Why not have a talk with Jim, using fan-submitted questions? The questions are posted in a thread, Fred choses the best and uses them in the interview with Jim.

Craig

Quote from: Abstruse on January 04, 2007, 05:17:45 PM

My problem with the podcast has always been the ending.  I never know what your closing music sounds like because the last 5-10 minutes is always reviews of RPGs I'm never going to get to play (hell, I can't even get a D&D game together, let alone something more esoteric).  But other than that, it's pretty good.  I think a co-host in a color-commentator position might help you out with the whole feeling stiff thing (which is a vibe I got off the first podcast as well, but one that doesn't bother me much).  An extra person might make it seem more like a conversation instead of a guy reading his blog instead of typing it.  But try to get someone in person as skype just causes too many problems to be used on a regular basis like that, especially if you're doing an interview or round table where sound quality due to bandwidth is an issue.

The RPG thing is just where I'm starting from.  Eventually I'll build up blocks of movies, music, that sort of thing, but hey, if you do RPG stuff more than movie stuff, it's what you're bound to talk about, and that's the case with me.

Why not have a revolving group of critics on things Dresden Fans might want to know about? Each one has an area -- Movies, TV, Books, (Anime and Manga maybe?) and the like. You have the RPG area nailed down, and there's no reason why the segment couldn't be interactive.

Craig

I agree that a discussion about the writing process would be a good idea.

Craig

It's a fact of human nature that not everyone is going to like your writing. People's tastes are different. Take for example, Jordan's Wheel of Time series. Some people love those long involved books, others can't stand them. I read several and decided that I really didn't like them. That doesn't mean Jorden's writing is junk, it just means his writing don't entice me like Jim Butcher's does. It's just a matter of taste.

Best thing is to get more then one opinion about a piece. If different people are citing  the same thing they don't like, you might want to reconsider rewriting that section. If most of your prereaders like a section, but a couple of others don't, find out what they don't like about it, and see if it need to be tweaked.

In the end, you are the final arbitrator of your writing. You are the one who has to be 100% sastified with the result.

Craig

I approach Characters from the POV of "What is their purpose?" Then I decide how to make them unique, starting with something that forms the core -- apperance, personality, name -- something that I can build a character around

Example: For a Fanfic based on the anime series Bubblegum Crisis, a cyberpunk-style series. A trio of police officers are visiting a underground contact for data on a vigilante. The contact is a gang leader by the name of Skeeter Karns. So how to make him stand out?

First, I made Karns a giant -- large man, powerfully built. Then I decided that this guy had an IQ of 180. So he's smart and strong. But how to make him stand out even more?

I decided that Karns was an orphen that had seen the dark side of the city and decided to do something about it, but in his own way. He became a powerful gang leader who rules a large district. But unlike most gang leaders, he doesn't terrorize the district. In fact, he acts more like a benovolent dictator. He helps the people, puts kids back into school and encourages them to go on to college, establishes clinics and helps the orphanage whenever he can. The police leave him alone because his area is one of the few places where crime is not out of control

That doesn't mean he's all goodness and light. His gang is heavily armed and defend their turf from other gangs fircely. Illegal drugs are kept out, the pushers who try to work on Karns turf don't live long enough to realize their mistake. It's mentioned that a triad tried to run drugs through Karns territory, then tried to kill Karns. The result was that Karns gang wiped out the triad in question.

So, on the one hand, I have a character who was trying to do good, but on the other, was not someone you wanted to cross or have angry at you. Great.

But something happened. For some reason, Karns managed to insert himself into the story that occures before the one I had created him for. (I was writing three stories in the series at the same time, going from one to another when I had writer's block) Not only that, but he became an inportant part of the story line. A throw away line about him in the second story became the basis for an entire chapter in the first story that expanded on the people around Karns and why they were so sucessful. In short, he went from minor character to major on the strenght of his character.

Scary, no? 

Craig

I suppose I should toss in my two cents.....

My name's Craig, and I've been writing for nearly 35 years, on and off. The usual sort of stuff -- a Star Wars Novel that didn't go too far, same with a fantasy novel. It wasn't until I bought a computer that I found that I was actually finishing stories.

I got involved in Fanfiction back in the early 90's. Mostly in the anime field, several long stories that have received a favorable responce from people. Back in the early 90's, I had a story I co-wrote published in Battletechnology, an offical magazine devoted to the Battletech gaming universe. In addition, I did submit to the approprate publishers, a Doctopr Who and two Stargate novels (All three rejected, of course)

I have finally decided to start trying my hand at original fiction. Top priority is the first in what I hope will be a series of novels. the first one, called Merlin's Legacy, is about a nomal guy who suddenly finds that he is the direct decendent of the wizard Merlin. Now, with the help of a talking cat, a smart-ass dragon, and a magic-based AI, he has to solve the murder of the previous holder of the title, prevent a demon invasion, and try to keep himself from making an idiot of himself in front of the girl of his dreams. Well, two out of three isn't bad. . . .

Craig

Well, on the one hand, writing 'close to home,' means there's no need to explain how things operate, construct a culture, explain how engines work and the like. On the other hand, it's harder to fudge the 'real world' then in a fantasy world or on another world.

It's easier to accept things the farther removed they are from our time and place.

Craig

Hmm.....

Speaking as a fanfic writer, I see fanfiction as a good thing. Yes, there are problems -- there are several anime series that have been overwritten for (If I see another InYasha fic, I will scream! ) -- and most fanfiction is. . . .poor.

As for me, I've written in a couple of anime series -- Bubblegum Crisis (OVA series, and not that Thing called BGC 2040), and Salior Moon (Yes, but I try to avoid the real silliness) I flirted with Ranma 1/2 (But don't have the time for it right now.) I have written Self-Insert stories (Author as character), and have story plots for others.

Right now, I'm involved with writing stories based in the Battletech Universe. Now, because of the way the universe is set up, there is no need to use established characters. Writring in this universe allows the author to develop his own characters, create situations, all without invaladating anything that has happened in the time line. It's a rich universe, with many factions, many levels of story, and many places to set said story. I love it.

Fanfiction allows me to release some creative energy in a structured format, with no need to sit down and work out all the small details a completely original story requires. Once I felt comfortable in my writing as it pertained to fanfiction, it allowed me to take that next step and start writing original stories. To me, Fanfiction is a tool, a stepping stone to my own original stories.

Craig