This is discussion archived from a time before the current discussion method was installed.
Kilyle: I hope I'm not putting up erroneous information there... I recall reading somewhere on the site that redlinks should be avoided when possible. Also, if you can make the instructions clearer, feel free. I may be frequenting this page a lot, but it's not like my personal project or anything; I'm just trying to get it off to a good start.
Also, here's the index-relevant sections of the discussion page for Write a Story, back when it was serving as the index:
Kilyle: Okay, not sure how we should handle The Next... for series with "The" in the title (The Addams Family, The Simpsons, etc.). The Next The Addams Family or The Next Addams Family or maybe some new form instead of just "the next X"?
Second Question: I added Star Wars, Star Trek, and Stargate as the three major sci-fi TV series I know of, but now that I'm drafting the Star Trek one, I'm thinking we need a single category for at least Star Trek, Stargate, Far Scape, and the like (and maybe Red Dwarf as well), with pointers as to how they differ. Because the stuff I'm writing about how to handle the aliens, that could apply to any of them. So... any idea for a name for a page that covers these? (Maybe Write A Sci Fi TV Series?)
Noaqiyeum: Well, there's already Write the Next "X-Files" for The X Files, so...
Kilyle: Yeah, I started that one too. But the tropes for The X Files would be very distinct from the tropes for the others I've mentioned, whereas there's going to be a ton of overlap among Star Wars, Star Trek, Star Gate, Far Scape, Babylon 5, Battlestar Galatica, and Red Dwarf... I'm still thinking Star Wars, Star Trek, and Star Gate are the front-runners, with Red Dwarf being big because it's like the only Sci-Fi Sitcom (that I know of)... but really, that's mostly because I haven't watched those two B's. Or Doctor Who, which might fit in too (Who knows?). Anyway, I'm hoping someone can suggest a good name for "So You Want To Write A" (basic category of Star Wars, Star Trek, and Star Gate), while the "So You Want To Write The Next" (of those three) will say "check that one for the overlapping details, while this one is about the details that don't overlap." Such as Star Trek's idealism and Power Trio, Star Gate's modern militaristic humanity and mostly ground-based adventure, Star Wars's less-adventure-and-more-war, etc.
Heh... "started"... makes me sound like I actually put some work into it that wasn't all in my head. Guess I'll have to get around to starting it in real life pretty soon.
Doctor Nemesis: I'd be good with a 'The Next Doctor Who' category.
Kilyle: Go for it! These potential links are here to help people get an idea of what this project is trying to do. People have already added several of these that I didn't put up at the start, so don't be afraid to add your own. Just judge whether it's best as a genre (or sub-genre), a Major Series, or a Major Name Author or Visionary. Doctor Who is a Major Name Series (just look at Trope Overdosed), and I'd love to read more about what its biggest selling points are, what sets it apart from other series.
Kilyle: Hope more people add to the project soon. I've started like half a dozen of these just to make sure people can see what they're supposed to be like. Any way to advertise this better?
Morgan Wick: After the MOW for Write a Film Noir, I'm thinking these should all be in the style of what they describe...
Kilyle: Heh heh... that mightn't be a bad idea. But I suppose it depends on who ends up starting them. And it might work better for those with a strong prose background than for, say, anime, but I'm not sure.
Doctor Nemesis: I added a 'So You Want To Be The Next...' category for H.P Lovecraft, since he's arguably influential enough that many want to follow in his footsteps.
Kilyle: Absolutely! I'd like to see more suggestions of the real Names who people might really like to imitate. (Think Joss Whedon qualifies? He's certainly got the vision, and his stuff is unlike what came before... and he works well with tropes, to boot, lampshade-hanging and subverting all over the place.) And we still need some Names from comic books... the ones who started the good stuff, the ones everyone tries to imitate, the ones who had a particularly vivid vision that defined a genre after them.
Kilyle: And... that's the end of what was on the other page. I took out the me-begging-for-index-change bit, since I got help already and got it all switched over (almost). You may proceed with your talk page.
ETA: I dunno if Louis L'Amour is a good name for "Be The Next," but he's the only name for Westerns that I know. And since I've seen tons of his books in this house over the years, I'd guess he's pretty prolific. So I suggested him.
ETA 2: Not sure what's up with the indexing. The Be The Next Alfred Hitchcock page, for example, is showing that same page on both sides of its indexing.
Maso Tey:
Unless it actually exists and I haven't yet seen it, TV Tropes needs a "So You Want To Build Gameplay Mechanics".
KiTA: "Write Scheme And Scansion (needs a better description but probably not a total rewrite.)" Perhaps "Write A Poem"?
Lord Seth: Do you think "make an Abridged Series" would be an interesting one?
Kilyle: Yes! Absolutely! I would love to read that one.
Bud0011:How do you start a So You Want To, that doesn't deal with writing as a primary focus?
Kilyle: What sort of page were you thinking to write? If it's not to help a writer cover a particular trope or topic, it might not work here, but might still work elsewhere on the wiki. Still, by "writing" I'm indicating a wide variety of creative topics (literature, comic books, cartoons, live action TV, plays, fanfics, etc.), so it's possible that "Be the next Leonardo da Vinci" wouldn't be out of place, even if you're discussing art that's a bit outside what could be called "writing".
Bud0011: A [Trading| Collectible] card game
Kilyle: Make a Collectible Card Game would probably work. It is a creative effort that involves writing at some level. Go for it!
Ferrard: Err... I see Space Fighters and Space Western, but no generic "Sci-Fi". Why not just make a parent "Write a Sci-Fi" page and have Space Fighters and Space Westerns be a subsection of it?
