xviruserrorx asked:
1, 2 & 20 for the ask game šā¤ļø
Oooooh thank you š š š
1) Do you prefer writing one-shots or multi-chaptered fics?
On one hand my answer to this is āhow long is a piece of string?ā because a story is only as long as it needs to be. I have written novel-length fics, I have written oneshots. A few years back I wrote a handful of shorter Librarians fics and I like those, but they were just one moment in time, one particular plot point. It all depends on the story Iām telling.
However, on the other hand itās asking what I prefer and in which case Iām a multi-chapter plotty shenanigans type writer. I like multiple POVās and conflicting agendas, character arcs and themes, subplots and genre mash-ups. I suppose to put it another way when I fall in love with a TV show, itās not just with one episode – itās with how all the episodes string together. When I get a spark of inspiration for a story, itās not usually just for one moment, itās for a lot of moments all strung together into a greater whole. Iām not creating one story, Iām creating a universe – in some cases literally.
2) Do you plan each chapter ahead or write as you go?
Iām a planner. For my fanfics how deep the planning goes depends on the length of the story. I always have the broadstrokes, even if itās just a handful of bullet points. For my novels I do a complete scene by scene outline BUT I donāt plan either of them by āchapterā. I donāt know how long scenes will be and I try and break my chapters so they are all around the same length (unless story-wise it works better for a chapter to be ultra short or long). So I tend to break into chapters by feel/word count, as I write, rather than as part of the planning process.
20) Have you noticed any patterns in your fics? Words/expressions that appear a lot, themes, common settings, etc?
Oh definitely. No words/expressions are immediately coming to mind but that will be something I look out for when I do revision. I donāt want my ‘voiceā to overpower the characters.
However, something that I always, always come back to is the notion of masks and acceptance. My characters always seem to want to be seen, for someone to know them as they are and accept them. It doesnāt have to be romantic (though thatās often an easy way to write it). But yeah if weāre talking what a character needs vs what they think they want, then almost always what they need is true acceptance. I think this is probably a theme in every story I ever write.
Itās probably not the only repeating theme but itās the first one that comes to mind.