#and that's fine! plot-driven stories are fun! but i think the difference between pjo and hoo that makes it most obvious
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happyk44 · 19 days ago
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Maybe completely retcon isn't an accurate way to state it. But Rick does tend to forget certain traits or exaggerate others in his characters. Or chooses to ignore things he wrote before. So certain characters appear differently than they did in previous books. Like Ares becoming far more in your face agressive in the show. Even his change from child abuser in TSoM to "I'm proud of my kids" in TLO (Clarisse) and HoO (Frank). Apollo came across as kind of... simple in BoO when Leo is trying to trick him when he seemed a lot more clever in TTC. Like he's upbeat but he's not stupid.
Also I don't get why Leo had to trick him in the first place. I get it was play on the myth between him and Hermes, but Apollo shows up to help Percy in disguise in TTC with zero prompting. Sure, it's his sister in trouble, but he also drives the kids to camp and extends a blessing to Percy in TBotL when he prays for one. You get the vibe that he just likes helping people. I can't see why he wouldn't say "fuck it" to his father and help the trio when they come to him, even if he had to feign being tricked to do so.
Instead Leo coaxing him into wanting the music box is so obvious, the fact that he ends up accepting it just makes him feel kinda stupid. Given how Rick writes, if Apollo was faking falling for Leo's trick, he would've done an exaggerated wink or something. So the reader knew for sure.
Then Hades in BoO feels different than Hades in TLO. He's much more mild and his relationship with Nico is written to be positive, although awkward, wherein TLO he was literally like "nico is a weakling but he's all i got so 🤷‍♀️" and previous books showed him as this intense, merciless man willing to kill Percy on sight. See also the TV show changes - haven't watched the show, zero interest in doing, but he's a lot more gentle, far less scary.
I think these changes have a lot to do with the perception of Hades in the public eye becoming positive, especially with the rewrites of the Hades/Persephone myth. So Rick wanted to shift the view of Hades to match that compared to the whole "the underworld sucks and Hades is scary" vibes he initiated with TLT.
Not that he did well with it considering he retconned Frank from thinking the underworld and Nico were okay and kinda cool in SoN to "oh my god Nico is so spooky" in MoA. And then the whole Nyx thing. Like dude, pick a lane. Either darkness is creepy or it's not.
While I like the kinder characterization and one could argue that the events of TLO allowed him to let go of his angst over Maria so he could be nicer to their son, it's literally been under a year since he blasted a tree next to his son into melted goop because he was so enraged by his kid's incessant chattering and demands that he go help the family he felt betrayed him.
Nico also spent a good chunk of the time after TLO checking in on Hazel and then being trapped in Tartarus. I think he was also searching for Percy as well. We don't know much about how his relationship with Hades improved. Hades even jokes about almost blasting Nico to cinders for being annoying - as though that's not a real thing that nearly happened. Despite it being brought up, Nico doesn't even think about it. Instead he just gets stressed out by his dad talking about his crush on Percy.
The whole thing gives "Hades is just an awkward dad who can't relate to his kids".
I think the version of Hades becoming bitter over losing Maria and having to hide his kids so his brother doesn't kill them is fine. I think him becoming engulfed by this bitterness over the years, the anger intensifying when Zeus breaks the rules, when Poseidon breaks the rules, when Percy shows up and accuses him of stealing the weapon that murdered his girlfriend and nearly killed his kids - I think that's cool too. The idea that his grief is so strong he can't easily revert back to the kind father Nico and Bianca probably grew up with is interesting.
It fits the idea of "holding grudges" being the child of Hades' fatal flaw. Whether or not you believe that was Nico's fatal flaw, it's certainly Hades'. Since he's a god, the fatality falls onto other people. Like his son. And if holding grudges is a fatal flaw, I don't see him magically getting better within a year when he was stubbornly holding onto it for over seven decades. He doesn't have to slap Nico across the face, lol, but even him being put off by Nico having a crush on Percy (rather than literally any other person) would've been more in character than him seeming somewhat charmed by it.
