A Thread for Writers to talk about Writing

[CatastrophicFailure]

And here's a general critique for the Sharkman's new story!

Good efficiency in the opening, establishing who these kerbs are and sort of what they're doing. For additional efficiency you could even strike most of Janina's line "Yeah I know, right?" since Macford has already said they're going to be driving for days. You don't need much development with these two, since well they're going to die. And I like the cartoony "PEW" sound.

Now I would counter this advice a bit, even with "expendable" characters, the more development you give them, the more connection the reader will have to them. That alone can make your bad guys seem badder. Nothing toys with the reader's emotions like making a character they like then doing something perfectly awful to them. Stephen King is a bit of an expert on this.

Ok, this is where I think you might want to dial it back a bit. Your bad guys sound like Speedy Gonzales, and that is not usually a good thing. I would be extremely careful with characterizations that could be seen as making fun of other cultures or races. IMO some foreign non-English words and sentence structure is OK, "dialected" English can be dangerous ground.

[section snipped, but lots more of 'los badguys'.]

Yes, accents are very tricky to get right. If you google "how to write in xxx accent" there's alot of material to give you some input.

[Parkaboy]

I can think of a couple to start:

--screenshots are free, take more than you think you need especially to capture Kerbal reactions. For certain scenes you may want the same shot with and without background--I often do F1-F2-F1-F2 real quick.

--mix up your shots. Some interior, some exterior, some 'portrait' views of the crew

--edit down and say more with less; one of the most difficult things is knowing what NOT to show to keep the story moving.

--vary your image size, layout and position. Make each page look fresh.

--think about how the reader's eye is going to travel from one part of the page to the next. Guide the eye where you want it to go.

--use quicksaves in case you didn't get the shot you want and have to do it over again

--keep powerpoint pages open to store images and constructions you might use again (for example, I have Walt's "Forum screen" stored at the end of the active file so I can just edit it when i want to use it)

--I use Imgur to host images and export from powerpoint to .png, it's really pretty easy

Hey, thanks a lot for the response. I'm doing a test, and PowerPoint is really, surprisingly, a very practical option. It's way easier to make text ballons with its shape tool. But I'm having trouble saving the images. When I export to .png or .jpeg, the text becomes very blurry, almost unreadable (as if its resolution was even lower than the pictures). What do you do to get the text to stay crisp?

Edit: I managed to get a good result by saving it as PDF and changing the PDF into Jpeg in Photoshop, but that's really annoying. It would be way better if I could save properly from PowerPoint...

Edited August 26, 2015 by Parkaboy

[Starwhip]

Writers are a bit like broccoli. . .they pick up the flavor of whatever they're cooked in. If you want to develop your own style, you need to read, read, read. That's where all the tricks and quirks of a writing style really come from. Pour words into your brain from a bunch of different authors, mix with your own ideas, and then stir.​

Oh, definitely. Couldn't agree more. But it takes practice to put all of this absorbed...-ness(?) into words on the page.

[Mister Dilsby]

Hey, thanks a lot for the response. I'm doing a test, and PowerPoint is really, surprisingly, a very practical option. It's way easier to make text ballons with its shape tool. But I'm having trouble saving the images. When I export to .png or .jpeg, the text becomes very blurry, almost unreadable (as if its resolution was even lower than the pictures). What do you do to get the text to stay crisp?

Edit: I managed to get a good result by saving it as PDF and changing the PDF into Jpeg in Photoshop, but that's really annoying. It would be way better if I could save properly from PowerPoint...

Couldn't tell you, sorry. Maye there's a compression factor option somewhere? I just do it as .png and it seems to work.

[Mister Dilsby]

Like everything else though, it is possible to take this too far. Sometimes "tell" is okay, if only for the sake of brevity. "Here dear reader, I'm going to just hand you this one. Hold onto it, you may need it later."

Quite so! You're right, that "rule" is often thrown about and can be mis-applied. Maybe a better way to say it would be that showing can create feelings and associations in the reader that simply telling cannot.

I limit their numbers.

The one thing about writing a story is that you really can't just drop a character. Once you invest them in the reader's mind, you really need to carry them all the way through the story. By nature, most stories involving KSP will eventually focus on a smallish group far away from home, even if only briefly. That gets a lot harder if you have dozens of characters sitting at home, begging for page time. Kerbal names tend to make this even worse-- they all start to look the same after a while. I try to keep the names as recognizable as I can, to the point of not recruiting a kerbal if they have a name too close to someone else already on the roster. And I keep their numbers down.

