The Anti-Guide

How do you try to improve your writing?

I try to avoid old, stupid things.	17.5%	[ 2292 ]
I add new things.	14.9%	[ 1951 ]
A combination of both (if one more than the other, pick it).	67.6%	[ 8852 ]
Total Votes:			[ 13095 ]

[avearia]

Cthulhu Eating Ye

In any thriller, all characters have guns, and the description of the gun must correspond to the focus on the character. If it takes less than five pages to describe the MC's gun, you're doing it wrong.
On a related note, any character without a gun is automatically cannon fodder dying at the beginning of any fight. No exceptions.

EDIT: Unless there is only one character without a gun, either already known to the reader or described in excruciating detail. They will survive the fight without a scratch and join the MC after the fight.

Related: If the villain in a horror story has a gun, he'll never do something like mess with the character's minds by filling it full of blank shots and playing russian roulette with them. That wouldn't make any sense, and we all know Psychos make perfect sense.

Furthermore: all villains in horror movies are either psychos or outright monsters. Because having a normal guy trying to kill you isn't scary.

[Zell-The-Renegade]

avearia

Furthermore: all villains in horror movies are either psychos or outright monsters. Because having a normal guy trying to kill you isn't scary.

This guy:



Evil. Psycho. Probably been in and out of mental institutions. Good villain.

This guy:



Slightly evil, but turns for better after terrible accident. Fairly good looking. Dresses well. Highly intelligent. Bad villain.

[FanFantasy]

You can't have a villain that isn't insane, just slightly misguided. ALL, and I mean ALL villains must be insane at some point. Then the MC cures them with their magical FREINDSHIP powers.

[avearia]

FanFantasy

You can't have a villain that isn't insane, just slightly misguided. ALL, and I mean ALL villains must be insane at some point. Then the MC cures them with their magical FREINDSHIP powers.

Being beaten by the MC immediately fixes any and all villains' problems. It's the one and only tharapy that exists, don'cha know.

[Ludera]

Quote:

It's the one and only therapy that exists, don'cha know.

Psychologists are just there to be unhelpful (or downright useless), or evil. They are very frequently ugly, and in the case of being evil, they're usually into sexually molesting their patients. They always have patients because all psychologists work in therapy, just like all social workers work with children from bad homes.

Zell-The-Renegade

Slightly evil, but turns for better after terrible accident. Fairly good looking. Dresses well. Highly intelligent. Bad villain.

((Well, if he's only "slightly evil" and turns good later on, he isn't really a villain in the first place...))

[I am The Compendium]

Unless it can make something tangible happen, religion is not helpful. It's not like its comforting or helps people find inner strength or compassion or anything.

[marshmallowcreampie]

FanFantasy

You can't have a villain that isn't insane, just slightly misguided. ALL, and I mean ALL villains must be insane at some point. Then the MC cures them with their magical FREINDSHIP powers.

Agreed. In the X-Men, Magneto is a psycho who hates normal humans. He was never in a traumatic situation ((*cough*Holocaust*cought*)) that led him to believe two different groups can't live together, no!

((I'm sorry, I just love talking about the X-Men... They just have some good examples, though.))

All preppy girls are evil bitches. Same goes for whoever the MCs boyfriend left her for (although the MC must get a much hotter guy right away).

[avearia]

I am The Compendium

Unless it can make something tangible happen, religion is not helpful. It's not like its comforting or helps people find inner strength or compassion or anything.

Religion and Gods are always built to explain the entire existence of the universe. That's all gods do and EVER do; create stuff. And then they leave their creation and lounge up in the clouds doing nothing for all eternity.

No god only created 'part' of a world; or heaven forbid, just changed a pre-existing world to what it is today. ((side note: that might be an interesting angle to work a story from...))

If there are multiple gods, it's always a mix of men and women. Never a full set of women, because women can't do anything by themselves--and never a set of men, because that would be sexist!

[I_Write_Ivre]

marshmallowcreampie

All preppy girls are evil bitches. Same goes for whoever the MCs boyfriend left her for (although the MC must get a much hotter guy right away).

Of course. When people break up, one has to be a 'villain' in the relationship and exes can't civily be in the same state together, let alone near each other.

[Faith-Hoping-Love]

avearia

If there are multiple gods, it's always a mix of men and women. Never a full set of women, because women can't do anything by themselves--and never a set of men, because that would be sexist!

And the gods never interfere with the characters lives at all. They're always distant deities that are mentioned only for the world to have some sort of cursing!

Or, if they do interact with a person at all, it's only to ever give the MC their ultimate blessings and super awesome powers and cool weapons.

[FanFantasy]

marshmallowcreampie

All preppy girls are evil bitches. Same goes for whoever the MCs boyfriend left her for (although the MC must get a much hotter guy right away).

The MC won't push him away after her emotional breakdown with losing her boyfriend. She'll fall right into hotter guys arms.

[Zell-The-Renegade]

Ludera

Quote:

It's the one and only therapy that exists, don'cha know.

Psychologists are just there to be unhelpful (or downright useless), or evil. They are very frequently ugly, and in the case of being evil, they're usually into sexually molesting their patients. They always have patients because all psychologists work in therapy, just like all social workers work with children from bad homes.

Zell-The-Renegade

Slightly evil, but turns for better after terrible accident. Fairly good looking. Dresses well. Highly intelligent. Bad villain.

((Well, if he's only "slightly evil" and turns good later on, he isn't really a villain in the first place...))

((He was evil in the GAME. Then he got blowded up, so now he's all happy-pretty-buttuhfwies.

I liked evil Shinra better.))

[Am_I_God]

I_Write_Ivre

marshmallowcreampie

All preppy girls are evil bitches. Same goes for whoever the MCs boyfriend left her for (although the MC must get a much hotter guy right away).

Of course. When people break up, one has to be a 'villain' in the relationship and exes can't civily be in the same state together, let alone near each other.

Not true. I'm friends with most of my exs

[FanFantasy]

Am_I_God

I_Write_Ivre

marshmallowcreampie

All preppy girls are evil bitches. Same goes for whoever the MCs boyfriend left her for (although the MC must get a much hotter guy right away).

Of course. When people break up, one has to be a 'villain' in the relationship and exes can't civily be in the same state together, let alone near each other.

Not true. I'm friends with most of my exs

See, if you're writing, that's doin it WRONG.

[Retaya]

By the end of the story, all villains are either dead or have been turned good. There is no inbetween.