Story help

[Mr.Squishy]

First of all, I checked the search bar and it seemed okay.
Alright, with that out of the way, let's move on to the issue at hand, shall we?
I'm a writer, and I frankly love it. What I don't love, though is writer's block. Even so, I've just got out of a writer's block now, and I've long felt a story brewing in my head. The problem is, I'm having trouble imagining the characters without making them stereotypes, and mixing elements I like as well. I for example want to try and mix sci-fi and fantasy. However, I really really don't want to use a lot of cliches or unnecessary tropes. Using characters solely as devices doesn't appeal to me either, because I like fleshed out and realistic characters and hate seeing good potential for one being thrown away. There's another problem of mine, I have trouble making characters realistic and distinct, I feel, and I swear to god I have some strand of ADD or so- oooh shiny! *jumps on a penny*....anywho <_< I also want to have little to no fourth wall, but I still don't want my characters to just be "actors" if that makes any sense...

TL;DR: Hard to get in the concentrated zone, needs fleshed out characters and how to make them, wants to avoid cliches

Help would be much appreciated!


PS: Sorry if there's been some sort of thread about this before or if it is against rules or norms here...i figure as long as it's not racism, trolling, VS thread or a halo thread I'm in the clear.

 

[Vanguard_Ex]

First of all, I checked the search bar and it seemed okay.
Alright, with that out of the way, let's move on to the issue at hand, shall we?
I'm a writer, and I frankly love it. What I don't love, though is writer's block. Even so, I've just got out of a writer's block now, and I've long felt a story brewing in my head. The problem is, I'm having trouble imagining the characters without making them stereotypes, and mixing elements I like as well. I for example want to try and mix sci-fi and fantasy. However, I really really don't want to use a lot of cliches or unnecessary tropes. Using characters solely as devices doesn't appeal to me either, because I like fleshed out and realistic characters and hate seeing good potential for one being thrown away. There's another problem of mine, I have trouble making characters realistic and distinct, I feel, and I swear to god I have some strand of ADD or so- oooh shiny! *jumps on a penny*....anywho <_< I also want to have little to no fourth wall, but I still don't want my characters to just be "actors" if that makes any sense...

TL;DR: Hard to get in the concentrated zone, needs fleshed out characters and how to make them, wants to avoid cliches

Help would be much appreciated!


PS: Sorry if there's been some sort of thread about this before or if it is against rules or norms here...i figure as long as it's not racism, trolling, VS thread or a halo thread I'm in the clear.

No worries, this is a good thread. At least you're putting us to use.
Before I start trying to help I have to ask: Do you have any particular theme or plot in mind or are you literally at square one right now?

 

[EeveeElectro]

Know how you feel m'love >_<
I wrote last night after not writing for ages, but I gave up after a paragraph
It's hard not making character Mary-Sueish. I base my characters on people I know. Give them their faults and talents etc.
Do a lot of reading too, and draw some characterisistics from other characters.

 

[Valate_v1legacy]

Slap random ideas together. Prostetic armed veteran falls in love, but is sent away to fight an unwinnable battle against aliens with far superior technology. Turns into spacetrench warfare and well, trench warfare is emotional.

 

[AdhesiveTape]

Make the main character an actor who is not actually the main character. The main character is actually the narrator being played by the actor who's playing the main character!

I find that confusion shocks me out of a bad writer's block.

 

[Mr.Squishy]

First of all, I checked the search bar and it seemed okay.
Alright, with that out of the way, let's move on to the issue at hand, shall we?
I'm a writer, and I frankly love it. What I don't love, though is writer's block. Even so, I've just got out of a writer's block now, and I've long felt a story brewing in my head. The problem is, I'm having trouble imagining the characters without making them stereotypes, and mixing elements I like as well. I for example want to try and mix sci-fi and fantasy. However, I really really don't want to use a lot of cliches or unnecessary tropes. Using characters solely as devices doesn't appeal to me either, because I like fleshed out and realistic characters and hate seeing good potential for one being thrown away. There's another problem of mine, I have trouble making characters realistic and distinct, I feel, and I swear to god I have some strand of ADD or so- oooh shiny! *jumps on a penny*....anywho <_< I also want to have little to no fourth wall, but I still don't want my characters to just be "actors" if that makes any sense...

