Introduction

[darthgoober]

Hey Guys, I just joined this forum along with another one similar to this called writing forum. I am a sophomore in college and am totally new to this writing thing. I have always loved reading fantasy writings mostly being C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkein. Over the past month I just really felt inspired to start writing. I have been looking up a TON of information on the internet on writing and fantasy writing. One thing I am currently doing is creating a world and my characters. If anybody has any tips for a new writer at all I would GREATLY appreciate them!!! Oh and one more thing...... obviously I have drawn a lot of inspiration from the two authors I just mentioned but as I am planning my story it's really hard not to compare my ideas with theirs. I sometimes feel like my ideas are just stupid compared to theirs and I also struggle with trying to be original.... to many scenes from their books flood my mind. Any tips on working past that?

 

[Aidan of the tavern]

Welcome to the Scribes my friend. I'm glad you've got that inspiration, the best advice I can give you for the long run is never give up, just keep at it. It will test you, but never let it beat you, because if you persevere it will reward you. Joining this forum was probably one of the best things I could have done in terms of developing my writing, this is where we can actually talk about what makes a good sorcerer, or about bards, anything really.

Feel free to plunge right in, the Scribes is a rewarding experience, give it some of your time and contributions and you will find literally thousands of tips. If you have any questions, or just want to chat, feel free to throw me a message:Biggrin:.

 

[Graham Irwin]

As far as your own originality goes, if you are worried about copying LOTR or CON, read some other fantasy. Or, even better, just read a lot as you write in general, and everything will inform your work, not just books you've liked in the past.

If you can't think of an original story, that's something else altogether. Rings of power figure into both those tales you mentioned. And the authors were friends. Lots of people write in modes similar to Tolkien and Lewis, you wouldn't be too far out there if you did that.

People love cliches in fantasy. Why, I don't know. You'd figure the most imaginative genre wouldn't be so repetitive!

 

[Reaver]

Welcome to Mythic Scribes, darthgoober. This is the absolute best place for all things fantasy & sci-fi. You'll find a lot of very smart, extremely members of varying levels of skill. Don't worry about cliches. Everyone uses them in some form or fashion.

A good thing to remember about any kind of fiction is that the most successful stories of all time follow the same basic formula. Check out "The Hero with a Thousand Faces" by Joseph Campbell.
I hope this helps.

Feel free to PM me if I can offer any further assistance!

 

[Chilari]

Welcome to the Scriptorium! Always good to see fresh faces. As far as originality is concerned, don't worry too much about it. For now, you're just starting out. Focus on writing what you enjoy writing. Read lots, and write lots. As you write, you learn. And as you ask others the review what you've written, you learn more. Your task for now is to learn about writing. How to do it, what works, what doesn't, what your strengths and weaknesses are as a writer, and how to improve. Focus on that, and on enjoying yourself with writing. The more you learn about writing, about other stories and how they work, and about life and yourself, the more original your stories will get anyway.

That was a lesson it's taken me a while to learn - I used to obsess over being original more than anything else, and because I was trying to be original, rather than trying to tell a good story, what I ended up with was flat characters and the sense that my stories weren't really going anywhere. Since then I've got more obsessive about creating good characters - and you know what? The originality was right there all along waiting for me to realise that I didn't need to start with originality to end with it.

So welcome, and I hope you find Mythic Scribes fun, helpful and interesting.

 

[San Cidolfus]

Welcome to you, DG. The best advice that I could give to a new writer just starting out has already been given above, but I'll reiterate to drive home the point.

Write, write, write. Don't worry about similarities to the works that inspired you; just write. Get comfortable in the medium, learn how to express and guide scenes, and construct your narrative. Learn by your own work, and read everything you can get your hands on, because soaking up the work of other authors is vital. Little by little, it'll start to come together. Everyone gets discouraged, but what's important is that you persevere. And we Scribes can be a supportive bunch, if not always hygienic.

 

[darthgoober]

Guys thanks a ton!!! All the information has helped big time. I look forward to being apart of this community