All true! Good writing focuses the reader's limited attention on the important elements of the story. In great writing, EVERY element of the story is important. An example of IMO terrible writing I've encountered is the "Warriors" series in which clans of cats apparently scratch each other to death and try to not get run over by cars. I am often in the unfortunate position of having to read a chapter to one of my kids at bedtime. A typical scene will have half a dozen or so cats in it, all of which have names, distinguishing features, personalities, relationships, backstories, etc--this signals from author to reader, "Hey--this character is important, pay attention!" But very few of these cats really have much to do with the central plot (such as it is) So, the reader goes crazy trying to remember what relationship Featherduster has to Toolkit (or whatever their stupid names are) and that investment never really pays off.

I have a lot of screenshots that are fairly dark (in the, "dim light" sense of the word). I like them. . .star fields are very pretty. But the thing about the human eye is that it is designed to see contrasts. On a black background, everything is fine, but move that picture over to the forum, and that white background messes things up. The eye adjusts to the white, and suddenly you lose a lot of definition in the picture.

I've had some luck adding a dark gray border to "low light" screenshots-- your mileage may vary.

That's a good idea! Another thing I do is simply increase the brightness in a photo editor, or play with contrast. The quality isn't great but you can at least make an invisible ship somewhat discernable.

[Endersmens]

If you have trouble figure out names for kerbal characters, I use this awesome tool: http://zeblote.com/ksp/namegen.php?c=10

You can set the amount of names it generates. I use 10 because it gives a good chance of giving one I would use without cluttering the screen up. And if you don't see one you like, you can just hit refresh.

This was made before the name generator was improved, so it is possible to get a duplicate, and you won't get ones you might see in 1.0.4, but it still works great for stories.

[KSK]

If you have trouble figure out names for kerbal characters, I use this awesome tool: http://zeblote.com/ksp/namegen.php?c=10

You can set the amount of names it generates. I use 10 because it gives a good chance of giving one I would use without cluttering the screen up. And if you don't see one you like, you can just hit refresh.

This was made before the name generator was improved, so it is possible to get a duplicate, and you won't get ones you might see in 1.0.4, but it still works great for stories.

Yup - I find this to be invaluable. Much easier than starting a new sandbox game and hiring screen after screen of kerbonauts until I find some decent names. Although I think I'm almost at the point where I have my own mental name generator, cobbled together from the character names I've used so far.

[Sharkman Briton]

Really love writing in foreign accents, like it's Polandball or as some people call it, Countryball. What does everyone think of part 3 of War of the Kerbs? (WOTK) Any criticism? Do you all like it?

[KSK]

Really love writing in foreign accents, like it's Polandball or as some people call it, Countryball. What does everyone think of part 3 of War of the Kerbs? (WOTK) Any criticism? Do you all like it?

The visuals are good. I have to confess that military vehicles are not really my thing in KSP but I can certainly appreciate the effort that goes into making them and yours are very nice. For the writing, I think Kuzzter put it very well and I agree with his critique.

[Sharkman Briton]

Thank you!

[KSK]

Writers are a bit like broccoli. . .they pick up the flavor of whatever they're cooked in. If you want to develop your own style, you need to read, read, read. That's where all the tricks and quirks of a writing style really come from. Pour words into your brain from a bunch of different authors, mix with your own ideas, and then stir.​

Well that beats the heck out of 'Writers are a bit like broccoli - sulphurous and an acquired taste.' Interestingly, I've found that sort of works the other way around - since I've started writing, I've become more alert to writing styles in books that I'm reading.

The one thing about writing a story is that you really can't just drop a character. Once you invest them in the reader's mind, you really need to carry them all the way through the story. By nature, most stories involving KSP will eventually focus on a smallish group far away from home, even if only briefly. That gets a lot harder if you have dozens of characters sitting at home, begging for page time. Kerbal names tend to make this even worse-- they all start to look the same after a while. I try to keep the names as recognizable as I can, to the point of not recruiting a kerbal if they have a name too close to someone else already on the roster. And I keep their numbers down.

Using a bit character as an observer to flesh out a main character is all well and good, but if you spend too much time with that bit character the reader will want to know what happened to them, and that will take page time all the way through the story. And after a while, you find that you have too many characters and none of them can breathe. It is not necessary to name everything​ walking around on two legs.

Hmmm, on the other hand, having bit characters does give a continuum between the main characters and the faceless, nameless masses. What would be your opinion on introducing a bit character but only giving him/her/it a couple of scenes and then maybe a couple of shout-outs here and there for the rest of the story, as part of fleshing out a main character?

Edit. Guess I'll stop being coy here. Back in that bar scene I mentioned, I introduced the barman /bar owner as a named character. The idea was that he was a friend of the main characters who had basically let have a room for free (because Jeb and Co. couldn't afford anything more expensive than free) in exchange for a couple of favours here and there and, latterly, the customer draw of having real live kerbonauts frequenting the establishment.