TL;DR: Hard to get in the concentrated zone, needs fleshed out characters and how to make them, wants to avoid cliches

Help would be much appreciated!


PS: Sorry if there's been some sort of thread about this before or if it is against rules or norms here...i figure as long as it's not racism, trolling, VS thread or a halo thread I'm in the clear.

No worries, this is a good thread. At least you're putting us to use.
Before I start trying to help I have to ask: Do you have any particular theme or plot in mind or are you literally at square one right now?

Theme or plot? Sort of....I want it to be epic and really get emotional, doing things full-out I guess...and I guess I want a theme of tragedy and sadness, but with a ray of light shining through, and the possibility for change. Example of the only real concrete example I have in mind: the heroes, a well-established group or at least sort of so, either travel from a fantasy setting to a sci-fi setting or to another planet/dimension/galaxy. There they find an abandoned research facility (used, I know, but bear with me), with dead aliens and demons, though they might not recognize them as such at first. They also discover a sort of chip or small computer/something like that, and they turn it on. A (in lack of a better word) sentient/intelligent/"living" hologram/AI like (sort of like cortana in halo, projected in the same way as well) emerges and recounts a sad tale to them, from when she used to be a scientist at the lab, when one day another lab on the same planet had an outbreak where a demon faked death then escaped, and hunted unsuspecting prey amongst the planet's living creatures, infecting them with a sort of zombie-like virus. The creatures spread over the planet, and as they're about to break into the very lab the heroes are now standing in, the one narrating used a newly-developed technology to transfer her conciousness and such into the chip/pc/macguffin/thing. Understandably, she starts out a bit depressed, then cheers up and eventually might become the "voice with an internet connection"(or whatever the tvtropes article was called ), probably through a helmet or some sort of artifact.

Best recollection I can give of a the one plot point that sticks with me at this hour of the day (or rather night)

Hope you find it interesting~

 

[Trivun]

Know how you feel m'love >_<
I wrote last night after not writing for ages, but I gave up after a paragraph
It's hard not making character Mary-Sueish. I base my characters on people I know. Give them their faults and talents etc.
Do a lot of reading too, and draw some characterisistics from other characters.

Same here. Except for the giving up part.

I'm currently halfway through Chapter One of my own novel, though that's about ten pages in since I also did a prologue. I also base my characters on people I know, as well as myself. My main male protagonist, for example, is a lot like myself, while he has flaws and so on he does know them. My main female protagonist is also based on aspects of myself, including the darker side of my personality (yeah, she does get pretty dark at times). The final member of my main trio starts out similar to myself, although I'll admit I did also use some of the characterisation of Alice Cullen for her too (don't flame me please, this is simply because Alice is a pretty good character compared to the Mary Sues of Twilight, and the only one I actually felt I could like). She does end up going totally insane by the end though...

But yeah, I base characters on real people who I know something about and aren't Mary-Sueish. That's the best way to go for that. If you use real places and people in your story, make sure you research them well. Don't overuse tropes or cliches (in fact, I try to avoid them, but when I do use them I don't overuse them). Make sure you proofread too. Get an objective outsider who is unbiased to read through it when you're done and make sure you do several drafts before submitting it to be published. Try different publishers too, since the first few are unlikely to bother publishing it. For a proofreader I recommend NewClassic, he was recommended to me some time ago and I do want to ask him eventually to go through my work and see if it's any good.

That's pretty much all the advice I can give really, mostly stolen from other author's websites. I advise you to look here:

Writing Tips [http://www.ian-irvine.com/]
"Guide to Success" [http://www.ian-irvine.com/]

Both on the website of acclaimed fantasy author Ian Irvine.

