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Hello! I don't know if you've answered this already but, How do I write banter between characters ?

Dialogue: Writing Banter

Stories need to strike a relative balance between exposition, action, and dialogue, and all of these things need to work together to:

-- develop characters, setting, and plot elements -- build relationships between characters -- fill in backstory or create foreshadowing -- establish stakes, conflict, tension, and goals -- deliver important information to character/reader -- set up, carry out, and resolve plot points

Since exposition, action, and dialogue are always working together to achieve the above, you have to be very careful about "filler" content. In other words, you don't want to have exposition, action, or dialogue that's not accomplishing at least one of the above items.

"Banter" refers to conversation (dialogue) that is playful, witty, and usually quick. In fiction, it's often used to illustrate personality, mood, and chemistry between characters. However, banter can get out of control quickly and turn into filler. The best way to avoid that is to think about the purpose of the dialogue scene. Which of those items listed above is this conversation meant to accomplish? Next, how does quick, playful, witty repartee between these characters help to accomplish that? Once you understand what you're trying to achieve and how the banter will help you do that, it's easier to see exactly what the banter should be.

The next thing to do is to look at what else is going on in the scene. What is the action of the scene trying to accomplish? Is there an important event occurring in this scene, or is it building up to one? Or maybe even following up after an important event? Thinking about where your characters were in the previous scene, what they're doing in this scene, and where they need to go in the next scene can give you some clues about the banter. For example, if they were at a party in the previous scene and the party was broken up by police, and now this new scene is at school the next day, it would make sense for the banter to be about that exciting event. Which character is most likely to make a playful or witty comment about what happened? Is this comment directed at the character they're speaking to? Is it directed at an off-screen character, such as the person who threw the party?

Maybe it's a witty comment directed toward a friend who missed the fun. Now you can look at who is most likely to respond back in an equally playful, witty way. At this point, if there's a third participant, it may be their turn to add something. Or, if it's just the two characters, the first person will take their turn. But at this point you also need to figure out what else you're trying to say with this banter. Maybe you want to illustrate that Character A is a little hurt that Character C didn't go to the party. So maybe after B has responded initially, then C said their bit, A says something that's playful but also illustrates their hurt that C didn't go with them. At which point, either B or C can hit back with something consolatory but still playful and witty.

A: Well, well, well. If it isn't Miss "I have more exciting things to do than go to some lame party." C: Yeah, yeah. I heard. Police-raided parties are so middle school.

B: Oh, so jaded, I love it! Really, it was exciting. You missed it!

A: If you loved me, you would have come.

C: If I loved you, I would have dumped you for expecting me to go to a lame party.

And that's that. Short and sweet. Doesn't need to drag on for half a page. The banter relates to something that happened in the previous scene, tells us something about the characters' personalities, and tells us something about their relationships.

As far as coming up with the actual wit when it's needed, that can be tricky for those of us who aren't particularly witty, or where our wit only comes out when warranted. In that case, I think it really helps to watch TV shows where there's a lot of witty characters and witty repartee. Any number of sitcoms from the past twenty-five years is great for this. You can also watch clips from such shows on YouTube.

I hope that helps!

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GIMP too works as a great substitute for Photoshop! Also super vouching for LibreOffice, Writer is fantastic and I don't see much of a difference between it and microsoft word at all.

It used to be that when a company released hacky, closed-source, propriety software, those facts alone would make them an object of ridicule amongst mean nerds on the Internet for years. Now we just kinda performatively bitch about Adobe every couple of months.

thank you for the pnat art. Your Sauls are fun and your OCs are neat. I hope you have a good day :)

im so glad you enjoy my art!!! im sorry paranatural fanart isn’t really my focus. thank u so so much for enjoying my saul and oc drawings, that really means a lot and im super glad you like them!! here are some pnat doodles for you anon!! i’m sorry i don’t draw fanart for this comic enough, i hope you have a good day too! thank you so much :-)

How to Make Your Descriptions Less Boring

We’ve all been warned about the dangers of using too much description. Readers don’t want to read three paragraphs about a sunset, we’re told. Description slows down a story; it’s boring and self-indulgent. You should keep your description as short and simple as possible. For those who take a more scientific approach to writing fiction, arbitrary rules abound: One sentence per paragraph. One paragraph per page. And, for god’s sake, “Never open a book with weather” (Elmore Leonard).

But what this conventional wedding wisdom fails to take into account is the difference between static and dynamic description. Static description is usually boring. It exists almost like a painted backdrop to a play. As the name suggests, it doesn’t move, doesn’t interact or get interacted with.

