So guys, I had an idea. We've all seen the fanfics on the forum, and all of us have wanted to make one, but they take too much time to create. So what if we all agreed on a basic plot and cast of main characters, and then set up a turn basis. Whoever's turn it is writes that chapter. This will make things interesting as each person has a different writing style, so even though the Fanfiction/book will contain the same storyline and cast of main characters, it will have each person's writing style.
A writer may write in any style he or she wants, but he may not 1) add major characters or 2) add major plot points without first consulting the rest of the group. So to clarify, a writer may add minor characters (an abbeydweller or cellarhog or somesuch) and add minor plot points (such as a Horde leader killing off a minor vermin character) but not add important characters (such as someone joining the group of adventurers) or add major plot points (a whole tribe of guosim shrews arrive to help out the adventurers) etc without first consulting the group. If enough people agree you may add it into the storyline.
Put down your name if you want to join :D
This is quite similar to the pass along fan fictions on the other forum. I've never joined one because of how disorganized they seemed, but if one were to be properly put together with rules and character sheets, then I might consider.
One thing I would say would help would be a minimum word count per part written. Often beginning writers have about 300 words before they end the chapter and go on to the next. I say that each chapter should be AT LEAST 1000 words, but that should be the minimum. Many of the chapters in my book are over 4000 words long, at or above 7 pages.
Giving people the end goal may not be the best idea as it may cause each chapter to quickly, TOO quickly, reach that final confrontation. This would cause very rushed stories that would be unsatisfying.
Characters must develop in the story, for sure, but the starting writer must give some description of at least one character for others to envision. The problem with a lot of writers writing a single story is they all have different visions of characters and what they might be like.
That brings me to my next idea: Every story has about one main protagonist with two or three supporting characters, who in turn interact with other minor characters, as well as the villain and his accomplices. Let's say there are five people writing: Each author can pick a character that will be their focal point (though they will be allowed to control the other characters, within reason), and will write with chapters focusing on their characters. Often in stories the limelight switches from place to place and character to character, like Main C, then Villian, then Side C, then back to Main, then interactions between two or more Side, Main, or Villain characters, and so on.
So. Once all the authors have their focus characters that they will build on and help the main character with (or in the case of the villain, try to stop the protagonist), the story can piece together. That's not to say that each writer cannot write about other characters; I only meant that by giving writers characters, the development can be unique to them without butting heads with the other writers.
I like Skarzs' idea. I've never done a pass along fic, but I'll absolutely join! :) I'd love to play a villain >:D
So would I. 8) :P We'll all get our chances to control the villain, I'm sure.
I'd be honored to join in on this Blaggut.
And I'd also like to say I agree with everything Skarzs has said. That kind of logistical component is necessary if something like this is to work out.
Hallo?
*is tired* Will... Replyz... Tommorow...
I would love to join this.
I'd enjoy writing with you guys. So I guess count me in.
I'd do it, but any word limit goes against the grain for me. (I can reach 1000 easily - It's not that. It's more the idea really - I dunno how to explain it)
Also dance craziness is just starting and also garden season. (Plus I can only write utter trash if I'm not motivated.) So good luck.
I think it would be best to stray from Redwall Abbey. Maybe have the story take place somewhere else to make it more interesting. Like Loamhedge before/during the plague, or Salamandastron while it was an active volcano, or some new place entirely.
We could do Southsward.
I intend to join :)
Quote from: LT Sandpaw on May 05, 2016, 05:39:55 PM
So ya'll all mentioned you would be interested in writing the collaborated fanfic that Bonaparte introduced. Seeing as the actual topic hasn't been highly active I decided to reinvigorate interest with a PM.
Now Skarzs mentioned on the topic that there had to be some rules, guidelines, and cohesion between the writers that we should probably agree on before we start scribbling out a basic plot. I don't really know how ya'll go about writing stories but usually I get pretty heavy handed into the logistical front of how the story will play out.
Plot details, characters, twists, and other such things that make a story good. But to start off I think we should just cover the basics. So first things first.
