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+--- Thread: How do you write what people want to read? (/showthread.php?tid=7049)
How do you write what people want to read? - Amaterasu - 12-06-2017
This is an issue I've had with my writing: how do you write something that is enjoyable to read, that people will want to read?
Funnily enough I find myself actually getting bored from reading a lot of my own writing, especially because it feels like there is a lot of "filler" content and even the parts that could be interesting are dragged out to the point where they get boring. (this is not a "bad habit" I've developed in here to get more OM from my posts, it's something I have problems with even IRL).
I've since received a good bit of advice from a number of friends but I wonder if you guys have a way of "writing something that people would want to read". Does it just come to you naturally? Do you proofread and delete the excess?
RE: How do you write what people want to read? - Ebonywood Hellscythe - 12-06-2017
I've just been writing what I want to write, and usually, that ends up as something I want to read. I know sometimes stuff I've written has seemed jarring, particularly with some of my early stuff with Dane, because I just cut out (or didn't write) what could have been a large section since doing so wasn't enjoyable for me. It's kinda like when a DM is pressed for time at the end of his session, so just starts saying "yeah, you get the loot and open the door, I'll tell you what you got later", just to advance.
Except, in this case, the stuff cut out is just stuff I don't wanna write. Or I just wanted to skip to a better part.
RE: How do you write what people want to read? - Centurion - 12-06-2017
I'm so glad you asked this, its a question I've wanted the answer to for a while. I'll be watching this thread closely 0_0
RE: How do you write what people want to read? - Takanomiya Hijiri - 12-06-2017
I usually focus less on what people want to read than on word count. 'Cos OM be shiny.
... for Hijiri, at least.
For China I'm pretty much just trying to stay in character and that's it. He's almost entirely reactive, so he's super easy to write.
RE: How do you write what people want to read? - 2B - 12-06-2017
I usually poke the keys on my keyboard, until there is text.
.....
On a more serious note, I tend to think about what I myself want to write, in the first place. If I'm not having fun writing it, it generally shows in the quality of it.
To add to that, I try to think about pacing when I write. If nothing ever happens, it's not much of a read, is it?
Unless of course, the entire point of that section is, that there's absolutely nothing happening. Whether that be to give the characters a breather, or to create an eerie situation of "It's eerily normal right now"
AND BOOOOM something's happening again.
So to put it simply, I try to always keep something happening, in some way, whilst it being something I actually want to write.
Of course, that is at the same time dancing at the blade's edge.
How to keep a ravishing tempo on, without tiring the reader to it? Such is, why the pacing is so important. So that the "something is happening" doesn't start to feel like "nothing's happening."
RE: How do you write what people want to read? - King Ghidorah - 12-06-2017
I write the things I think are interesting and/or mysterious- or in the case of ghidorah, train wreck rubbernecking terrible. As a rule, if it doesn't hold my attention, it can't be expected to hold anyone else's.
RE: How do you write what people want to read? - Alex - 12-06-2017
If I like it, I tend to assume other people would at least having a chance to enjoy it.
If I'm not enjoying a character or something, I tend not to write until I have the clarity/inspiration/etc needed.
RE: How do you write what people want to read? - Sister Evangeline - 12-06-2017
I think I'm pretty good at writing motion and description (You can correct me if you disagree). I try to visualise each step of the action and describe it in the most literal way possible, and then add emotions and things that are happening to specific motifs. Just try not to get lost and keep track of the limbs I guess. It's hard to describe my process on this because motion kind of comes naturally to me. What I will do is "dope" my descriptions, use a simple word to begin with and then on my second pass go through a thesaurus and add something more complicated, or simply expand the description.
Try and avoid word repetition. I've seen some guys write "He smiled", "He smiled", "He then smiled" and I just want to gouge my eyes out. I like to switch between 3 or 4 adjectives if possible because even if you have an awesome action scene it can be boring if you're not mixing up your vocabulary. A thesaurus is your friend.
I find dialog the hardest, but in theory there should be some subtext, like reaffirming a bond or some conflict, even in exposition. My English teachers drilled into me that dialog was shit (Which to be fair, in a short story it is) so I try and keep it as brief as possible. I suppose a lot of people also find dialog because rarely do I read a romantic arc that players have written and not want to blow my fucking brains out. I'd use Ash and Desman as an example of doing it right though, because there is a bit of contention between them in how degenerate sexually liberal Ash is compared to Desman. I don't want to read your fantasy about your perfect waifu or husbando, I WANT FUCKING DRAMA, and not drama for drama's sake but as a consequence of fundamental differences in character.
Sometimes short sweet and to the point is better than a 5000 word scene, though the omniverse heavily favors the latter of those two, which is unfortunate.
Doki Doki literature club has good example of complexity verses simplicity
You've got Yuri who likes her Lovecraft and in general suffering, and tends to write complicated poems with hidden meaning
[spoiler]
It happened in the dead of night while I was slicing bread for a guilty snack.
My attention was caught by the scuttering of a raccoon outside my window.
That was, I believe, the first time I noticed my strange tendencies as an unusual
human.
I gave the raccoon a piece of bread, my subconscius well aware of the consequences.
Well aware that a raccoon that is fed will always come back for more.
The enticing beauty of my cutting knife was the symptom.
The bread, my hungry curiosity.
The raccoon, an urge.
The moon increments its phase and reflects that much more light off of my cutting
knife.
The very same light that glistens in the eyes of my raccoon friend.
I slice the bread, fresh and soft. The raccoon becomes excited.
or perhaps I'm merely projecting my emotions onto the newly-satisfied animal.
The raccoon has taken to following me.
You could say that we've gotten quite used to each other.
The raccoon becomes hungry more and more frequently, so my bread is always handy.
Every time I brandish my cutting knife the raccoon shows me its excitement.
A rush of blood. Classic Pavlonian conditioning. I slice the bread.
And I feed myself again.[/spoiler]
And then you've got Natsuki who uses simple language that's pretty much too the point.
[spoiler]
Monkeys can climb
Crickets can leap
Horses can race
Owls can seek
Cheetahs can run
Eagles can fly
People can try
But that's about it[/spoiler]
And out of the 2 I found the latter more memorable and remember chucking at the end, with the former I was too preoccupied with reading between the lines and interpreting the symbolism. Poetry is different, of course but I think the key to interesting writing lies somewhere between the two, with a simplistic reading possible but deep symbology for re-reads.
The other thing that I've been told is that rather than tell a story, you're using your characters as a vehicle to explore a concept. This kind of happens naturally in group RPs because everyone has an input, but when you're going solo it can be easy to lose sight of that.
RE: How do you write what people want to read? - 13-Jzall - 12-06-2017
I just write what I want and see if it turns out good or not.
RE: How do you write what people want to read? - Desman Black - 12-06-2017
I just write, I don't really care if it's interesting or not, My only rule is to stick IC, I don't even proof read for boring bits.
RE: How do you write what people want to read? - Trixie - 12-07-2017
I write to advance the life/storyline of the character I'm writing. OM is a secondary goal.
"Find out what happens next time on Dragonball Z" is how I ready myself for the next segment of ideas.