Distinct Styles

[Captain Indigo]

You're quite right, Sasha - that's another line that is hard to distinguish when writing.

My best friend when writing is Word's inbuilt Thesaurus (highlight word, press Shift + F7). It's a little hard to navigate until you get used to it, but it is utterly indispensible!

[Marion]

I will spend quite a lot of time searching for what appears to me to be the right word for a passage. There are often nuances associated with words that can shift an emphasis or enhance a description - for me anyway - and I take such things seriously, so that where an author has obviously used a word incorrectly, it can often spoil that passage for me. (I don't mean just mistakes - we all make those!)
I am not a great fan of narratives with no description in; to me that suggests the writer has either rushed through the story, or has little or no interest in the characters and situations they are portraying. On the other hand I don't like overblown pages of strung together adjectives either.
I have been told that I include too much description, and I rely heavily on my Beta-Readers to edit and prune my worst excesses. One reason I will search for a suitable word, is to try and encapsulate the ambience or a description in as few words as possible.
I have also been told - several times - that Americans use a much smaller vocabulary than the English do, and that 'my Americans' frequently don't talk like real Americans. This is probably true, but then the only Americans I have had any prolonged exposure to - apart from on TV - were stockbrokers, who were not exactly the most locquacious of people, (outside of trading, anyway) and so I've had little chance to compare the two vocabularies and I have always assumed that Americans spoke pretty much as we do. But that was one reason I devised a backstory for Captain Blue that featured him spending time in the UK - with a British fiancee, to boot - so he had chance to pick up the lingo. It is one way of disguising what could be considered a fault in my writing.
Basically, when it comes down to it, I write for myself in the first instance, and then I will adapt and refine what I have to suit - hopefully- a more general readership. I suppose I don't really 'do' adventure stories, the plot usually comes later in the creative process with me, but I like to imagine how the characters would react facing certain situations and dangers, and use that to try and tease out their personalities.
On a few occasions I have set myself 'writing challenges' - to see if I can change my style and 'break the mould' - once I even set out to deliberately include Captain Blue less than everyone else... It was a short story
I can't tell you if I succeed, I can only tell you I enjoy trying to - and after all, isn't that why we all write in the first place - because we enjoy it?

[Intensity Angel]

[color=#8899ff]You're trying out new styles so soon? That's really brave of you, Intensity. When I started writing, I found that it was best to write a few stories in my 'natural' style, and developed my skills that way before trying to branch out into something new. I also found that paying close attention to what my beta-readers told me helped me to develop more as a writer.
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Last night I spent a good few hours checking over Like Father, Like Son and compared it to my yet to be seen fan fic, The Female Shade Of Blue. Yes there are differences in style, for one being how I set things out, and taking a little longer to get to the point. But how I do things gererally, and the words I use are the same as in Like Father, Like Son. I would put a little part of the story up, but then again, it would ruin the surprise a little.

Normally I venture into adventure and comedy, so it that aspect Like Father, Like Son, wasn't my normal style.

[Sage]

LOL Serena ... holy adjects batman.
I can't think of anything that can bring out the worst in a writer like sex scenes do. They just lend themselves to awkwardness, unawareness, and the purplest of prose.
I have one of mine (Mod note - not suitable for younger readers) to hand, not sure how good it is per se [and my style is evolving still] but yeah obviously I wouldn't have written like that extract.

I'll admit, ordinarily my exposition gets so parred down. Can happily go hundreds of words without describing anything, and in a drabble that's not the focus anyway. To me as CS is a visual fandom there's less need for description of things we're already familiar with, unless it's to note a deviation from that.

Everyone has their own strength and interest as a writer. My 'training' is as a playwrite, so mine lies more with what the characters are saying and doing, which to me that can be just as evocative and outright exposition.

You're quite right, Sasha - that's another line that is hard to distinguish when writing.

My best friend when writing is Word's inbuilt Thesaurus (highlight word, press Shift + F7). It's a little hard to navigate until you get used to it, but it is utterly indispensible!

Oh mine too
My vocabulary exeeded my spelling ability when I was about ten. So I'll just use a synom as a start point then find the word I was actually shooting for.

I try hard to keep dialogue and such in character, with attention to the nuances of their speech. It comes fairly naturally to me, having a lot of exposure to American TV and friends online. I'm always on the look out for particular regional phrases then mentally file them for later (like Americans generally say soda, but in the Chicago area they'd say pop ... which got quibbled by my betas but I'm sticking by it). Not sure how authentic that is the grand scheme of things, but I try.

It's also important keeping it in character for the character themself and the context of their conversation. Like I don't think 'make love' would trip off Ochre's tongue quite so easily as it would Blue's; and vice versa with police terminology.

[Captain Indigo]

Sage... I don't know what to say...

I have the same trouble with the American characters as most of the British writers - I try and make their vocab correct, but I still get told that they're not quite right when the story goes for beta-reading. I live in hope that I'll get it right one day, but I doubt it.

[Sage]

LOL umm did you like it?
Sorry I should have mentioned it was nc-17; thought maybe it was apparent from the context, and the fic post itself is rated, but a bit of extra warning always helps.

I really don't think you're doing too badly. Americans themselves have so much variation in speech that there's no overall right or wrong (it's not even just phrases, but grammar & spelling too ... I know people who make a point of writing first person fics in American-English because the character is. Which isn't as far as I'd go, but whatever suits them).
If anything the character I have most trouble with there is Scarlet. Shouldn't do in theory, as in terms of location and class we're most alike. Maybe that's why; I overthink it, and have to consider if slang would be outdated in context, is comprehensable to the general audience, and sounds right for him.