1. Are you actually interested in taking part in a collaboration? Basically deciding whether you have the time and interest to continue. Would you rather not get into the actual writing. Maybe you'd just like to see different story elements play out, or come up with cool ideas for the writers. Which would be really helpful in their own way.
2. Should we have a word minimum/maximum? I know I personally would prefer a range that we should stay within, but I know Cornflor had some trepidation about that. So it would best to sort that out straight off.
3. Since the whole point of a collaboration is that we collaborate I think it would be wise to mark out exactly how much freedom each writer has when they are formulating a chapter. I am concerned that if the fence posts are to restrictive then they wont be able to make an exciting chapter, on the other paw keep things to loose and we'll have a really confusing story, that isn't collaborated at all. We'll need to agree on a happy medium.
4. Should we each have our own character we focus on? Say instead of having one particular main character we each created something like a specific character unique to that writer who depicts the world from that character's point of view. Kind of like an RP, except you also control the other characters in that given chapter.
Or should we instead create a small cast of characters and write from any point of view we want? I'd actually prefer the second option because if you become to attached to your character then we get awkward situation that happen in RPs where that character never gets too physically damaged.
Of course we also have the bigger questions too, such as where and when the story will take place. What sort of Redwall universe will it be set in. And what the story will actually be about. But we'll come to that later. We should probably start off small, and in the meantime I'd suggest we do a little fun writing, so that the other collaborators can get to know each other's styles. Something short, and fun to write.
My last point is something I want to make very clear. I think every idea ya'll have should be put forward, but I also think that we ought to get used to every idea we have being pushed away too. Because of the collaboration we all need to pitch into the logistical side of story making, and be okay with no one agreeing with your idea. I also think that this story collaboration should have a leader who settles things once and for all. I'd suggest Skarzs or Leonardo to take that role seeing as they have the most writing experience.
What do ya'll think?
1: I am very interested. I will do my best to stay active, but my submissions might be sporadic.
2: While I think short chapters are a waste of time, I guess I won't hold people to a word count. I, however, will keep myself to a word count.
3: Agreed about the freedom, but there is little that can be done when there are many writers doing a single project. More will have to be discussed in the actual topic on this.
4: If we each do characters, the points I posted in the topic still stand. If we decide to go with the second option, we will need to make sure each person is familiar with the characters before we write. That is where I like your idea of practicing, but with the addition of familiarizing ourselves with the characters. Perhaps we can each make characters that will be played by everyone? Every writer shall create a character, but they won't be necessarily the only person writing about them?
A basic plot should be made, a skeletal outline, if we want to keep things logistical. Bonaparte was the one who started the thread, so we don't want commandeer his idea. We'll be sure to see what he thinks about all this.
I'm feeling chipper, and I didn't sleep last night. Strange combination but it seems to have created the rare time when I actually do something! So I shall begin, sorry for being late. My grammar will probably be bad because I'm tired.
I shall be a sort of referee of sorts. Well, that's not really a good term, as there aren't many rules. A sort of Dungeon Master, like in D&D. Well that's not good either, since I'm not controlling it. A Reffadungeonymaster. That's what I am. I'll post the introduction and first chapter, and probably won't be writing much after that. I'll just make sure things are steered on course.
On chapter length, I won't put an exact limit or whatever. But try and make it as long or almost as long as a Brian chapter. A good deal of pages. Don't be that writer who goes 'Mary Sue slew the rat with a signal blow and then clunys nephew came in and tried to attack her chapter end' but put effort into it and make it look like you crafted it with care (which mine probably won't, one reason I won't be highly active) and it'll pass as long as it's long enough.
