Writing Stack Exchange
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1500 questions
21
votes
9 answers

What are some bad ways to subvert tropes?

I recently came across something I wrote in 4th or 5th grade, where the MCs, a girl and a boy, were superheroes. One wore a blue costume with knives, and the other wore a pink one with flowers... BUT PSYCH! The girl wore the blue one! And the boy…
tryin
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3 answers

Why am I getting a strange double quote (“) in Open Office instead of the ordinary one (")?

Why am I getting a strange double quote (“) in Open Office instead of the ordinary one (")? Every time I type the double quote, I get the weird version instead of the ordinary one. How do I get the normal one instead when I type it? Is there a way…
Sayaman
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21
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11 answers

Avoiding cliches when writing gods

When writing fictional polytheisms, it's tempting to draw inspiration from the existing ones. In ancient religions (I'm mainly thinking of the Greek/Latin, Egyptian and Norse pantheons) there are some common tropes and similarities. They all have a…
Liquid
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21
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7 answers

How do you earn the reader's trust?

Recently, I have stumbled upon a problem. After releasing an issue, I think that I failed to earn the trust of my readers. My analysis is that they did not have enough faith in me to make the "right choices" about my story. Let me explain: One of…
Sasugasm
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21
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6 answers

Is there a writing software that you can sort scenes like slides in PowerPoint?

I generally use PowerPoint for outlining my scenes (prose, not script). I put a general description of what the scene is on the slide, and then give more details in the notes section. I like that I can see all the scenes and the flow of the story in…
anonymouswombat
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21
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6 answers

Is it okay to majorly distort historical facts while writing a fiction story?

Suppose A is a famous historical character with a known history of emotional attachment with a particular set of people. If I would want to write a fictional story about character A that might involve distortion of the actual incidents of her/his…
Karan Desai
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21
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8 answers

What should be the ideal length of sentences in a blog post for ease of reading?

I have heard many times that you should always keep the sentence length to the minimum as possible, as it makes reading easy, fast and more important understandable to readers. I'm wondering: What should be the ideal length threshold to follow for a…
Prasad_Joshi
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21
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9 answers

Every character has a name - does this lead to too many named characters?

My tendency when writing is to give every character a name. Even the most minor ones. It says something about a nobleman when he knows every guard and stablehand by name, and it's something I want. So it's never "a guard" - it's always "Sergeant…
Galastel supports GoFundMonica
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21
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7 answers

Can you have too many story arcs running at the same time?

I've written about 15k words of my story now and the plot is developing nicely. Perhaps a bit too nicely. I have about a dozen of named characters which all have something interesting to do in the next part of the story. They will separately add…
Totumus Maximus
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5 answers

How to add depth to writing - turn a story into a book

I've had a few 'great ideas' for books. I'm a big sci-fi fan, especially Michael Crichton. I'm not sure if that's relevant but there it is. I want to write a full length book, not a short story, a full length hundreds of pages long book. I draw up a…
user6916458
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11 answers

How to derive a first sentence from a story?

There is much advice out there on "how to write a killer opening line". Usually these blog posts or how-to-write book chapters list examples of first sentences from recognized masterworks or group them into categories such as: A statement of…
user29032
21
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13 answers

How to make side-characters look competent next to the chosen one?

I'm writing a storyline for a game where the forces of evil have humanity cornered. Truly everything seems lost, that is, until our main character decides to step in. Let's call him Bob. The Chosen. Bob is extremely strong and has a special ability…
Not A Vampire
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10 answers

What is the most fundamental advice when it comes to writing?

Looking back on your career as a writer, what is the most fundamental piece of advice you wish you had known about – or that you had taken to heart – when you set out to become a writer? Before you answer, please note the career tag and the absence…
user29032
21
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9 answers

Is there a rule of thumb about the number of pages a work of fiction should have?

To be considered a "real" book, is there a rule of thumb about the number of pages one should have? If it has too few then people call it a short story (e.g., Fahrenheit 451) and if it has too many then it's either a Magnum Opus or split into…
Michael Stum
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How to prevent turning off the reader at first with a protagonist with unlikeable traits but that becomes better later on?

I have a story where the protagonist, who is a warrior meant to be the story's hero, has several unlikable traits. He is proud, kind of cold, has a hatred for the people of the enemy State (without exceptions, which makes him support war and sees no…
Yuuza
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