art by Icekatze

One of the most common things I am asked for, both in private messages and in interviews, is what advice on writing that I can give. I have a set of suggestions that I always give, and it occurred to me that I should also offer this advice on my blog, and maybe expand on some of the suggestions a little. These will be familiar to those of you who have read some of my past interviews, but I hope newer readers find them helpful.

First, I want to give a shout-out to all of the continuing Fallout: Equestria projects. I'm seeing so many labors of love, and the work being done on them is simply amazing! I'll be sprinkling a few recent highlights through the blog. And I even hear that the third episode of the radioplay is nearing completion!

Meanwhile, there is an amazing project going on to create a radioplay-style audiobook of Fallout: Equestria, featuring the readings of Scorch Mechanic, the voice acting of a host of talent, and audio work by Mike Hall and (Heroes audiobook legend) Equestria Narrator! They've just finished Chapter Nine, so check it out!

Here's my advice for aspiring writers:

First: I find that it is important to take some time to plot out major themes, events and other important notes you want in that story. (This applies as much to individual chapters as to the story as a whole.) Think of it as similar to playing “connect the dots” -- not only should you have a good idea of what the final picture will be, but you should also jot down on a notepad all the “dots” you want to be sure to include. Then, when you start writing, begin at the first “dot” and work your way towards the second.

Personally, I find it’s just as important to not have everything plotted out before you start writing. By playing “connect the dots”, you give yourself room for inspiration and creativity while you are actually writing. (For me, if I knew everything I was going to write before I started typing, I would get bored. By only knowing the key points to each chapter, the story becomes an adventure for me as well.)

Second: Start writing. Regularly. The hardest part of writing is actually beginning. Once you've started, I've found, the words come more easily. But putting down that first sentence, or even just the title, can be the most daunting part of a day's work. Particularly for new writers, it is a great idea to commit yourself to writing a little bit each day. Even if it is just a few paragraphs. You should do this even if what you are writing isn't your story. Perhaps keep writing journal, and jot down anything from creative ideas to thoughts of the day. Whatever it takes to not fall out of practice. Keep writing, even if you don't like what you have written -- your writing will improve. The more you write, the better you will become at it.

Third: Write about something you love. You will find writing a lot more fulfilling, and a lot easier to continue, if you are writing about something you enjoy or care about.

Fourth: Read. Find authors whose works you enjoy and read them. Occasionally pause to think about what made writing work for you. We learn how to write through reading as we absorb techniques that appeal to us or that strike us as effective. The more exposure you give yourself to the writings of different authors, the larger a toolbox you will develop for your own writing.

The latest song by the Wasteland Wailers...

...for the Fallout: Equestria game by The Overmare Studios

Fifth: Be familiar with some of the pitfalls that writers, particularly new ones, fall prey to and make it a point to avoid them. For example: know what a self-insert character is and what a Mary Sue character is and put effort into making sure your characters aren’t either of those.

A self-insert character is any character that is a substitute for the writer in the story. Self-insertion happens when writers, overtly or through an avatar, write themselves into a tale. Examples include M. Night Shyamalan's self-played author in Lady in the Water, or Stephen King's self-insertion late in the Dark Tower series. Usually, self-insertion is a method of wish-fulfillment, and is particularly seen in bad "human in equestria" stories. If the character you are writing is you, or how you imagine you would be in the world or circumstances, or how you would like to be, then rethink your story. Self-insertion is never a good idea for a novice writer, and is rarely done well even by professionals.

Defining a Mary Sue (or Gary Stu when male) is harder. I haven't seen a universally agreed-on definition. And "you'll know one when you see one" is a horrible guideline. Especially since it has become pervasive on the internet for people to mislabel any character they do not like or that they personally consider "overrated" as a Mary Sue. However, when properly used, Mary Sue refers to a specific sort of "super character" who is designed to be wonderful, awesome and/or loved by the readers. Like a self-insert, a Mary Sue often serves as wish-fulfillment (and, in fact, many self-insertion avatars are written as Mary Sues), but this is not always the case. Rather, a Mary Sue is an idealized character -- usually the best at anything she tries, universally liked or loved by everyone but the bad guys (and sometimes, even by them too), and the center of attention. And, as a result, is generally insufferable. [Edit: Perhaps the best definition of a Mary Sue is a character who is never truly challenged by the opponents, events or circumstances that attempt to impede her. Mary Sue doesn't have to strive to succeed.]

Let us look at two characters from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic: Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle. Rainbow Dash is a top-notch athlete, an ultra-fast flier who is the only pony to have performed the sonic rainboom, and even has her own in-universe fan club. However, Rainbow Dash has been saddled with glaring personality flaws, probably the greatest being her arrogance. The show has proven willing to make her unlikable at times. She's lazy and not especially bright. Finally, she rarely takes center stage; she is part of an ensemble cast and is definitely not portrayed as the star of the show. Rainbow Dash is a specialist, and effectively peerless in her area of expertise. But she is not a Mary Sue.

Twilight Sparkle is the hoof-picked pupil of Celestia. She is a unicorn whose Special Talent is magic, allowing her to cast pretty much any spell the story might call for. When she comes to town, everyone wants to be her friend. While she occasionally falls down, it's more common to see her excel, often without trying. ("Since when does Twilight Sparkle ever fail?" sings Rainbow Dash as her friends celebrate her general amazingness.) Twilight Sparkle is the star of the show, the center of every group portrait, and now she's a princess with her own mini-kingdom. [Edit: While there are a few episodes where she has been challenged, throughout most of the series] Twilight Sparkle functions as a Mary Sue. And while she is an adorkable Mary Sue that we all (or at least most of us) love, she's still an example of what you want to avoid in a character of your own. Especially when writing fanfiction.

I usually recommend running a character idea through one or two of the Mary Sue litmus tests available on the internet. However, there is a difficulty with this when writing adventure stories. A majority of adventure stories, especially those in the Fallout: Equestria universe, use the classic model of the hero's journey. A character in such a story is going to evolve and gain power or capability over the course of the story in such a way that the character would score radically differently on such a litmus test depending on when in the story you took measure of the character. At the finale of the three-act structure, the character often will have grown and developed into someone who could easily fail a Mary Sue litmus test... and that is appropriate because, by the end of the journey, they have fought and earned their place as a epic character. By the same measure, a character at the beginning of the hero's journey will be the only the faintest shadow of her potential, and it would be just as ineffective to try to judge whether the character is a Mary Sue based on that version of her.

The latest page of the Fallout: Equestria comic by the immensely talented MajorBrons

Sixth: If possible, find friends or other supportive individuals who will critique your work. This can easily be the hardest suggestion to follow, however. Don't be dismayed or dissuaded from writing if you can't find the response you are looking for. Continue to write; continue to improve.

Welcome and listen to helpful feedback. Quality feedback and criticism are invaluable tools for helping you improve. But likewise, learn to ignore harmful feedback. You must learn to separate good critics from bad ones. Artists crave feedback, but you have a responsibility -- to yourself, your art and your fans -- to try to improve. And that includes both listening to good advice and avoiding bad advice that will do your work harm. (If you are interested in more detail on this bit of advice, look to my earlier blog Regarding Criticism.)

I hope some of you find some of this useful. However, these are by no means the only or even most important advice you can receive. So here are some links to some more great writing advice:

An Introductory Guide to Fanfiction: Writing by the Bronyshow

Pony Writing Guide by Cereal Velocity (Now apparently with a part four that I haven't read yet!)

Finally, a video that I think every new writer, especially every Fallout: Equestria side story writer, should take the time to watch: