# please can you help out newbie?



## makmakmob (Jan 5, 2008)

[align=left]
I must admit, I'm fairly new to this whole furry thing (a year ago, I didn't even know it existed), and I'm new to the idea of writing things but people have insisted I have a go.
I would very much appreciate some advice on a certain few points
-should I type or handwrite a story?
-how much imagery is too much imagery?
-what kinds of writing do well?
any advice on any of these points would be very much appreciated.
thank you![/align]


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## ALU (Jan 5, 2008)

first off welcome to FA "gives makmakmob a cookie"

I would have to say handwrite then type because "for me at least" itgives me a better idea on how to write it. I am in the process of writing my second furry story "the first will never see the light of day so dont ask to see it" 
As far as the other questions go im not to sure but if you have any questions on anything dont be afraid to ask theres always going to be be someone here to help


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## TheGru (Jan 5, 2008)

Welcome to FA first of all.

Now to answer your request.
The above advice is fairly valid and good, I myself type but everyone has their own style. I would suggest reading about the other threads in this section and see what wisdom you can garner from them.

Something I find also fun, (and might be a good launching point for you) is the Thursday Prompts. It's hosted by Poetigress and it's a good writing exercise to get the creativity flowing. You can join us anytime you wish.

Poetigress' page: http://www.furaffinity.net/user/poetigress/


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## TakeWalker (Jan 5, 2008)

I think the first question has been tackled effectively, so let me get to the other two.



			
				makmakmob said:
			
		

> -how much imagery is too much imagery?



More than enough.

No, seriously, there isn't any way you can quantify something like this. Every story, and every style, has its own limits. You just have to be able to call it as you see it; if you think you've got too much imagery, then you probably do.



> -what kinds of writing do well?



I assume you mean what kinds of writing are popular on this site, yes? My first response would be "none", but that's overly cynical of me.

To my best guess, the average FA user will want to see sex. Thus, porn stories, and especially fetish-specific stories will garner you quite a bit of attention, assuming anyone actually reads them. People also like seeing stories that contain their characters.

Among the writers' circles, well, we seem to like just about everything that's written well.  Good concepts and interesting characters tend to tickle the fancies of those who respond to the Thursday prompts. Again, this question is hard to quantify, but if you'll take my opinions on it, there you are.


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## Poetigress (Jan 5, 2008)

makmakmob said:
			
		

> -should I type or handwrite a story?
> -how much imagery is too much imagery?
> -what kinds of writing do well?



Hi and welcome.  The answer I'll give to all three of these roughly works out to "whatever works".  >^_^< 

For the first -- some writers do better handwriting their first drafts and then typing them up, and others work completely on the computer.  Experiment, find out which type you are, and run with it.

For the second -- as TakeWalker said, that depends on the story.

And the third -- well, I'll echo TakeWalker again:



			
				TakeWalker said:
			
		

> To my best guess, the average FA user will want to see sex. Thus, porn stories, and especially fetish-specific stories will garner you quite a bit of attention, assuming anyone actually reads them. People also like seeing stories that contain their characters.
> 
> Among the writers' circles, well, we seem to like just about everything that's written well.  Good concepts and interesting characters



I would add one thing to this, and to me it's especially important given that you said "people insisted" you have a go -- write the kind of story YOU want to write, the kind of story that interests you, that you would like to read, not the stories anyone else says or thinks you should write.  Don't write to please other people; you'll always be disappointed in the end.


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## TakeWalker (Jan 5, 2008)

Poetigress said:
			
		

> TakeWalker said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



I kind of got the feeling he wanted to write for other people, to get noticed, etc., hence my answer. But I do agree that writing for yourself is prime if you want to be able to enjoy your writing.  And this coming from someone specifically writing for others at the moment.


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## makmakmob (Jan 6, 2008)

Thank you all very much for your advice, and thank you for all the kind welcomes, and the cookie! *Munch munch*


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## Poetigress (Jan 6, 2008)

TakeWalker said:
			
		

> I kind of got the feeling he wanted to write for other people, to get noticed, etc., hence my answer. But I do agree that writing for yourself is prime if you want to be able to enjoy your writing.



It's essential.  I can't stress it enough (hence this long reply).  >^_^<  If you write for other people's approval, or praise, or popularity, or whatever, it's never going to be enough, and it's never going to be truly satisfying.  Let's face it, writing is hard enough without worrying whether you're writing the "right" type of story, or whether people will like it, or whether it's going to get you more watchers or something.  We all want approval and praise, of course -- who doesn't? -- but that can't be why you're doing it, or you'll get burned out before you start.  You'll get too wrapped up in everybody else's opinions.

Now, one can do commissions, and requests, and trades, and so on, and use ideas from others as exercises and challenges -- but I'm talking about things like, don't write an adult story just because you think it's going to get you more traffic, when it's not really what you want to write.  Don't avoid writing adult stories if you really want to, because you're worried about somebody making some assumption about you, or because people have told you that all adult stuff is trash or just written for attention.  Don't try to write literary stuff because some authority told you fantasy was a genre for the immature, or try to write genre stories because somebody thinks literary stuff is for snobs.  Don't write stuff with big battle scenes just because it's what your friends like, when you might really want to write quieter stories with more emotional drama.  That kind of thing.

If you don't write what you really want to write, you're cutting your own lifeline.  You're cutting yourself off from the stories that only you can tell, and that could be a very great loss.


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## TakeWalker (Jan 6, 2008)

It's also one of those things some people just need to learn for themselves.


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## Poetigress (Jan 6, 2008)

Well, that's the way of all advice.  Doesn't mean it hurts anything to give it anyway, in case anyone cares to listen.  *shrug*


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