Well, while I'm at it, I may as well ask you all for a favor. One of the 
reasons why I am not such a great writer is partially because I never 
really have been taught HOW to write. I know that many of you believe 
that one can not be taught how to write, and I agree in a sense. For 
some, writing comes naturally. But for others, such as myself, the 
ability to write never comes on its own, and must be hunted like a wild 
animal. 

Writing does -not- come naturally. It's usually a painful process of
creation, rehash, edit, proofread, review, reedit, reproofread... 

... anyway.

So, I thought I would do search the web for some sights that offered tips 
on writing. Well, I found some. Unfortunately, they were all on essay 
writing and typing up resumes and other boring (but useful) things. I 
already know how to write an essay and a resume. What I don't know how to 
write is a good story.

Now, I must do the unimaginable. I must ask the FFML for help. Does 
anybody out there on planet FFML know of any web sites aimed at newbie 
writers? Sites that offer tips and hints on writing fictional and/or 
original works? Sites that have twelve step programs to get you on the 
path to being a better writer? Sites that explain to you what's the best 
way to write? If someone does, please, point me in its direction. If even 
one of these sites helps improve my writing, it will be worth it. Maybe 
then, I won't quake in fear every time I send a fic to the list. 

Okay.

If you know how to write a report, you already have some of the keys to
writing well in any situation.

Anybody who wants to put this quickie list of steps to a solid story on a
website, do so...

STEPS TO WRITING A GOOD STORY

(1) GRAMMAR IS GOD. 

        If you can't be bothered to spell, punctuate, or structure sentences
with a reasonable degree of correctness, you can't possibly write a decent
story. Anything you do write will be deleted fairly quickly by most readers
as not being worth their time.

        For those who are out of school, I recommend going by a college
bookstore and picking up THE ASSOCIATED PRESS STYLE BOOK. It is, without a
doubt, the most rigid and well-defined practical grammar I can think of, and
reading and practicing it is a good step towards professional writing.

(2) IDEAS ARE NOT A STORY.

        The following are NOT story ideas.

        "Let's do a Pretty Sammy - Tondeburrin! crossover!"

        "What if Tenchi marries Washuu?"

        "Let's rewrite the ending to Ranma 1/2!"

        A story is more than a simple idea like this. A story requires,
above all else, a -plot-.

        The plot is what -happens- to the characters in the story. It
consists, roughly speaking of the following stages.

        (1) Introduction - get the characters on-stage

        (2) Setup - introduce the conflict in the story

        (3) Rising action - increasing conflict, building in intensity 

        (4) Climax - resolve the conflict

        (5) Falling action - tie up loose ends, show results of the conflict
& resolution, drop curtain

        Conflict, in this case, is defined as the struggle the protagonist
(main character) must go through in the course of the story. Conflicts are
either internal or external, with external usually easier to write than
internal. 

        EXTERNAL CONFLICT: Ranma fights Saffron.

        INTERNAL CONFLICT: Ranma tries to figure out what his feelings are
towards Akane.

        EXTERNAL CONFLICT: Rick Hunter struggles to escape from Breetai.

        INTERNAL CONFLICT: Lynn Minmei, Rick Hunter, and Lisa Hayes try to
resolve their relationships with each other, old and new.

        Okay, enough examples.

        Based on the concept examples above, here are some plot descriptions
which might make decent stories (although I doubt it. }:-{D )...

        A thief is loose in the city... and it's Pretty Sammy and Burrin to
the rescue!... or not, since they get in each other's way. Burrin is
desperate to do a good deed, and won't let Sammy get in her way... and Sammy
wants to stop the crook, but is constantly foiled by Burrin's blunders.
Finally, Tenchi persuades the beautiful thief to return her loot and go
straight- totally without any help at all from our heroes, who learn a
lesson in cooperation... well, -Sammy- learns, we're not sure about Burrin...

        Achika Masaki, the greatest genius of Earth's 21st Century... but
nobody knows that her true power is as the child of Prince Tenchi Masaki of
Jurai and the immortal mad scientist Washuu Hakubi. When her parents and the
planet Jurai suddenly vanish from space, it is up to her to re-unite the
women of 'Tenchi's Harem' and rescue Jurai and her family from the Time Master.

        An asteroid comes crashing into Nerima, and the Ranma crew try in
vain to turn it aside. The explosion when it hits destroys all human life,
the end. (Sorry, but the 'rewrite R 1/2's ending' bit isn't just done to
death, it's done to reincarnation.)

(3) DON'T TRY TO GET IT RIGHT ON THE FIRST RUN.

        So, you've got your grammar worked on, you've got your plot planned
out, now you're staring at the eternal terror of all writers, the Blank Page.

        Start writing. Jump in and, no matter how good or bad you think it
is, keep writing as far as you can go without stopping. Get something
written, and you can work from there to make it better. Once you're writing,
you build up momentum; if you stop, it's very difficult to get that momentum
back.

(4) 'WAS' IS YOUR ENEMY.

        Thank you, Robyn, for giving me such a good example to use for this
part:

 ***

        The school was an imposing structure and towered above the surrounding 
playground like a bleak grey zuggurat. The morning sky was blood red and
stained the clouds.

