The Anti-Guide

How do you try to improve your writing?

I try to avoid old, stupid things.	17.5%	[ 2370 ]
I add new things.	14.7%	[ 1993 ]
A combination of both (if one more than the other, pick it).	67.8%	[ 9169 ]
Total Votes:			[ 13532 ]

[avearia]

Alberic of Krufton

It's not Racist or anything to mow down legions of enemy mooks who happen to be Not White -- your MC is a Good Guy and the Hero, and also Not Racist, so this is totally okay. Most of the time said mooks aren't even human, so they don't actually matter.

Mooks are non-sentient, of course. why would someone with even half a brain willingly work for the bad guy?

[The Phoenix Rises Again]

Its best to prove your point with stuff you don't understand.

[twilek_jedi]

avearia

Alberic of Krufton

It's not Racist or anything to mow down legions of enemy mooks who happen to be Not White -- your MC is a Good Guy and the Hero, and also Not Racist, so this is totally okay. Most of the time said mooks aren't even human, so they don't actually matter.

Mooks are non-sentient, of course. why would someone with even half a brain willingly work for the bad guy?

That's right. Everyone is willingly and loyally working for the evil invading bad guys.
It couldn't possibly be true that they would mutiny as soon as they saw a feasible way to do so.
It also couldn't be possible that they WON'T mutiny because they expect your little five-man band of heroes isn't going to stop the bad guy, and expect to see a lot of bad things come from leaving their usual post. Nope, the guy who's got a family of fifteen at home who could be killed if he messes up an order is just going to drop everything and follow your teenagers around if he knows what's right.
It isn't sacrifice so much as completely forgetting about his family, by the way.

But more to the point:
Outright slaughter of the evil nation's army is definitely the best decision.

((I went to see the Last Airbender movie and actually felt a little sick when they were running around killing the fire nation troops. Especially when they almost dropped the ocean on them. =/ War is bad. I must be a total hippie or something. Oh wait, I already knew that about myself...))

[Alberic of Krufton]

twilek_jedi

But more to the point:
Outright slaughter of the evil nation's army is definitely the best decision.

Because only the enemy takes prisoners, so the Heroes can swoop in and save them.

[I am The Compendium]

Alberic of Krufton

twilek_jedi

But more to the point:
Outright slaughter of the evil nation's army is definitely the best decision.

Because only the enemy takes prisoners, so the Heroes can swoop in and save them.

The enemy does evil deceitful tricks and manipulates things, which is obviously wron in any circumstance and stupid. The US never cheats by trickery.

[Alberic of Krufton]

The Bad Guys, mooks and redshirts in particular, are incapable of honor, loyalty, and courage. These traits are exclusive to the Heroes.

[RittenRemedy]

Alberic of Krufton

The Bad Guys, mooks and redshirts in particular, are incapable of honor, loyalty, and courage. These traits are exclusive to the Heroes.

If you ever make a bargain with a bad guy or spare his life, expect to be stabbed in the back for it. Even if doing so means the death of the bad guy.

That said, the antagonist can never really be saved. Even if they convert, they should always die a reconciliatory death. If the protagonist shows them mercy, they will always attempt something dastardly and then die because of it.

[CS Jones]

Alberic of Krufton

The Bad Guys, mooks and redshirts in particular, are incapable of honor, loyalty, and courage. These traits are exclusive to the Heroes.

Actually, the mooks are endlessly loyal.

It's just that they're loyal to the wrong people, and for that they must die.

Also, judging by their decision to keep attacking even as they're being mowed down like passenger pigeons, mooks are very courageous.

But they're not as powerful as the heroes, and for that they must die.

[Alberic of Krufton]

That Guy You Met Once

Also, judging by their decision to keep attacking even as they're being mowed down like passenger pigeons, mooks are very courageous.

But they're not as powerful as the heroes, and for that they must die.

This is more indicative of stupidity and/or blindly following orders. Only Heroes can have Real Courage, because they're the ones facing Overwhelming Odds but still manage to win at the end of the day.

[I am The Compendium]

Isn't it such a nuisance when people tell you to follow rules of forums or writing? I mean, what are they thinking, posting that on your thread when you ask for help?

[Soaring Sheep]

You should be able to sum up the personalities of all your characters in . . . about three words. wink

[marshmallowcreampie]

twilek_jedi

((I went to see the Last Airbender movie and actually felt a little sick when they were running around killing the fire nation troops. Especially when they almost dropped the ocean on them. =/ War is bad. I must be a total hippie or something. Oh wait, I already knew that about myself...))

((Tell me, is the movie as bad of a train wreck as all the critics are saying? I've read some pretty nasty stuff, but I'm not surprised if it turned out that way. They do some stuff in the show, but you don't see a lot of outright killing. SPOILER ALERT! In the finale of the show, everyone expects the kid to kill the Fire Lord, but instead he uses "energy bending", an ability he aquired earlier, to take his powers away, as he just couldn't bring himself to take a human life. One of the many things I liked about the TV show was how they showed not everyone in the Fire Nation was ebil. Did they have that in the movie, or was the entire Fire Nation portrayed as monstrous?))

To PsychoChick101: Your character must never, ever deviate from the personality you gave them at any moment unless they're drunk or under mind control. Have you established that the character is serious? Then they must never, ever crack a joke. Are they fun? Then even in battle, they goof around without getting killed!

[Clare_N]

If there's a moral to your story, don't forget to ram it down your readers' throats at every opportunity. Either that or get the characters together at the end and have them discuss "what we can learn from this", like they used to do on Eighties cartoons.

[daydreamerdeluxe]

Always remember: it's only genocide if they run out. Putting that in a story should make it amazing, right? biggrin

[RittenRemedy]

The main characters must be incredibly detailed. Find a character profile with at least 7 or 8 pages. Know everything from their eye color (preferably using a gemstone colour) to their favourite pizza toppings to their blood type to their least favourite book. Include as much of this information in the story as you can, preferably via character bio.