Nico's best feature is that he's stubbornly self-sacrificing. Hades almost killing him doesn't derail his fight to get his father to act. Finding out that his mother was killed was killed by Zeus doesn't stop him. Finding out he was almost killed by Zeus doesn't stop him either. So I don't think keeping Hades as a bitter man struggling to get past his grief so he can have a positive relationship with his son would somehow impact Nico's willingness to interact or work with his father.
This also might just be a personal grievance of mine because it's annoying he's done nothing with it, but Zeus in PJO was a dick, yes, but you got the sense that many of his decisions, even when it came to attacking Bianca and Nico, were undertaken by some kind of logic, even if fucked up. "There's a prophecy about the Big Three kids possibly destroying the world, okay, time to make an oath not to have anymore babies and keep an eye on all our pre-existing kids (so we can probably kill them in one collective group), oh no Hades is refusing to hand over his kids, well, fine, I'll just get rid of them now before they potentially become a problem." Fucked up? Yeah. Makes unfortunate sense for a guy who ate a woman so he wouldn't risk being dethroned? Yeah.
Zeus being annoyed with Jason for calling him unwise at the end of BoO? Sure. Zeus punishing Apollo because of Octavian leading a war against the Greeks? No. I don't get it. To me, Zeus is paranoid, but he's not completely irrational. I don't see the lines of logic. Okay, he wanted someone to punish after everything. Why? It's finished. They've won.
The ensuing war between the Greeks and Romans didn't have anything to do with Gaea either. It wasn't even the cause of their struggles to remain in one form because the Romans didn't find out the Greeks even existed until the end of SoN. And the silence from the gods had started before Jason showed up, so its not like it was caused by the Greeks finding out about the Romans. So where's the logic? Where's the rationality? He didn't punish Ares for helping Luke steal the bolt. He didn't punish Hermes over Luke resurrecting Kronos. So what the fuck.
Also Apollo didn't tell Octavian to do what he did, and if ToA reveals that, oh, actually, he did, then that's another characterization change that doesn't make any sense. Apollo has always been on the side of the main characters. Him secretly encouraging Octavian wouldn't make any sense.
Zeus' descent into irrationality bothers me because Rick isn't doing anything with this to make it worthwhile. Nothing comes from his notably unwise decision to shut off communications with the world (except Jason fucking dying apparently). Nothing comes from the irrational decision to punish Apollo for something he didn't have a hand in. Him trying to kill Nico and Bianca is never mentioned again.
I don't think Rick would be good at writing Zeus being dethroned and I don't want him to try. But him making Zeus cruel and irrational and then not doing anything about it when he keeps writing stories about characters standing against cruel and irrational villains annoys me so much.
Tell me, how do you feel about The Trials of Apollo making the Olympians out to be a toxic family?
I haven't read ToA and have zero intention on doing so. The only PJO-verse books I've read are PJO, HoO and TKC. I have zero interest in any other books within the universe.
However, while I can't speak to the toxicity shown in ToA, I'm not really surprised by it existing. The gods aren't really shown to get along - especially the Big Three. I mean, Rick has Poseidon and Athena still beefing over an event that happened thousands of years prior at the start of the first book, and that beef is still so strong Annabeth tells Percy to his face that they're supposed to be enemies with zero prompting.
#happy talks pjo#tallwriter#i guess with ares and frank you can argue mars is a different person but rick did not establish that well enough for it to count#and frank doesn't like mars either way so the whole thing between them is meh.#we get three books between ares bullying clarisse and him telling her she's the best warrior he's seen so its easy to forget it#because he doesn't really show up in any important way between them#except the end of ttc i guess where he's probably being a dick to percy i can't remember#but when you look at them side by side its just odd. because him and clarisse in tsom is super clear abuse to the point that she's terrifie#and then tlo it's like. fine. she shows no fear when he speaks to her. even though its implied he hits his kids. and has hit her before.#like nico and hades we get nothing on how their relationship may have improved between those books#so the change in how they interact comes across a little flat and a little odd#also i never liked the idea that nico bothered hades to fight with the olympians because of his crush on percy#i don't know why rick wrote that in. nico bothered hades to fight because - to him - it was the right thing to do#i feel like percy wouldn't have even come up as a reason when nico yells at his dad about it because he knows hades does not like percy#like even if he didn't know before tlo he definitely figured it out after hades threw percy in jail#rick is primarily a plot based writer. everything revolves around the plot. that's why characters don't really grow as the books progress#and that's fine! plot-driven stories are fun! but i think the difference between pjo and hoo that makes it most obvious#is that pjo was well thought out and hoo was not. that's why character traits change. or random things are included.#like nico's car. or dream powers. or piper's singing. it's nice but it always felt really random#ok i am gonna stop babbling in the tags lol#happy's replies
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aloera · 3 years ago
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The ask prompt is too long to fit into an ask TT_TT but here's the doc for it docs(.)google(.)com/document/d/1yDI7iFRhOJ8ENv_IwZAo3rDSUqj80EiJROS10RzRbj4/edit
the lengths u are going for this,,, much appreciated you're very sweet!!!
