I enjoy reading stories as much as the next person and I get so many requests to read fanfics on Balto Source, however, alot of them, although they have good ideas, are not fun or easy to read.
Now, I know I'm not the only one who wants to read a fic, but can't because either the language is butchered or there are no paragraphs or no dialogue. This will be a tutorial for those new (or old) story (or fanfic) writers out there who want to make their writing better.
I'm no Shakespeare when it comes to writing, but I know what good writing is, and although that is based on opinion, I still don't think a tutorial would hurt anybody.
1) There are three big parts to stories.
Narration - Narration of a story moves a piece of writing from point A to point B. A story can be told in the first person (using I, you, we, they, etc.) or in the third person (using he, she, it, etc.) But choosing which point of view to tell the story in is the real question.
--A story told in the first person POV (point of view) is more effective when it comes to how the main character feels. The reader gets a better idea of what the protagonist is thinking, however, the reader doesn't know what other characters are thinking (although there are some exceptions) and is very limited to sight and action and basically knowing what's going on "elsewhere."
--A story told in the third person POV gives a wider range of thought and does not have to limit itself to the main character's thoughts alone. This POV tends to be a bit weak when it comes to focusing on an individual's personal thoughts, but is also found to be easier to write in by authors.
Description - Humans tend to rely on their sense of sight to help them describe something. And even though that seems effective, it is rather boring to just write what the character sees. When describing something in a story use the five senses, doing so will give the reader a better feeling and view as to what the character is experiencing. Description can cover sights, sounds, tastes, textures, and smells, so to make your writing more interesting use your senses.
Dialogue - A plentiful amount of dialogue exchanged between characters can make writing and reading fly by a lot faster. Instead of describing something that a character said to another, just use quotations (" ") and have the character say whatever it needs to say instead. It can go both ways. For example, if a character is going to repeat itself, you can just state what it was the character was repeating.
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Accents - Don't be afraid to mispell words for a character if they have an accent. For example, if your character has a German accent, you can replace W's in words with V because that's how a German W is pronounced (ex. the name Wolfgang will be pronounced "Volfgang"). Or say you're writing dialogue for Boris, feel free to add extra R's in his words to emphasize the rolling of his tongue when he speaks.
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Rhythms - Dialogue should link together like poetry. Make sure that when you write an exchange of dialogue, that the characters stay on subject with each other (again, there are exceptions) but at the same time, don't make the characters repeat each other (again, there CAN be exceptions). If a character is one who always speaks in riddles or speaks in a very wise or wistful way, take the time to think about what the point the character is trying to make and find different and unique ways in which the character can make the statement. Rhythms of dialogue also cover HOW the character speaks. For example, if a character speaks with an accent (for instance, if the character ends it's verbs with "-in' " instead of "-ing") be sure that you keep the accent of that character throughout the story (exceptions are basically only if the character is trying to make an accent, but keeps falling in and out of it).
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Slang - Slang can be used throughout the story to give the reader a better idea about the character speaking. If you're afraid that your reader will not understand the slang being used, it will help to add an asterisk (*) after the word, and then somewhere after (maybe at the bottom of the page) type another asterisk and after it, give the definition (
be sure to cite your sources!) To avoid butchered language, be sure you're using the slang CORRECTLY.
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Dialect - To help expand a character's language, particularly if they're more fluent in a different one, it is not uncommon to put random words from a different language in their dialogue. If the character was more comfortable speaking their "original" language, it will feel more real to the reader.
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A note on profanity: Profanity is actually quite healthy in stories and fics. It helps emphasize if the character is rude or angry and gives a stronger feeling about the character to the reader (i mean seriously, how can you tell if a character is angry when it's saying "Gosh darn it down to heck!"?) But there is such thing as using too much profanity, and depending on your targetted audience, it's best to keep profanity at a (reasonable) minimum.
2) PLOT: A story NEEDS a plot, which consists of conflict, a climax, and a denoument (the final outcome). This is the most important ingredient to a story. If there is no conflict (meaning, no problem for the main character or characters to encounter) then the story will basically not be interesting to read at all.
--The conflict should be made a big deal in the story, and if that is not emphasized enough, the reader will not care about the character's problems, thinking they're not important enough, etc.
--The climax does not necessarily need to be in the middle of the story. The climax can be written anywhere in the story: the beginning, the middle, or even the end. It makes the story more interesting for the reader if the climax of your story is placed somewhere unexpected. For example, the climax can especially be at the beginning of the story, and then have the character flashback to the events which lead up to it.
--The denoument also does not have to take very long to complete. They can technically be of any length. For instance, if the events that happened in the story really effected the character's way of thinking, then the writer will want to take all the space necessary to get the point across. The finale can also end abruptly and leave the reader with plenty of room to think about how the story ended.
3) Description (cont): Description was already covered earlier, but there are two types of description that all writers, especially new ones, should keep in mind.
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Thin Description - A very healthy type for the reader. Thin description gives just enough information for the reader to know what's going on. It gives the reader more room to think (which is a VERY good thing, trust me). Don't make the description too thin!
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Overdescription - This type of description is actually quite common for new writers. Overdescribing something tells the reader too much and basically gives them no room to think or wonder. Overdescribing something gives the reader no room to picture their own setting for the story (which helps them relate more to the story and become more interested) Overdescription also takes too long to both write and read and therefore makes the story unenjoyable, even for stories with great plotlines.
4) Metaphor - comparing two dissimilar things, we get the reader to see them in a different way. This is an excellent way to describe something.
--Ex. I dropped it like it was hot. (not the best example, but you get the idea)
5) Simile - comparing two things that are alike. Describes things using the words "like" or "as" (another good way to describe)
--Ex. The fat cat was like a big ball of fur.
6) GOOD GRAMMER - Just a quick note, it also helps if you're good at speaking the language you're writing in. If you're going to end up buthcering another language, it's best if you just stick to what you know. Meaning if you can barely understand this (if at all) you should not be writing in English.
So that concludes my tutorial to story/fic writing. I hope these rules and tips help writers everywhere! And I hope to see an improvement of writing in the fanfic section.
THANK YOU! About time! LOL This is a good wealth of information for anyone writing just about anything! NICE JOB CAT!