 ***

        As a reader, I look at this first paragraph, and I already know the
writer is an amateur. (Sorry, Robyn. Don't feel bad, this is a really common
problem among writers, I don't mean to single you out quite so badly. It's
just that this first paragraph was too good an example to pass up.)

        Here's a rewrite of the same opening image:

 ***

        The school towered over the surrounding grounds, a bleak grey
ziggurat piercing the stormy blood-red sky, casting its shadow on the
children filing in for their morning classes.

 ***

        See the difference?

        ... okay, I'll show you.

        You may remember your English teacher scribbling 'Show, don't tell'
in red ink on your creative writing assignments back in high school. What
they were referring to, usually, is the overuse of passive verb structures,
specifically any form of the verb 'to be.'

        is      am      are     was     were    be      being   been
        has been        have been       were being      are being

        Of these, 'was' is the most common demon of the lot.

        Take a look at Robyn's paragraph again and check the occurrences of
'was.'

        "The school was an imposing structure..."

        Not only do you have a passive verb here instead of an action verb,
you are telling the reader that they must be imposed upon by a building-
without giving them imagery to show them why the building is so imposing.
With the imagery, this statement becomes redundant- the reader will imagine
a very imposing structure without having to be told it's imposing. The best
thing to do here is to cut this entirely.

        "The morning sky was blood red and stained the clouds."

        This 'was' verb could be replaced with an active verb like, for
instance, 'The morning sky RAN blood red, staining the clouds.' This gives
the reader the image of a red, forboding, stormy sky, dark and dangerous. 

        In my rewrite, though, I decided to consolidate this sentence to
'The blood-red sky...' and incorporate its elements into the first sentence. 

        On the average, three out of every four appearances of 'was' in your
first draft writing can be changed or eliminated. You'll get a stronger,
more vivid imagery in your writing, and you'll keep the attention of readers
much longer.

(5) GET YOUR READERS' ATTENTION FAST AND DON'T LET GO.

        So that Robyn won't feel picked on, I'll switch targets to Robert
Morrison's attempt to prove that original fics can be anime flavor. 

        Unfortunately, I deleted the fic mostly unread, after wading through
several paragraphs of boring expository text. (Exposition: telling the
reader background information you think they need to know. Almost always
interferes with the story itself.) For me, Robert's story failed because it
did not hold my attention.

        One of the most popular methods to grab the attention of the reader
is beginning in media res, a Latin phrase meaning 'in the middle of things.'
Instead of really getting any substantial backstory, we are tossed right
into the lives of the characters as they are about to experience a radical
change in their lives (which introduces the conflict).

        Examples.

        TENCHI MUYO! - We start out with Tenchi fighting his grandfather for
the key to the cave that the Masaki Shrine guards. Do we know what's in the
cave? No. Do we know Tenchi's grandpa is the missing First Prince of Jurai?
Hell, no. Do we know Tenchi's going to have more females than he could ever
handle? No. But our attention is grabbed anyway, because instead of being
-told- all of this, we see two characters interacting in an interesting way.
We want to learn more about them.

        RANMA 1/2 - Do we start at Jyusenkyo? Nope. We start with Soun
getting a postcard and telling his family about an arranged marriage. At the
same time, we see a girl and a panda fighting in the rain. By keeping the
relationship between the two a mystery, Takahashi makes the reader/viewer
curious, attracting their attention, keeping them tuned in to the story.

       Sometimes expository material in and of itself can hook a reader...
however, the most effective expository hook is the -short- hook. Leave the
reader asking question, let them learn the answers as the story
progresses... just give them enough to set the hook in them, and then hold
them, through the story.

(6) PACE YOURSELF.

        Your story must build at an even pace. When you reread through it,
do you find long sections where apparently nothing happens? Are there
sudden, jarring changes which build the conflict too quickly? 

        Don't be afraid to radically rearrange the course of events in your
work to make the whole flow better. Break up long strings of introspective
scenes, or similar strings of action or interaction that build the story too
quickly. (The exception to the latter rule is the action leading directly to
the climactic scene.) DOn't bore your reader or wear them out... maintain a
steady flow.

(7) TO THEIR OWN SELVES BE TRUE.

        You define the characters early on in the story, with their early
actions, attitudes, and emotions. Once the characters are defined, they must
grow and change according to the story... but not beyond this. If a
character does something he or she would not normally do, you ***MUST***
show why the character does it- and that reason must be consistent with the
character. Once you've established Quincy as a cold, calculating, atavistic
corporate predator, you can't, for example, show him forgiving a single
mother's mortgage and letting her keep her home without demonstrating some
motivation (spiritual reform, ulterior motive, outside influence). 

        When you take someone else's characters, you also take their
limitations, foibles, weaknesses, predjudices, motivations, dreams, fears,
and aspirations. If you then have these characters act against these
established traits, you must demonstrate the changes in the characters which
allow the act, or else your material ceases to be effective.


.... those are the basics that I can think of in two hours. Start with
these, and your writing will improve, no matter what stage of things you are
at. Just by writing this, I've thought of rewrites for several current
projects, including Wilderness. 

        Give it a shot, ne?

        (Thanks to Robert Morrisson and Robyn for their past work and
example as people who continue to work to make their own writing better.)

        Redneck

   
Kris Overstreet, will write for food... |  "FOOLISH CANINE! I AM NOT 
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