I don't think he ever gets another scene, although he is referred to here and there by the main characters, particularly Jeb. No guarantees but I doubt he'll be going into space any time soon either I have a couple of other characters like that, they come in, make a point, add some flavour to the story and then more or less disappear.

Question to everyone - does that work? Or does it lead to a case of Kuzzter's Cats?

Edited August 28, 2015 by KSK

[Sharkman Briton]

And here's a general critique for the Sharkman's new story!

*snip*

Thanks, the person that announced the stuff at the end of part 1 was generally a kind of news agent/announcer/that narrator guy, I'm trying to make the bad guys as polandball-like spanish as possible, like "they are into of many destroy" and overuse of the word El, to cover up my lesser knowledge of spanish. Even though spanish is my best foreign language I speak, im still rubbish at it. I learned half the words from Dora the Explorer when I was like five, and some others from going to spain, as I go there alot because my grandparents have a holiday home there. Thanks for the critique, and I'm stuck on trying to figure out what will happen next, since they're all enslaved now, basically they're gonna do a great-escape, but I'm stuck at how they're gonna do it, I want to get into a bit of space, so I was thinking a kind of "infiltrate an SSTO" but I've never flown one before and I'm not that good at flying planes. Another option was "rescue-mission hammertime" but that would ruin my plan of keeping KSC under enemy control for a while. Any suggestions?

[Mister Dilsby]

Hmmm, on the other hand, having bit characters does give a continuum between the main characters and the faceless, nameless masses. What would be your opinion on introducing a bit character but only giving him/her/it a couple of scenes and then maybe a couple of shout-outs here and there for the rest of the story, as part of fleshing out a main character?

I played with that a little bit just now in the Duna story: What would n00b Kerbonauts who joined the program in the last two years think of the crew that left for Duna before they entered the Academy, and is just now coming back? Hence "Kenzin Enlie", a fanboy who positively squees at the prospect of docking with the main characters and firing a burn for them. He gets four lines and a control action over two pages, and that's it. He'll likely show up again for comedic relief and to reinforce the rock star status of the orangesuits--hopefully he's memorable enough that I can just bring him out of the box for a one-off joke as required

- - - Updated - - -

Thanks, the person that announced the stuff at the end of part 1 was generally a kind of news agent/announcer/that narrator guy, I'm trying to make the bad guys as polandball-like spanish as possible, like "they are into of many destroy" and overuse of the word El, to cover up my lesser knowledge of spanish. Even though spanish is my best foreign language I speak, im still rubbish at it. I learned half the words from Dora the Explorer when I was like five, and some others from going to spain, as I go there alot because my grandparents have a holiday home there. Thanks for the critique, and I'm stuck on trying to figure out what will happen next, since they're all enslaved now, basically they're gonna do a great-escape, but I'm stuck at how they're gonna do it, I want to get into a bit of space, so I was thinking a kind of "infiltrate an SSTO" but I've never flown one before and I'm not that good at flying planes. Another option was "rescue-mission hammertime" but that would ruin my plan of keeping KSC under enemy control for a while. Any suggestions?

Well if you want to do a great escape, you could start by mining The Great Escape and other POW movies for memes and tropes.

[Sharkman Briton]

Okay, Thanks, what do you agree with, SSTO or rescue-mission hammertime?

[Whirligig Girl]

In my sort-of-anthology (kerbthology?), Scattered Kerbal Stories, I started with a few paragraph-long incidents and then started extending into fuller stories. I think of everything I have written so far in it as one story, as it deals with history and I intend to go on a broader scope with Kerbal stories, from the space program to a Joolean gasworlder colony ship trying to reach Eve to a look at a Kerbal group of criminals doing shady things for their own gain.

Is there a better word for that than sort-of-antho/kerbtholgy?

[Mister Dilsby]

Okay, Thanks, what do you agree with, SSTO or rescue-mission hammertime?

Dunno, only you know the story you want to tell--I'd suggest thinking of something awesome you want to show your readers at the end of the story, and then figure out the steps that will get you there.

- - - Updated - - -

In my sort-of-anthology (kerbthology?), Scattered Kerbal Stories, I started with a few paragraph-long incidents and then started extending into fuller stories. I think of everything I have written so far in it as one story, as it deals with history and I intend to go on a broader scope with Kerbal stories, from the space program to a Joolean gasworlder colony ship trying to reach Eve to a look at a Kerbal group of criminals doing shady things for their own gain.

Is there a better word for that than sort-of-antho/kerbtholgy?

