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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2 answers
467 views

How do you write about someone carrying someone who broke their leg?

I’m writing about a certain scene where they find that one of the side characters has been hurt by bullies. I’ve tried to see if carrying bridal style would help, it didn’t help visually. Any ...
6 votes
3 answers
3k views

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 ...
-1 votes
4 answers
507 views

Should I make the gender of the narrator more obvious?

This is the opening of a short story I'm writing: 1996 was the year I became obsessed with animal suicide. I guess you can say it became my reason to live—the sun in my sky, the very air I ...
4 votes
5 answers
279 views

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 ...
0 votes
2 answers
129 views

How can you create a story that incorporates magical or supernatural elements in a way that is subtle and understated?

How can you create a story that incorporates magical or supernatural elements in a way that is subtle and understated, without overwhelming the plot or detracting from the realism of the narrative? I ...
17 votes
13 answers
11k views

For a fantasy world, what word can I use instead of "human" in order to include elves, dwarves, etc.?

I've been creating this fantasy world where many different races coexist, so most aren't human. I'm trying to write all the worldbuilding details down, and I'm stuck on a phrase "She is the ...
1 vote
0 answers
68 views

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 ...
1 vote
0 answers
100 views

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 ...
2 votes
1 answer
122 views

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 ...
0 votes
1 answer
82 views

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 ...
15 votes
11 answers
9k views

When your main character is a misogynist or a racist, how do you tell your readers that you don't subscribe to his racist views by merely showing?

When your main character is a misogynist or a racist, how do you tell your readers that you don't subscribe to his racist views by merely showing? The only way to kinda do this in my opinion is to ...
2 votes
4 answers
147 views

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 ...
1 vote
2 answers
87 views

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 ...
8 votes
10 answers
5k views

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 ...
1 vote
2 answers
113 views

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 ...
1 vote
1 answer
66 views

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 ...
0 votes
0 answers
36 views

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 ...
27 votes
8 answers
8k views

Is an easily guessed plot twist a good plot twist?

In my post-apocalyptic novel, there are two "twists", but they're mostly tied up in each other. The first is that humans have developed different kinds of kineses, like hydrokinesis, telekinesis, and ...
1 vote
3 answers
79 views

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 ...
10 votes
4 answers
3k views

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. ...
0 votes
2 answers
103 views

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 ...
1 vote
1 answer
3k views

How to make my roleplay responses more lengthy/detailed?

How can I make my roleplay responses more lengthy and detailed? For the recent months I've been roleplaying with several friends. our replies are normally two or three sentences. While I've shown ...
5 votes
7 answers
3k views

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 ...
2 votes
3 answers
164 views

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 ...
1 vote
3 answers
140 views

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 ...
3 votes
2 answers
2k views

Converting/rewriting present tense narratives to past tense gracefully. Not a question about verb conjugation

I decided a few chapters into a book I'm writing that I dislike present tense, and that I would need to go back and make all instances of present tense past tense to maintain consistency. However, now ...
0 votes
2 answers
122 views

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 ...
5 votes
2 answers
2k views

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 ...
7 votes
3 answers
3k views

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, ...
14 votes
3 answers
5k views

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 ...
0 votes
2 answers
160 views

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? ...
2 votes
3 answers
235 views

Do you set yourself daily goals and stop once you've reached them?

I don't follow any kind of time or word limit. I write when I have time and stop when the time is over (e.g. time to eat, to work, to sleep). But now I'm thinking of setting myself some daily goals ...
1 vote
1 answer
78 views

How can I make a situation where someone close to a character is killed emotional?

How can I make a situation where someone close to a character is killed emotional? I've tried many times, and each time it seems to me like the reaction of my main character isn't like what a real ...
0 votes
1 answer
59 views

Do you have to have shown people your characters are talking about when discussing politics?

Do you have to have shown people your characters are talking about when discussing politics? Let's say there's a political intrigue, and there's this character who mentions a far away nation who might ...
0 votes
2 answers
89 views

How do you know if you started too late in the story and failed to do important exposition?