As for rules on creative freedom, I like to use an acronym; C.I.K. Communication is Key. Minor characters, sure. Minor deaths, probably sure. Killing off a main character, or adding a new one, you should consult the rest of the writers. If we agree that it's a good idea and makes for a riveting plot, boom, it's in. Just don't go game of thrones mode and kill off everyone in Redwall. JonSnowIsAWolverine
We should definitely not have a character to focus on. The tale, like all Redwall tales, shall be third person. The more Redwall-like it is, the better! This would also cause writers to get partial to characters, and not want them to die. Further, Mary Sues and it will make things seems like a role-play rather than a Fic. Also, I would totally take the Abbey Beekeeper, which would make me a Sue Writer. *sends army of bees to sting enemy vermin to death*
On my Leadership thingie, I'm not really a leader. All plot decisions are made by the group. Ok here to make rule decisions and just kinda occasionally make sure the plot is going the right direction. And if I ask you to change course a little, don't be offended. It's a given that things are gonna go off track a little, since we're all a bunch of hooligans since that's how these things work. (*has no idea how these things work*)
So now that's done, anything else need clearing up? And we need suggestions for plots, villains, characters, locations, etc.
I'm all for an Fanfic based in the Southlands Inq, but we'll need a bit more then that. The big question is what kind of story do we want? Are we going to do a tale of vengeance? Maybe a great quest, or the defense of some fort, castle, or Abbey. We could potentially do a slave revolt or a hostile takeover of some village. We could lay out our options and take a vote on them, to see what we really want.
Well I'm thinking something conventional, like what Brian would write. What type of animal shal the villain be?
What about an army of coyotes attack the Far South? (Region just below Southsward)
I think Southsward could be a great place, especially since it's by the Big Inland Lake, which would be fun to write about.
As for the plot, I think something about betrayal would be interesting. Then again, it's not really Brian's style for goodbeasts to turn against each other. Perhaps we could have a vermin leader hell bent on killing another vermin she/he once trusted. The vermin leader could be taking over the land to get an army for her/his revenge/justice. It would make the villain seem more human since she/he would have a past and a real reason, and a goal trying to stop an even greater evil.
Or maybe we could do something with a goodbeast fighting to free or avenge their loved ones from a merciless, vermin leader.
I like that original idea Eul, except maybe instead of just two players we could have three, with two vermin armies who hate each other fighting over Southsward, while the woodland defenders fend them both off.
The vermin leaders could be old friends turned rivals, like Clogg and Badrang almost. And they both think taking over the castle will give them an advantage over the other. Which it would. It could be an interesting scenario to write about.
Yeah, the woodlanders would be affected by the two vermin's fighting. One of the vermin trying to finish the other off because they know the other vermin has nothing to lose and wants revenge, the other vermin a broken soul trying to escape their past an convinced the only way to do that is to kill their foe. That could work, it depends on what you guys think.
If we do that, I would love to write a back story or flash back for the two, just to help readers feel bad when the vermin dies or is defeated.
I like the idea, I guess its outcome depends on everyone else thinks. It is important of course that the story isn't solely about these two. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't make them really good characters.
I focus a lot more on character development and who they are than plot, that's why I'm going into this much detail. When we figure out what we're doing with the woodlanders, I'll focus more on them. That is, if this is what we end up writing about.
We might need to slow down a bit and let the others have some time to come online and read this through. But I have a pretty good feeling that they'll be onboard as well.
What about a story in which a group of Long Patrol hares set out to track down an elusive band of 20 vermin who keep causing trouble throughout the land? This way, things can move around all over the place and we can jump days at a time when we want to. The hares could visit Redwall and ask questions there, be lead through the Western mountain ranges after the villains, give chase down the coastline in small coastal ships, maybe even visit southsward? There's loads of opportunity in something like that, and since this is a band of vermin instead of an army, we get some flexibility and a few more adventures along the way.
Seems like it wouldn't be big enough. Such a small band would seem character group would make things more like a role play. We could go with a conventional horde attacking Mossflower
Hmm, good point, good point. Where in Mossflower would they be attacking. The abbey?
Seems kinda standard, but I suppose we shouldn't go too crazy on the story. We could still incorporate the vermin side of things, except at Redwall, if ya'll prefer that.
I think we should incorporate a minor location as well, like Riftgard. Not as a main point of the story, but for some spice to our setting.
Yes, I would like to work on this.
How about a group of searats from a distant group of islands sail to the East Shore across from Mossflower to try and conquer it, creating a fragile alliance with a horde of coyotes. They also have around half the Jerbilrat force with them, a normally neutral group, but joined up because of the need for water after a recent long summer, causing a drought.
