Helpful Tips!

[Prince Imdol]

To get you all to start writing, I have decided to make a topic where long time story people (or new people) can post helpful tips on making an illustrated, text, or both, story.

1. Unless your Anthony, you don't need to build a full MOC to make a scene for a story. In some of my chapters I make, I always build a set and then use photoshop.

2. Speaking of Photoshop, this is probably one of the most important things to making a good ILLUSTRATED story. You can put your minifigs, ships, and castles in real life scenes and make the story more realistic.

3. If you have writers block, here is something I found helpful. Make a random lego scene, and turn that into a story. It could even be something like Athos' Cheese chase. (Your famous Athos).

4. Try to stay away from the flash on your camera. For me, it ruins the photo because the light and easily bound off some lego colors.

5. Contrary to MOC making, I would say the lego figures are more important to illustrated story making, than the actual brick itself. Without lego figures, you cannot illustrate a story with lego's. (Unless you build your figures, like Sava's dragons.

Thats all I got. Please feel free to add to this!


P.I

[The Yeti]

Something I might add, concerning the text part, is that never does a story need to be long to be good. I think this is something many writers are afraid of, that they have to write something long. On the contrary, a short story can be just as interesting and engaging as a longer one.
Don't know if that's the kind of thing you're looking for, Imdol, but thought i might as well...

[Prince Imdol]

It may not be te kind I am looking for, but it is defanetly very engaging.


P.I

[The Yeti]

What were you looking for? I have plenty of writing experiance, no comic style experiance...

[Prince Imdol]

I have always been intrigued by long epic tales. But short ones can be very good. In fact, I think people should start with short stories.



P.I

[Maedhros]

I have always been intrigued by long epic tales. But short ones can be very good. In fact, I think people should start with short stories.



P.I

Writing short stories is much easier to do for the simple fact that there is an end somewhere near you These epics tend to get too big and then you just tire of it....

[The Yeti]

I look at it like this: If you can take a story and wrap it up nicely in a short format, than you're a good writer. Also, like Mahedros said, it's easier to get discouraged and stop when with a long story.
The t hing to avoid with long stories though is to not make extra stuff just to make it longer. Never add a less than par element (or one you arent pleased with) jsut to make it a bit longer.
Also, i cannot stress enough the importance of OUTLINES!

[Sir Kohran]

Don't worry if you're not that good at writing. No-one expects you to be the next Edgar Allan Poe/Frank Herbert/Tolkien ec. Just write what you want and enjoy it. You will improve over time.

Another thing - don't feel you have to write loads; in fact I sort of dislike too much writing as it simply becomes too much of a task to read it all. Not every mountain, every piece of armour and every movement needs a paragraph of extensive detail. This is easy to avoid if you're doing illustrations as you generally won't have to do much description (pictures speak a thousand words).

[The Yeti]

Another random tip:
Try to describe something the characters are doing to show their emotions, rather than just saying it. Such as saying "He started tapping the table" rather than saying "He looked nervous", or some such thing. It generally helps your story seem more real...

[Prince Imdol]

You could even elaborate more with that nervous. Personally, to get more description.


Instead of saying he is about to dispare, say something like this, describing his look and elaborate on it. You want to "show" not "tell".

"He thrust his hands in the cool water looking at his reflection. His ragged clothes, his mind, clinging on to the last belief in his life. Sunlight cast upon a bright face. Tears glistening the side of his cheek as soul plunged into darkness."

Thats my opinion anyway.


P.I

[The Yeti]

Aye, it's all in what style you prefer. My compliments, Imdol. You're a rather good writer for your age. It's refreshing.

[Prince Imdol]

So are you! We all have very good writing talent, which is what makes this forum to good!

Also, another suggestion.
You do not need so much description. Such as in fast passed action scenes. However, every once in a while, take time to "show" what is going on.

"He looked into his eyes, like two enemies meeting each other on the battlefield for one final tournament, heart set on the bloody task at hand."


P.I

[The Yeti]

Somehow, i see this is turning into a guide more for writers who are already writing than for beginners. Oh well. Following in that vein, i'll post some other random "jewel" (if it can be called such):

Allow your reader to fill in the blanks. Occasionally, and most often, it's best to trust to the intelligence of the reader. SOmetimes people will write on and on about what everybody in the scene is doing when it's not really nescisary. Trust that your reader is most likely someone who can fill in the blanks, and will assume (for example) that if everyone is standing around talking, they'll stay that way until otherwise noted. SOmetimes you see a scene like that and every few sentances you see something to the effect of "They're still standing around..."

Of course, to do so, you have to determine your reader audiance. It's hard, if not impossible, to write for everyone. IF you dont determine that, your writing style will be both confusing and inconsistant...

[doodstormer]

My addition...
If a story is based in your own universe, try to think up a history to it. It doesn't have to be a whole story starting from creation and ending at apocalypse, just something to go by, and to determine things like aggression between races/factions, generic hero figures, gods, you know.
And don't call me a hypocrite for writing History of Terra

[Prince Imdol]

I would disagree. Histories are I think unnessary to stories, and take up a little too much time. The actually story itself should have a history, or an outline, but I (Personally) think they are un-needed. This is just my opinion.

P.I