EDIT: Turns out Irvine's site has slightly screwy URLs, but you can use links on the homepage to find what I tried to link to. The links above are both to the homepage.

 

[Poopie McGhee]

I can't help, but want to wish you good luck...

 

[ZombieGenesis]

Well you didn't ask for it, but here is my method when it comes to collaborating a story! Sit down children, and I shall spin you a tale...

First of all I find myself a concept. Not quite a plot, and a little more than just an idea. Sometimes I go overboard and begin with something utterly fleeting- in fact my current story (spanning so far 100/600+ pages) began with a simple phrase written on a college notebook: characters with magic limbs are freaking AWESOME.

This was my starting block to what will no doubt be the least successful fantasy tale of all time. Once I have that, I open a random Word Processor page- name it something (my original one was just called 'Notesi') and jot into it any idea that comes to mind.
Sci fi/Fantasy? Yup, write that down. Some kind of... sentient computer? That goes down. Toaster rifle? Yup, pop that in too...
Well clearly this isn't what I put into it, but you get the point~ sometimes I jotted in entire paragraphs explaining one idea, or describing scenes I envisioned and wanted to put in. I did this for a whole year and ended up with a massive stash of groundless notes.

Then came the week long session of catagorising them. Places, characters, events, plot, I created new documents foldered them under such headings. Eventually I got to the stage where each character and place had their own document and I could keep a record of them, and add anything I felt the need to contribute to their character/actions later on.

You won't think of everything in the planning stage- I'm still not sure on the backbone of the plot, I have about 65% of plot vaguely planned out. Just go through thr writing stage step by step, and don't make my mistake of going on forever about nothing of interest!

 

[Kushin]

To be honest, the concept of the living AI is going to draw a lot of stares and calls of 'copycat' from people familar with Halo but not with you.

I write stuff myself and I also find it hard to come up with non-cliché characters. Maybe try combining two wierd aspects of something and turning it into a medium plot point (Not quite major, but not to be ignored either), something like an allergy or a phobia.

About having characters there for a purpose... that's the point of a character. Use them to the utmost but squeeze every bit of detail you can from them in the process. Make it so the reader sympathises with the survivors, pities the dead, feels the rage against the enemy that everyone else does.

You want the story to be emotional, that means that things have got to happen. Normal things include debilitating injuries, death, amnesia, insanity etc. Try to mix it up and create a background to anything/anyone you end up destroying.

I hope this helps, and have fun with your writing.

 

[Lullabye]

First of all, I checked the search bar and it seemed okay.
Alright, with that out of the way, let's move on to the issue at hand, shall we?
I'm a writer, and I frankly love it. What I don't love, though is writer's block. Even so, I've just got out of a writer's block now, and I've long felt a story brewing in my head. The problem is, I'm having trouble imagining the characters without making them stereotypes, and mixing elements I like as well. I for example want to try and mix sci-fi and fantasy. However, I really really don't want to use a lot of cliches or unnecessary tropes. Using characters solely as devices doesn't appeal to me either, because I like fleshed out and realistic characters and hate seeing good potential for one being thrown away. There's another problem of mine, I have trouble making characters realistic and distinct, I feel, and I swear to god I have some strand of ADD or so- oooh shiny! *jumps on a penny*....anywho <_< I also want to have little to no fourth wall, but I still don't want my characters to just be "actors" if that makes any sense...

TL;DR: Hard to get in the concentrated zone, needs fleshed out characters and how to make them, wants to avoid cliches

Help would be much appreciated!


PS: Sorry if there's been some sort of thread about this before or if it is against rules or norms here...i figure as long as it's not racism, trolling, VS thread or a halo thread I'm in the clear.

No worries, this is a good thread. At least you're putting us to use.
Before I start trying to help I have to ask: Do you have any particular theme or plot in mind or are you literally at square one right now?