Maybe not necessarily coyotes (a little too powerful) but otherwise the premise seems nice.
I agree, I'd like to keep the species involved in the story the common beasts in the Redwall world (that is, no armies of wildcats and such, even though they're pretty cool)
(What's with the coyotes, Bonaparte?)
I do like Eul's idea.
I am a fan of Eul's idea myself. We could still keep those other ideas as well. We could have something like the Capt. said with a patrol of hares wandering the southlands, maybe chasing a renegade coyote like Bonaparte wants, only to find out that Southsward is under attack by two warring vermin hordes.
They'd have to join in and help out the southern kingdom, while maybe dealing with some internal struggles themselves.
Suppose these hares lose their top commander, and a younger officer has to take the reigns, but isn't confident in his position, and makes mistakes that gets some of those under his command killed. So he starts doubting himself and making more mistakes. Ect. Towards the end he has to pull himself out of his funk and lead the fight against the two vermin armies.
That could work. I like it.
Quote from: LT Sandpaw on May 18, 2016, 08:36:40 PM
I am a fan of Eul's idea myself. We could still keep those other ideas as well. We could have something like the Capt. said with a patrol of hares wandering the southlands, maybe chasing a renegade coyote like Bonaparte wants, only to find out that Southsward is under attack by two warring vermin hordes.
They'd have to join in and help out the southern kingdom, while maybe dealing with some internal struggles themselves.
Suppose these hares lose their top commander, and a younger officer has to take the reigns, but isn't confident in his position, and makes mistakes that gets some of those under his command killed. So he starts doubting himself and making more mistakes. Ect. Towards the end he has to pull himself out of his funk and lead the fight against the two vermin armies.
I really like that idea!
Perhaps the coyote could find and lead one of the hordes, possibly the stronger one? If he does, then he could either destroy the weaker vermin or make them join him.
I'll make a poll. What all shall I put on it?
Quote from: Skarzs on May 19, 2016, 03:42:16 PM
Perhaps the coyote could find and lead one of the hordes, possibly the stronger one? If he does, then he could either destroy the weaker vermin or make them join him.
I second this idea. But I think the coyote should lead the weaker horde, and defeat the stronger horde and make the remnants join him.
Ooh, perhaps the coyote takes charge of the smaller horde and fights against the stronger horde leader who's taking over the land. The coyote would be trying to get revenge on the other horde leader for betraying them or something, and the vermin's fights would be putting the woodlanders in danger. The hares (I like Sand's idea for the younger hare taking control) would be chasing the coyote for murder or something, and they would join up with the woodlanders to fight the vermin. The coyote ends up getting his/her revenge, but we could play with his/her inner struggles and have them not be satisfied with how it plays out. Meanwhile, the woodlanders and hares prepare to take their land back and end up killing the coyote. Maybe we could have it so that the coyote was going to leave, so the woodlanders aren't completely innocent and the coyote isn't entirely in the wrong?
Thoughts?
^
;)
I like the idea. Saves me having to use up my own. ;D :P
Quote from: Skarzs on May 23, 2016, 01:20:20 AM
I like the idea. Saves me having to use up my own. ;D :P
I second that
Is it too late to ask to join this?
Dunno. We haven't started.
Joining is still open.
Does anyone wanna co-host this with me? Cuz I'm pretty busy and am going to get busier, and my depression is kind of distracting me from what's important. (This forum.) so if I anyone wants to co host that would be appreciated
I wouldn't mind helping you with that. Sorry you're depressed, I hope you get better :)
Ok, so it seems that you guys are in favor of the idea I posted, and no one has posted anything against it. Does anyone else have any ideas?
Perhaps the coyote murdered the badger lord, which is why the Long Patrol is so bent upon chasing him? That would add another end to the story, the finding of another badger.
I like that
Good idea, I like it. Maybe the badger could be the one to step up and lead the woodlanders into battle.
Cool.
Shall we create characters for the story, or will Bonaparte be taking care of that entirely? I feel that every writer should at least make some character, no matter if they don't do anything with them.
