Questions and Concerns

[Keanu Shan]

So I haven't been a member for very long here but there is something that iv'e noticed, which has been preying on my mind. You see, this is (due to its nature) a forum where writing style, and your ability to write coherently is...important; not as important as having fun, but still I think we can agree it really helps set the mood for the roleplaying and as spectators it helps us determine the level of interest we have in reading a roleplay. So then, I have written this with a two-fold purpose, for one, I would like to address the issue of people using multiple tenses and story viewpoints in one post; for instance there may be a post by "Mr.Default" in which, said "Mr.Default" picks up a cup and fills it with water from the sink, however the post goes something like this. "I decided i wanted a drink so "Mr.Default" stood up and would walk over to the sink. he would turn on the the water and he is filling up his drink . He drank it, savoring the nothingness of its cool flavor".
Now I realize I went a little over board there but you get the idea. Not only is the combination of first person and third person views in a story grammatically inappropriate, it adds unnecessary confusion; this also goes for tenses. Many time I see people use past, present and future tense all in the same paragraph. Im curious as to why this happens, and also curious what your preferred tense and story view is. What makes your writing flow the best and why do you choose that writing style? Thanks.

 

[Ellie Mors]

[member="Keanu Shan"]
Proper writing can consist of past, present, and future tense, just as long as it flows coherently from past to present to future and back again or vice versa. I actually write quite oddly, in that I write what is generally the first half of a sentence last followed by what is generally the end. I can't quite remember what it is termed as, but I found out about it in my college writing class when I handed in an essay. It's apparently a bit difficult to do for most people.

I write in a descriptive style, rather than a narrative, but I tend to keep to past-present tense rather than future, unless I feel as though I've made too many actions and end in future tense to keep the possibility of an outcome open to interpretation.

Edit: Just found it via google, I write in passive voice most often.

 

[Jsc]

It's all about the people you post with. Sometimes you get a writing partner who's a University English Professor and sometimes you get a I-lik-u-gurl-<3_LEET gossip girl text-while-driving xoxo. ...Yeahhh. You know what I'm talking about. Heh. Sometimes you get that guy who only posts using that one custom Egyptian font and sometimes you get a poster who only uses rainbow colors and . ...Yep. And yet, sometimes you get that guy who breaks the 4th wall, that fellow who speaks only in wookiee, and sometimes you get that girl who only uses GIFs and Youtube Links to tell a story.

Truth. Everybody's different. Try to make it a good thing. *wink*

 

[Ludolf Vaas]

TLDR: Don't write in first-person. It's weird.

 

[Reverance]

I do this thing where I write and then read it over. If it doesn't make sense, I fix it. If it does... Then I don't. I call it... Rev style.

 

[Darth Carnifex]

TLDR: Don't write in first-person. It's weird.

All of this.

 

[Nikolas Faselli]

Many time I see people use past, present and future tense all in the same paragraph. Im curious as to why this happens, and also curious what your preferred tense and story view is. What makes your writing flow the best and why do you choose that writing style? Thanks.

I feel like I may have made this kind of mistake. And not only once, but many times.

So people, that's what happens if your native language doesn't have any future tenses.

 

[Thurion Heavenshield]

I'd like to believe I only mix past, present and futures tense whenever my characters speak. Wouldn't make sense for them to talk as if stuff had already happened. Otherwise I always try to keep it past tense, and third person. Frankly I think writing in first person is just unnecessarily difficult, but maybe that's because English isn't my first language. That, and I've hardly ever come across books written in first person. Third person has always seemed much more common.

 

[Artemis Vahl'Nyx]

TLDR: Don't write in first-person. It's weird.

;_;

I tend to write in both first and third- though rarely in the same post. The only times I'll do that is if I'm switching from a passive form to a combat form. As in if a thread started out as mostly conversation or just people hanging out, then turned into a fight. Generally I do better in third when it comes to fight scenes. Not the best at them either way

When it comes to past and present tense... oi, you found my weak spot! Keeping that consistent is something I've always had difficulty with for some reason. I have to go over a post looking for just those mistakes in order to remove them- they aren't something I'd notice in a casual read-over, or even a read-over meant to eliminate other types of errors. Generally I try to write in past tense. Just because it's easier and seems to flow better. Maybe I'm just crazy.

My preference on perspective... I do most of my non-RP writing in first, believe it or not! It's what I prefer. You really get into the mind of the character that way. However you do lose some detail in regards to other characters and the environment around them. Changing perspective can be a hard thing to do properly though. Even if you're just going from 1st to 3rd or vice versa. Despite my preference I'm pretty sure I write better in third. What can I say though? Old habits do, indeed, die hard.

