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 ]

[Alberic of Krufton]

I_Write_Ivre

If you've never heard of it, it's not geography. Falkland islands? Yemen? Stalingrad? Those don't exist.

((But, but, I know where all of those places are and can point them out on a map...))

The Middle Ages and Medieval times refer only to Western Europe. Every other place except for Japan was full of savages until, like, sometime recently. Europe is also the only place with an actual history and timelines 'n s**t.

[DarknessofHeavenandDreams]

Alberic of Krufton

I_Write_Ivre

If you've never heard of it, it's not geography. Falkland islands? Yemen? Stalingrad? Those don't exist.

((But, but, I know where all of those places are and can point them out on a map...))

The Middle Ages and Medieval times refer only to Western Europe. Every other place except for Japan was full of savages until, like, sometime recently. Europe is also the only place with an actual history and timelines 'n s**t.

((I'm so tired of never getting an answer to 'medevival where?' or 'Can you narrow the date to at least a certain century))

Nothing happened in the medieval era except mud, starvation, and princesses. No wars were fought, not new religions were introduced, nothing was invented.

[marshmallowcreampie]

As long as the main character of the story gets a happy ending, readers will be happy too. They won't be concerned or curious about anything else, like any civilians from the enemy country displaced from the war. Remember that everyone in the enemy country is part of a hive-mind and totally supports everything their government does and hates the heroic country for their freedom or something. If they're hurt or killed, or have to live in poverty for the rest of their lives, they deserve it. You can have ONE citizen from the enemy country who works with the heroes, but only if s/he completely embraces the culture and ideals of the hero country. This person is allowed to be a love interest for the hero but can only stay with said hero in the end if the country/culture s/he's from isn't TOO exotic. An exotic love interest is great for one point in the love triangle but cannot be the final choice. Exotic love interests are solely fetish objects, great for the sex fantasies but not for settling down in a happy ever after.

[DarknessofHeavenandDreams]

marshmallowcreampie

As long as the main character of the story gets a happy ending, readers will be happy too. They won't be concerned or curious about anything else, like any civilians from the enemy country displaced from the war. Remember that everyone in the enemy country is part of a hive-mind and totally supports everything their government does and hates the heroic country for their freedom or something. If they're hurt or killed, or have to live in poverty for the rest of their lives, they deserve it. You can have ONE citizen from the enemy country who works with the heroes, but only if s/he completely embraces the culture and ideals of the hero country. This person is allowed to be a love interest for the hero but can only stay with said hero in the end if the country/culture s/he's from isn't TOO exotic. An exotic love interest is great for one point in the love triangle but cannot be the final choice. Exotic love interests are solely fetish objects, great for the sex fantasies but not for settling down in a happy ever after.

There are no innocent people in a civil war. There are only bad guys and rebels. There are never innocent bystanders or tourists. Even babies have an allegiance and are willing to sacrifice anything, including themselves, for the cause (which has nothing anyone but but guys wouldn't like). That way, destroying hospitals or power plants hurts no one--the good guys have their own better power and hospital anyway in a secret bunker.

[Alberic of Krufton]

Global Warming is the greatest threat to the Earth that exists! It will wipe out humanity, dry up the oceans, and cause mass extinction on an unprecedented scale! We know this because the Media told us, and the Media knows what it's talking about, always.

That is, unless the Z-virus is released first. Now that's a novel (ha!) idea!

((I would like to see a Snowball Earth catastrophe in fiction, sometimes; not even necessarily a nuclear one. Or an excess of cosmic rays due to roving bundles of magnetic flux as the poles undergo the (relatively) long process of pole reversal. People treat the moderate increase in global temperature as some great threat when really it's normal, considering we've been in a minor ice age / period of global cooling since before Islam was even a thing. Desertification is one thing, but latching on to media hysteria is just silly when there are so many more unplumbed depths of geologic historical events.))

