need writing advice

[green]

want to cry today. yesterday, too. it has to do with my writing. I want to write so badly, but I avoid conflict so much that I can barely write it, which makes for an uninteresting story.

does anyone have any advice for me? I mean, it's me avoiding conflict, and I do the same thing IRL because I hate it.

example: mom yelling at me and listing all the things that are wrong with me. I don't stand up for myself or contradict her because that makes things worse.

so anyway, ANY conflict, be it real or imagined, makes me feel horrible. I've gotten slightly better at it in RP because it's safe and I don't feel like my RP partner will hate me for it, but I still can't do it in my fic writing.

so. advice, please. I can barely think of plots anymore because I am avoiding negative feelings and it's driving me crazy. I want to write so badly and this is really on my mind a lot to the point that I can't even write plotless fic. :(

Comments

[eledhwenlin]

I'm not sure whether I can help--I find it easier to deal with conflict in fic because you get to decide how party B is going to react to party A. Also you get to choose to write the ending, so it might just have been a huge misunderstanding, so it's not that bad, if you know what I mean.

I mean, writing as therapy works for a lot of people, me included. (I should add that I write a lot of "drawerfic", i.e. fic that goes into my mental drawer of DO NOT SHARE WITH ANYONE, NOT EVEN IF THEY ESPECIALLY ASK FOR IT. I have no problems writing 10k of something I intend to never show anyone else. YMMV.)

The thing is, you can't really avoid conflicts. Sometimes you just gotta have to pucker up and do it.

I'd be happy to help you with any concrete questions you have, but right now all I can give you is the prototypical advice for all writers: write. Write whatever pops into your mind and stop worrying whether it's any good. Just write.

[green]

I don't do a lot of drawerfic, but I think I probably should. Thank you, bb.

[slashxmistress]

I think you just have to make yourself. Write the most horrible conflict you can think of. The most devastating, horriffic tragedy even - no one's going to see it so be brutal and don't even worry if it is coherent - and then hide that away somewhere and writing normal everyday conflict will seem a breeze!
Then whenever you feel like you just can't write a conflict- you can look back at that exercise -or do it again and gain some perspective.

Also maybe keep in mind that if you create a conflict for your characters - you get to solve it too <3

[green]

<3

I might actually try that. Thank you.

[turps]

Writing the worst thing you can think of is good advice.

If you write something just for you, knowing that no one will ever see it may lessen the pressure a little.

[green]

Thank you for the advice, bb. ♥

[why_am_i]

Could you draw yourself an outline of a plot including conflict, but avoid writing the conflict scenes straight up? That way you could write the easy parts, with a story you think is interesting, and come back to fill in the conflict scenes bit by bit, later? Dunno if it would help.

[green]

I could definitely try. Thank you!

[flyingcarpet]

I am late to this party, but "conflict" in a story doesn't need to be necessarily the same as IRL confrontation. Stories need to have a problem in order to have narrative tension, but it could be a misunderstanding, or Party A and B just want different things and eventually work out a compromise. Or you could always go with something fluffy like, A is planning a surprise party and B finds out! Or use an inhuman antagonist, like characters trapped in a snowstorm or something.

<333.

[green]

Thank you! :)