I would say that my strength is in plot and description. My weakness is writing romance. I don't really have the mindset to do the mushy stuff very well. I suppose another weakness is that I don't like to write 'good' or 'normal' heroes. You'll notice that my protagonists are always arrogant and powerful, and are often dark and anti-heroic as well. I just can't get behind the 'lovable loser' archetype (like canon Harry Potter or Uzumaki Naruto).

 

I just can't do romance. I can write flirting okay, but ask me to write a sappy story and I can't do it. Doesn't flow well with my writing style either. Maybe it's because I'm not very romantic, I don't know.

And I know what you mean LT2000, I can't stand the traditional hero.

 

Description seems to be my weak point. Not necessarily because I find it hard to write, but because I tend to be overly wordy.

I'd say my strong points are characterisation, dialogue and plot building. For some reason dialogue comes to me quite easy, it's probably the part I find easiest when I'm writing.

 

For me, character building is the hardest aspect of writing. I know what I want the characters' personalities to be like, but I just can't translate it well onto paper. It's like I sometimes forget about all of the other characters except for Harry, mainly because so far I've concentrated on his training other than him and the other characters, thus making them 2-D.

I'd like to say that my strength is thinking up realistic ideas, but I'm not so sure if that translates into my writing very well. For instance, whenever I'm thinking about writing, I get glimpses of scenes and plot lines that I think are pretty decent, but I don't think that has come across very well yet.

 

I leave the writing to the professionals. I have tried, and I would say I find it impossible to push a plot forward, and really struggle to link anything together. Since that is pretty much the most important part, I just enjoy everyone elses hard work and effort. Though it makes me guilty when I critisise an author, since I dont even make an attempt.

 

I find that I'm fairly well with descriptions, but dialouge holds me down, same with action but I'm ok with it when I get going. My biggest problem would be that I have a slight inferiority complex and don't take critiscim well which makes it hard for me to get the some thousand stories I've done/started posted, about 98% of my work never makes it to the board.

Also I have trouble getting started I suck at beginings but like to think I'm good at everything else besides romance -which I avoid at all costs.

 

My main weakness would probably be dialoge, I usually can't write them to save my life. Action scenes and descriptions would probably be my strong point.

 

I think everyone knows what it is I consider my strength.

My problem is something like raven and syaos combine.

Finding the motivation to sit and write, and lack of planning.

Lack of planning is what killed lust. I painted myself into a corner with that.

 

I usually don't know where I'm going with a story. I have ideas that will occur in the story's future, but how is it all going to end?

No clue. I just reread the last chapter, and start writing the next. When it looks good, I post.

So my stories will most likely not be finished, so much as abandoned in favour of another idea that's more interesting at the time.

Man, I really am like a small child, aren't I?

 

Cypher3au, I can honestly say, authors like you irritate me to no end. I wish those WIP fics had special warnings the way fics with slash are expected to. I understand re-reading the last, to write the next, and then posting.

But to start fic, now knowing where it's going. Only a few vague details but with so much undecided is where so many authors get blocked. Because they get to a point where a decision should have already been made, but they haven't made it yet and it's harder to make because so many future decisions rest on the outcome of this one. And you cannot decide which one gives you better options for future decisions. So instead it gets abandoned in favor of other ideas, because you don't know what's coming next in the story.

*sigh*

I know that's what a lot of authors do, but as a reader, I simply feel gypped. Obviously, you owe us nothing, you're writing it for you. But if I'm investing the time to read, and theoretically, review and respond with comments on your story, I'm doing it under the assumption you're not just chucking darts at a board blindly. And when simply left hanging indefinitely and maybe permanently, not all of me, but part of me wishes I'd never bothered reading the abandoned idea in the first place. A warning when Harry's going to start singing showtunes, decorating, wearing pastels, and playing the old hurt/comfort-who-can-cry-like-the-biggest-bitch game with Draco is necessary. Ditto for a warning, when the author doesn't expect to actually finish the fic, nor does the author even know where the fic is going.

I know there's no real quantitative way to find out, but I would guess that the vast majority of finished fics were started with clear plans in mind, both for the direction, and the point of writing the fic. And I would also guess the vast majority of abandoned WIPs were fics without direction or a solid outline or plan of any sort.

I don't mean to pick on you. My first fic sort of started the same way. And when I realized it, I gave it up because trying to force a point and direction on after I'd already written sixty some odd thousand words was a bad idea. I don't do that anymore, and I've not had 'writer's block' since. I finish my fics because I know while writing this chapter, I'm solidifying all the ideas for the next three or four. And it keeps on going to a conclusion.

