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How do you guys feel about using the first few paragraphs of a story just to create a setting and give some basic character details? Is that like, a bad story structure choice?
Friday, 11-Dec-15 00:07:04 UTC from web-
@spots it's hard to say without an actual example. most of the books I have generally start with a place and a year, and describe the initial setting the story begins with, then delves into the specifics when appropriate
Friday, 11-Dec-15 00:12:17 UTC from web-
@merrytiffmas In what I'm doing I felt like it'd be best to set the stage, if you will, but it might just be my personal preference to have all the details right away
Friday, 11-Dec-15 00:19:00 UTC from web-
@spots I'd start by compromising setting detail for stuff that will really grab the reader's attention from the start; those two things may or may not coincide. Once they're into the bulk of the story, then it's safer to include the nitty-gritty as and when it becomes relevant
Friday, 11-Dec-15 00:25:27 UTC from web-
@merrytiffmas That sounds fair, I think a part of the reason some older stuff I've done seems more boring looking back is because I got a little too detail heavy in the beginning when I didn't need to be
Friday, 11-Dec-15 00:31:28 UTC from web-
@spots I think anyone would criticise their old work if they revisited it, since people improve all the time, and also we just intrinsically hate everything we've ever done after a while. Just by writing lots and pointing out what you didn't do quite so well, you'll improve exponentionally in a short amount of time
Friday, 11-Dec-15 00:34:38 UTC from web-
@merrytiffmas Looking back is almost a motivation for me in a sense, like I can look back and it sort of gives me that inspiration to do better than I did last time, because there's certainly room for improvement and who's to say I couldn't have improved
Friday, 11-Dec-15 00:40:56 UTC from web-
Friday, 11-Dec-15 00:41:17 UTC from web
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@spots Well, structurally whether it would be an effective choice would likely depend on where you're planning to go from there. Above all else your opening should grab your readers attention, but it should also provide requisite context. What kind of story are you trying to write? Is it in a modern, familiar setting that can be explained through extraneous details as opposed to exposition, or are there idiosyncrasies that make your world unique that need to be told to the reader? And if so, if there a way to show them those details? Your perspective is also important when it comes to relaying details about your characters to an audience. First and third person perspectives don't just change the pronouns, but also have a crucial effect on how the story itself is told (an omniscient narrator will generally be a lot more unbiased whereas seeing the story through a specific character's viewpoint will fundamentally change how the world is seen by the audience.
Friday, 11-Dec-15 00:18:29 UTC from web-
@noelnarwhal jesus christ tyler why are you so constructively helpful all of the time
Friday, 11-Dec-15 00:20:31 UTC from web-
@bowbow I just like giving advice and helping out when I'm able to. It's the least I can do. http://rainbowdash.net/attachment/830133
Friday, 11-Dec-15 00:27:27 UTC from web
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@noelnarwhal I decided to use an omniscient 3rd person POV for this story, partially because I'm working on exploring and setting characters apart as people and I feel like that would give me more an opportunity to explore that, and I feel like it would be the best option for the narrative at the same time
Friday, 11-Dec-15 00:28:52 UTC from web-
@spots Yeah, you'll see 3rd person in a lot of world driven works where characters act as disparate forces against one another (Phillip K. Dick's The Man in the High Castle immediately comes to mind when I think of books like this)
Friday, 11-Dec-15 00:34:21 UTC from web-
@noelnarwhal I've tried out different points of view and I usually go with first person. I think it would be nice to work on my skills in this area as well as with these other areas with the knowledge I've gained since my last time writing
Friday, 11-Dec-15 00:41:18 UTC from web-
@spots Yeah, I tend to write in first person a lot because lots of my stories are character driven and that lets me stretch out my internal voice, but lots of my favourite authors frequently use the third person perspective. Trying out and experimenting with different styles of writing is a great way to become more comfortable with your storytelling craft.
Friday, 11-Dec-15 00:44:16 UTC from web
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