On Style and Preferences
Jul. 15th, 2002 10:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
zebralittle52I was looking over the first half of my latest Bebop fic, getting the feeling for where I left off, when a thought came to me.
Damn, my writing's sparse.
Even my old, fluffed out fics never has much as far as descriptions or scene settings.
Now, I'm not going to say that makes my writing bad. (Those reasons are completely different. ^_~) However, it did get me to wondering about style differences, how people write and the kinds of fics and stories they preferred to read...
If you write long, drawn out scenes, chock full of ambiance and flavor, do you feel cheated that other people don't put that much detail into their stories as well?
Do people who write quick descriptions enjoy other fics with the same style?
Does one not have anything to do with the other, or could there be a connection? Like spawning like, I guess.
Does it really not matter, and what you do and what you like are all unique so asking is really rather pointless anyway?
Personally, I'm betting it's the last one.
Damn, my writing's sparse.
Even my old, fluffed out fics never has much as far as descriptions or scene settings.
Now, I'm not going to say that makes my writing bad. (Those reasons are completely different. ^_~) However, it did get me to wondering about style differences, how people write and the kinds of fics and stories they preferred to read...
If you write long, drawn out scenes, chock full of ambiance and flavor, do you feel cheated that other people don't put that much detail into their stories as well?
Do people who write quick descriptions enjoy other fics with the same style?
Does one not have anything to do with the other, or could there be a connection? Like spawning like, I guess.
Does it really not matter, and what you do and what you like are all unique so asking is really rather pointless anyway?
Personally, I'm betting it's the last one.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
Wiggle thinks:
I love Chalcedony Cross' fic, though her paragraphs can get dense and long and sometimes I just skim them. There's a limit, you know? But there's a cap on the other side too. I don't know, I've never found your writing (or RPing) too sparse, so I don't think you have to worry?
~Wiggle
Re: Wiggle thinks:
Date: 2002-07-16 10:14 am (UTC)*gets back to writing*
no subject
Date: 2002-07-16 04:04 pm (UTC)Hmmm... after months of RPing dialogue last year, suddenly I couldn't write description. Had to relearn. Probably went to Pure and bishink for a refresher course ^^
Depends on the character and the part of the plot. Angst = long exposition, less sensory, though I generally get to that when I hit the theme (invariably poetic in its own teenage emulating-Elizabeth-Bishop way.) PWP = lots of dialogue/UNNing just because I'm writing so darned fast, then I go back in and fill in the skinscentcream. First person and/or climaxes (plot or sex or both) = lots and lots of sensory and plot just sort of grows out of it, e.g. Tongue.
Weak spots- scent, because I have a bad sense of smell; geography/weather, since my temperature self-regulates (~_^)and more often than not the sex scenes are indoors. I also don't look up a lot, for obvious reasons... fewer height descritions. ^^; Maybe that's why I never stick to seme/uke *g*.
I like either one, for reading. For rereading, though, I do the filled out fics like Wiggle-luv's and Tenshi/llama and Chal and BlackRose more often. Also appreciate people chosing the right style for the right scenes; if it's quick rough PWP, I don't want to know what he tastes like for a paragraph, I'd rather the pacing reflect the scene.
Re:
Date: 2002-07-16 04:18 pm (UTC)The point about right style of the right scene makes the most sense, I think. That and knowing what style/tempo you're best at.
*quicknote*
Date: 2002-07-19 05:40 pm (UTC)I actually think that if you're telling something from a character's point of view, the style and amount of description should match the character's personality. This isn't necessarily only in first person pov, as things are often written from one character's viewpoint but are in third person, or something. In any case, I like that the writer only mention things that the character would notice, or whatever, you know what I mean?
In any case, I personally prefer more "to the point" writing. I don't like long overdrawn descriptions, because my tendency is just to skim over it. I like when the author mentions the important things, and then moves on. This doesn't mean it's bare, by any means. Just concise. ^_^
Re: *quicknote*
Date: 2002-07-19 05:41 pm (UTC)