There were clouds in the sky. Her hair was red with hints of orange. The house had brown carpeting and yellow countertops.

In moderation, there’s nothing wrong with static description. Sometimes, facts are facts, and you need to communicate them to the reader in a straightforward manner.

But too much static description, and readers will start to skim forward. They don’t want to read about what the house looks like or the stormy weather or the hair color of each of your protagonist’s seventeen cousins.

Why? Because they can tell it’s not important. They can afford to skip all of your description because their understanding of the story will not be impacted.

That’s where dynamic description comes in. Dynamic description is a living entity. It’s interactive, it’s relevant. It takes on the voices of your narrators and characters. In short, it gives us important information about the story, and it can’t be skimmed over.

So how do you make your description more dynamic so that it engages your readers and adds color and excitement to your story? Here are a few tips.

(I have a TON more tips about setting and description. These are just a few. But I’m trying to keep this short, so if you have any questions or want more advice about this, please feel free to ask me.)

Keep reading

Websites for Artists by alinalal_

Writers, please, please, please, I am begging you

I know we don't vibe with Mary Sues, and I know we like watching characters fail...

But if your character is the world's best assassin, they shouldn't be botching nearly every single step of every single job just because the plot demands it. If your character is one of the greatest fighters to ever live, they can't badly lose every single fight the plot throws at them and then barely win the final confrontation. If your character is a competent military strategist, they need at least a few small successes during the course of the plot. If your character is an experienced leader, they can't be constantly making the kind of missteps that realistically would cause their subordinates to lose confidence in them.

If your character is good at something. Show them being good at it.

ʀᴇᴍɪɴᴅᴇʀꜱ ꜰᴏʀ ᴡʀɪᴛᴇʀꜱ <3

it's okay to stray from your story. go write that short fic you can't take your mind off of! give you—and your characters—a break.

you! won't! always! make! your! word! count! -- you don't need to keep stretching sentences because the scene you finally got right is a hundred words too short. sometimes it's better that way.

the "rules" and "tips" are just ~guidelines~ (especially for people who like to swear by them) -- writing has no laws. especially first drafts. scrap the grammar, scrap the emotional tips, write it because it feels right, not because someone else says so.

every writer procrastinates. it's not easy being a writer.

take time off for yourself. the only thing harder than writing a story is to keep pushing it when you need a break the most. come back to it later. I promise there will be no dumpster fires when you're gone.

all writing is "real" writing. I don't think there's an explanation here?? fiction writers are writers. nonfiction writers are writers. fanfic writers are writers. (like how all reading is real reading!! in every format, too!)

it doesn't need to be perfect. honestly, it might never be. but it can be really close to it. if you're not satisfied with it, move on and come back when you're ready.

you are just as skilled as any bestselling author. remember that everything you read has been heavily edited by teams of people! their first draft could not even be as good as yours is now.

not using clichés is cliché. you will find one in any story. no one can bring you down for liking a certain trope. just because it's common doesn't mean it's bad!

no writer is fully well-rounded. dialogue will be easier to write for some, and description for others.

and, finally, no one knows what they're doing. trust me. we're all stumbling around blind here.

holy wow, this is some amazing pixel art!

Would you play this version of mine? ~ Starting screen mockup for Pokemon Emerald, Me, Aseprite 230x330 px

caught her in perfect deviantart oc ref sheet pose

Big-headed turtle Platysternon megacephalum (or big headed turtle) is a very odd-shaped turtle with a huge head and a long tail that are almost the same size as its body.

Senpai says you’re welcome

Uncharismatic Fact of the Day

Parrots are far from the only bird able to mimic human speech. Many other birds, like the crow or the mynah. Other animals like my personal favorite, the Macgregor’s bowerbird (Amblyornis macgregoriae), can even mimic other environmental sounds. Here’s a very cool clip from the Netflix documentary Dancing with the Birds, showcasing the wide range of the Macgregor’s bowerbird.

If you like what I do, consider leaving a tip or buying me a kofi!

This was rather humorous.

This is such a neat piece! I'd probably actually buy this to put it up in my place if I had the money.

Sketchy Thoughts by Jason Limon

Kestrel-dad not sure how to dad but he’s trying his best.

the skull is so big compare to her! Marvelous

@brittikitty on insta

This is such a simple little video, and it's glorious. Has a bit of the "we're in a 70s cartoon and we're only making one noise to signify something got hit" vibe.

♪

the critical thinking sheet filled with questions to mull over is nice and very much appreciated

Y’all “critical thinking” does not equal “criticism”.

this is adorable!