[Intensity Angel]

I've never had much difficulty with American words but the variations are my problem, mind you I'm from Wolverhampton, and if anyone has ever visited the place, you'll understand this,

Wolverhampton has a language all of its own.

Americans have hell trying to understand all the Wolverhampton words and phrases.


Note from Marion: There was a post from me in response to this that got over-written by someone else, we're not sure how, and had to be deleted. It discussed the use of standard English and how I try to write characters for whom English is a second language.
I have inserted this note, as several subsequent posts refer to points I made in it (and one quotes from it) but I don't have a copy and I can't remember exactly what I said. Sorry. Marion .

[Intensity Angel]

Marion, I was just stating something, that's all. In truth my mates from down South don't recognise some of the phrases I use, I have a thick Wolverhampton accent on top of that. If I were to write how I spkoe, most people would wonder what the blazes, for example, I pronouce water as wata.

Anyway, isn't it that every fan fiction writer writes a little of their natural twang into their stories, in description or something similar? I know I sure do.

[Marion]

I come from The Potteries - not that far away - and I don't consciously put my local 'twang' into my narratives. If I did, I'm sure I'd create quite as much international confusion as you.
I suppose it depends on the nature of the story and the personality of the writer - but, in my opinion - fanfic is not there (primarily) to represent the author's personality. That is why we talk about keeping things 'in character' and 'within canon'.
I am sure that something of every author's traits seeps into what they write, we're only human after all, but the readers are reading the story because they liked the show and want to read more about the characters - not because of they want to learn about the author.
There is a genre of fiction that IS there to divulge the personality of the writer. I just don't happen to think it is fan fiction.

[Intensity Angel]

I can see your point, but every now and then, in one story the author might let slip something into the fan fiction they personally like, like a song or a sport or favourite aircraft.

That's what makes the stories individual. For The Female Shade Of Blue, I really like the, curses, how do I phrase this without dropping any hints what its about...um. Marion, you know what happens in the story after beta reading it, and you know I like what I mention in the story, the whole you know what thing.

Well on ocassions like that, its acceptable, because its the story in essence.

[Sage]

I'm pretty sure the 11th commandment of writing fanfic is 'never attempt to outright transcribe an accent'. It's just a train wreck waiting to happen.
Certain quirks of grammar or turns of phrase can go a long way. Completely ditto Marion on those examples (to an extent it applies with American characters too; dunno, kinda, yall, and such like).
And of course we have an advantage of having heard the characters speak in canon. So generally you can write close to standard English and the reader will just imagine the accent.

Obviously most writers unconciously have an element of their own speech in their writing. But standard English exists for a reason, you need to ensure as far as possible that your written words are understandable to the general readership.

I actually wouldn't have Scarlet saying pop; because I'm more likely to use 'soft drinks', lemonade, or brand names in that context myself. So maybe that's my concession to be young and in his neighbourhood.
That said he probably does sound more 'British' than me. As he's been to public school and everything else. He'd probably get teased if he tried too hard to assimiliate, because some things just sound wrong with that accent as a start point.

[Marion]

Yes, I think I know what you mean, Intensity...
However, topics and details that go to make up a story are not the same as language.
Some of the things people have written, that have no real basis in 'canon' - ie what is divulged by the TV show (precious little, in most cases), has gone on to become popular with other writers and that forms the 'fanon' - facts extrapolated, or invented, by fans.
One good example is Captain Blue's ear for music, (or rather his lack of an ear for music ) which has been used by several authors in various stories.

standard English exists for a reason, you need to ensure as far as possible that your written words are understandable to the general readership

I agree, Sage . I also think that using current slang is quite risky, as it will date fairly quickly, so I try to avoid it. Don't always succeed though.
Accent and vocabulary is very much part and parcel of how an Englishman (possibly how a Briton speaks, I don't know about the Scots and Welsh so much) speaks. I don't see Scarlet using 'pop' to refer to a soft drink either - it wouldn't sound right to me.

[Intensity Angel]

Sorta of thing I would say, but hey, guys I do use basic English, one look at Like Father, Like Son tells you that. If I wrote a fan fiction in complete Wolverhampton slang, then it would be completely wrong. I would never do that, for one thing, none of the characters from the show are from Wolverhampton, or the West Midlands to that matter. And you don't see me writing in complete Wolvo on here do ya? Partially yeah, because that's the way I am.

But the fact is people write how they feel happiest. Some might like to use long sentences and complicated words, others might perfer a combination of words, whatever rocks your boat really.

This secrecy surrounding The Female Shade Of Blue is killing me, and I've suceeded in forgetting the question I was about to ask, give me a second.

Right, why do people pick the topics they do? I'm still trying to work out why I chose the topics for Like Father, Like Son and The Female Shade Of Blue.

[Marion]

I think it is called 'Inspiration'.
Don't quote me on that, though

[Intensity Angel]

Well what inspired me to include the 'you know who' in a fan fiction, and then make it extreme? Like Father, Like Son, yeah, now I understand, looking at it. I wanted to write about Tom Metcalfe, mentioned but never seen. It would've been nice to see a picture of him in the series.

Okay here's another question,

In a themed story (love, horror, adventure etc), as Captain Scarlet fans, what do you expect?