 

[Keanu Shan]

thanks for shedding some light on this mystery. Also language hadnt even crossed my mind (I guess America isnt the whole world....joking ).
So multiple of you have said no first person. It seems like if your careful you could do it right. I have actually been considering doing a character who writes in first person and occasionally addresses the audience (think, Ferris Buellers day off). Thoughts anyone...anyone?

 

[Natasi Fortan]

thanks for shedding some light on this mystery. Also language hadnt even crossed my mind (I guess America isnt the whole world....joking ).
So multiple of you have said no first person. It seems like if your careful you could do it right. I have actually been considering doing a character who writes in first person and occasionally addresses the audience (think, Ferris Buellers day off). Thoughts anyone...anyone?

Speaking from experience, unless the other writer is @Steph Zenima/@Karin Dorn, these types of posts tend to be difficult to follow and not that fun to write against.

 

[Ludolf Vaas]

[member="Drapeam Nyx"] You're better off not mixing the two, as it's generally confusing. I have never read a book where first and third-person were interchanged to any significant degree. You pick a perspective and stick with it. Generally,

First-person for the character's personal thoughts and feelings (usually italicized).

Third-person for everything else.

Certain writers (like Karin Dorn mentioned above) have used first-person, but she has an intentionally comical writing style that borders on parody.

 

[Keanu Shan]

hmmm ok ill have to check out the mentioned writer

 

[Artemis Vahl'Nyx]

[member="Ludolf Vaas"]
Like I said, I rarely mix the two, and if I do, the changes are very clear, and happen in between paragraphs.

EX:
Nyx stared at the guy in front of her with a frown. He seemed liked an nerf herder to her. Perhaps the feeling was mutual? That would explain the blaster now pointed at her head...
-PERSPECTIVE: 1st, DRAPEAM NYX-
Why the hell was he pointing a *BEEP*ing blaster at me? What the *BEEP* did I do? Eh, didn't matter. Because this Zorren has some tricks up her sleeve...
EX OVER

It usually happens the opposite way, going from 1st to 3rd. For the most part it depends on what character I'm using. Most are solely in 3rd, while a few I've done both with (though when I pick a perspective for a thread, I keep it, unless, of course, I don't feel like using it is working for a combat situation that comes up), and I have... two characters, I think, that I've written solely in 1st person. One is because the guy was a clone of a friend's old character, and she always wrote them in first. Kind of... adopted their style for him.
*shrugs*

A few times I have had little 1st person inserts into otherwise 3rd person stories/posts. Usually just a paragraph, always italicized. Haven't done that for awhile.

 

[Roshki Belawiiks]

I like writing in both. For me, honestly, third person sometimes has a way of becoming... "desensitized". As in, you don't get as much feeling and emotion from the character. That being said, this toon is the only one I've really written with first person -- the rest are third xD

 

[Ludolf Vaas]

honestly, third person sometimes has a way of becoming... "desensitized". As in, you don't get as much feeling and emotion from the character.

I'm gonna call baloney on that statement.

Literally every single one of the most powerful and emotional books I've read were written in third person.

 

[Roshki Belawiiks]

[member="Ludolf Vaas"]

In that context, yes. However, you failed to include the words "For me". As in, I find that it doesn't always convey enough character emotion.

I would also like to point out that I said "sometimes". Meaning some, not all. Trust me, I've come across quite a few third-person stories which were written excellently and conveyed the emotion and general "feels" splendidly. It's just that most of them, in my opinion, don't always quite reach the bar.

 

[Louise]

Aforementioned Karin Dorn/Steph Zenima creature here.

I typically liked to blend my own perspective with that of whatever character I was writing at the time, but I did so without warning and gratuitously. Of later years I make use of bold and italic to have this come across easier because while some people, such as [member="Avadreia Lacroix"] and [member="Ludolf Vaas"] above get it, a lot of people don't, and when people don't get something, they don't like it.

I'm not a fan of first person in this realm either, I reserve my preference for first person to be kept in the bathroom as a frothy celebrity autobiography.

You think: Deeper connection with the thoughts of your character.

I think:

 

[Ludolf Vaas]

[member="Roshki Belawiiks"] I'm thinking that your problem with feeling any emotional gravitas with certain literature has less to do with what perspective it was written in, and more to do with how well it was written.

You think: Deeper connection with the thoughts of your character.

I think:

Exactly. Thank you.

First person makes me feel like I'm reading your diary.

 

[Roshki Belawiiks]

[member="Ludolf Vaas"]

It could be both, to be honest. But, to each his own.

And who knows, maybe you have a secret desire to read people's diaries, you just don't know it yet.