I thought I'd start a resources thread. As some of us have only really had High school English. (I appreciate our friends who have university degree's in it.) What I'm saying here is most learning still comes from books and I'm always looking for ways to grow. I've come across a series of books that are good for budding authors but also good for fanfic. The Emotion Thesaurus: A writers guide to character expression. By Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglish I'm looking into getting the rest of the books. (My kids would benefit too.) While I've grown over the years, I still love to learn of new ideas in writing a bit better. I look up things when I'm feeling stuck, even if it similar its good triggers. (My erotic writing research has been interesting... soooooo much its harder to do right than most writing.) I have more psychology books than anyone should own... (I thank Katsesama for suggesting its an area I should look into for studies, in a PM many years ago...missed forever.) If you have a resource drop it into the thread...

There's good old Strunk and White if you want a rule book, and Stephen King's 'On Writing.' Once you have the rules down pat, you can break 'em in the 'write' way. For entertainment and food for thought, check out http://www.tvtropes.org. It's informative and as funny as hell. Be prepared to waste time. While it's a very humourous site, it's also full of valuable information about tropes and how not to cross the line into cliche. Also funny are Honest Trailers on YouTube. Yes, it's about movies, but you pick up a lot about plotting, consistency and characterisation while wiping away tears of laughter.

Let me also suggest studying your favorite fiction and fanfiction to see what makes it great.

I've been writing story plots since I was a kid. (My english teachers loved it.) But I'm always open to new ideas. I'm sure others are too. Its always been a creative group. I've read a lot of Steven Kings advice. If you come across something that could be useful to someone else post it here. Some people here have english as second language so its all helpful.

Back in the day, the Talker was a great resource. A bunch of us used to meet up more-or-less regularly to chat about our writing projects, discuss issues and obstacles, ideas and even collaborate on things. Having a beta reader who can provide constructive criticism is good as well. A beta whose response is basically "OMG ur so awesome I luv this 4 reels! Squee!" is of little-to-no use to anyone. (They seem to abound in certain other fandoms, and long may they stay right where they are.) A beta who can tell you what works, what doesn't work and suggest fixes is worth their weight in chocolate. As ChrisW suggested, reading stuff you like is also good since it gives you ideas and frameworks, almost via osmosis. Reading what you don't like is also helpful, since it gives you a good idea of what not to do. For me, I've been inspired by the likes of Terry Pratchett, Douglas Adams and AA Milne as well as Marion Zimmer-Bradley, Julian May and Katharine Kerr. I have been reverse-inspired by Anne McCaffrey (she had several brilliant ideas but only about half a dozen two-dimensional characters and just recycled them from book to book) and George RR Martin (I stuck with A Song of Ice and Fire until the end of Book Six, in which STUFF-ALL BLOODY HAPPENED. Brilliant premise, amazing world-building, great foreshadowing, fantastic overarching plot and he faffed around with it for years until forced to a denouement by the fact that he had a final season of GoT that had to go to air. So much promise, let down by the execution. Will Winter ever come? Don't know, don't care any more.) From within this fandom I love to read things by Naa-Dei Nikoi, Jane Lebak, Catherine Rees-Lay, Wendy Dinsmore and Terri-Anne Smith for brilliant storytelling, great characterisation and good solid world-building. There are others, but these are just the ones that spring immediately to mind. I'm really looking forward to having gatchfanfic.com fully back on deck again so I can review the archive at my leisure without the blue wall of ads cropping up at random moments (you can sort that out temporarily, btw, by leaving the page, clearing cookies from the site and going back in - it's a pain, but Julie's working on fixing it.)

I've had good beta's in the past and current too. I'm currently reading Robin Hobb's series of books. She's a brilliant writer, love her imagination and world building, great plot twists. Tadd Williams. Hornblower series. Francine Rivers is my top favourite, her plots in history and writing are awesome and her characters have substance. Most of what I like is historical fiction, and real history books. I'm more likely outside of the fandom to write historical fiction, I like weaving characters into history. I haven't bothered with George RR Martin. Its a series for TV, I don't have that much reading time so I'm fussier, I'm currently reading a lot of text books. I read the Hunger Games series a few years ago, it was an easy read and I liked the concept of it. The Sunne in Splendor by S.K Penman is still my favourite book. I like that period in history, enjoyed the writing and how she told the story of the Plantagenets. (I never brought into Shakespeare's London version of him, even as a teenager studying it in English.) Transmute Jun is a fantastic author, and beta. E.D Darling, Springie is great with feedback in the fandom for beta. Positive and constructive. It wasn't for me, I was just sharing a good resource for new authors or old.

Originally posted by Ebonyswanne The Sunne in Splendor by S.K Penman is still my favourite book. I like that period in history, enjoyed the writing and how she told the story of the Plantagenets. (I never brought into Shakespeare's London version of him, even as a teenager studying it in English.)