prompts + answers under the cut!!
INTRODUCTION
Name: aloera
AO3 account: aloera
Fandoms you write for: bnha
How many stories have you written so far: 19
FANFICTION PROFILE
What's your favorite fandom to write for? hmm,,, used to do pjo and eah (ever after high) and eah was fun as fuck i will say!!! i think bnha is my fav mostly bc i made the most friends in this fandom :D
What's your favorite character/person to write for? bkg and kirishima!! cannot choose do not make me <3
Fic you'd want to improve? probably what we deserve? i rushed the beginning and the confession is a bit stilted imo
Hardest fic you've written? between lion and men -_- bc there is so much canon compliant stuff i've gotta write out before i get to the divergence and its HARD
Easiest fic you've written? come home to me!!! it happened so easily,,, no second guessing no writers block just vibes <33 was lovely i miss it
What would you say is the most "famous" fic you've ever written? also probably come home to me? its got the most interaction
first line of the first fic you've ever written and published. [not including my 2014 ffnet fics] "The bell rings, class starts, and Katsuki and Midoriya are inexplicably absent." from come home to me
Have you ever done a collab with another writer? yes!!!!! on two separate occasions and its so fucking fun i highly recommend trying it out its the best
Do you beta? if asked but honestly im a shit beta lmao
Do you like joining fic fests/exchanges? depends on what i have going on irl but in general yeah!!
FANFICTION PREFERENCES
Fluff or angst? definitely fluff
"OCs" or "Reader" inserts? reader inserts!! have been going ham on them recently
Blurbs or drabbles? blurbs!!
One thing you love about fanfiction i just. i really love slice of life romance?? and most media doesn't give you that bc its dedicated to plot and action and that's valid!! but fanfiction fills in the gap which is really nice
One thing you don't like about fanfiction most of the stuff i don't like is less about actual fanfiction and more about how people behave about it
What is/are your favorite fandom author/authors? IVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS ONE!!! TURN IT UP!!!
bnha: hiuythn, rae_tnub, Moniix, Ata_Lanta, wrunic, chezka, PurplePersnickety, surveycorpsejean, mahadevi, arxaris, deviance, Oceanbreeze7, MikeWritesThings, bonnia, wonhaebunny, dinosuns
voltron: hiuythn, Oceanbreeze7, DeerstalkerDeathFrisbee, arahir, dinosuns,
and honorable mention to loveclouds im not even in the haikyuu fandom i just love their fics So Much
these are just the ones off the top of my head i have so many favourites idc if i'm only supposed 2 have one!! die mad about it!!!
What is your favorite trope? secret relationship + relationship reveal til the day i die babie <3 <3
Least favorite trope? hm,,, probably just like. angst lmao i cannot stand 90% of it
A fanfiction cliché that you can't help but love? coffeeshop aus,,,, so good
Do you have a type when it comes to pairings? the otp where its like. piece of shit + himbo = love. ex. krbk, catradora, jade/beck
Favorite setting/au? hm,,, truly i cannot pick one KGKSJNHKj but i really like college aus!! and modern aus!! and roommate aus!!
