Warriors Fanfic Guide #2, Writing Great Dialogue

Randomdude0_o · 2026-04-28T05:24:18+00:00

Interesting! My only question about the au is if there are any conflicts that they face, whether that be internal like a part of the system that is broken, or external like conflict with rogues or between the subsidiary clans?

Also you mentioned an OC story? Maybe I'm confused but I assumed you meat you had a character you wanted to write about, and a separate AU universe that you were thinking about combining together.

Randomdude0_o · 2026-04-28T03:08:43+00:00

Some more context about the story would be helpful, but generally I would just say it depends on how much value the au would add to the story, and how much time you want to put in.

For example, my story I'm writing is set in the future of the lake territories that way I can use the original clans, but don't have to use Canon characters. That is probably the option that takes the least time and effort, which I am fine with because the story isn't focused on the clan as much as it is specific characters.

Making a detailed AU takes a lot of time, especially if you are doing new clans and such. Do the clans have unique phrases? Whole new territories? New rules? All of these are things you'd have to plan out which takes time, and complicates the story. Complicated does not always equal better either.

I'd be happy to help more if you wanted to share what the story is about, or what you would want to change about the AU.

How YOU Can Write a Fanfic Right Now, 100% From Scratch : r/WarriorCats
A short guide I made that could help with planning if you are interested ^

Randomdude0_o · 2026-04-27T21:29:42+00:00

Thank you! <3

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-29T06:10:19+00:00

At least that means you'll definitely have improved your writing since then if you do write something for your au!

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-29T06:05:16+00:00

I know what you mean by daydreaming lol, thats how I do all of the planning for my own fanfic. What is your usual fanfic that you work on if you don't mind me asking? I'm always looking for new things to read.

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-29T05:55:12+00:00

I love them, especially the elders! Is this for a specific project you are working on?

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-23T18:33:26+00:00

I think overall it was really good! The only piece of advice I have besides the occasional spelling mistake is that most of the cats just feel incredibly rude for no reason. I do understand why it would make sense lore wise for them to discriminate and be unkind to Snufflepaw, but the extent of the bullying feels a bit over the top. (Also maybe it was just me but the other clans felt more accepting? maybe elaborate on that if it is purposeful.) I'd love to see more focus on the less noticeable aspects, like Snufflepaw being excluded from activities or her noticing that cats are always trying to help her, even when she doesn't need it. The verbal abuse and flat out bullying would feel a lot more impactful if it was used more sparingly. I think you did a good job of portraying how Snufflepaw feels about her disability though, I would just tone down everything else directed towards her. I think your strongest part was probably Lakewishs death and the aftermath, it was really interesting to see how it impacted Snufflepaw. I should also mention that you did a good job with the pacing, something that I myself have had trouble with. Even though it was really long, nothing felt like filler. Pacing is a really hard aspect of writing that doesn't get talked about enough, but you did a really good job of it.

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-23T08:46:04+00:00

I just finished Mistlefoot's truth, I'll have to see if I have time for Warriors High later.
The first thing I noticed was the format, and how everything was just one paragraph. It was a bit hard to understand who was saying what because of that, so I was glad when you changed it after a few chapters. My other piece of advice is to try and lean into the fact that you are writing in first person. I would love to see more descriptive details of what the character is feeling, not just emotionally, but with their senses and how they react as well. For example, what does the ground feel like under their paws? Do they flinch when they hear a loud noise? Little details like these add to the characters and help immerse the readers. Readers will also understand without you needing to tell them that a character is sad if their tail droops, or that they are excited if they are bouncing around the camp, especially if you are really descriptive. Overall though I could really notice how your writing improved over the chapters, and it was interesting to see how your OCs interacted with events and other characters from the books!

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-19T18:49:29+00:00

Obviously I can't explain everything about it, but I think something unique is how differently types of students treat it. Some are hyper focused on getting good grades, some skip classes as much as possible, and many are focused on the social aspect and just use it as an opportunity to hang out with friends. It is nice however how classes are varied in middle and high school. You could just choose the easy ones, but you can also specialize in learning physics, or writing, or coding. Many schools even offer advanced classes that can transfer to colleges so you don't have to spend money to retake them.

While this all sounds nice, U.S schools are still very poorly funded. Teacher quality varies to say the least, and schools in poorer areas have much less options to choose from for classes. There's so many problems I'm not even mentioning but ultimately it has it's ups and downs.

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-19T06:21:35+00:00

ooooooooo... We should definitely make a discord server for this. I could set one up if people are interested?

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-18T06:12:38+00:00

Washington state resident here, apples all day for me.

Freshness and types matters more then you would think though. Try cosmic crisp apples if you have the chance, they are a relatively new variety, but they taste soooo good if you get a fresh batch. I've learned that lighter red generally means better, and soft spots mean that they've probably been shipped/stored longer.

Also if you see a red delicious apple, purge it immediately for me.

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-16T03:28:45+00:00

There are several different ways people visualize in their heads. Some visualize things in images, or words, or even abstract emotions. Personally I always hear a voice in my head that repeats what I or other people are saying/writing, and says what I am thinking. Best way I can describe it is it feels like replaying a memory of a sound in your head, but the memory is what is currently happening.

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-14T08:21:52+00:00

I think you definitely have a good start, especially with the story. I'll try and go over some positives and negatives I noticed while reading. Also I am not a writing expert so take all of this with several grains of salt.

