What do you find most difficult to write? What comes easiest?

FredCharles · Mar 29, 2007

I have difficulty writing romance into my stories. No matter how hard I try, I feel like I'm writing a bad Hallmark card.

The easist scenes for me to write are usually loaded with dialogue. I find it even easier if there is conflict between the characters that are speaking to each other.

How about you?

Claudia Gray · Mar 29, 2007

Action scenes are very difficult for me. I can usually visualize them very well, and come up with good settings/events, but finding the right way to describe those scenes and make them exciting is always a struggle.

I, too, enjoy writing scenes with crackling dialogue. I think I also do a good job capturing individual "voices" in dialogue and like playing them against each other.

WildScribe · Mar 29, 2007

I have a hard time with... time. I am only just trying to remind myself that I don't have to mention everything my character does every second.

I am really good at horrific stuff, though. My MC barely fought off a rape attempt, and I am pretty sure that I wrote a DAMN good scene... if disturbing.

triceretops · Mar 29, 2007

Yep, snappy dialogue between two characters in conflict flies. I love insults.

Romance and sex scenes are a tough lot for me. I cringe if I know a female editor is reading such. Don't do them badly, mind you, but I avoid them at all costs, unless I need to perk up the script.

I make up song lyrics and poems in my stories. They can really block me.

A rule of thumb I've learned for fight scenes or action sequences, is "short sentences" that are punchy and stark.

Tri

Shadow_Ferret · Mar 29, 2007

You caught me in a melancholy and disheartened mood, considering recent rejections, so I guess I find EVERYTHING difficult to write.

FredCharles · Mar 30, 2007

Shadow_Ferret said:
You caught me in a melancholy and disheartened mood, considering recent rejections, so I guess I find EVERYTHING difficult to write.

Sorry to hear that. We all go through those phases. I'm sure you will break out of it soon.

TsukiRyoko · Mar 30, 2007

Pace and description is hard for me. I always make the mistake of describing too much or too little, and I'm either recording the story second by second or letting my characters unintentionally teleport to the next destination.

As for genre, I can write in just about any genre with roughly the same ease. Except for romance. Try as I may, my romance always come out either cheesy or just plain raunchy (both which are fun, but usually not what I was going for).

ccarver30 · Mar 30, 2007

The hardest thing for me to write is "filler". I write 19c English romance so sometimes it is hard to find things for an aristrocrat to do all day...

jodiodi · Mar 30, 2007

I think I do great villains, and am also good with suspense. I know I write great smut (ample 'fan letters' and the college spending money as evidence), but I find it boring to do and would much rather be writing about battles and bloody evil-doing.

I have to watch for writing only good things about the heroes/heroines. If I like a character, I'll find myself shying away from writing their flaws because I want them to appear perfect even though they aren't. I think I do ok with it, but it's something I have to work at.

scarletpeaches · Mar 30, 2007

Sex.

I can do dialogue, exposition, description, bits of comedy, serious stuff...all in varying degrees of loveliness...but sex. Man, that's difficult.

See, you expected me to say 'hard', didn't you?

Namatu · Mar 30, 2007

Beginnings. I have the hardest time with the start of the story.

Undertones too can be a problem when I'm trying to convey a certain level of something outside of dialogue and maintain a good balance. In one story I had a lot of looks flying around between characters. My ms was not 24! There's only so many times a person can look or gaze or stare. Ugh.

Angelinity · Mar 30, 2007

short stories with a set word count are really tough for me.

also, erotica -- very difficult when it comes to explicit scenes... though i've challenged myself to write it and got some published. all sex scenes, really, are difficult for me to write... most of all incest scenes...

the first chapter of a novel. and the ending....

poetry comes easy.

C.bronco · Mar 30, 2007

Cover letters and queries!

Also, I pretty much avoid writing about physical relations. I pretty much avoid speaking about them too. I hope I never have a sex scene come up as critical to a plot because I'll be staring at a blank screen for quite some time.

scarletpeaches · Mar 30, 2007

Ha! Oh yes, you just reminded me of my hatred of the dreaded synopsis.

ccarver30 · Mar 30, 2007

Ah! I didn't reply what was easiest. I don't have a problem writing romace scenes... I love coming up with witty dialogue the best though.

Namatu · Mar 30, 2007

scarletpeaches said:
Sex.
See, you expected me to say 'hard', didn't you?

Sex is hard! (Hee!) I usually end up cracking myself up. :ROFL:

RMS · Mar 30, 2007

My own bio is the most difficult thing for me to write.

Cav Guy · Mar 30, 2007

Sex scenes and my own bio are the most difficult. That and @#*&! swordfights. I don't have too much trouble with other stuff.

Lyra Jean · Mar 30, 2007

Description. My characters all talk in a void. I'm all ways having to go back and add more in.

Marlys · Mar 30, 2007

I'm not particularly visual myself, so I have to remind myself to describe settings.

Dialogue is probably easiest. I also love romantic scenes--which is probably just as well, since I write romance.

Namatu · Mar 30, 2007

Ooh, bios. Yeah. Mine is bad. Queries also. Synopses I can do, but they're not that exciting.

MidnightMuse · Mar 30, 2007

Dialogue is my favorite thing - comes very easily to me. My guys can banter with the best of them.

But sometimes getting them from point A to point B gives me bile. I have to remember it's okay to skip some mundania, not follow them as they walk or drive, and just get them there.

Jamesaritchie · Mar 30, 2007

Hardest

Beginnings, without a doubt. As far as I'm concerned, the success of the entire story is in the opening, and making an opening work perfectly is tougher for me than everything else put together.

Second most difficult is simply make an entire story a seamless whole, with perfect pace, flow, rhythm, mood and tone all the way through.

ChaosTitan · Mar 30, 2007

There isn't any one thing that is most difficult for me. Everything takes its turn at one time or another. Sometimes I struggle to make a conversation work. Sometimes it's describing a location or physical altercation. Getting the erotic chemistry between two characters just right.

Every challenge has its place.

Novelhistorian · Mar 30, 2007

Beginnings. Too often, I realize that I should have begun on page three, and that I've been writing exposition because I can hear the evil voices in my head, saying, "I didn't know what you meant by that" or "Is it Tuesday in this story? I didn't know." When it gets really bad, I see that I've stuffed all the information a writing workshop nerd could possibly want to know into the first three paragraphs, which are leaden as a result.

Maybe for the same reason, I have trouble with queries.

What do you find most difficult to write? What comes easiest?

Slave to the Wordcount

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Nicole Castro

Reflections of Reality

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Nicole Castro

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Resist. Love. Go outside.

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Midnight Reading

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