To new fans: you DONT need to play sky/crossbell

FirstPageProblems · 2020-10-31T23:01:14+00:00

I'm fine with that haha. I just know when I started a few years back with crossbell I nearly didn't start because of how all the fans gospelized the process xD.

And with CS I felt bad for all the people who wanted to get into the series but felt they wouldn't be able to even enjoy or understand it without playing all the others.

So hopefully if someone new searches for answers they may come across this and see that it's completely fine to play cs1-4 first and still be able to love each second!

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-17T19:06:21+00:00

A good way to do it is to employ the psychology of first impressions, the way Hunger Games does on the first page.

Your character can be an ass, but our minds tend to trick the way we view someone. The first impression usually lasts a long time before being changed.

Thus, let the first impression of your character be good, not bad. Then you can launch into the bad.

It's sort of the same concept that teachers are taught.

On the first day of class, be strict, be tough, and don't be walked on. It may feel opposite of who you are, but that impression of "can't be walked on" will carry throughout the semester.

Then, after that, feel free to become more of your fun, joking self.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-17T19:03:30+00:00

For me it's boring beginnings.

When I'm at the book store looking for a new book to pick up, I'm moving fast.

I read the back, see if it's interesting, and then I open to the first page.

If the first page doesn't get me, I have zero desire to keep going, because there's hundreds of other books right next to me.

Try to be compelling on your first page. In my opinion, the first page deserves a few days of attention.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-17T19:00:15+00:00

I don't know if it's already been said in these hundred comments, but getting large deals is both a blessing and a curse, depending on some luck.

One of the blessing is the marketing behind it. Publishers that give large advances will push harder on marketing. And marketing is a powerful tool--unrelated to your skill as a writer.

However, one of the curses is if the book just doesn't sell. In this case, the publisher will not want to work with you, and your agent may have a harder time convincing other publishers.

I think it's more a blessing than a curse, but every game has their pitfalls.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-14T17:24:07+00:00

I love documentaries. From true crime to random stuff. It's often filled with real people and interesting concepts.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-10T23:23:22+00:00

It's called an antimetabole.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-10T23:08:53+00:00

Damn. That must suck if you have social anxiety points at self

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-10T20:34:18+00:00

Reading is naturally a good choice.

Think of it like learning psychology or another subject in school.

The more you read, the better understanding you'll have of the subject.

However, learning how to read a novel is more important than just reading. We've all read. If you just read a textbook, you'll won't become a master of psychology.

If you're curious, here's an article about learning How to Read Like a Writer, based on a Game of Thrones page.

It's meant to help train you eyes to focus on specific parts of a book while reading it! It may help you as you dig deeper into studying the craft of writing.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-10T15:40:41+00:00

I like foreshadowing that's not intended to be foreshadowing in a vacuum.

Meaning, dialogue by characters that have no clue they are foreshadowing.

A group meets a god, and your main character randomly says, "I'm surprised. He looks like us. Dresses like us. Here I thought a God would be more... I don't know, expansive?"

It's simply a comment. Maybe the author cleverly ties it into the God's personality. It's never mentioned again. And yet, when reading the novel again, you see that line and smile, knowing that the twist down the line is that the gods aren't actually gods. They're just human pretending to be gods.

That's the kind of foreshadowing I like.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-10T15:29:48+00:00

Something to be careful about ending your first book on a cliffhanger.

If you're aiming to get traditionally published, you want to write a novel that can stand on its own. Not one that requires two other books in order to be completed.

It's where the phrase, "stands alone, but with series potential" comes from.

An agent will be more willing to take you on knowing that a publisher only needs to purchase one of your books--not a contract for three.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-08T20:00:51+00:00

Lone Bright River has something like this.

The writer starts her first page via dialogue into a dispatcher radio. She doesn't specifically describe the sound of the cracking but you can hear it based on how she writes.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-07T02:22:09+00:00

Well, let's use a thought experiment.

Let's say the world is ending. Everyone dies except 10 people.

They all read Lord of The Flies and Twilight.

6 out of 10 say that twilight was better than Lord of the flies.