Explain the meaning of your favorite line of dialogue you've written as if someone hasn't read it in context. “He doesn’t know,” Katsuki says, softly. “My timer stopped and nothing happened. He’s not mine.”
the line is from what we deserve!! it's a soulmate au where your timer counts down to the moment that you meet your soulmate!! bakugou's timer ends at USJ when he and kirishima attack kurogiri at the same time (impulsive kings <33) but kirishima's timer doesn't end until kamino because that's when he accepts himself as bakugous soulmate!! unfortunately, when bakugous timer has reached 0, he turned to see that kirishima's was still ticking and therefore believes that kirishima isn't his soulmate.
this line just,, idk. it's really sad. bakugou is such an action-driven character? if something doesn't go his way he Makes it go his way. he's got this insanely volatile quirk and he's got impeccable control of it!! but his love for kirishima isn't something that he can change and he's not going to ruin kirishima's chance of finding his own soulmate because he loves him and wants him to be happy. i really wanted to focus on how resigned he is? and how unusual that is for a character like him.
Favorite trope/genre to write? again, secret relationship with relationship reveals <33 fluff in general is my wheelhouse!!!
A trope/genre you haven't written but think would be a fun challenge? idk if this counts?? have been working on some dead dove concepts!! its super different from what i normally write so its a cool challenge
The one trope/concept you'll never touch and why probably cheating/infidelity?? it just looks,,, super difficult to write well and i don't have enough of an interest in it to try it out
Which do you prefer to write: longer or shorter fics? shorter!! low attention span gang <3
Ideal length to read? 5-10k?
Ideal length to write? 4-8k!!
How long was the longest fic you've ever written? control fraek is around 28k i think?
Have you ever written an AU? yeah!! i've done restaurant au's, soulmate au's, pro hero aus, and fantasy aus (general, not the bnha fantasy ending)
What's your favorite AU trope? hm,, probably when two people in authority are in a secret relationship? ceo's/uni professors/etc etc
Have you ever written smut? yeah!! was. difficult tho
What's your comfort genre? (the one you fall on most in writing/reading) fluff,,, hurt/comfort,,, fix-it fics with happy endings <3
If you were to start writing in other fandoms, which would they be? maybe jjk?? the characters are really cool!!!! fr i might go back to my ever after high roots i love the characters and setting so Much its so fun!!! idec if no ones into it anymore!!!!!
Is there a trope you think you could be easily recognized by in your writing? i've had people say they saw the mention of buff hagakure and recognized it was me so. probably that skdjhnksjd
WRITING STYLE
How would you describe your style? i tend to use shorter sentences and pretty simple words i think? and i gravitate towards lighthearted concepts that allow for ensemble casts and humour!!
Describe your style in three words romcom but fanfic
Favorite words to use when writing? the word reverent!! fuckin love including it!!
Dialogue tags or no dialogue tags? (she said, he said, they said, etc) dialogue tags!!!
Favorite dialogue tag (other than said, if you use them) again idk if this counts but "they said softly" is unmatched
Long sentences vs short vs a mix short <33
What colors would you use to describe your writing? hm,,, depends on the fic i would say?? control fraek is dark green to me?? kinda like a forest at night yk?? scary but there's still life there. sugar cookies is yellow like early morning sunlight, when it rains is yellowy-orange like a caution sign. not gonna list all of them cause theres a lot its just. do u get it? the colours change based on the vibe of the fic.
What song or music genre would you use to describe your writing? think. i am constantly trying to emulate that moment at the end of wasteland baby when hozier goes "im in love/im in love with you."
What kind of metaphors do you rely on? religious metaphors my beloved <33 they're just so pretty!!! i also love comparing stuff to water for some reason?? like that ocean vuong quote thats like "what are you now?/water." it goes hard!!!
What's something you'd say is experimental in your writing at this time? definitely action!! i have,,, no idea how to write it so anything i do is really just me playing around and seeing what works and what doesn't
Do you prefer to write by hand or to type? i've tried both!! personally i prefer typing because it goes way faster but i will say that writing by hand lets me get words down when i'm going through writer's block
What is your preferred place to write (notebook, laptop, cellphone, etc.)? laptop!!
What app/apps do you use to write (word, notepad, etc.)? google docs skjdnkjh its fine on desktop but mobile is,,,,, disgusting
Do you keep a notebook or file/notes page in your phone/device for notes on your writing? ngl i just have everything organized in my drive?? one folder per fandom and then sub folders for ideas+hcs, unfinished wips, and finished fics. multichaps get sub sub folders so i can organize outlines and drafts
Do you listen to music to help you write? yeah!! playlists organized by fic vibe :D
Where do you usually go to write (bedroom, living room, etc.)? mostly in my bedroom??? but moving around to different stops helps too i think!!