It was politically expedient for Shakespeare to demonise Richard III, after all it was Queen Elizabeth I's grandad whose forces killed and mutilated the poor lad. Did you see the reinterment ceremony on Aunty the other day? It was quite well done. I've been following the project for a while and it was nice to see him given a proper burial.

I understand why Shakespeare did it. Understandable because of Queen Elizabeth I being a Tudor. Those were my conclusions in English. He did it win favour, and Richard wasn't popular in London, they didn't know him like the North did or his brother King Edward VI. It didn't add up, so many contradictions it makes interesting history about him. I've seen the archaeological digs articles on him. They should be burying him in the North. It was the place he was most loved. But he got the burial of King after all.

Well, George RR Martin's Game of Thrones was a series of books long before it was on television. I haven't read them and I've only watched part of the series (just not in a headspace to see so many people doing terrible things to other people, which is funny since I do like angst), but my husband read the books way back when. I love historical fiction as well, and fantasy/SF/whatever that's inspired by or woven into historical. When I write fantasy fiction I often try to base my world building at least in part on a specific historical place and time to try to give it a kind of internal consistency.

I have one outline outside of Fanfiction. Its set in a Germania/ Gaul. My protagonist is a mercenary along with his gang. My DH likes the outline and the character, and wonders why its not written yet. I pointed out to him its not so simple. I have to fully form the universe of a real part in history, I have to clarify a few things that are conflicting historically. More the archaeological side about daily life in the region. Violence of the times too. I have research and knowledge over the years to draw on, but fine details have a place too in forming the story I like those, somethings you have to have liberty on to tell a story. No one is 100% spot on. I have one scene written. Everything I write ends starting with one scene, the plot flows from how they all got there! Usually its halfway through the story. I'll write it for DH to read.

One of my favorite writers growing up was Judith Tarr. She's a historian and writes what you could call historical fiction with a fantasy twist. (It's not all historical, some of it's pure fantasy in fictional worlds.) I love that in her more historical books she'll have a section that explains where she drew on history, where she drew on fringe theories about certain aspects, and where she made things up.

I've seen the titles of Judith Tarr in the book shops. I like creative leans, why not. The stories told in those times were colourful and filled with imagination. I love Roman Britain ever since I studied it for my HSC in advanced history relying on archaeology to tell the story. I've often picked up books relating to that time and place.

If you read the backs you should be able to tell which touch on history and which are purely fiction.

I read a lot of detective fiction, and recently I started paying much more attention to the descriptive elements of the prose, which are not my strong suit when I write, as I prefer dialogue: how to describe in a couple of words or sentences a crowded bar, a metro station etc. I'm going through the series of Deborah Crombie's books now, and she's a wizard (or should that be a witch?) with descriptions.

I find Robin Hobb is extremely descriptive and detailed in her writing.

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Writing those awkward erotic scenes... i know you've wanted to but its not so easy to do. (Crashed and burned a few times.) A few links for tips on writing it without it coming across as porn. There is a difference! (To be honest I only do a scene if its part of the emotional plot and fits, others wise, maybe not...but heck... smut is there in fanfiction.) One tip that stood out researching techniques. Don't write it like your grandmother is looking over your shoulder! Too funny... (Feels like it.) I had an elderly Great Aunty Lizzy, with a mischievous disposition when I was 14yrs old, she lived in a trailer park and had books scattered all over the caravan. I picked up one... looked at the back cover being a bookworm kid. Her blue eyes twinkled, winking at me she said. "Dear... that ones a bit naughty... When you're eighteen I'll lend them to you." She was 80!! It was a Mills & Boon! Bwahhh... (I've never read them.) Then she had to go to pub for her one beer... she was a character bless her... http://www.nerve.com/dispatches/almond/howto http://www.huffingtonpost.com/g-doucette/how-to-write-a-good-sex-s_b_4957087.html

When writing naughty scenes, really IMO the keys are to remember that: * It's just another type of action scene. Which means that there's no need to include every little detail unless there's a reason you're doing that. * It should reveal something about the characters or their relationship. * Making things too perfect IMO can throw people out of the story unless that's what's right for the story. A little reality can be nice. Stuff like (at least considering) safe sex, proper preparation, laughter, embarrassing little happenings, etc.

One thing I've learned writing them. * Its okay for a guy to be an awkward virgin and the woman more experienced. Tried it in a fic and I liked it. * When it happens no matter how it swings in a story of your writing. (M/F... M/M) The Condor doesn't have to be a heartless aggressive male, and the Eagle a wimp, and the Swan the perfect. After all he is G-1 for a reason, not a wimp. (Okay fluffy smut is an exception and often is OOC anyway.) Just sayin... seen it happen a lot. Even if its platonic relationship in the story for any of them.

Yes and yes!!!

How about this facet of writing: how to stamp out Writers Block? I found a good source for combating that from the English department of Purdue University, here: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/567/01/ There's a ton of great strategies for all sorts of stucks in there, from conferring with others and throwing ideas around to just sketching out random ideas and scenarios to keep the exercise in motion.

I had a read through it. It is a good resource. Thanks for sharing.