MESSAGE BOARD TOPIC #1

[Comicality]

"While thinking back to many of the stories that you have read in the past, the ones that have become your all time favorites, there are certain moments or situations that come to mind right away. Maybe it's a comic moment. Maybe it's a certain kiss or a sex scene. Maybe it's a heartwarming gesture. Whatever it may be, there are certain 'pieces' of a story that sometimes standout for a reader and become memorable moments for them. The question is:

 

What are some of these moments for you as a reader? And why do they stand out for you?

 

As a writer, how can you work to develop moments like this that stay with a reader? What creates these touching scenes in your mind and what techniques do you use to deliver that impact?"

 

The board is open! Feel free to drop in your two cents!

[Guest Guest]

Someone has to kick off the discussion.

 

The best "moments" are both unexpected and honest.

 

The "honest" part is easier to describe. You have to capture a sort of "emotional truth" that the reader can relate to. The closer the reader can relate to the scene, the more compelling it becomes. Com is actually pretty good at this - more than most online writers anyway.

 

To use an example: there is a scene in one of Com's stories (to lazy to look up the exact name...) where the protagonist is going back to a cafe to meet the cute boy he's fallen for. Our hero is absolutely terrified, yet compelled to walk forward anyway. At some stage of our lives, haven't we all experienced that mind-numbing fear of taking the first step to act on a crush?

 

The unexpected part simply means that those moments take the reader by surprise, cropping up where the least expect them.

 

For a writer, I think you have to draw a lot on your own experiences to create these "moments". For them to "honest" they can't be manufactured out of thin air. So you have to remember the times that scared you, grieved you, and exhilirated you, and you have to recreate those feelings in the story when the time demands it.

 

- C

[Guest Tim]

I think the most memorable parts of stories are almost intangible in their subtlety. It's where the writer has really set a mood, be it frantic or romantic. Sometimes it can be just the way a single paragraph is written, sometimes a whole chapter, and more rarely a whole story.

 

There's a story on Nifty right now, "Silent Violin" that has some scenes which, to me anyhow, are brief but hauntingly beautiful. "The Quarry" had a whole chapter like that, where Tim and Dave get together after a long separation. It's a long chapter, and parts are painful, but it's so gently told that I could feel myself slowing my reading to better experience it.

 

"Tyler's Dance" is an example of a whole story where that special mood perseveres. It's partly the concept. The story ends where it started, so the mood is set right up front, and the author did a marvelous job holding to that mood.

 

There is another thing that really grabs me, and that's where a setting is written so well that you can visualize it right down to the dust on the furniture, and the way light appears. One story that has many good examples of that is "The Knife That Twists Within".

 

There are many wonderful stories in many genres, but I'm trying to answer the question that was asked.

 

-- tim --

[Myr]

I've been thinking of an answer since you posted this and I'm still have some difficulties. I think the easiest explanation for me is when I'm reading the story and it evokes emotion in me.

I think the two best examples in written work that I can think of right now are in Mercedes Lackey's books... Magic's Pawn. There is a scene where I cry everytime I read it. The scene is so emotionally powerful, you are just sucked into and feel the soulracking pain that the character feels. Another one is in her book Joust... the young boy tries leaping to his death instead of being dragged back to slavery. You can just feel his pain. There is also a rather cute scene in that one where a massive dragon follows the boy like a puppy and everyone around them are amazed to no end that the dragon would do such a thing. It was a very cute scene. Again, you could visualize the dumbfounded looks on the faces of those people. There are many examples in net work as well, though I won't bring up any.

 

When I'm writing, I try to connect to the reader and make them feel what the characters feel. I want them to have an emotional stake.

 

I love the replies so far and I'll probably post again after more thought and discussion here.

Myr

[fear1980]

My writing works best when I'm writing what I know, and that usually deals with main characters that have been made tough before their time. They've learned to close off their emotions and treat people with sort of an aloof sarcasm and a healthy distance. Most of my stories are based around this concept, and they all have the theme of a formerly isolated person eventually letting that one special person in.

 

To get the maximum emotional impact and connection with the reader, the real climax of my story is when the main character lets the other person in and shows who they really are. Bringing some honest emotion to a character that hasn't shown anything like that is a big contrast and it stands out immediately. I find that the reader can relate to the opening up and the letting down of the guard. Judging from the e-mails I've gotten, they really like the way that I portray this theme in my stories.

