Young Writers Society

@r4p17-I have to say that I also have to disagree with you. I personally love my writing, which is really good thing. You have to write with passion and you absolutely have to love your writing.It really is fun!
-@Kyllorac I am one of those planers, who likes to turn an idea around in my head for a couple of days before I sit down and write it. That's just me. But I also want to note that I do give myself freedom to change anything, you can break your own rules. So it's different for every writer and everyone should just adapt to their writing style!
-@Firestarter- I totally agree with you, I honestly never did NaNoWriMo but I don't want to. I always like to take my time, and set my own pace. I imagine that my novel would come out horrible if i tried to write it in one month. Word wars, I don't like the extra pressure that you have, and when I write them I find myself rushing and not being careful.
Here is my controversial topic:
Write for your audience:Don't
Most people on here aren't published authors, and even if you are,worry about the audience later. You have to write for only yourself, because really everyone has different expectations and things that they want to read.
You write what you would want to read. If you write for yourself, you won't even care what other people think about your writing, because honestly, you weren't writing for them all. Understand?Just remember that's it YOUR writing!

@pretzelsing

If you're writing for yourself, why are you putting your stories on a website where others can see them? I see your point, writing for me is usually therapeutic (I can think of only two stories I wrote that weren't written because I couldn't not write them), but even then, I make sure to dress up my angst such that others will enjoy it and perhaps connect with it. If you don't care about others connecting with your work, why should it ever leave the confines of your diary?

They keep me up at night sometimes with their stories, and that can be terrifying, sometimes, depending on what character is telling the story.

@Snoink, @Demeter -- This is an interesting idea to talk about. I have pretty much always been on your side of the fence, Demeter. I kinda feel that the people who say their characters are doing something are just playing in the type of community that's built up the idea that discussing the creative process in that way is okay, BUT I also have had the strangest experiences in airplanes that make me think it is not quite out of the range of possibility.

I studied abroad for a month or so in Prague and spent a lot of time with a specific group of people. I was kind of dozing off in the plane on the way home afterward, after we'd all parted ways, and I suddenly realized I was having a conversation with one of the people from the group in my head, moving my lips and nodding my head along with her side of the conversation. Now I get the feeling that there may be a certain kind of consciousness that some writers can access that is similar to my half-awake conversations with friends that are no longer there.

I think it is perhaps a more direct way of talking yourself through an idea. Instead of thinking, "And then my character might say this, but what would that character reply?", the writer has just got into a habit of going straight for the voices. Is it at all like that, Snoink?

@carbonCore- I publish my works, not a lot of them, but I also write fiction short stories, I would never publish diary types of works. Anyways, the reason why I publish my work is to get reviews and feedback so that I can better improve that piece. I have a tendency to edit things for hours until I get it just like I want it to be, but sometimes I still overlook things and so reviews help me.To be clear, I don't write for people, and the only reason that I publish is for feedback!

Eh... sometimes it's a little bit like that, @Hannah, except (for me) all the characters are different and they're usually talking to each other. So, like, I can kind of see what they're doing in an omniscient way. And, when that happens, I'm not really myself... I flit between one character to the next.

I'm in kind of a dry spot in writing (plus, my husband's presence kind of calms me down and brings me back to reality, thus reducing this sort of effect) but a couple of nights ago, something like this happened at night, and it was shocking because of how totally into the character I got. Also, I totally get anxiety attacks during climatic scenes. It's weeeeeeeeeeeeeird.

Not everybody can be a good writer if they try hard enough.

StellaThomas wrote:Not everybody can be a good writer if they try hard enough.

@StellaThomas- and why not? I think that everyone has a fair chance. I know that some people are not naturally born writers, but who really is? All of us have to work hard on writing, and I believe that everyone who pushes forwards, never gives up, and edits a lot can become a good writer. Some simply give up or stop writing so they can never become good writers.
But everyone has the potential to become a good writer is they push at it and really really try hard!

pretzelsing wrote:

StellaThomas wrote:Not everybody can be a good writer if they try hard enough.

@StellaThomas- and why not? I think that everyone has a fair chance. I know that some people are not naturally born writers, but who really is? All of us have to work hard on writing, and I believe that everyone who pushes forwards, never gives up, and edits a lot can become a good writer. Some simply give up or stop writing so they can never become good writers.
But everyone has the potential to become a good writer is they push at it and really really try hard!

Not entirely true, a lot of people try their hardest and succeed but sometimes they fail despite giving their best.

Anyway, my controversial view on writing is that I find planning to be very good at beating writers block and to be very beneficial. I know a lot of people disagree with planning but personally I swear by it.

AlexSushiDog wrote:Anyway, my controversial view on writing is that I find planning to be very good at beating writers block and to be very beneficial. I know a lot of people disagree with planning but personally I swear by it.

@AlexSushiDog- believe it or not, I agree with you. I had recently experienced a writer's block, and I had this scene going through my head for a couple of weeks and I knew that I just had to write it, but during that time I planned it, how I want to write it, and what I want to write and it really pulled me out of writer's block.(And I did write it and extensively edit it) Now I have actually started writing more short stories and tried my hand at a poem (first one in a really long time). So I totally agree!

