30 Day Fanfic Meme - Day 25

[dimity_blue]

25 – Music – Do you listen to music while you write? Do you make playlists to get into a certain "mood" to write your fic? Do you need noise in general? Or do you need it completely quiet?

I need complete quiet. Uh, this probably sounds incredibly silly, but I pretend to be the character, so I try to think and feel what they'd think and feel about whatever's going on around them.

Yeah. I'll just show myself out now.

Comments

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

It's 100% more normal than you realize. Seriously. Apparently Alice Walker wouldn't move to the city because "my character wouldn't like it there." I've gone on walks imagining what my characters would do. I've talked out scenes where the characters argue. So do other people.

I mean, it makes sense, really; you have to put yourself in their shoes. But yeah, it is hard to explain that to non-writers, so I think it's kind of a secret.

(Heh, we were reading a play in class once about this writer whose characters came to life, and everyone was pulling for metaphors. I tried explaining that's kind of how writing works, your characters come to life, and the room went dead silent. Turns out I wasn't crazy, that was absolutely the guy's intent. Ha. Six Characters in Search of An Author, btw.)

[leesa_perrie]

Silence, because I won't notice the music anyway! In fact, when I was really in the flow, I wouldn't hear hubby if he spoke! He had to make sure he'd got my attention first, lol!

And no, nothing odd about putting yourself in the character's shoes and trying to think like s/he would. That's part of writing, as far as I'm concerned!! :D

[swordznsorcery.livejournal.com]

Sounds fine to me! Anything that helps you to get the character's "voice" right. Out of character behaviour is a real bugbear of mine, and far too many people fall victim to it whilst writing fanfic. Any trick that you can employ to avoid it can only be a good thing.

[dimity-blue.livejournal.com]

I still feel like an idiot confessing it, but thanks. It does make sense - it just sounds so daft.

So all your classmates thought you were bonkers...but right? :oD

[dimity-blue.livejournal.com]

It sounds like music would be wasted for you then. :oD

[dimity-blue.livejournal.com]

I don't know that it would help me get the character's voice right. If I had completely the wrong idea of the character, it wouldn't help at all. :oD

[stargatesg1971.livejournal.com]

I do exactly the same. ♥