How long does it usually take for you to write? again this depends on what i have going on irl, how attached i am to the idea, my mindset at the time, etc!! i am,, the least consistent person skjnhdkjh.
What's your favorite font to use when writing? times new roman my beloved
Other writing habits? sometimes i'll write in the dark?? bad for my eyes but for some reason it gets the words flowing
CONCEPTUALIZATION
How do you conceptualize your ideas? (See specific moments like they're a movie, writing specific lines in your head, don't know until you put the words on paper, etc.) i tend to get inspiration from movies, books, poems, or other fics!!! sometimes one line just makes me go oh,, i want to write something like that,,, and then it helps me create an idea that makes me feel the same way?? i did this with control fraek!!!! i wanted a scenario where bakugou was cold and calculating and i was like hm. to do that he’d have to be focusing on something important. and from there i was able to flesh out the rest of the idea.
Which comes first: the pairing or the plot? with krbk its always always the pairing,, i'll be sitting there like wow <33 i love them <33 what if one of them had amnesia <33 (which, yes, wip!!) otherwise it's usually the plot!! and i slot in characters that i feel make sense
Have you ever used a prompt? yeah!! used a prompt for wlw week 2020 and it was fun as hell
Do you write around the story around a specific scene you want to get to or do you start from a plot idea definitely the first!!!! i almost always write like,,, a super messy scene thats 90% dialogue, keep it in my head, and then write the entire fic around that one moment
Do you find that you include a projection of some part of yourself in the way you write a character? a lot of the time when i write love confessions or love in general i'll have one of the characters think or say that the other person makes their head quiet? and it's because that's what i feel whenever i'm in love?? a quiet mind. i project on characters yeah but i think most of the projection actually goes to the way that i write love
Do you research some of the things you write deeply, partially and kind of wing the rest, or play entirely by ear (in this case, go with whatever base knowledge of the subject you have)? most of the time if i do research it'll be about the setting (ex. the izakaya in to have and to hold) or if i'm having the characters interact with an object that they like. need to know how to use (me, in control fraek: google. hey google. does someone die if they get shot in the foot??? no???? awesome thank u <3)
Have you ever had an idea for a story and forgot about it? lmaoo yeah all the time i'll find like 500-2k words of concepts in my gdocs like i do. not remember this at all
Is there a trope you think you could be easily recognized by in your writing? probably krbk secret relationship lmao
Are there concepts you've tried that turned out better than expected? yeah!! i fully thought the action in control fraek would be awful but it turned out not bad??? which im happy with
Are there concepts you've tried that turned out worse than you expected? again, what we deserve, i personally think it would have worked out better if i'd paced it slower and drawn out the pining but i. do not feel like going back to fix it so its staying the way that it is. pining is so fucking hard to do AHHHH i get so tired with it!!! im like just date already!!!!
PROCESS
How do you come up with titles? in rare occasions (literally. all my multichaps for some reason) the title comes after writing like .5 words of the first chapter im like YES this is it!!!!! sometimes i write the whole thing and pick out one line that fits (what i did with come home to me) a lot of the time i just. steal from songs or poems that i like
What's your favorite emotion to cause on your readers? i like making people happy!!!! love when people comment saying they're cheered up
What's your favorite emotion to write? lovelovelovelovelovelove
Have you ever cried or felt any emotion while reading something you've written? never cried?? but sometimes i'll rereading my hurt/comfort fics 4. yk. comfort
Do you write in order or whatever comes to you? in order!! unless i have a scene that i Need to write and i'll quickly jot it down so that i don't forget
Usual way you procrastinate while writing? ...doing asks like this, making playlists, discord, watching netflix. what don't i do smh
Do you outline or free write? i am. so shit at outlines. i mostly free write and write lil notes for stuff that i wanna add later
Do you set word goals or scene goals (scenes you want to include)? yes!! like i said i'll write loose notes for scenes that i want to add later!! it gives me something to write towards :D
What do you consider when writing your scenes? what goes into making the atmosphere and mood you want? to set a scene i do two things? the first is like,, the five senses bc that always sets the scene really well and makes it feel Real. i'll visualize stuff in my head like its a movie and write out what i would want to tell the set designer?? if the lights are low, if the space is busy, if it's supposed to exude comfort or not.
for putting forward the character's mood one thing i've found that makes a difference is sentence length!! long sentences are good for making a character seem flustered and nervous or not really in control of their emotions? good for love confessions. short sentences are good for when the character is focused on something or short on time. good for fights!!