Anyone can present a character, but we need to agree on the character that is presented.
Since this is more than an RP, I feel that we should write a short excerpt using the character that we submitted, to see them in action and if they would fit in with the story.
That would be a good idea.
And, if no one else wants to claim him/her, I would love to be responsible for the coyote and his/her backstory.
Quote from: Sagetip on May 27, 2016, 07:19:40 PM
Since this is more than an RP, I feel that we should write a short excerpt using the character that we submitted, to see them in action and if they would fit in with the story.
Perhaps that can be the way we can also familiarize ourselves with each others' writing.
Quote from: Bonaparte on May 26, 2016, 07:48:08 AM
Does anyone wanna co-host this with me?
I can step up and help out a bit more if you'd like. I love doing these sorts of things! You just have to keep the ball rolling and not let things lose steam.
Quote from: Skarzs on May 26, 2016, 05:01:05 PM
Perhaps the coyote murdered the badger lord, which is why the Long Patrol is so bent upon chasing him? That would add another end to the story, the finding of another badger.
I'm not as big of a fan of killing off a badger lord, but maybe the badger lord is getting old and a successor is expected to pop up sometime soon? I dunno, I usually prefer to stay away from having too many badger-slayers and such. I feel like it sets the scene for some sue-like villains (if that makes sense)
True, that, but a coyote is bigger than a badger, so it's not completely inconceivable.
In the books, I can only recall one badger who was killed in beast-on-beast combat, and that was in The Bellmaker. Other deaths were due to inability to defend themselves, like stories of old badgers being killed, or a badger leaping off the side of Salamandastron to kill his nemesis, one dying peacefully, another jumping in water of his own will and drowning, and at least one died from the onslaught of masses and masses of vermin.
Quote from: Skarzs on May 28, 2016, 09:21:12 PM
True, that, but a coyote is bigger than a badger, so it's not completely inconceivable.
Well, it depends on the coyote and the badger. As far as length (potential height) goes, the coyote is usually longer, but European badgers aren't so far off from the midpoint of the coyote's weight range. Pound for pound, badgers are more durable and probably more muscular, although I guess the coyote probably has a reach advantage.
Quote from: Skarzs on May 28, 2016, 09:21:12 PMIn the books, I can only recall one badger who was killed in beast-on-beast combat, and that was in The Bellmaker.
It's worth noting that was pretty much a freak accident, caused by her actually running into his blade. I think even Slipp was surprised that he was able to come out ahead on that:
QuoteThe searat Captain stood trembling.
The point was that it was still a one-on-one, and that's the only account that the opponent got away relatively unscathed. :P
I suppose badgers would be pretty close by weight.
I don't know about that. Suppose that this coyote was part of a larger horde which separated during an attack on the mountain fortress, one half unwilling to tackle Salamandastron's army while the other half went ahead with the attack. During the battle say the other half deserted under the coyote's trusted right-paw beast, running south. Because of this the coyote's army was defeated and he/she was forced to flee with his/her tiny broken half of the army, but he/she is bent on vengeance against his deputy turned traitor.
Meanwhile a Patrol headed by a Captain/Major marches out in pursuit hoping to finish the coyote off, plus to find a new badger lord as some prophecy/riddle told them that one such creature would lead them to the future lord of Salamandastron.
In some side conflict the patrol's Officer corps get killed in a freak accident leaving a young officer/NCO to take command and finish the mission. Ect. Ect. Ect.
What do ya'll think?
Mm. Good ideas.
I like it. Maybe we could open the story with then end of the battle and the Long Patrol's reaction to their badger being killed and how they end up hunting down the vermin. Then in the second chapter cut to the coyote trying to pull themselves together to escape from the Long Patrol, going in the same direction as the one he/she trusted most.
Made up a character sheet for anyone interesting in submitting.
Name:
Gender:
Age:
Affiliation (Long Patrol, Redwaller, horde member):
Weapon (if applicable):
Clothes (keep it general - a uniform for LP members, habits for redwallers, tattered rags for horde members):
Likes (name four main things):
Dislikes (name four main things):
History:
Short story (should show the character in action, interactions with other characters... Just write as you would normally. This short story should show you in action as well.
