5 replies to this topic

[kimmuryiel]

I have two mods that I need help on. I can write a backstory for the characters, but I fail at creating meaningful dialogue that doesn't sound repetitive, dry, and/or sappy. I actually already have the backstory for one character, even an idea for her epilogues (and a whole one dialogue that introduces the possibility for part of the ascended epilogue that ties into her backstory.) I also have one interjection between her and Delcia Cain. The other character...I haven't even settled on the character's sex yet....settled on the race, though...

 

brief introductions:

Xun'aer of House Auvrymtor is your typical psychotic semi-misandristic drow fey'ri female assassin. Her House was destroyed while she was on a surface raid and the man she loves (her one out-of-character piece, this happened several years after her House was destroyed) was sent on a mission and never returned (she blames the leader of the group, who was the only one to return.)

    Before people start yelling at me over lore: It makes sense there would be fey'ri drow, since they don't have the same aversion to demons that surface elves do. (Draegloth's being half-demon and considered signs of favor from Lolth and all)

                                                                         It is rare, but drow do sometimes form a true romantic bond.

 

Arikan is a full elf, half drow male cleric of Selune who is about as opposite of Xun'aer as it is possible to be, but not be a door mat. He's also Xun'aer's half sibling

           things that might be fun to play with:

                 Selune and Shar are sisters, but also enemies. Him and Viconia might have interesting reactions.

                 he and Xun'aer, although they at least start out not knowing it, are half siblings...on their father's side...

 

 

 

rambling aside, any writers free to help me out?

 

Note: I will fervently agree to crossmod content, but I'll leave that up to whoever does the crossmod banter packs to do that (or anyone else who wants to)).

 

Thank you very much in advance. Send me an email at kimmuryiel@yahoo.com if interested and I'll send you what I have.

[Bill Bisco]

I think you'll have much better luck writing these characters yourself and asking for writing help on specific dialogues you feel need improvement.

[kimmuryiel]

Believe me, I can't write this :-/ wish I could. I can come up with a backstory, but I can't write even a mediocre romance. In the two years since I started concepting these two I've come up with a grand total of...one conversation

[Bill Bisco]

A thousand mile journey starts with a first step.  I've done a lot of things that I never imagined that I would do, the only person in the way of doing them earlier in life is me

 

I've been working on my mod for 2 months now.  Writing interesting dialogues is hard.  No doubt.  If you wish and are ok with being spoiled, you can take a look at what I have so far here

 

Most of those dialogues are first draft dialogues.  I haven't gone back and perfected them.  I have to look again at the Bioware NPC style and try to emulate it as best as I can.  Everything of quality is iterative.  You make a first pass, you make a second pass, you make a third pass.  You make as many passes as possible until your work is as beautiful and functional as possible.  The same thing applies to dialogue writing.  You can't get hung up about having trouble writing a dialogue here or there.  You just have to patiently write what you can, knowing that you'll have to go back and perfect it later.  In short, don't succumb to analysis paralysis just keep trying.

 

You say you've taken two years concepting, but have you written outlines for the overall story?  Have you written outlines for each dialogue?  How much of this two years has actually been used to write this stuff out.  I mean, with the mods I'd like to create ,     I know that it will take me years if not decades to finish all of them, but that's just reality.

 

So, I'd be perfectly happy to help with ideas, outlines, and the writing process and provide general encouragement, but I don't have the interest or the time to devote to writing someone else's mod   I'm sure the same is true of most other people frequenting this forum.  Unless you have the money to pay someone, it's quite hard finding someone more excited about than oneself about one's own ideas.

 

By the way, you might consider sharing what you already have.

[Kulyok]

What you're trying to do is "quenting" the characters. (In my language, at least): you have a short "quent"(backstory, biography), and you offer it to anyone who'd agree to develop the character fully for you.

That's usually a fun challenge, if the quent is interesting enough(for example, I'm participating in a quent-based story contest right now, and there're all types of characters: a zombie Watson with a mechanical arm in a steampunk world; a 90-year old Rapuncel who became a leader of a bandit gang, a girl who worked in a brothel to get gills - and many others). Thing is, a good mod takes a good part of a year(unlike a short story that takes a week or two), and it's far more interesting to write for one's own characters.

 

I mean, can you imagine taking a few months to flesh out someone's character based on four or five lines? Especially if the character is of a "very special" race(which is usually a bad sign, google the Mary-Sue list) and possesses no intriguing character traits, just a race and a deity.

 

(I'm just explaining why you may not receive any proposals on this one, unfortunately. Even if your backstories are good).

[Creepin]

What you're trying to do is "quenting" the characters. (In my language, at least): you have a short "quent"(backstory, biography)

Ahh, that's a word I haven't heard in a long time. By the way, the correct form is "quenta", and it's sindarin, not russian