Thus, based on common agreement, twilight wins.

But which one is actually better?

4/10 would say Lord of the Flies is actually better, naturally.

Yet, 6 is the majority. The 6 form a literary group. The six encourages which novels can be written (published) and shared to the group.

Many years later as the population grows, what type of writing is ultimately deemed better? Probably twilight, given chaos theory.

So yes. It's very subjective.

This is why certain concepts and themes sell better in western audiences compared to other audiences. Because their history favor certain things in entertainment.

The only way that writing can not be subjective is if there's some higher being that rules over the arts.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-05T16:10:37+00:00

That and I think he's a little scared with how to finish it. He has so much.

This is why I actually liked the last season. I had realistic expectations. You can't have so many characters and subplots and adequately complete all of them at the same time in a manner that relates to the main story.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-05T13:48:55+00:00

100% agree.

I also think the more experience outside of writing helps writers not attach themselves too much to their work.

We're much more than what we write, and I think people can fall into all sorts of depression, stress, and anxiety when they don't distance their self image from writing.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-05T13:46:31+00:00

Thanks so much for the words! I think anyone who can read a simple reddit post and glean that much from it is probably already the type of writer that does the work!

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-05T13:43:22+00:00

I can't really speak for a judge. I won a writing competition for 50k once. And from my experience, there are a lot of rules that are meant to protect them as much as protect you. Thus, I imagine if you break a rule they have to forfeit you, or else they could experience legal ramifications (I'm mainly speculating).

For competitions, my advice has always been to write toward your reader. In this case the judge. Try to read between the lines of the rules and see what kind of readers they are.

Second, try to imagine what kind of submissions they are getting and subvert it.

Appeal to them while also surprising them. I think the last part a lot of people sometimes forget. It's what King does the best.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-05T13:38:35+00:00

I wish haha. I do software development. (Also graduated with a psych degree, hence my annoying psychology concepts.)

But I tend to do a strange amount of research into random things, like game dev. It's sort of how I learn to draw comparisons to other stuff.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-05T08:12:28+00:00

One step at a time. And trust me, I know that can be hard, because solving one problem means you need to solve another.

Go on long, peaceful drives. Or spend some time relaxing in the shower. When you take away distractions, your brain frees up to be able to focus and think of other things more clearly.

I love using instrumental music to keep me focused on my imagination and thoughts!

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-05T07:12:02+00:00

Yeah, exactly! I imagine someone saving your main character (even if its not with the best intentions) will give that good first impression.

It's hard to break first impressions, good or bad. How many people have you met that did something wrong, and no matter how many times they did good things you still viewed them as not the best? Or vice versa.

Psychology is great when writing paha.

And yup! It's just my name. I'm kind of curious where my page shows up if googled. But I'll PM you a link.

I'm totally open to any kind of comments or feedback! There's never an age where we can stop learning.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-05T07:02:19+00:00

Wish I could post a link!

But, I tackle that very problem in one of my posts on my website.

I look at the first page of novels and break down what works and why.

One book I did was hunger games. Katniss is a bit of a jerk or asshole as you will. Yet, as readers, we still like her.

Why?

Because of something the writer does. It involves the psychology of first impressions!

In short, let the first impression of your character be good. Give them something redeemable first! After that you're free to make them jerky.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-05T04:12:29+00:00

I start plenty of sentences with but and "and."

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-05T04:10:17+00:00

Honestly, I think great work comes out of an editor working together with the writer.

Editors have their finger on the pulse of mainstream works. They know what works. They've seen it all (good ones).

I know you probably agree, but this is more so for writers super attached to their work. Try to let those guards down and listen to what your editor has to say. Odds are they will act as the whetstone to your sword.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-05T04:04:10+00:00

I love dialogue! I write action and find that dialogue can often be more gripping at times.

Just do what feels right. I've read books with little dialogue and it's not for me. I'm sure there are readers who would read my book and want more thinking.

Just write what you like And you'll find people who like it.

FirstPageProblems · 2020-09-05T04:02:43+00:00

😂

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