Advice from a Beta
@FicWriterTips
Writer and reader sharing tips for other fanfic/original writers. Send your own questions/suggestions/frustrations. Happy writing!
You might like
Conflict with an obvious outcome is boring. Both sides' motives should be easily understandable, so that the reader feels torn and invested.
Read your work out loud. Any sentence or phrase you struggle to say in one breath is running too long. Break it up or edit it down.
POLL: This account is pretty fandom-neutral, but indulge my curiosity. How many of you have either heard of, or read, the Draco Trilogy?
"Wonder": (v) to be curious or (n) amazement. "Wander" (v): to travel without direction. "He WONDERED what WONDERS he could WANDER to."
"Brake" (v or n): rel. to a car's stop action. "Break": (v or n) fracture, or (n) a respite. "You will BREAK bones if your BRAKES fail."
@FicWriterTips @_nellie12 depending on the writing. Some authors can do 5-7k chaps while others do magnificent 15k+ that reads really well
@FicWriterTips I think it depends on the story and the quality of the chapters
5000+ chaps :) "@_nellie12: RT @FicWriterTips: POLL: As a reader, do you prefer shorter or longer chapters? What approximate word count?"
POLL: As a reader, do you prefer shorter or longer chapters? What approximate word count?
-- or does he snatch them from a messy pile of similarly expensive shoes and barely notice the label? All choices give details of character.
-- OR, take the same pair of expensive sneakers. Does your character keep them in the original box and polish the scuffs in the morning, --
-- Ex: Jeans. Does your character wake up and reach for (in her words) her "soft, worn favorites" or her "True Religion jeans"? --
Clothing can reveal a lot about character and setting, but so can the narrator's (NOT the author's) language in describing it. --
You can tell when I emerge from my fic writing/editing cave to squint against the bright light of the Internet when I start tweeting.
By convention, "Jessie" is the spelling used for a girl, & "Jesse" is the spelling used for a boy. Be aware that's what readers will assume.
-- One cliched example "... in one quick motion." Think about what that actually means, and don't use it if it's not physically possible.
Don't spend time on unimportant detail, but don't summarize in confusing or unrealistic ways either. --
When it comes to big moments/speeches/gestures, make it as personal and character-specific as possible to avoid cliches and cheesiness.
![Lealover77's profile picture. Lea's my idol - 08/29 our birthday *_* ¦ MonChele ∞ ¦ *Glee* ¦ Switzerland (but my heart lives in NYC) [1982-2013] our angel ♥](https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/471685509484253185/-JKApxsi.jpeg)
United States Trends
- 1. Andruw Jones N/A
- 2. Carlos Beltran N/A
- 3. All 20 N/A
- 4. Cooperstown N/A
- 5. Hall of Fame N/A
- 6. Usha N/A
- 7. Davos N/A
- 8. Pass the Save Act N/A
- 9. Chase Utley N/A
- 10. Stocks N/A
- 11. Omar Vizquel N/A
- 12. Chloe N/A
- 13. #LightningStrikes N/A
- 14. Trevon Diggs N/A
- 15. Packets N/A
- 16. Monaco N/A
- 17. Clemens N/A
- 18. Saka N/A
- 19. Second Lady N/A
- 20. #HelloCompetition N/A
Something went wrong.
Something went wrong.