Writing Tips Flashcards

Remember Writing Ideas (68 cards)

1
Q

Write from Feeling

A

Create a worrd from feeling

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2
Q

Begin with the character end

A

Plot how characters can get there

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3
Q

Feeling to character

A

Holly Black

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4
Q

Create characters: what fear, what want, what willing to do to get it

A

V.E. Schwab

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5
Q

MICE

A

Milieu, inquiry, character, event

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6
Q

Milieu story

A

Begins character enters place, ends when leaves place, e.g. Gulliver’s travels. Systematically prevent characters from reaching goal. So stuff in middle is about difficulty navigating space.
Anything about place = milieu.

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7
Q

Inquiry story

A

Driven by questions. e.g. Sherlock Holmes.
Confilct here is to keep character from finding the answer.

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8
Q

Character story

A

Driven by angst. Start with character unhappy. End when happy. Or begin with identity shift. How character self-defines. End when character has consolidated new version of self, e.g. coming of age story. So conflict is stopping them breaking out of their roles / changing personality

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9
Q

Event story

A

Driven by action. External threats.Don’t let character find status quo. Character story is interior (I’ll never be popular) Event is asteroid about to crash into Earth!

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10
Q

Nesting code

A

e.g. <m> <i> </i> </m> Do things in sequence.
e.g. Wizard of Oz. <c> Dorothy dissatisfied</c>

<e> Tornado
<m> welcome to Oz.
<i>What do ruby silppers do?
</>Ruby slippers take you home
</m> Leaves Oz.
</e>Arrives back in Cansas
</c>Didn't need to go looking farther from adventure than my backyard
</i></m></e>

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11
Q
A
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12
Q

Character building

A

Create shorthand description. Angsty accountant.

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13
Q

Yes but, no and

A

Yes but = Made progress towards goal, but pushed back from it.

No and = didn’t make progress and pushed farther from it.

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14
Q

Try fail cycle

A

Things get worse…

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15
Q

Three quarter effect (psychology)

A

Hardest time. Feels like Seems like can’t possibly finish something. Also feels hard because you are changing modes from starting things to ending things.

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16
Q

Resolutions =

A

Yes, and… Or No, but…

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17
Q

Ending

A

Close MICE element (mirror ending)

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18
Q

Grief building

A

No whiplash. Build. Build through different expressions of it.

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19
Q

Hands of lover over my wife

A

Murakami eg

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20
Q

Disconnect between dialogue and action

A

Say one thing, show something out of sync with this

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21
Q

Tragedy =

A

Character fails to overcome flaw. Tragic ending

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22
Q

Comedy

A

Character overcomes flaw. Happy ending

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23
Q

1st Reversal: first scene reversal. End s change of fortune at ending of act 2. 75%

A

They go from wanting to achieve one thing to opposing.

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24
Q

2nd reversal. Starts 75 % ends at end

A

Lowest point to happy ending in comedy.

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25
Reversal in tragedy: here they succeed at 75% mark. So reversal doesn’t happen. Highest moment of success
Turning point of change of fortune, then flaw leads to downfall.
26
Comedy progression. 25-75% things get worse 75% = crisis
Then moves to happy resolution
27
25% protag gets serious want in point of no return
Did they also get something they don’t want, i.e. the catch.
28
Crisis
Is this the lowest point they can go? Is it the opposite state of mind of the turning point at the 25%?
29
Catch =
The perfect test of the protagonist‘s flaw.
30
Climactic choice equals
The protagonist moves away from theor flaw
31
Floor and strength
Need to be exact opposites
32
Scene
Point of view: goal: conflict: setback
33
POV =
Person with most on the line.
34
Goal - audience
Audience needs to know reason for goal so they care
35
Conflict
This time it's personal (Jim Butech).
36
Scene question
Will protagonist achieve goal: 4 answers: yes (terrible). Yes, but.... No (even better! but use lightly). No, and furthermore (very best!)
37
Ghost,
Character wound. Lie he believes
38
Villain
Thinks he is the hero
39
How to treat a villain?
Throw stuff at them like at a hero, but they get more yes, or yes buts.
40
How treat villain?
Torture them too!
41
42
Characters about making choices
Why do what they do critical
43
Writing Feedback
Descriptive, not prescriptive
44
Humor
Subverted Expectations
45
sequeal
Emotion, reason, review, decision
46
How integrate fantastic? 3 Rules
2 for 1 (two normal things for one magiccal. Ground in the everyday/common. Yeti on the couch (it is just normal to people in the book, so not made a big deal of. 3) The idiot (person like the apprentice who you need to explain stuff to)
47
characters off screne
Make sure their life continues
48
Building community
Rituals, repetition, model (think Burning Man Santa)
49
Create models to replicate
50
Show case character
Comments in quotes
51
Diminish character
Comments paraphrased
52
Prove authority
Esp. with technical fact (especially unexpected). Prove authority then can do anything
53
54
Book strengths
Write for medium, things only a book can do.
55
Book strengths
Write for medium, things only a book can do.
56
Anecdote strings
Take readers from the believable to the unbelievable via stages.
57
Surprise
Sam say readers value this above or else
58
Misdirection
Direct and then misdirect your reader.
59
When should the reader discover the truth?
Before it is revealed on the page.
60
Recycle objects
Introduce them and then hide them. Then reintroduce them and hide them again. Do this throughout the story.
61
Have tension?
Delay resolving it for as long as possible
62
Never resolve a threat…
Until you raise a larger one. Ursula Leguin
63
What to do with ‘is’ and ‘has’
Remove them from your fiction.
64
To introduce threat
Deny it’s possibility
65
Hazing stories e.g.
The vet and the dead horse
66
Have you got an idea
Then try crowd seeding
67
Series
Record them and progression
68
Remembering your scenes
Old scenes in your novel. If you can’t remember them, then then maybe something wrong with them. There may be a repetition, or boring.