What's something you never considered to include in your writing that you can't leave out now? def buff hagakure,,,, once i thought of it i was like. if i don't include this at least once in every single fic how could i look at myself in the mirror!!!!!! how could i face anyone!!!!
How do you start a story? establishing a fact about the character or describing the setting! option a is one single thread of gold, option b is between lion and men
How do you end a story? either by tying it back to the beginning or doing like a funny kind of closing??? option a is sugar cookies, option b is a godless society
How do you get out of writer's block? change something!! move something!! i go from typing to handwriting, moving from my bedroom to my living room, switching wips to work on something else!! i do sprints as well?? give myself like fifteen minutes to write something and sometimes 200 words opens up the way for another 2k. sometimes i'll just delete like 500 words and start fresh
Do you edit? or do you toss your writing out there? i edit!!! i'll go over it myself then send it to one or two betas (bee my beloved <33)
How do you edit? do you use spellcheck, grammar checkers, etc? bee is my grammar checker bc he is So Good with grammar. i use grammarly as well for spellcheck stuff mostly?? sometimes my edit process is just like "am i tired of looking at this!! yes <3" and then i post it
PROGRESS
Do you usually like what you write? yeah!!! i post stuff that makes me happy and that i'm fine with rereading!!! i write stuff for self-indulgence reasons first and foremost and i think my writing reflects that sjhnksj
Have you ever written something you didn't like but posted anyways? nope!! even what we deserve i LIKED even if i see a lot of room 4 improvement!! if i don't like smth it's not getting posted
Do you find yourself rereading your writing often? yeah!! the reason i wrote so much krbk secret relationship is because i loved it but i'd read all that there was so i just,, wrote more,, ngl its kinda nice being in a place where i actually like my writing bc i can write stuff that i want to see and really enjoy it!!
Can you tell us anything about your current WIP? sure!! i'm currently working on when it rains which is a fic where bakugou gets hit by a crying quirk!! i'm gonna be using it to explore So Much of all might's character and his relationships with bakugou and aizawa (and i think some people from his past!!)
Can you give us a sneak peek on your current WIP? “You did something. What the hell did you do?” Kirishima sounds pissed off. It would amuse Katsuki if he wasn’t fighting just to stay standing.
“Nothing he didn’t ask for,” Shinsou replies.
“K’ri… shima,” Katsuki croaks out. “‘S fine. Not him.”
His chest collapses back into the familiar dry heaving after that but Kirishima shuts up. He doesn’t apologize to Shinsou.
Kirishima’s a good friend, stubborn and loyal. He stands by Katsuki’s side like an attack dog, blocking him from the view of anyone ogling at his tears.
The last line you've written Ochako knows more than she'd realized. She knows enough to keep her guard up.
It’s not enough.
Open a wip. what’s the first line?
Katsuki wakes up feeling like absolute fucking shit.
INSIGHT
What's your favorite thing about writing? touched on this before but it's mainly just being able to write the things that i want to see and actually enjoy them!!! actually reread them!!!! i thought "wouldn't it be cool if bkg and kirishima owned a restaurant together" and then i wrote it and i like it enough to reread it!!!! being able to create content for myself makes me. so happy
How do you keep yourself inspired? this is gonna sound narcissistic maybe but honestly i'm just really excited about my ideas and where i'm gonna take them and the idea of "i'm gonna get to That scene" keeps me going through the entire thing. also my friends!!!! i'll talk to them about fics and their reactions keep me hyped up enough to finish!!!!
What is your favorite thing to write? just,, slice of life romance,,, stuff thats silly and makes people laugh!!
