Comments: 858
Jedi-Qui-Gon [2017-01-30 21:38:57 +0000 UTC]
Hi, hope you are doing well!
I want to ask some things, I had read the comments before this one to see what people said-
Is it possible to overdo it with body language descriptions? I think if one were to, that might be a sign of nothing important happening in the story or too slow pacing, not sure.
If one has to use dialogue tags, is it a sign nothing important is happening in the story or that your story pacing has slowed too much? Since it sounds like it.
And while I have improved, I feel like I need more practice with dialogue and body language. So I wonder, is a good way to practice is to use dialogue and body language heavy stories? I have some ideas in mind related to Naruto and members of the Konoha 12 (and Sai). (I think, as I have seen elsewhere in the comments, that the fact I am on the autism spectrum means body language might be a bit harder, but won't give up )
Thanks in advance! Your writing tips have always been helpful!
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Jedi-Qui-Gon In reply to OokamiKasumi [2020-02-20 21:07:16 +0000 UTC]
Thanks! I understand better now. Writing is all about the balance then, correct?
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OokamiKasumi In reply to Jedi-Qui-Gon [2020-02-22 10:58:23 +0000 UTC]
Correct!
-- However, just to make things a tad more confusing; what that Balance is -- is all in the eye of the Writer!
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Jedi-Qui-Gon In reply to OokamiKasumi [2020-02-23 13:05:16 +0000 UTC]
Thanks!
I have listened to constructive criticism when some people pointed out that my descriptions were way too clunky and didn’t flow with the story (basically not balanced...), I fixed the descriptions to the best of my ability. One needs to practice, and listen to the constructive criticism they can use, to get better at writing.
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OokamiKasumi In reply to woohooligan [2016-02-24 13:32:45 +0000 UTC]
Thank you!
-- Those are good suggestions.
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Oh-windrunner [2015-02-22 18:32:04 +0000 UTC]
This is so useful for me! I have understood for a while that body language should be speaking just as loud as the voice (my mom is an English teacher...sometimes I don't know how to respond to her proofreads, but they shine through more often than not), but since I have a non-verbal learning disability, I find it difficult to comprehend what the correct action would be to convey what the character is truly trying to get across. Hopefully now I'll be able to add some dimension to them and have a better understanding myself of what is actually going on with the story.
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OokamiKasumi In reply to Oh-windrunner [2015-02-23 03:54:00 +0000 UTC]
I'm glad you liked the essay!
-- People-watching will also help. Especially if you are far enough away to NOT hear them. The idea is to Guess what's going on in their heads just through observation. I usually do this in the food court of a mall, but any place where you can sit and observe a lot of people that you Can't Hear will work. If they're too close, an MP3 player and headphones will work too.
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Oh-windrunner In reply to OokamiKasumi [2015-02-28 16:55:44 +0000 UTC]
Thank you so much! I will definitely add people-watching to my resources. School will probably be a good place to start practicing this, considering that even when you can hear the conversation it makes no sense.
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Jedi-Qui-Gon [2013-12-06 00:16:41 +0000 UTC]
This is extremely helpful.
And do you know of a website which can be used to find meanings behind names, etc? Because I write Naruto stories, and names that are Japanese are more accepted as OC character names and also I would like to create some new things to flesh out the world. Because I had some in mind but I would like to make names that would fit. And there are some unnamed but important ninja in the series that I would like to give names to, names that would fit.
Thanks in advance.
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AELawless [2013-11-22 14:30:13 +0000 UTC]
I skimmed through most of the comments and didn't see anyone ask this question, so I hope I'm not repeating, but. The gestures I find myself repeating most are gestures of annoyance/exasperation/irritation. Some of your anger and disgust gestures could be adapted but are too strong in most cases. In particular I find myself repeating rolling of the eyes, snorting, grunting, and sighing. Do you have some suggestions for other non-verbal cues that I can use for some variety?
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OokamiKasumi In reply to AELawless [2013-12-02 11:14:23 +0000 UTC]
The gestures I find myself repeating most are gestures of annoyance/exasperation/irritation. ... In particular I find myself repeating rolling of the eyes, snorting, grunting, and sighing. Do you have some suggestions for other non-verbal cues that I can use for some variety?
-- I suggest watching Movies and studying how the characters portray the emotions you're looking for. There are a Lot of subtleties to each of those gestures, normally signaled by the rest of their body's movements; hand gestures, head tilts, leg shifts, and seating adjustments, to name a few. Also, watch the people around you and look closely at their body language when they talk. You're sure to get lots of new cues just from that alone.
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splash-light [2013-08-16 19:10:23 +0000 UTC]
how would you show someone lying?
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OokamiKasumi In reply to splash-light [2013-12-02 11:09:12 +0000 UTC]
It depends on the Liar.
-- Best way to research this is by watching movies that have liars in them and watching what these characters Do while lying.
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Wanderlings [2013-08-07 05:23:28 +0000 UTC]
This is awesome!! Thanks a ton for making the guide!
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Pereyga [2013-07-12 22:52:54 +0000 UTC]
I'm sorry if I read over anything but I was just thinking about how to show pride? Or maybe something like arrogance also.
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OokamiKasumi In reply to Pereyga [2013-07-13 18:41:19 +0000 UTC]
Pride and Arrogance use "Dominance" cues because that's what both of those emotions really are, expressions of Superiority, or Dominance.
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Sarcul [2013-04-25 14:40:14 +0000 UTC]
This is grand! I often find myself stuck with how to continue conversations, this should help truckloads! Thank you so much for your time in writing this-now I'm going to go off and read some others if you don't mind, I really do need all the help I can get when it comes to writing ^^ one can always improve!
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OokamiKasumi In reply to Sarcul [2013-05-30 07:02:16 +0000 UTC]
Be my guest and read them all, if you like. Just don't try to apply them all at once. Many of them take time to Digest before you can use them effectively.
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releventu [2013-03-12 03:09:04 +0000 UTC]
This helps so much! Thank you for taking your time and writing this, along with all you other VERY helpful tips and tricks!
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Rama-Kay [2013-01-08 13:58:01 +0000 UTC]
That was really really helpful!! thank you so much !
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OokamiKasumi In reply to Rama-Kay [2013-02-18 11:01:21 +0000 UTC]
My pleasure. I'm glad you found it useful.
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Rama-Kay In reply to OokamiKasumi [2013-02-18 11:12:45 +0000 UTC]
Very much! I read most of your tutorials and they were all very useful! Thank you for taking the time to write them !
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OokamiKasumi In reply to Rama-Kay [2013-02-18 11:35:04 +0000 UTC]
My pleasure.
-- They're from years of notes I took while I was learning the craft.
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OokamiKasumi In reply to Rama-Kay [2013-02-18 12:01:36 +0000 UTC]
I'm not nearly as paranoid or neurotic as many other authors I know.
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OokamiKasumi In reply to Rama-Kay [2013-02-18 12:20:56 +0000 UTC]
Cuz all my long stories are R-18 and I can't post those here.
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OokamiKasumi In reply to Rama-Kay [2013-02-18 12:24:55 +0000 UTC]
I keep my fan-fics on FF.N and MediaMiner. The original stuff all goes to my publishers to pay my rent.
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OokamiKasumi In reply to Rama-Kay [2013-02-18 12:33:49 +0000 UTC]
Um, careful. I get 'really' graphic.
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Rama-Kay In reply to OokamiKasumi [2013-02-18 12:36:22 +0000 UTC]
It's okay.. I' read a lot of *coughs smut*
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