swanchime

writing advice 101

wrote up something for decker vn jam ppl so thought i'd copy it over here!

  1. figure out if any pre-planning (if any) works for u

i think a lot of people find outlines to be helpful like maps or guideposts for when they get blocked during the actual drafting / writing process, but other people write by instinct. you have the "plotter" vs. "pantser" type of role where plotters write extensive guidemaps for the drafting process where the outline can basically be a draft 0 of its own, and pantsers fly by the seat of their pants and don't do Any planning or minimal

  1. if u do want to pre-plan, there's various ways to do it!

you have apps like trello that can be used for pre-planning, but you could also use twine's native format which creates flowcharts and twine your way to victory. you can also opt to have a conversation with someone (we can chat here or on discord @ swanchime (open to anyone! as long as you are kind to me;;) because i have historically found that having conversations with friends is the most enlightening part of the pre-planning process

  1. the basic plot structure for a vn is the 3-act "beginning, middle, end" or the 5-act "exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution"

where exposition = introducing the characters and conflict, rising action = increasing tension and stakes for Why it's important the conflict gets resolved properly (what happens if it doesn't? what do you have to lose?), climax = final battle / clash To resolve the conflict, falling action = de-escalation, cleanup after the battle (can be emotional), resolution = the conclusion, where everyone stands at the end that's different from where they began.

  1. basically a satisfying character narrative (even "just" for a slice of life or a romance! doesn't have to be action) requires some sort of CHANGE (can be subtle, but significant)

in the main character where the main character (who has some kind of problem / dissatisfaction with the state of things in the beginning) resolves their (internal/external) conflict and then ends up in a different position at the end (doesn't have to be better, can be worse. if it stays the same and nothing happens unless you're trying to make some kind of bold statement about existential ennui it's not worth it and tends to be boring and dissatisfying.)

  1. i find it not useful in the slightest to conceptualize people as "heroes" and "villains" and protagonist / antagonist as good guy / bad guy

because at the end of the day even the worst villains are human beings. even the worst violencers are human beings. and even the "best" people are shitty sometimes, to someone, somewhere. no one is exempt from being a violencer or being a saint. and no one is both of these things all the time to every single living thing. understanding that morality is complex helps make complex characters that have faults and virtues both.

  1. when you think up characters, try to think of them as human beings instead of 2D fake paper dolls

because if you think of them with the dimension of a piece of printer paper, that's how they'll read. try to to investigate their psyches, can be simple, can be complex!

but basically i feel that asking yourself what "wishes" they have (what do they want most in the world, what is their relationship to getting what they want, have they always had the luxury of getting what they want and Now is the first time they can't so they're dissatisfied? or do they NEVER get what they want, so they're resigned to not getting it again and just yearning and pining away for it silently)

and asking yourself what "regrets" they have (what do they want to have done differently at some point in their life, what do they Not want to regret in the future, what would they change in their life if they could, and do they have things they regret but wouldn't go back in time to change?) as well as what "resentment" they have (what are they angry about? what do they hate in the world? what do they feel entitled to that they did not get? whether that be food, shelter, a loving family, a best friend...a government that gave a shit and did something other than hurting people, the inherent built in injustice of capitalism, etc)

can get you a long way with developing a character! and you can ask yourself this for any characters!

  1. center your narrative conflict around the psyches of the characters and their desires / regrets / resentments

because i feel that makes for the most satisfying story about human beings. why CAN'T they get what they want this time? do they resent/regret that their wish can't come true? a good story says something, anything, can be simple, can be grandiose, about the mortal coil (the human condition), and so i find that any narrative that decentralizes characters is like eating cardboard. dry and tasteless!

THE 5 ACT STRUCTURE

  1. EXPOSITION

this is where you introduce your characters and main conflict to the narrative. for the greatest dramatic impact, if your story has a happy end, they should start unhappy. (and vise versa if it has an unhappy ending.) this is the fundamental theatric concept of comedy/tragedy.

assuming you want a happy ending, your characters should be dissatisfied with something in their lives, whether it be smth as grand an enemy as The Entire Government or as intimate an enemy as being unable to crush your unrequited love yet too cowardly to confess. assuming you're writing a happy end unrequited love romance, a good exposition would involve

it boils down to "what is the conflict (unresolved desire) and how does mc feel about it?"

  1. RISING ACTION

rising action is where you introduce why it's important the mc gets what they want (in this case fulfills their love) and what they have to lose if they don't.

ask yourself:

  1. CLIMAX

this is where the main conflict question (will they get what they want or not?) gets answered

in action, this is the big final battle scene. in romance, it's the confession scene and the ultimate deciding moment of whether their love gets requited or rejected.

this is the scene where the tension is the highest and the emotional stakes are most precarious, where the characters are the most desperate and extreme.

ask yourself:

  1. FALLING ACTION

this is the aftermath of battle, the cleaning up the casualties and tidying up the battlefield. in love, it's comforting the other about all the extreme stress and anxiety like aftercare. it's about making each other feel safe and secure in their new relationship that came after such hardship, in the case of a requited love happy ending.

ask yourself:

  1. RESOLUTION

in the case of a fulfilled romantic happy ending, this is just the closing scenes where they walk hand in hand into the sunset. just looking towards and projecting the future. leaving the audience with a good taste in their mouths.

ask yourself:

the way they leave the stage contextualizes the entire play/story/narrative.