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Starting and Ending



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Wed Aug 16, 2006 2:45 am
Harmony'sSake says...



When I write either my book or fanfiction, I find that I have the hardest time starting the beginning of the story and sometimes the next chapter if I don't write it right away. I also have trouble knowing when to end the chapter. I don't really like ending in cliff hangers but I usually do and other times I just make the chapter like 10 typed pages long for just a fanfiction! How do you know when to stop and how do you start your stories? Any tips?
"You should have died! Died rather than betray your friends as we would have for you!" Sirius Black



You know you are obsessed when you know enough quotes that you could use a new one everyday for almost a year!
  





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Wed Aug 16, 2006 2:45 am
Harmony'sSake says...



When I write either my book or fanfiction, I find that I have the hardest time starting the beginning of the story and sometimes the next chapter if I don't write it right away. I also have trouble knowing when to end the chapter. I don't really like ending in cliff hangers but I usually do and other times I just make the chapter like 10 typed pages long for just a fanfiction! How do you know when to stop and how do you start your stories? Any tips?
"You should have died! Died rather than betray your friends as we would have for you!" Sirius Black



You know you are obsessed when you know enough quotes that you could use a new one everyday for almost a year!
  





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Gender: Female
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Wed Aug 16, 2006 2:46 am
Harmony'sSake says...



When I write either my book or fanfiction, I find that I have the hardest time starting the beginning of the story and sometimes the next chapter if I don't write it right away. I also have trouble knowing when to end the chapter. I don't really like ending in cliff hangers but I usually do and other times I just make the chapter like 10 typed pages long for just a fanfiction! How do you know when to stop and how do you start your stories? Any tips?
"You should have died! Died rather than betray your friends as we would have for you!" Sirius Black



You know you are obsessed when you know enough quotes that you could use a new one everyday for almost a year!
  





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Wed Aug 16, 2006 5:20 am
Snoink says...



This was really hard for me as well. What I ended up doing was making each chapter an episode, or a short story within itself. So there is constant conflict, yet chapters can be read by themselves and still be good. It's harder to do, but well worth the effort!
Ubi caritas est vera, Deus ibi est.

"The mark of your ignorance is the depth of your belief in injustice and tragedy. What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the Master calls the butterfly." ~ Richard Bach

Moth and Myth <- My comic! :D
  





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Wed Aug 16, 2006 11:37 am
Rei says...



Check out my article on novel-writing. There are a bunch of suggestions of how to do chapters. There's a link to it in List of Articles. For ending the story completely, it ends when it ends. Don't worry about it too much, and and ending may just present itself.
Please, sit down before you fall down.
Belloq, "Raiders of the Lost Ark"
  





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Thu Aug 17, 2006 2:12 am
Dream Deep says...



Hmmm. That's sort of a tricky question. ^_~

But here's the best I can do for you: :wink:

You want each scene (or chapter) to be like it's own mini novel (i.e. each one has it's own conflict, resolution, catharsis, rising action, falling action, etc.). You want it this way because if you don't, you might not be actually accomplishing anything with that particular scene or chapter - which is a waste of your paper, ink and time, lol.

Try making a list of your six key scenes for each scene or chapter. Here, like this:

viewtopic.php?t=9604

That way you know where you want to begin, where you want to end and exactly what you want to accomplish with every beginning and end.

Because just randomly ending chapters... lol, could get confusing. I hope this was at least marginally helpful. ^_~ If ya need anything else or anything more, please don't hesitate to PM me. ^_^
  





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Sat Aug 19, 2006 9:01 pm
David Guinness says...



I start basically all writing projects the same way- making an outline, and or just pre-writing, getting any ideas I want to include down on paper. There are plenty of topics around here on YWS on how best to do both.

If you aren't happy with a lead, or can't think of one, just write what you want to include in it, then move on and write the body. Later, after you've had time to meditate on it, you can come back and write a great one. The same applies to conclusions.

As far as length goes, nothing is too long or too short, *generally*. Just write what you feel is an appropriate length. If you can't really finish it off, either post it as it is, if you're happy with it, or keep it awhile and see what else you can invent. If 10 pages feel right for what you're doing, then it's fine. Otherwise, you may need to trim it down a bit.
David Guinness
  





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Sat Aug 19, 2006 9:15 pm
Roaming Shadow says...



Harmony'sSake, I have some of the same problems you do. I can't start a novel for the life of me. If you read any of my work, you'd understand. As to starting and stopping chapters, all I can say is to really think about where every scene starts and stops, and make scenes of similar effect or location into one chapter. It's really more a sense of feeling than anything else.

As to ending the novel, the only advice I can give is to have at least some sense of how and where your novel ends early in writing. This may change, but you should always have a direction, even if the destination changes. Personally, I always seem to become too attached to my characters and world to the point I don't want it to end.

Only practice and experiance will really help you here in the end. Unless someone here would like to contradict me. If so, you'd help both of us.
  





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Sun Sep 24, 2006 11:58 pm
Broken Wings says...



You don't really have a certain place to stop. You just stop where you think it fits most. Cliffhangers are actually a good thing, because it makes the reader want to read the next chapter!

To start you need something that will catch the reader's attention. It could be funny, interesting, ect. Like, instead of saying:
"The town was small and dark." Say "The small town was dar, the only light was the soft blue glow of the moon."
"Admitting that you don't like reading is admitting that you don't have an imagination." -- Broken Wings
  





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Mon Sep 25, 2006 12:04 am
Snoink says...



I usually have to reread the last couple of chapters I wrote, and generally I get inspired and can write other chapters as well. :)

Don't think of them as beginnings! Think of yourself as introducing friends to your parents. Maybe that'll work. ;)
Ubi caritas est vera, Deus ibi est.

"The mark of your ignorance is the depth of your belief in injustice and tragedy. What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the Master calls the butterfly." ~ Richard Bach

Moth and Myth <- My comic! :D
  





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Mon Sep 25, 2006 12:13 am
Emerson says...



You should probably plot out what you're going to do, If you're having this much trouble. Make an outline, and define what each chapter is about. Really, it doesn't matter when you end so long as you satisfy what the chapter is about, or what you want the chapter to have.
Read anything by Douglas Adams? He wrote The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, and in one of the books of that series (I forget which) there was a chapter in length of one sentence. It wasn't even a long sentence. Just a sentence. So that goes to show, the chapter only needs to be as long as you need it to be.

If you're having trouble on how to start the chapters, maybe toss the ideas of having chapters at all (in the first draft) and just write out everything. Then, go back and edit in the beginnings and endings of chapters. That might be easier, you may be able to find where you want your chapters to be when you can see everything clearly.
β€œIt's necessary to have wished for death in order to know how good it is to live.”
― Alexandre Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo
  





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Mon Sep 25, 2006 8:52 am
Myth says...



I really hate writing beginnings. I try to put too much into it or sometimes too little that readers start asking too many questions.

I would suggest writing up what takes place and the characters involved in the beginning on paper or in wordpad. Make it brief and then start writing whatever comes into your head that connects with your 'ideas'.

Chapters can be as long as you like them to be. I often have about 5-10 because so much takes place in one chapter.
.: β‚ͺ :.

'...'
  








Everything in the universe has a rhythm, everything dances.
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