I've just read too many WIPs that were simply more annoying than interesting because they were unfinished and abandoned. Were they still being written, or had the latest chapter just come out today, then they would have been very interesting with promise. But abandoned and unfinished, for me, just ruins even the good parts it had. It's like watching a movie or a TV show but never getting to see the second half, or the third act, or even just the last ten minutes. Arg.

Okay. Sorry for the rant. I'm done. I'll be nice now.

 

Agreed, it's a common mistake amongst new authors and even some experienced ones (yeah you know who you are ). An unplanned fic will end up on the fanfiction scrap head that is the abandoned!fics. It's also the same old story with authors who believe they can wrte two or more high quality fics at the same time. Hardly ever works. One will always be your favourite and the other will end up in the scrapheap as well.

Yes, I've experienced both firsthand.

 

I am the kind of writer that has to hve a driving force constantly or I'll lose sight of my ideals and consequently(sp) most of my stories never see the dark glow of DLP.

 

I agree multiple fics takes a lot more work, but there are some who can manage it. It's much easier as long as they're not on equal standing. Sometimes taking a break from a long consistent writing project to expend your ideas in another format can be rejuvenating to the muse for the main fic. But trading off trying to put out a good chapter of fic A and then doing a good chapter of fic B, where both are long, involved complicated plots is beyond the abilities of most fanfiction writers. Usually one should take focus leaving the other abandoned. For example Rorschach's Blot. When he had his Odd Ideas and Past Lives, those were a welcome little break from Lord of Caer Azkaban. And he was chugging along just fine. Along comes Make A Wish, which was put on equal footing as Lord of Caer Azkaban, and eventually Make A Wish became the focus while LCA has been essentially abandoned lately. I'd love to see him finish LCA, and I think he will, but some authors would simply abandon the one forever.

Basically, I mean you don't have to always be 100% focused on any given story to write it properly. But it's a heck of a lot harder to have two main priorities for storytelling, than it is to have one, and then lesser outlets. Nor do you even have to be posting a second fic or outlet, to be writing it.

 

I'll admit I don't plan out every event, when I come up with an outline or idea for a story, I establish a few things; theme (dark!Harry, Crossover, etc), plot, and ending. That's it, I always have an idea on how to end the story, any plot twists, and occasionally I'll refer to the books on possible events I can use to proceed the plot. However, unlike most writers, most my stories don't die because I paint myself into a corner, they die because either I don't have the time, or I've run out of possible legit ideas to incorporate into the story...

 

I don't ahve a clue how Chimera will end. Well...i don't have a clue except for the fact that Harry will be alive and victorious at the end. I have that general end-result, and my own ideas of how magic works as the only fixed ideas. Everything else is coming on the spot.

I don't see it as painting myself into a corner. I will definitely keep writing it, it's an enjoyable story to write, and writing has become more fun since i started.

Right now, i'm going with the flow. I have a rough mental outline of what events need to take place, and i write those events in when they need to happen. About 80-85% of each chapter comes one the spot. Grindelwald being alive popped into my mind, so i wrote it in.

I ALSO have a second fic going, which i'm putting an equal amount of effort into...Nonjon just decided to never read my work

I dunno, Nonjon, i think it comes down to two things: dedication/motivation and imagination. If you start up a story on a whim, you'll go with it for a while until you are nastily reminded of the fact that you originally didn't really care about it.

Going with the flow, as it were, is something i always do while writing. I don't plan it out, but i DO plan to finish it. I also cannot stand authors who start writing without the intention to finish. I can understand if they put in a lot of effort, but eventually run out of steam, but if they START without the express intention of finishing, then that's irritating.

I, as a reader, don't want to start reading a fic, like it, and then find out that the author doesn't really care about his work enough to keep it going.

 

My problem is sitting down and writing and not rewriting it a thousand times till I just leave it in silent fury.

I believe my strength is planning and knowing where I want to go and connecting it somewhat fluidly throughout the story.