I like it. How about we pick characters and submit a character sheet.
I don't think we should have personality be too detailed; if we leave it barebones, it will allow us to expand upon their personality as we write. Perhaps something could be "does this", and "would never do this".
Quote from: Skarzs on May 31, 2016, 09:31:44 PM
I don't think we should have personality be too detailed; if we leave it barebones, it will allow us to expand upon their personality as we write. Perhaps something could be "does this", and "would never do this".
Likes and dislikes. Post edited.
Hmm, I dunno about that guys, that's a lot of character sheets for OCs that we haven't really come up with yet. Or is this just for the one character each writer will be focusing on?
Just for the one character each writer creates.
Anyone else still interested?
I am still interested, thing is Bonaparte was kinda important and he disappeared. :-\
I know. . .
Is it to late to join? I was involved with a carry on fiction on the old forum, but this is already sounding way better. We could revisit Riftgaurd from Triss. Or maybe add a mongoose.
Sure, I don't see why we couldn't revive this. Someone will have to take over for Bonaparte.
Who would you suggest to lead? We would probably have to notify the others who were interested.
Ah, I forgot about this.
I'd be interested in starting something like this. Anyone up for it?
I'd love too, but i'll be inactive till January :'(
It doesn't need to happen right aways. I'd like to see how many people will actually engage in it anyways, and forumlate a rough plot.
Is there a word limit?
2000 words? Give or take?
I could probably do that - I'll think on it.
I might be interested.
I'll have a go at it! I think, before this topic burned out the first time, we had a rough plot going. Maybe we could reference that?
My idea is that we first start with a short story and see how it goes. Meaning I vote that we try to limit it to less than 10 chapters, or plan this out so that everyone writes just one chapter. If the project is a success we could move on to bigger and bigger stories! I say this because I'd hate to see a cool idea like this burn out half-way through. Thoughts?
Quote from: Capt. Leonardo V Williams on January 01, 2017, 04:24:59 PM
I'll have a go at it! I think, before this topic burned out the first time, we had a rough plot going. Maybe we could reference that?
My idea is that we first start with a short story and see how it goes. Meaning I vote that we try to limit it to less than 10 chapters, or plan this out so that everyone writes just one chapter. If the project is a success we could move on to bigger and bigger stories! I say this because I'd hate to see a cool idea like this burn out half-way through. Thoughts?
I think we should set a time limit per chapter/page. I wouldn't want to wait a week or more just to see the next part, especially if there are aa bunch of us doing it. If there are 4 or more and someone takes a week to finish and then another person takes 2 weeks to finish, someone is going to have to wait a whole month or more just to get their turn.
Quote from: Myrel on January 01, 2017, 04:36:17 PM
Quote from: Capt. Leonardo V Williams on January 01, 2017, 04:24:59 PM
I'll have a go at it! I think, before this topic burned out the first time, we had a rough plot going. Maybe we could reference that?
My idea is that we first start with a short story and see how it goes. Meaning I vote that we try to limit it to less than 10 chapters, or plan this out so that everyone writes just one chapter. If the project is a success we could move on to bigger and bigger stories! I say this because I'd hate to see a cool idea like this burn out half-way through. Thoughts?
I think we should set a time limit per chapter/page. I wouldn't want to wait a week or more just to see the next part, especially if there are aa bunch of us doing it. If there are 4 or more and someone takes a week to finish and then another person takes 2 weeks to finish, someone is going to have to wait a whole month or more just to get their turn.
That's a good point. What do we do if someone doesn't finish their chapter on time? Maybe give the chapter to someone else?
Well, if we work out a basic plotline, then people could begin working on their chapter even while someone else is working. Then they just have to finish it up and fix any logical errors that might pop up due to someone else's writing.
You wouldn't be able to do a lot, but you'd be able to at least map out your chapter.
Or put up what you have written, finished or not.
Just whatever someone happens to have at the end of their time limit will be what they will have to submit