How much interest do you have for other troper's stories?

Or you could... showcase another character who needs some work.

edited 18th Sep '11 6:45:28 PM by CrystalGlacia

And what if I think that Jasper and Diplo are the two characters that I need to work on?

Rab, the only other character I could see me wanting to develop, is mostly defined by his acts of violence, and would never go to the cantina in that state, and when he would, there is no need to develop him.

And if I try to put him in a place where violence is allowed, he would quickly turn godmod, due to his abilities.

And to be honest, he's much better in his own element. He has a bunch of issues and he's just not fun to explore, until later on, which I already have a perfect feel for.

I guess I could bring Nicky, but he's very similar to Rab. He's defined by things that are not fun to explore. I already know them. He's only fun to explore later on, and it's only fun to do so in a solo setting.

And sure, I have an entire cast, but in the end of the day, they work best in the setting they were created for. They're not flat, they're just subtle.

It'd be like if JKR joined, and wrote Harry into one of the CDT threads, all he would end up doing is telling us about how there is an evil lord in his world, and then explain the details of the world and the magic system that he should have no way of reasonably knowing.

Harry is fine as a character, but not necessarily in a roleplaying setting, where the subtle traits get ironed out, and he simply becomes someone spouting exposition so that it may bounce off of everyone else, who will, in turn, spout off their exposition.

edited 18th Sep '11 7:03:40 PM by MrAHR

@YA: I actually want to continue with the topic of YA, but I don't want to de-rail this thread, so I'll probably make a thread either in Literature or on Writer's Block later.

@CDT: I wished I used one of my existing characters for Carnival, but it helped me get a better grip of CDT.

@On-Topic: I wonder how many other Tropers are considering being self-published as opposed to being traditionally published.

I figure there's always the Kindle and other e-book markets if regular publishing doesn't work out. No official editing process, which kind of sucks, but hey, at least you're out there.

Technically, I think I still have a "one book in physical form, free" coupon from winning Na No Wri Mo. I should use one of those at least once.

You can get a free book? I didn't know that!

Yup. I know one of my Na No buddies uses it every year, and for the past three or so years she's been slowly assembling a series.

Speaking of, I have started a thread for pimping my work!

I'll jump in here - answering the OP's topic.

For me, if it's a Troper Work or not doesn't determine my interest. If it's in a genre that I already know I like (fantasy, sci-fi, alternate history) or one that I'm looking to explore (surreal, horror, mystery), my interest is piqued. I'll gladly read things that are outside of my chosen genres, though. For me, what really makes or breaks a story is characterization and plot. If the characters are bad, I'll just stop reading. If the plot doesn't make sense, then what's the point in continuing the book or webcomic or whatever it is? If it's something outlandish or strange (say, the Russo-Japanese War...WITH ALIENS), but the author makes it believable, then I'm fine with it.

There are a few that I'm keeping an eye on, though, and more than a few Tropers here whose works I can't stop reading (even if all I do is lurk and read). I'll admit that whether or not I find the Troper's posts/insight valuable or funny in other areas can factor into that. But it doesn't always.

I don't have as much time as I'd like to actually read all the Troper Works that interest me, so I have to pick a few and then carve out tiny, tiny chunks of time in which to get to them.

For me, too, it's a case-by-case thing. If the concept doesn't grab me at all, I'll read no further. Truth be told, I mostly tend to read short vignettes, due to time constraints.

I often feel I should provide more constructive criticism here, but I already have one forum where I do a lot of reading and critiquing other people's work, and it can get rather overwhelming.

With me as many others have said, it's a case by case analysis. One thing that tends to make me sort of wander away is the writer being a little too long winded in the "selling" process, so to speak. The other is, like many said, the genre.