 

It's that running out of ideas that bugs me. Because you can't really run out of ideas. You just feel as though you want X things done before you get to whatever battle/conclusion/ending you have. And I'm saying, if you can't figure out those X things, then you should jump right to the battle/conclusion/ending. I'll take a bad ending to a WIP fic over waiting 3+ months for "inspiration to strike" (which all too often never does). I'm not saying you need meticulous plans. I think Master Slytherin is a big fan of a thorough and detailed outline. Heck I'm almost 80 thousand words into my latest fic and I just now am bouncing ideas off a friend, to make sure I'm not leaving some massive gaping plot holes (and now someone else has all the future details of my fic too). But for me, I can't write unless I know the big parts of the fic. Like I know 10 scenes for the last half of the fic, which may be spread across twenty or thirty chapters for all I know. But I know one or two scenes for each of the next few chapters. And I can't write my next chapter until I've got in mind a few more scenes for the chapters after it. But now, knowing this chapter has only a couple scenes integral to the plot, I can plan out in much more detail. For example, my next chapter, I knew they were going to Jayne's Mum, and Harry's going to reveal he's a wizard, probably at the end, potentially early next chapter. But as I plan more I know we need to finish the scene I left hanging last chapter, put in a scene with River and Harry as she's got a shield developing, put in a scene with Inara comforting Jayne. Then they're arriving. Planning all the details of this chapter, including names, places etc... and writing whatever comes out. But before this morning, I hadn't thought about details like excessive amounts of dead, stuffed, and mounted squirrels in their home. Nor the names for Jayne's family. Nor a bunch of the details or contents of conversations. But knowing where we're going, and knocking out smaller details as the next chapters near, is part of the process of writing this chapter.

It leaves everything very flexible, but as I write the next chapter, I get ideas for bits and scenes for the following ones. Everything's malleable enough to work in a good idea when it hits, but it's a way so that writing a chapter is also giving you the determination, will, and desire to write the one after it. I've found this is what works for me. I'm saying this, from a point of view of someone who has finished a few of my fics.

And I know Yarrgh's method would be fine for the first dozen or two chapters, but at some point, I'd be having designs on another fic idea. I mean that is what happened to me. I tried to have several going at once and always one of the held my attention much more. I'm not saying you can't pull it off. I'm saying most can't. And I couldn't.

And I certainly would never claim to not read the work of a fellow hoosier. I just haven't been able to get past that "HarryCho" aspect even if it is with Tonky. Next time I'm in the mood for erotica/horror I'll be sure and check out the other fic too. (In fairness, I've never been in the mood for erotica/horror but the next time I am, that's right up near the top of my list. Promise.)

 

Hmm... Let's do this in a list form... just because nobody else has.
Strengths:

• Dialogue - I like writing it. It may not turn out good all the time, but it's easily the most enjoyable aspect of writing for me.
• Personalities/Characterization - This goes hand in hand with dialogue in my opinion. There are a few other things, such as actions (which speak louder than words) as well.
• Planning - I am very thurough with my planning. If I don't update quickly... it's because whatever I write just doesn't come out right, not because I don't know where the fic is going.
• Humor - I like to think that I'm good at writing it. I'm definitely not up to nonjon's level though. I tend to use humor differently, not as a focus, but as a way to keep the reader interested. So whatever funny stuff I put in my writing isn't meant to make you fall out of your chair... Hopefully it made you smile though, or maybe even chuckle a bit.
• Plot - This is one of my favorite things, it goes with planning... but requires more creativity. Making a plot, for me, is like painting. You start with the base colors, and add in the extra to make it more refined, more beautiful to look at. When I write, I tend to weave in and out of plots like crazy, you may notice this if I ever post my next chapters.

Now that I've had my ego trip, I get to bash myself. Oh, this is going to be fun.
Weaknesses:

• Transitions - I have trouble switching between scenes... Wow, it felt good to get that off my chest!
• Filler - I can't write if the scene doesn't have a purpose... this is even harder when there is little dialogue in the scene. It's torturous for me... I don't know why.
• Action - I'm a bit iffy on this one. I like coming up with solutions to problems and such, I like building suspense and writing the unexpected... But it doesn't come easy sometimes... err... most of the time.
• Raven/IP Syndrome - Sometimes I sit down to write just for the fun of it, and sometimes it feels like a chore, an obligation. When I feel obligated to write, well, that's when I'm not feeling too creative and I have trouble finding the words. So if anything I write sounds robotic, it's because I just couldn't find my muse.
• Description - I can write it, and I sometimes enjoy doing so... but a lot of the time, description simply slips my mind and I forget to put it in.

Anyways, feel free to add to my list of weaknesses, I know you want to! Besides, I would be the first to tell you that I don't consider myself a good writer... but what the hell, I do it for fun, so whatever.

 

I am sure half the flamers haven\'t tried writing their own thing. So don\'t feel too bad about it.

My hardest part is dialogue, and my easiest is... I just don\'t know.

 

I'm good at writing essays, but not fanfic. I'm bad with fluff and fillers. I just get straight to the point and write.