I pushed hard at playing hockey and playing piano for years and I never excelled at either. There is an element of raw talent, X factor, to everything. Writing included.

Not sure if this would count as 'controversial', but I'm at this point with my writing where mistakes mean the world to me. Meaning, I /will/ make all the mistakes I can because there's plenty of time for me to correct myself. I /will/ structure a sentence oddly to see if I can pull it off, I will botch my characters up purposefully and I /will/ throw my rubbishy work out there for people to rip apart. Kind of a reverse method, I suppose, but once I'm certain something isn't working out, I abandon it well and truly. Experimentation is never a bad thing.

Basically, for me, writing = making mistakes = learning which 'mistakes' suit you.

Besides that, I am totally against writing out random smatterings of dialogue/ideas of the night because that will result in a mountain of notes for your novel and just leave you utterly bamboozled. Unless you're very organized and can actually refer to your notes while writing, I don't endorse it.

I suppose my ideas aren't way controversial, anyhow. 8D

I also think that "Show, don't tell" is an oversimplified way of telling people that their work needs more oomph (setting/description/character expression), because storytelling is basically 'telling', albeit in an interesting way. Perhaps 'to tell in a showing manner' would be more appropriate, but it isn't as catchy.

StellaThomas wrote:I pushed hard at playing hockey and playing piano for years and I never excelled at either. There is an element of raw talent, X factor, to everything. Writing included.

@StellaThomas you actually convinced me, and I agree with you, everyone has and a fair chance at writing but you also have to have talent and natural ability and with work you could become a good writer.
I know that this is off topic but I tried playing piano and sports but I failed in both areas so I just stopped doing them and concentrated on things that I am good at like writing and singing.

@Pompadour-

Pompadour wrote:Perhaps 'to tell in a showing manner' would be more appropriate, but it isn't as catchy

I totally agree with you here, when I first came to YWS I was so frustrated because people were telling me: Show, not tell and I almost wanted to scream (not literally) that I have to tell what's going on in my story. I always don't have to be extra descriptive, because a lot of times in writing, you have to tell a story from the past, just like a grandfather would to his grandchildren. (@TheWanderingWizard haha xD)
I will from now on use in reviews andc conversations: to tell in a showing manner

Pompadour wrote:Basically, for me, writing = making mistakes = learning which 'mistakes' suit you.

I don't want to argue, but when I start writing anything, I go on with a mindset like, let's try to do as little mistakes as possible so that it will be easier to edit later and so I will enjoy my work later. I am the type of writer who after writing, will edit and sweat for hours to make my writing in the exact way I want it. I know that their can always be improvement but my work has to be precisely and exactly how I wanted it to look like. Anyways that's it from me!

Ooh, I just thought of something I can't stand.

When tweens/teens think they're special because they write. I see it on the internet from non-YWSers a lot.

Like, they act like they're a rare breed. That they are one of the only teenagers ever who enjoys writing instead of doing other things. Obviously they're not rare or special. There's us, the people here at YWS who are all exactly like that.

Oh, and another thing that gets on my nerves: distopian in general. Writers, if you're going to write distopian, please don't make districts/factions, and don't make your main heroine have to overtake the government with the help of their love interest.

Not everyone can write.

If everyone could write, there would be no immense feeling of accomplishment at the completion of a novel, novella, poem, etc. Because anyone could do it. There's a reason why people look at creative writing and shake their heads in amazement. There's a reason why people who have written for the past thirty years have poor writing skills. Talent is the foundation for your writing - the building blocks that give you the initial push.

In the end, I think perseverance in the art outweighs the talent in your journey of becoming a good writer. But talent sure is helpful. As in anything.

Firstly, I must disagree with you, @Kyllorac. Everybody experiences writing differently, but in my opinion, the most satisfactory works have layer upon layer of planning in them. For example, would Joanne Rowling have known to write about the Horcruxes and Snape's sacrifce if she did not plan? If you don't plan ahead, your work will be less predictable, especially since even you don't know what will happen next - but it will limit the extent of your plot twists.

Nevertheless, if, while you are writing, you get a sudden flash of inspiration, incorporate it into your story. True, it may upset some of your planning, but when @TheWanderingWizard and I discuss our idea, we sometimes get such inspiration, and when we see if it can work, it fits in perfectly, as if our subconsciousnesses (excuse that) had planned it all along and was simply waiting for us to catch up.

Furthermore, I must agree with both @carbonCore and @Charizard821: while I most certainly enjoy writing (if I didn't, why would I still be doing it?), it is not without its challenges, and Heaven knows, there are many.

And in relation to characters not having minds and emotions of their own, that may be true, but if you deal with them as if they are, then they become more realistic and more human. Unfortunately, that also leads to me feeling guilty whenever I have something tragic/horrible happen to them... (@Hannah, it was most likely your subconscious mind, from what I can tell.

@pretzelsing, everyone can follow the rules and write a good story, but if you want it to be a great story, read. The more you read, the better your writing will become, and then you need simply hone your skill with practice. And finally, talent - which is basically just learning quickly and having an unexplained knowing of how it works - when combined with these two, make for truly marvelous writing.