Coral Pukei-Pukei Villager

I sketched this villager a few years ago, I'd still love to see these folks in my village. Little Pukei Pukei collecting bugs to eat :D

“Writing begins with forgiveness. Let go of the shame about how long it’s been since you last wrote, the clenching fear that you’re not a good enough writer, the doubts over whether or not you can get it done. Sure, the nagging demons will come creeping back, but set them aside anyway, and then set them aside again when they do. Concoct a hot beverage, play a beautiful song, look inward, and then begin.”

— Daniel Jose Older, from a Nanowrimo pep talk, but good advice for most any writing. (via superfluousbananas)

i like seeing these on my dash. i think they're cool

Another USMLE Question

Answer and Explanation:

Visualizations like this are so cool! It's always a blast to see the inner workings of how things like this come to life.

The Structure

South Korean drawing teacher An Jae Hyun (안재현) will clearly show you how to feel and correctly depict the structure of an object. This will help you learn and improve your drawing skills.

I thought this was super cool! Also helpful reference for something to attempt later.

If there are any spelling mistakes, no there aren't. I just can't read or write.

The continuation of my clouds tutorial from last week.

Reblogging for the sheer amount of information (and the link inclusion!) in the last post, discussions like these are so fun to see.

Honestly the biggest disappointment I had researching ABC was that medieval authors did not, in fact, see the creatures they were describing and were trying their best to describe them with their limited knowledge while going “what the fuck… what the fuck…”

An excellent way to help others and progress research at the same time!

Want to contribute to citizen science projects?

Yeah? Then have I got a list for you!

Places to find citizen science projects:

NASA’s Citizen Science section – NASA maintains a page here with links to all their citizen science projects and initiatives—and they have a LOT. All projects are helpfully color-coded by category/domain.

Zooniverse – Very good website, LOTS of projects. “The world’s largest and most popular platform for people-powered research”.

SciStarter – Another good hub for finding projects. SO, SO many projects available!

A list of citizen science projects that have you playing games

Wikipedia

National Geographic – Nat Geo always maintains a list here of a lot of good ones.

This list on Gizmodo that I LOVE, 10/10

Society for Science – Not only do they have a lot of great citizen science projects linked, they also have sections to help you start your own citizen science projects too.

Smithsonian Institution – Come on, who DOESN’T want to help out the SMITHSONIAN?

Citizen science projects with iPhone apps:

iNaturalist – Take pictures of plants, fungi, animals, insects, etc. around you and contribute to scientific data repositories for researchers!

budburst – Help scientists find and monitor plants in your area and improve their research on plant conservation!

eBird – If you love birding or just want to contribute to research on bird populations and migrations, this is the project for you!

Spotteron – There are a LOT of apps for a variety of ongoing projects here, both at global and regional levels.

Globe Observer – Help NASA by providing data from down here on Earth!

Insight – Give scientists data they can use to help understand and save pollinators by snapping pics and tracking ones near you in observations!

River Survey/Ocean Survey apps – The Ocean Cleanup has put out two different apps for helping track the pollution in our water! River Survey asks citizens to help by going to a nearby river and starting to count the plastic they see. Ocean Survey asks anyone who goes out on the ocean to record any plastic debris they spot floating on the ocean.

Have fun, be safe, and happy researching!

What a wonderful piece of art! Check out the artist for more of their cool stuff! Pixel art is always fantastic to see.

I wanted to work on a little bit of pixel art, because I haven’t touched the stuff in awhile.

This skull looks friendly. It'd be a nice evening to sit by a fire with the skull, a cigar perched in the hole in the teeth, as they told me stories of times gone by in that soft, grandparently drawl one has when they've reached a long life and are content with where they are.

The Skull - Memento mori by Jean Morin

Hot dang, this sounds super fun! Another one I used to do is freerice.com, where you do little grammar puzzles to donate rice to children in impoverished countries.

Cool Tip

If you are like me and always need to be working on something to keep your anxiety under control, during this quarentine why not helping scientists by looking at pictures of some neat penguins? or even galaxies?  There’s this site call Zooniverse, where you can help on scientific projects by analyzing pictures and data!  Right now my favorite project has returned, called Penguin Watch (where yeah, you get to watch penguins, it’s amazing)

you basically have to analyse photos looking for penguins, their chicks, eggs or even predators and human interaction But there are lots of interesting projects you can help in areas such as biology, physics, history or even art: 

Oh and the best part, some institutions even accept it as volunteering/service hour requirements for graduation and scholarships!! It’s helping me a lot during this time, so I thought it was worth sharing