Theme or plot? Sort of....I want it to be epic and really get emotional, doing things full-out I guess...and I guess I want a theme of tragedy and sadness, but with a ray of light shining through, and the possibility for change. Example of the only real concrete example I have in mind: the heroes, a well-established group or at least sort of so, either travel from a fantasy setting to a sci-fi setting or to another planet/dimension/galaxy. There they find an abandoned research facility (used, I know, but bear with me), with dead aliens and demons, though they might not recognize them as such at first. They also discover a sort of chip or small computer/something like that, and they turn it on. A (in lack of a better word) sentient/intelligent/"living" hologram/AI like (sort of like cortana in halo, projected in the same way as well) emerges and recounts a sad tale to them, from when she used to be a scientist at the lab, when one day another lab on the same planet had an outbreak where a demon faked death then escaped, and hunted unsuspecting prey amongst the planet's living creatures, infecting them with a sort of zombie-like virus. The creatures spread over the planet, and as they're about to break into the very lab the heroes are now standing in, the one narrating used a newly-developed technology to transfer her conciousness and such into the chip/pc/macguffin/thing. Understandably, she starts out a bit depressed, then cheers up and eventually might become the "voice with an internet connection"(or whatever the tvtropes article was called ), probably through a helmet or some sort of artifact.

Best recollection I can give of a the one plot point that sticks with me at this hour of the day (or rather night)

Hope you find it interesting~

so a cross between Ender's Game and Halo?......i like it....but it really is almost painfully cliche. first, its not your story. its the characters. so make sure you dont fall in the trap of making the character fit the story. I have and idea, use actual interesting personalities. and dont be afraid to amke the main character an immoral bastard/*****. same with the support cast. and im teling you now, its not a tragedy if there is a "ray of hope". Tragey is my favorite genre and ill be damned if another one of you "writers" screw it up by killing off the main love interest and then hook up the main character with an even HOTTER CHICK! AND THEN CALLING IT TRAGEDY! FUK YOU!(im lookin at you brent weeks)
You want a tragedy? make everyone die a slow painful death with no, and i mean NOOOOOOOOOO hope for reprieve.
actually, you should just give up. enders game has already done what you want to do. sorry, but you have very little chance of beating it......

 

[Thaius]

Using characters solely as devices doesn't appeal to me either, because I like fleshed out and realistic characters and hate seeing good potential for one being thrown away.

Okay, here's my recommendation: this form of story development seems perfect for what you were saying. All of this is inspired by Lajos Egri's The Art of Dramatic Writing, which believe every writer should read. You may know some of it, but for the sake of accessibility I'll explain everything: you know how it is.

Start with your characters. Develop a universe and setting and such to ensure that you get all the elements you want into the story (such as the sci-fi/fantasy elements you mentioned), but in terms of the story itself, just start with the characters. Make sure to develop them fully: their looks, their personality, their reactions, their talents, their interests, even their childhood and other elements of their past. It's a lot of work, but it is the basis of this process.

The fact is, real stories don't depend on random events, they depend on choices made by the people involved. So don't think of a story you want to tell, think of a character you want to use to make a point.

Start with what Egri calls a premise. This is a simple statement that embodies the point that you want to make with your story. The premise is what you will use to develop your protagonist, as you want to design his character with the inevitable change in mind (your character has to change in one way or another: this is how you make your desired point). This premise is one of two things that will drive the events of the story.

The other thing is the characters themselves. Developing a detailed profile like I mentioned earlier is the main thing for this. Create fully developed people: not just characters, but people. Because the story should develop not at the whims of an all-powerful dictator (being you, the writer), but based on the actions of the people involved in the story. In other words, your characters' actions are what develop the story, not your desires as the author. The story is shaped not simply by whatever you decide should happen, but by your characters' reactions to their surrounding events: and in order to believably pull this off, you have to have fully developed people in your story.

Hope this helps. If you want it explained better and in greater detail, read The Art of Dramatic Writing. That and Robert McKee's book, entitled simply Story, are great resources for how to write a good study.