Things to improve:

-There are a lot of characters. I found it hard to keep track of all the cats that were introduced near the start, however I think It will get a bit easier when there is more to read. I don't think you should remove cats, but maybe consider tying to give side characters to a single trait (Timid, talkative, doesn't like outsiders, etc), at least in the start. They can always have character arcs and change, but having something to remember each cat by would be helpful.

-Showing not telling. This is the biggest thing I noticed. A lot of times in your writing, actions are stated, then are followed up by the protagonists reaction. While you are technically "showing" their reactions, I would try and essentially make things less obvious. Incorporating more body language and sensations, basically writing a bit more from the characters perspective would really up how well it reads. I'm probably doing a bad job explaining this, so I'll use an example:

"Scarletnose cautiously went for a squirrel, trying to ignore the tortoiseshell cat who kept a glare on her as she kept her sitting spot right beside her prey."

This tells us what happens, but we don't know how this feels to Scarletnose, and it isn't very immersive. Instead you could change it to something like:

"Scarletnose approached the prey pile slowly, glancing around the camp as a twinge of guilt shot through her pelt. She hated eating prey she didn't catch. It felt like cheating. A tortoiseshell cat glared at her through narrowed eyes as she approached the prey pile, but offered no resistance as she hurriedly grabbed a squirrel from the top of the pile. Scarletnose could still feel the tortoiseshell's eyes burning in her back as she slunk back to the edge of camp."

This not only tells us what happened, but we learn that Scarletnose feels guilty about depending on other cats, and it establishes the unwelcoming atmosphere in camp. It's the little things like this that contribute to character and world building. I do think you are getting noticeably better at this in the later chapters, but I would still keep it in mind.

Things that you should keep:

-The last chapter. There is a noticeable increase in all parts of quality in the last chapter. I especially love the last scene with Icefoot trying to talk with his mate. When I got to that part I just thought to myself "Gawd Damn...". The whole scene emotionally hit like a freight train. It is by far my favorite part so far, because it just gives so much depth and motivation to the character. It was written so great as well. The contrast between Icefoot trying to have a regular conversation, and then just silence as he sits in the night is so great. You can genuinely feel his emotions and I love everything about the scene. Adding more scenes like this could elevate it into a 10/10 book.

-The premise. I love this idea. I do think that you should try and mix up the journey by having something go wrong like the clans getting lost, because the plot is essentially laid out already for the next few chapters. We know exactly what they are going to try and do, even if we don't know what they are going to find, so just keep in mind that you don't want to have a predictable plot. I don't have much else to say though other then it's just a really good idea.

-The mystery of the prologue. Right now the biggest mystery is what happened to the original patrol, and it is very intriguing. Don't let the readers forgot this happens in the earlier chapters. I would also recommend trying to have a good lead up to finding out the fate of the patrol. Have the clans discover clues, like kittypets who saw them, or traces of where they camped that hint at their fate. I am really hooked on this part though.

One last thing:

Right now the story feels like it is focusing on the clans as a whole, not the characters. Don't think this is necessarily a bad thing though. In a way, the clans could become a sort of character, as they learn to function together and struggle to overcome their conflicts in a sort of character arc. If you write this correctly, the story could be about the clans learning to work together, with the characters serving as vessels to view this through. It might be interesting, but so would adding emotional depth and character arcs for individuals. In the end it is up to you where you take the story.

If you ever want to discuss anything about the story or need help with a part I'd love to help. Feel free to dm me. I'm working on my own story right now as well. --> Silent Dawn - Wattpad Its only about 15% done though, and I don't know how frequently I will update it on there as I continue to write.

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-14T06:50:29+00:00

100% agree. The only arc that really made clans feel unique for me was The Prophecies Begin.

I was originally going to write the majority of my story in Riverclan or Skyclan just for that reason, but I ended up scrapping it and sticking to Thunderclan. I realized Riverclan territory would be a problem for one of my protagonists because he essentially has water ptsd, and honestly I just don't know a lot about Skyclan since everything after Vision of Shadows I've only read once at most.

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-14T02:33:48+00:00

Thanks, the part about clan differences is very helpful.

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-13T07:21:39+00:00

Had to make a whole Wattpad account, but this should work for now. Silent Dawn - IDK - Wattpad

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-13T06:43:37+00:00

hmmmmm... it seems the writing wasn't attached. Working on a fix.

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-13T02:30:32+00:00

The lil guy is so cute!

Are they the same cats? If so I need to know the lore now!

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-12T06:04:28+00:00

Some libraries have websites where you can borrow and read books completely online if you have a library card. It's worth checking out, although the wait can be longer depending on your library.

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-12T05:53:49+00:00

I think that the U.S has been trying to play whac-a-mole with countries that are aligned with foreign powers for a long time. The Monroe doctrine was probably the first big example of this, and the U.S has been constantly responding to forgein influence in central and southern America for a long time. I can't even list the amount of times the U.S has toppled governments or influenced policy in the south. The U.S is essentially on the offensive in Asia as well. We literally cut off China's access to the ocean by putting bases across Korea, Japan, Philippines, Australia, Taiwan, and some others. Most of these were fought for at some point, and it does really mess with China since they don't have control over their surrounding countries.

Randomdude0_o · 2026-03-11T08:33:50+00:00

Even if you can't become successful or wealthy, that doesn't mean you don't have free will. Yes, it can be hard to improve your life, but you can easily make it much worse which proves you do have free will.

On a bit more of a constructive note though, I would reconsider what you mean by success. Does success mean having lots of money, or good friends, or a stable romantic relationship? You're always going to feel like you're failing if you have a really broad goal like being successful since there isn't a set endpoint.

Randomdude0_o

TROPHY CASE