[DarknessofHeavenandDreams]

Alberic of Krufton

Global Warming is the greatest threat to the Earth that exists! It will wipe out humanity, dry up the oceans, and cause mass extinction on an unprecedented scale! We know this because the Media told us, and the Media knows what it's talking about, always.

That is, unless the Z-virus is released first. Now that's a novel (ha!) idea!

((I would like to see a Snowball Earth catastrophe in fiction, sometimes; not even necessarily a nuclear one. Or an excess of cosmic rays due to roving bundles of magnetic flux as the poles undergo the (relatively) long process of pole reversal. People treat the moderate increase in global temperature as some great threat when really it's normal, considering we've been in a minor ice age / period of global cooling since before Islam was even a thing. Desertification is one thing, but latching on to media hysteria is just silly when there are so many more unplumbed depths of geologic historical events.))

((Pole reversal has happened and hasn't done much of anything to the earth. I agree with you about global warming. Not to mention smog, cancer, floods, and harmful emissions can be their own problems.))

The only thing worse than those is solar flares. Remember the solar flare that his earth and the devastation it cause before the London Olympics?

[Alberic of Krufton]

DarknessofHeavenandDreams

((Pole reversal has happened and hasn't done much of anything to the earth. I agree with you about global warming. Not to mention smog, cancer, floods, and harmful emissions can be their own problems.))

((To the Earth, no, but no one really knows how we as people will be affected yet. Super fascinating, especially since we're probably on the cusp of a reversal right now. I have yet to see it in fiction, however.))

And black holes! Black holes are the magical whamdoodlies of sci-fi---anything can happen! An excellent source of instant drama, since they're black invisible because they blend into the darkness of Outer Space. What's that, gravity distorting radiation such as light? Now that's just silly. rolleyes Don't over-complicate a good romp through the universe.

[DarknessofHeavenandDreams]

Alberic of Krufton

DarknessofHeavenandDreams

((Pole reversal has happened and hasn't done much of anything to the earth. I agree with you about global warming. Not to mention smog, cancer, floods, and harmful emissions can be their own problems.))

((To the Earth, no, but no one really knows how we as people will be affected yet. Super fascinating, especially since we're probably on the cusp of a reversal right now. I have yet to see it in fiction, however.))

And black holes! Black holes are the magical whamdoodlies of sci-fi---anything can happen! An excellent source of instant drama, since they're black invisible because they blend into the darkness of Outer Space. What's that, gravity distorting radiation such as light? Now that's just silly. rolleyes Don't over-complicate a good romp through the universe.

((Poll reversal was used in Marvel Ultimate Universe: Ultimatum. Don't read it))

If you want to do something in space, put he word 'quantum' in front of a bunch of gibberish.

[marshmallowcreampie]

In fantasy worlds populated by different species/races, humans are always the majority even when the other species are superior in every way.

[Kita-Ysabell]

The real definition of "quantum" is "awesomely science-y" and likewise, the real definition of "calculus" is "badly-done math."

[Clare_N]

Also, the random use of Japanese words for no reason other than to be "cool" is compulsory. Same with giving characters Japanese names.

[DarknessofHeavenandDreams]

marshmallowcreampie

In fantasy worlds populated by different species/races, humans are always the majority even when the other species are superior in every way.

Wait...

[Rose Demon Axel]

Sex is always the ultimate expression of True Love. Your main character cannot have had sex with anyone she didn't Love With All His/Her Heart, and anyone who has casual sex is a horrible person no matter what.

Also, if your characters don't immediately have sex after confessing their True Love to one another, you're doing it wrong.

[Alberic of Krufton]

No such thing as asexual or aromantic characters. emotion_awesome Either you're straight or, if you exist in a Slashy type universe, you're gay.

[LoperDoper]

Kita-Ysabell

The real definition of "quantum" is "awesomely science-y"

Physics = Astronomy.

All physics is stars and all stars are physics.