 

[Vanguard_Ex]

Theme or plot? Sort of....I want it to be epic and really get emotional, doing things full-out I guess...and I guess I want a theme of tragedy and sadness, but with a ray of light shining through, and the possibility for change. Example of the only real concrete example I have in mind: the heroes, a well-established group or at least sort of so, either travel from a fantasy setting to a sci-fi setting or to another planet/dimension/galaxy. There they find an abandoned research facility (used, I know, but bear with me), with dead aliens and demons, though they might not recognize them as such at first. They also discover a sort of chip or small computer/something like that, and they turn it on. A (in lack of a better word) sentient/intelligent/"living" hologram/AI like (sort of like cortana in halo, projected in the same way as well) emerges and recounts a sad tale to them, from when she used to be a scientist at the lab, when one day another lab on the same planet had an outbreak where a demon faked death then escaped, and hunted unsuspecting prey amongst the planet's living creatures, infecting them with a sort of zombie-like virus. The creatures spread over the planet, and as they're about to break into the very lab the heroes are now standing in, the one narrating used a newly-developed technology to transfer her conciousness and such into the chip/pc/macguffin/thing. Understandably, she starts out a bit depressed, then cheers up and eventually might become the "voice with an internet connection"(or whatever the tvtropes article was called ), probably through a helmet or some sort of artifact.

Best recollection I can give of a the one plot point that sticks with me at this hour of the day (or rather night)

Hope you find it interesting~

Very interesting, I like it. Although I think everyone else may have done the work now xD

 

[Satin6T]

all right, an alcoholic that doesn't ruin his life, he becomes successful due to the drink
make him Irish
it would be awesome
but it's 3 am so most things sound awesome right now

 

[Satin6T]

Personally I would pump out the characters even if they are cliches just to get a feel for them. Then somewhere else you can just scribble down a few notes about things you would like at some point to do with them to flesh them out. Then just start writing and see if you can fit these things somewhere in there.
However do not shoehorn them in as that always comes across as unnatural.
The best way I have seen of doing this is George R R Martins A Song of Ice and Fire series. Even the most generic, unlikable bastard character gets their story told and you usually end up loving them too.
Of course that does not always happen as Cersei really is just a stupid unlikable *****. But even then you still get more of a feel for them.
But just remember, you can always go back and rewrite shit you do not like but you still need something down first to act as a base.

Edit: One thing I personally love is the anti-hero. The protagonist who is selfish and has many flaws and only does the right thing in order to benefit himself and save his own ass.

oh yes the O shit i've killed off too many main characters approach

i freaking Martin
now if only he'll come out with the dance of dragons...

 

[Lord George]

The best way to write real characters is to experience real life and people as much as you can, this is why so few young writers are successful because they lack the experience and knowledge of people and life to make there stories realistic and relatable. But still try to write short stories or novels for now. Just don't expect them to change people and move them, or to get published. I myself plan on touring the world after uni, then joining the police force and then getting started on my story which at the moment seems to be some kind of warped modern day retelling of Dante's tale, but in a really fucked up version of hell.

 

[The Rockerfly]

I am not a writer but I am a musician and whenever I feel lacking in ideas, go do something that you would be out of your comfort zone.
Read something you wouldn't normally read
Listen to something you wouldn't usually listen to
and see images that shock you
This usually sparks my ideas but being on a different boat it might not work

Another way is I come up with a generic idea and build on that.
Just build a generic base and add and develop from there on

If none of them work then try someone else's idea but good luck to you all the same

 

[JoshGod]

an alternate reality where everyone has a rediculously thick accent (actually that would be better for tv)
how about a reality where in ireland the potatoe was made illegal by some messed up dictator and it was traded on the black market like a drug lol.

(irish accent) i need my potatoe fix ladie give it to me or the leprichaun gets it!

hope to of been so rediculous ur all better now!!
nooo im outa potatoes!!!