What do you think your strengths are in writing? i'm good with dialogue!! i do lil voice acting sessions with myself to make sure everything sounds natural and like it's coming from that character skhjnskj
i'm comfortable with my portrayal of love as well??? i spend a lot of time thinking about what it is exactly that i'm trying to get across and i think it turns out well!!
What are things you wish you could practice more? on one hand i wanna get better at writing angst on the other hand i dislike writing angst. do you see my issue
One way you've improved your writing since you began? characterization!! i think i've gotten better at writing characters that are all Different and bring different things to the table!!! i used to project a lot more and it would compromise the characterization because the character was like 70% me and 30% them? not to say that projection is bad but if you do it too much it just,, doesn't read like the character and from a reader's standpoint the narrative can become less compelling
One aspect of writing you're still working on? writing action!!! i. literally hate writing it but i write for a fandom about superheroes so. Unfortunately i gotta learn.
A piece of writing advice you've learned while writing saw this on another tumblr post but they said sometimes if you're struggling with a scene, the problem is five lines back. i've found that to be true!!!! sometimes u gotta delete a chunk and start a little ways back!! i did this with too busy being yours because i was stuck for Weeks and i deleted like 25% of what i had but it helped me actually finish it :D
A bit of writing advice you can't stand when people shit on show don't tell for being overrated lmao bc when u read their writing you can Tell
Something you wish you knew when you first started writing? ,,,,honestly i kind of wish i could know some of the stuff that i used to when i first started writing?? technically i'm better now but creatively i was must better when i wasn't stressing about whether anyone would like what i was writing. so i guess i wish i knew that i should keep that confidence? i kinda wish that i wasn't as insecure about other people's writing styles because i never used to be!!
Something you've learned in life that you apply in writing there's no point in feeling inferior?? writing one genre isn't better than the other. being in one fandom isn't better than being in another. the kind of language you use or the length of your paragraphs- none of that stuff like. matters. what matters is that you're having fun and happy with what you're creating!!!! enjoy other peoples writing but don't let it make you feel worse about yours :D
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happyk44 · 1 year ago
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The thing I think we have to remember about PJO is that it is largely a plot driven series. Much like with the HP books, there is a greater end to reach and so character introspection and growth isn't all that important so long as the plot is fulfilled.
It's why Jason's backstory is never really elaborated on, and he seemingly never recovers his memories. It's why Leo's arc is getting a girlfriend to solve his problems, not recognizing that love comes in many forms and his friends are worth more to him than some girl. It's why Percy's personality seems to change from what he had been like in the previous series, because the plot requires him to behave a certain way.
It's probably why I can't remember much of Piper's effects on the series outside of random pivotal moments. It's why Frank's stick of life dilemma basically vanishes after SoN. Why Annabeth and Hazel don't appear to change. Why people's opinion of Nico shifts between SoN, when some people (Frank) were fond of him, and HoH, when he was suddenly creepy and scary.
This isn't really a negative thing. Plot driven stories are fun and exciting, and because of the lesser character introspection there's a lot of avenue to play around with them in fandom. It's also helpful to Rick because I don't think he's always stellar when it comes to emotional nuance. Focusing on plot allows him to get around the effects of the story on the characters. Honestly this might be why the new book struggled to some people - because the story was supposed to be built around introspection and emotional nuance and he couldn't figure out how to apply that to the plot he had in mind.
When a story is about the characters, often you'll see the plot matches the character's dilemmas, either metaphorically or as an arc to drive the character's change throughout the story.
But yeah, ultimately I think the books are largely plot driven and that's why things don't always make sense between stories. If you look at TLT Percy and TLO Percy there's not a huge difference between them, other than physical changes and a general sense of maturity that comes with aging up. There's no real change that I can recall with others either, other than a sense of comfort with their roles/powers as demigods.
And that's all fine and dandy. You know, not everything has to be about introspection and character growth. But, I do think we need to start keeping that in mind more often when we analyze the books. Asking ourselves "why did this change, why did characters become different, how come this was never elaborated on" becomes less frustrating if we remember that for this series the plot drives the characters. And if isn't important to the plot, it wasn't important to elaborate on or include.
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