Questions tagged [creative-writing]
"Creative writing" is a vague term, but generally means fiction, or writing that's not non-fiction, technical, or business writing. This tag should be used when asking questions that apply to multiple categories of creative writing, such as when asking questions that could apply to fiction or poetry alike.
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How can I make repetitive behaviour not be annoying?
I am working on a Y.A. fantasy novel. One of the things I like is using little things from real life as inspiration for characters and to group them together. As such, I had a group of villains that ...
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How do I get my writing to be more thrilling?
I started writing not too long ago, but I've been struggling to actually make the readers get into the reading. I've been told that my writings are too "straightforward" or "too direct&...
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How to keep an original fiction from becoming fan fiction with world-hopping?
I've got an original fiction I'm writing with the concept of a multiverse where every story written or drawn in one version of modern earth generates attached universes. Everything from anime to ...
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Just made an exposition chapter and I'm worried
I'm currently working on a fantasy novel.
Storyline wise I'm just about to charge into the second arc of the story, much more intense and action focused than the previous world building arc.
I'm ...
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How do I write a successful book at a young age?
I am 10 years old (almost eleven), and I'm trying to write a novel. I discovered it is a lot harder and stressful than I thought. I'm also scared of people judging it negatively. This seems a lot more ...
user59719
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Knife meets eye socket question
I'm writing a story and want to immerse the readers by describing the sound of a knife being pulled out of an eye socket. I can't think of a good word. It'd be descriptive, wet, and grating. It could ...
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How to write an insulting experience for my protagonist?
My protagonist finds out that his friends have completely forgotten him. I want to write an insulting scene for my protagonist and want the readers to connect with him fully. Need some tips on how to ...
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How to come up a name for an underwater (e.g. Mermaid) ceremony?
I need help finding ceremony names that would suit underwater ceremonies. I've looked at several name generators and thought they wouldn't work underwater. I've also thought about the "Coral Reef ...
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Is it better to slowly introduce a character's looks rather than describing it all in one paragraph?
I've been rewriting a book, and I've realised how blocky and kind of boring my character descriptions were in my first version of the book, and I thought that maybe instead of writing a character that ...
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Can a 17 year old take NSFW Commissions? [closed]
As a 17 year old, am I allowed to write NSFW for commissions? If so, how extreme? Actual s*x, blowjobs, tits, etc lol, what would be allowed?
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How can I write better fight scenes? [duplicate]
I have a science-fiction story I'm writing and it has a ton of fight scenes in it. However, I'm really bad at writing them. How could I improve?
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How does American English sound to non-English speakers?
The scenario is that a person from our present time travels millions of years into the future. A catastrophic event caused the Continents to shift and reform, and wiped out near all life. Earth is ...
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Creative Writing - Podcasts
In a book I'm writing, I want to write a chapter involving a main character being a conspiracy theory podcaster.
How can I format this into a writing idea?
My plan was to include a fake advertisement ...
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How can I convey a sense of unease?
My character is on a train that’s about to be hijacked. She notices strange things with the train like thudding on the roof but no one else seems to care. How can I convey that uneasy feeling you get ...
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How do I write a room full of panic?
My story is set in a dystopia. The main character is on a train journey until suddenly the train got hijacked by a terrorist group. The terrorists aren’t inside the trains so most passengers don’t ...
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Why can I not self-reflect on my own writing critically? How can I self-edit?
When an editor goes over my writing, even if most of their feedback is Writing 101 advice, it's still super helpful because my writing has a lot of flaws.
But I never notice these flaws (big picture ...
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How do you write a magician as a character?
How would you describe a magician and his tricks? What would his daily routine look like?
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How can you signal the readers that the perspective has shifted to an omniscient narrator without explicitly stating it?
How can you signal the readers that the perspective has shifted to an omniscient narrator without explicitly stating it? Sometimes, you want to change from third person narration to omnipotent ...
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What counts as exposition dump and is it possible to do exposition dumps without affecting pacing?
One effective technique I was told to use is to integrate the exposition within the narrative, rather than presenting it as a separate block of information. This can be accomplished through various ...
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When writing a tragic hero for a tragedy, do the readers have to sympathize with the characters?
I've been told that a tragic hero is a protagonist with a tragic flaw or a character defect that ultimately leads to their downfall and that the audience should sympathize with the character, even as ...
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How do you plan for a story with multiple overlapping arcs?
How do you plan for a story with multiple overlapping arcs? In One Piece, you have one big story arc, and then multiple arcs within it (2 layers), but I am wondering if it's possible to have a story ...
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Why is it generally important to be consistent with the tone and style of writing?
I was thinking of writing a story that starts out as a serious drama, but suddenly shifts to a comedic tone without any clear reason or transition. I thought it would subvert expectation and make the ...
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Is it possible to write a character that remains mysterious until the very end without sacrificing character development?
Is it possible to write a character that remains mysterious until the very end without sacrificing character development?
I was thinking you can't do it to a main character, so I thought about an evil ...
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How do you solve the issue of emotional detachment when using unreliable narration?
I've been told that unreliable narration can cause emotional detachment because the reader may not trust or empathize with the narrator's perspective, which can make it hard to connect with the ...
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Is it possible to make characters who are neurotic, who have low agreableness, low conscientiousness, low extraversion likeable?
Is it possible to make characters who are neurotic, who have low agreeableness, low conscientiousness, low extraversion likeable?