That makes sense, I like the word "kerbthology"! Sure, if your stories hang together and all have the same rules and feel. Edgar Rice Burroughs and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle worked in a similar way

[CatastrophicFailure]

Question to everyone - does that work? Or does it lead to a case of Kuzzter's Cats?

I think it's absolutely essential. It helps to flesh out both the main character and world in general, and provides a way to explain things in a natural way. Unless, of course, your Kerbals are stranded on a deserted island. But then there's always volleyballs, too.

[Mister Dilsby]

Question to everyone - does that work? Or does it lead to a case of Kuzzter's Cats?

I think so long as you treat the characters un-equally it works. If you put the reader's focus everywhere, it will be nowhere. If you make it clear that supporting characters are just that, then they will indeed work to support the main characters. Of course this is a place to "show" who is important and who is not. But as they say in the theater, "there are no small parts" even the "unimportant" characters need to be interesting to the reader for however many seconds the reader is focused on them.

[Sharkman Briton]

I've started on a project to go to Duna with 6 Kerbals, and decided to make a mission report about it, since I decided to give up on Minmus Explorers (I just had no insentive to do it anymore, dunno why.) it takes off around where it left off. http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/132845-Project-Genesis-Uno-My-first-interplanetary-mission-!?p=2165967#post2165967

[KSK]

Thanks for the thoughts and feedback folks.

GregroxMun - an anthology/kerbthology sounds like a great plan! A set of stories, made as long or short as you like, all set in the same general universe. That sounds a lot of fun actually since you could jump about all over the timeline depending on what you felt like writing about at the time.

[billbobjebkirk]

I've actually been working on something like that "kerbthology" for a loong time, problem is I've never managed to actually start. baut, right now, I'm closer than I've ever been!

[Ten Key]

Uh huh. It's a proven scientific fact that broccoli is delicious.

. . .on the other hand, having bit characters does give a continuum between the main characters and the faceless, nameless masses. What would be your opinion on introducing a bit character but only giving him/her/it a couple of scenes and then maybe a couple of shout-outs here and there for the rest of the story, as part of fleshing out a main character?

Oh, absolutely. In addition to being a valuable tool for building up a main character, the best stories take odd twists during the writing process and sometimes bit characters can spontaneously grow into main characters. In Farlight, Kinsey did not exist at all in the initial concept writing, and I only included her as a way of facilitating a minor event way down the timeline. But she's kind of elbowed her way onto the main stage, and is likely to stay there.

But I think it's good to keep bit characters under control. You're right, they don't need to be "on page" all the time-- a shout out now and then will do nicely. But if you have dozens of bit characters, that's a lot of shout outs, and contriving reasons for those shout outs can become a slog. And to avoid the "who is that?" problem, you also have to dream up little clues to the reader to refresh their memory when you bring up a character that hasn't been mentioned in a while.

On of my favorite books on the subject is "On Writing", by Stephen King. There is a section in that book where he's talking about his experience writing "The Stand", and how he got to a point where he became completely stuck in the writing process. Ultimately the problem was that he was trying to juggle too many characters. And being Stephen King, you can imagine what the solution was.

I have some specific observations on First Flight, if you're interested. And any feedback/criticism on Farlight would be welcomed.

[Whirligig Girl]

Thanks for the thoughts and feedback folks.

GregroxMun - an anthology/kerbthology sounds like a great plan! A set of stories, made as long or short as you like, all set in the same general universe. That sounds a lot of fun actually since you could jump about all over the timeline depending on what you felt like writing about at the time.

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/132615-Scattered-Stories-Ep-1-A-History-of-the-Kerbal-Dream here it is if you want to take a look.

Edited August 29, 2015 by GregroxMun

[KSK]

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/132615-Scattered-Stories-Ep-1-A-History-of-the-Kerbal-Dream here it is if you want to take a look.

Oh, I have! And to answer your question - whichever bit you feel like writing next, even if you don't necessarily want to release it next. I've done that a couple of times with my story - when I've been bogged down with one chapter, I've skipped ahead a bit and started work on another one. Your anthology seems perfectly set up for that!

[Sharkman Briton]

Has this happened to anyone else? I was writing a story part for the first update of Project Genesis, and halfway through the writing I went out, when I came back and tried to add a picture the whole page went a paler shade, not like my browser wasn't responding because it was, it was the lighter shade that shows in the background when the popup for entering a pic URL shows up, but there was no pic URL popup and none of the buttons on the page were working, so I had to press backspace to get out, loosing my progress, when I tried to post the comment again it said the Token has expired, I managed to post the comment after a while but I couldn't be bothered to re-write the story.