I wrote a story that takes place in the middle of the action, and I am not sure if I started the story too late, because the world is completely different from ours and it would be hard to understand ...
0 votes
1 answer
99 views

How do you balance action and introspection in a story?

In my opinion, a story needs both action and introspection to be engaging, but finding the right balance can be tricky. Too much action can make a story feel really shallow, while too much ...
0 votes
2 answers
86 views

How do you continuously add characters to a story that originally started with a small cast?

How do you continuously add characters to a story that originally started with a small cast? Is there a way to do this organically while making sure their presence in the story feels natural and not ...
1 vote
2 answers
73 views

Stuck on villain's motivation and backstory [closed]

My villain is an animal-human chimera who was raised by a human. She will later hate humanity and want it extinct, but I'm unsure what would cause her to want to destroy the entire human race. She ...
0 votes
1 answer
99 views

Is people making silly mistakes for no other reason than being dumb or ignorant a Chekhov's gun violation?

Is people making silly mistakes for no other reason than being dumb or ignorant a Chekhov's gun violation? If a guard says "The reinforcement will arrive in 2 days.", but it turns out they ...
-1 votes
4 answers
203 views

Would it be too controversial to have the antagonist "get the (protagonist's) girl"?

I'm considering the idea of the antagonist of getting the protagonist's girl (either temporarily or permanently). Various ideas I'm playing with: the antagonist uses non-consensual manipulation to ...
2 votes
3 answers
120 views

Are there other ways to tie a character's name to a mythological character's name without using the same name or anagram?

Are there other ways to tie a character's name to a mythological character's name without using the same name or anagram? Sometimes, we just use the same name like Loki, Detective Loki, or an anagram ...
0 votes
1 answer
48 views

When using short sentences to emphasize important points, do you need to be consistent at all times?

I was told that short sentences can be used to emphasize important points while longer sentences an be used to provide context and support, but if you decide to do so, should you stay consistent or is ...
1 vote
1 answer
61 views

Are there words that allows singers greater flexibility when it comes to syllable count?

Sometimes, you can stretch the number of syllable in a lyrics when sung by repeating some syllables or sounds like in this example: The color of the ski-i-i-i-ies Is blue like your eye-e-e-e-es I ...
-1 votes
2 answers
48 views

When would it make sense to have several beat sheets for several stories happening in parallel?

When would it make sense to have several beat sheets for several stories happening in parallel? I was thinking of writing a story where there are several stories happening at the same time, and three ...
5 votes
1 answer
170 views

How can varying sentence length create a specific tone or mood in a creative writing piece?

On one hand, I was told that we should always use short sentences, but on the other hand I was also told that shorter sentences is good for short-paced actions, and longer sentences can be good for ...
4 votes
3 answers
290 views

Can I adapt writing in a RPG forum to writing in a book?

To explain how the RPG forum works: Somebody proposes a Story setting in which the world, rules, possibilities, and so on are described. Then the interested players gather and create their character (...
0 votes
1 answer
128 views

Is there a way to use "the chosen one" trope without sounding cliche?

I've been told that the chosen one trope is terrible, because it's cliche and it also removes the agency from the protagonist, but I am wondering if there's a way to spin that trope and make it ...
1 vote
2 answers
114 views

Is it possible to mix narration styles from a novel and from a theater play in the same book?

I am in the process of writing a novel made consisting of a series of 'real time' scenes with heavy usage of dialogues and some narration. Some scenes are more heavy on dialogues than others. Is it ...
1 vote
1 answer
177 views

How to describe a sinister expression

I'm a noob at writing and I wanted to find out how to describe someone's face contorting into a sinister expression. I'm having a bit of trouble doing so. The most prominent features I want to focus ...
0 votes
1 answer
72 views

When writing a story with a fragmented narrative, do you need story beats?

When writing a story with a fragmented narrative, do you need story beats? I was told that writing a story using fragmented narratives is like writing several short stories, so I was wondering if ...

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