I thought the only way to do this is to find something that the reader ...
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Why is it bad to use a side character merely as a plot device?
I was writing a mystery novel about a detective who is investigating a murder case. The detective has a partner, who is a side character in the story. The partner is not given much of a personality or ...
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How do you work with a story with an ending that's obvious from the very start?
How do you work with a story with an ending that's obvious from the very start?
Let's say you have a story of a kid who wants to become a F1 champion. You know the ending from the very start.
Is that ...
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Is it a form of "tell and not show" when characters talk to themselves?
Is it a form of "tell and not show" when characters talk to themselves? I wonder if it's a bad thing. I've always seen cartoon characters do that, and I thought it was pretty unrealistic ...
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Does it make sense to kill a character in the middle of a character arc, or in order to not finish the character arc?
Does it make sense to kill a character in the middle of a character arc, or in order to not finish the character arc? If you notice that a character arc is forcing yourself to write yourself into a ...
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Are indoctrinated characters villains or victims?
I have a half-animal, half-human hybrid character who gets indoctrinated into a Nazi-like group of other half-animal hybrids who hate humans and want for them to be extinct.
She's a child when this ...
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How do you properly plan for a very long story?
How do you properly plan for a very long story? I was thinking about One Piece and the fact it's still ongoing, and I am wondering how the author was able to plan for such a long story. Writing a ...
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How do you change from omniscient narration to unreliable narration and vice versa in a comic book without speech balloons?
How do you change from omniscient narration to unreliable narration and vice versa in a comic book without speech balloons? I am guessing you need to put square speech balloons, to switch from ...
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How do you use unreliable narration when using an omniscient narrator?
Unreliable narration refers to a narrative that cannot be trusted to give an accurate representation of events, due to the limitations or biases of the narrator. When using an omniscient narrator, I ...
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How do you inject new life into symbols that have become too cliched or lack originality?
Using a black cat to symbolize bad luck or evil, using a red rose to symbolize love or passion or using a white flag to symbolize surrender are all considered old too simplistic or obvious, so I was ...
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Can you shift tone without alienating your readers? How?
I've been told that you need to create a consistent tone when writing a story, because it shapes how readers perceive the story. Maintaining a consistent tone throughout the story by balancing the ...
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When should you reveal the motivations of a villain?
A common mistake in creative writing is to create a villain without a clear motivation for their actions. Every villain should have a reason for their behavior, even if it is not a justifiable one. ...
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What are the things you need to consider when portraying a complex web of alliances and betrayals?
When you write a story with a lot of political intrigues, you need to plan out how the complex web of alliances and betrayals will shape out. Sometimes, though, you happen to have a character who ...
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Is it possible to create unique voices in your story if all your characters use simple words and sentences in their dialogues?
Is it possible to create unique voices in your story if all your characters use simple words and sentences in their dialogues?
I believe that simple dialogues may not allow for the same level of ...
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Writing in present tense
I am currently writing a story in first person and present tense. I've read a lot about what various people think of this perspective and I've heard many people say they enjoy it when it's done well, ...
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How can you make the unstoppable force trope work?
I heard that "the unstoppable force" trope is considered one of the worst tropes you can use, and you should avoid it at all cost, because there are many issues among which are the lack of ...
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Is there a middle ground to a deus ex machina?
Sometimes, you write yourself into a corner and the only way to come up with a happy ending is to put a deus ex machina in the end, but the question is whether there's a middle ground and how you can ...
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After writing the beat sheet, is there any preparatory document you can write before starting to write your story?
After writing the beat sheet, is there any preparatory document you can write before starting to write your story? I just finished writing the beat sheet for a story I wanted to write, but I would ...
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How can you prevent your characters from being too predictable?
How can you prevent your characters from being too predictable? I am wondering how to do that, because if your characters have clear motivations and clear personalities, then it should make them ...
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My characters either feel clichéd or don't have distinct voices or mannerisms, does that need fixing and if so how?
Is it bad that your characters don't have distinct voices or mannerisms?
I tried to give them some distinct voices and mannerisms, but they sounded too cliched or parodic in that they looked like a ...
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Why is it bad to exclusively rely on plot twists to create tension?
Why is it bad to exclusively rely on plot twists to create tension? I was told that some novice writers often make that mistake, but I am not sure why it is considered a mistake. Why is that the case? ...
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How do you ensure that a red herring doesn't violate Chekhov's gun?
Red herrings appear to violate Chekhov's gun, but I've been told that not all red herrings are the same and it seems that some red herrings are OK if they serve some sort of purpose.
How do you ...
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Can we treat a word as a different thing, and then use preposition that don't naturally cooccur with it?
Can we treat a word as a different thing, and then use preposition that don't naturally cooccur with it? I don't know if this is considered a metaphor, but this is rarely done.
For example, I was ...
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How do you get out of a corner when plotting yourself into a corner?
When you write a plot that becomes so convoluted that it becomes impossible to resolve without resorting to contrived or unrealistic solutions, how do you write yourself out of a corner?
For example, ...
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Too much like Harry Potter
I am designing a magical world for which I have plenty of ideas but I am worried if they are too much like Harry Potter.
Please look through this list and tell me which ideas are too much like Harry ...
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When should you include a shot of a character when someone talk about that character?
When should you include a shot of a character when someone talk about that character?
In films or comics book, you sometimes see someone mention a character and you still a shot or a picture of that ...
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