I apologise in adventage for any grammatical errors. I’m not a native english speaker, so if I do any mistakes, please point them out to me, so I can edit them right away.
A few days ago I had a little talk with a friend, who is recently working on a comic project, but seems to have not yet realized the full potential of her characters. I told her about a principle that I like to use to try and build a story around pre-existing characters, that I want to share in-depth now.
NOTE: THIS IS JUST ONE WAY OF WRITING A STORY AROUND A PRE-EXISTING CHARACTER. There is no King’s way to writing a good story in general, this is just a principle that I like to use and which I hope could be useful for others.
So, let’s begin: First of all, this principle is more of a compilation of things to think of, when you have a character, that you want to build a story around. The character in question doesn’t have to be the main protagonist, but by using these tips, they might get a very magnificent role in your story, since they are the focus of it. Still, it’s a useful help to get some ideas.
In order to get ideas for a character-focused story, you need to understand your character first.
The easiest way is to sort out the following four points to begin with:
- A character’s Background
- Behaviour of the character
- Triggers of action
- Results from the action
These points are a basic tool for World-building as well, but in this context it helps you to realize your characters, what kind of people they are and how their being can influence your story.
I’ll continue by explaining, what exactly I mean with the points stated prior.
nekonotaishou asked: What’s a good way to add shading to an animation in Flash?
Well, this is how I go about it.
It’s a pretty simple technique that my pal and co-worker Marji taught me. I was kind of mind boggled that I had never tried this before, but once this knowledge was passed down to me I became a GOD!…I hope the same thing happens to all of you o_o
enjoy! ^______^b
-jec
One: This is a great tutorial
Two: DEAR GOD WHY IS THIS SO CUTE ARRRRGH
here’s an upload of that art ref with better quality!
Edit: this is just a tutorial I found online. My original post made this clear but it was low quality so I reposted it in higher quality so that I could put it in my art ref tag. I did not realize this post would pick up so many notes and I am not intending to take credit!
Six times telling can be better than showing
- When characters travel uneventfully from point A to point B
- When a motivation is needed for a character who only appears for a couple of paragraphs
- When you have a scene right after one time skip and right before another
- When a scene is moving at such a fast pace you don’t have time to dedicate ten words to the rain
- When a character is slow on the uptake and has a captain obvious moment for dramatic or humorous reasons
- When explaining backstory and past motivations (sometimes)
The whole “show don’t tell” advice should be used sparingly. There are times when it applies and times (like the list above) when it doesn’t. Showing is better than telling when something is important to the plot and/or characterisation. It takes more time so spend that time where it matters.
Show the important relationship between two main characters, but you can tell about the two paragraph character. Show the key event that defines your protagonist’s life, but tell something incidental that doesn’t really matter.
I made a walkthrough of my process for drawing faceted stones! Judging by the timestamps from the screenshots I took, drawing this one stone took an hour and three minutes, although I know I went and checked tumblr a couple times while I was working, so let’s just call it an hour.
Now MISCELLANEOUS NOTES
- This walkthrough assumes you already know how to use layer masks, the clone stamp, and the lasso tool. There’s also one part where I didn’t label it, but I inverted the selection so I could keep my lines consistent. It’s in the third image.
- Unfortunately I can’t really help with colour choice and the actual colouring of the pinwheel shape that makes up the back facets, but you can kind of see that I tended to colour with lines that cut across the facets and and kept the outer parts of the facets darker. It would probably be best to find a reference to work from!
- This particular cut of stone is called the ‘brilliant’ cut.
- There’s actually a lot of internal reflection business that goes on in a stone, but I elected to ingore all of it since at a distance you can’t really tell anyway.
now GO FORTH AND DAZZLE YOUR FRIENDS WITH YOUR SPARKLE
Characters and No Plot
A question I received today prompted me to write this post because it seems like a lot of writers are struggling with this problem. When you have everything else you need to tell a story, but you can’t figure out the plot, what should you do? The good news is that you really don’t have a lot more to figure out. Once you have your characters down and what their motivations are, the story will begin to tell itself.
Your characters are really the driving force behind your story. They will decide what happens next, they will reveal what should be said through dialogue, and they’ll be there every step of the way as you form your story. They’re in charge. As long as you let them take control, you’ll be able to figure out your plot. But how do you do this? How do you let your characters take charge if you’re the one that created them?
Really know your characters’ motivations.
Your character wants something. If they don’t, they should. Your character has obstacles that stand in the way. If they don’t, they should. Your character has to figure out how to reach their goals. The story is all right there. What does your character want? How will they get it? What stand in their way? How will they overcome these obstacles and get what they want? Will they ever get what they want? Every single character in your story should want something, even if it’s something small. Their motivations and goals will lead to a journey of some kind. They will change. They will have to tackle those issues or people that stand in their way. How they do this will reveal the plot.
Don’t overcomplicate your story.
Writers often worry about a story that’s too simple OR they’re too focused on avoiding what’s been done already. A plot can be super simple, but it can still be extremely interesting. Say your story is about a character who is trying to find a loved one. That might seem like it’s been done to death, but stories about love and friendship are stories that people have loved to read forever. It’s just what you do with it. What world will it take place in? How can you switch up the relationships? How can you add something unique to it? The basic plot of your story can be simple and somewhat cliché as long as you add your own personal touches to it. Also, the original characters you bring to it will add life.
Recognize why you wanted to tell this story.
What idea first inspired you to tell this story? Was there a specific world you wanted to build? What’s so important about this world? What’s the main problem with this world? Focusing on a line of questioning like this for yourself will help you brainstorm and come up with the plot. You really need to remember what led you to tell this story in the first place and what you want to focus on. Even if you just wanted to write a cool protagonist, think about what makes them cool. What do they want? What do they represent for you? Share that with your readers.
-Kris Noel
Silly Jellie
– http://sillyjellie.deviantart.com – http://sillyjellieart.tumblr.com – https://society6.com/elliethopia – https://www.artstation.com/artist/sillyjellie – http://elliethopia.wixsite.com/sillyjellie – https://www.facebook.com/SillyJellieArt – https://es.pinterest.com/SillyJellie – https://www.instagram.com/elliethopia – https://www.linkedin.com/in/ellie-yong-b8311071
More of them mermaids. So much fun to draw.
I bet I know which of these mermaids does cocaine.
1900 surgical amputation tool set
Inspiration Haven 