to a story, unless it is 1D and can't stand up(In otherwords....rubbish).

 

Part of the problem is people can't write the best stories ever...just because they can't. The second part of the problem is that people can't read stories without thinking:

 

That was really good, they covered everything so there is no point in replying.

 

OR

 

That was really bad, but I only have five minutes so I'll just say its bad.

 

 

 

I am not saying that all stories are great but some stories aren't...planned in the best way possible. The Author is just as in suspence as the reader, they want to know what is going to happen, and because of that...bits are missed out, or just rushed. Usually the story makes sense, it just needs to be read twice.

[Xewleer]

You are rgiht, I misunderstanded the disclaimer... but I still think I made some good points... I think I should start to write in elvish...