 

Stephen King, my favorite author, does a great job of portraying that inner awakening where a person discovers a part of themself they didn't know existed. I admire that quality quite a bit and try to put my own spin on that internal conflict. Another of my favorite authors, John Steinbeck, also managed to connect his characters to a greater emotional or spiritual awakening, something I try to do with the main character connecting with their sexuality.

[Comicality]

Usually, while writing stories of my own, there are many times that I try to think of certain situations that would be seen as exciting/sad/angry/scary or lovable. The thing is, 9 times out of 10, the most memorable parts that people tell me about happen pretty much by accident. It's a few of those natural moments that I add simply to continue the flow of a story that end up being the most appreciated.

 

One that comes to mind is in "New Kid", where Randy and Ryan were going to spend a whole day together, and when Randy arrived, Ryan was eating a bowl of cereal for breakfast. That scene basically came out of nowhere, and I added to it more and more as I was writing, just to give it a playful, kinda comfortable, feel to it. And it ended up being a big favorite for a lot of fans of the series. That, to me, is always awesome because it's usually as much of a surprise to me as it is to others.

 

Another story that comes to mind was one that I saw on Nifty called "Always Joey", that really stuck with me because of its flirtatious vibe and because it was just an overall pleasure to read. If you ever get a chance, you'll notice certain moments of intense 'wanting' and 'longing' that I could really feel while I was reading. Also, there are extremely touching and heart warming moments in a story called "Just Hit Send" that truly tug at the heart strings. Another one (I hope I get the title right) was "Matthew Figures It Out", and "Carrots and Celery", and a few others. I won't get into listing a whole bunch, because that'll take all day. But there are plenty of stories where, when their titles are mentioned, my mind goes directly to a certain scene or a situation that really moved me in one way or the other, and I always try to structure my stories so that those moments can exist for other people too when they read my stuff.

 

Like I said before though, most of the time, they happen purely by accident. So I guess it's a matter of chance really, but as long as you write from the heart, the chances are better.

 

By the way, THANKS for the input so far! I'm really liking the answers I've read so far. I hope the questions in the future get just as much of a variety of answers as this one.

 

Any more?

[Frank Aiden Ryan]

Well, I have to agree with Comsie there, the moments you make up in the spur of a moment, or usually things that happen when I just sit down and type. Most of the things I've written for 'First Impressions' have happened without having been storyboarded, so to speak, and have turned out to be some of the best, or humorous, passages from the series. They just sort of take shape in my fantasy and when I'm writing as it is, I can immediately write them down as part of the story.

 

Still though, when I ask people about what they thought was the most memorable about my stories, the answer I get the most is : "your characters" I guess for me, my style of writing tends to dictate that my characters get all the exposition and characterization they need. As a result, my characters almost feel like real persons. The fact that I tend to use extreme amounts of dialogue (dialogue overkill) The personalities of the characters show through in a way that a reader would be able to determine which character is speaking, just by the way he'd say something. I've been told many times that this is something that really works magic for the stories I write, because if a character feels real, special, remarkable, rounded and just set apart from the rest of the characters, they tend to be very memorable. The more exceptional the character, the best he works. Be careful not to go into stereotyping, though. Rounding your characters with ALL human emotions possible is a good thing. I'm even in favor of letting the plot work for your characters, instead of the characters work for the plot. A character HAS to be more than just a name on a HTML page. I've criticised Comsie there before that in his more earlier stories, he was basically using the same characters with different names and a slightly different setting *grinz*, but he's improved over time, so respect to you, my man

 

Still though, Scott Fremont from First Impressions used to have his own fanclub. Try and beat that

[Nate1]

Yay! I made it! Whoo ooo! ::stupid AOL mailing restrictions!!!:::

 

Well, I mainly wanted to show up lol, ttyl

 

 

A lil piece of info:

 

I live in Georgia, 28 years old contact is:

 

AIM: OzonEmitter

MSN: itsmeN8han@hotmail.com

Yahoo: nathan_taylor97

 

see ya later, will talk more later lol

 

Love ya Comsie! lol