hindsightseeing (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
hindsightseeing) wrote2026-06-11 02:50 pm
hindsightseeing) wrote2026-06-11 02:50 pm
And more... (2/?)
A few more fic-writer-y questions, just for the heck of it.
Do you outline your fics? If yes, how detailed are your outlines? How far do you stray from them?
Not really. Like, I have a vague concept of things I want to happen, themes I want to explore, emotional journeys I want my characters to go on, etc, etc... but how, exactly, those things manifest is usually left to the page. Not least of all because, every time I do come up with a specific and detailed outline, three lines is all it takes for these assholes (affectionate) to throw it all out the window.
Do you listen to music while you write? If yes, what have you been listening to recently?
I used to, like, all the time. Nowadays, I save my music for when I'm out and about or doing chores or whatever so I can lock in more easily, and write in relative silence... also so I can lock in more easily.
As to what I'm listening to... other than a brief break to check out the new Shinedown album, I'm listening pretty exclusively to the playlist I made especially for the ongoing WIP. It is 997 songs, which is one (1) song less than my generic "inspiration for my current fandom" playlist. Moderation isn't really my thing.
What is your favorite location and position to write in?
If it's warm enough, I like to sit out on the balcony. Either at the table or just in a random chair, depending on the time of day and position of the sun. Best place ever, even if it does mean I have to crank my screen brightness up to max. Failing that, my desk in the living room is just fine.
What’s your favorite time to write?
Depends on various things -- schedule, availability of tea or coffee, whether or not I'm alone, whether I'm running on more or less than seventeen minutes of sleep, etc etc. Early afternoon tends to be the most productive, I guess?
Do you write by hand, on your phone, or on your laptop?
Laptop, almost exclusively. If I get bitten by the inspiration bug after I've shut down, or if I find myself somewhere where the laptop isn't, I will make notes either by hand or on my phone, whichever is more convenient in the moment, to be written up properly when I'm back in front of the holy screen. In general, however, I'm very much a "words go from brain straight into document" kind of writer.
Do you have a writing routine?
Whenever I can do it, I do it.
Seriously, my general experience of this -- specifically on the subject of creative work -- is if you have to stick to a specific routine in order to get things done, things will not get done. It's like that "don't sit around waiting for inspiration to strike because it never will" advice. Sometimes a day doesn't allow for the usual time or situation or routine or whatever, and you've just got to drag whatever tiny handful of words out of yourself that you can in a moment you can steal for it.
Do you enjoy creating OCs or do you prefer to stick solely to canon characters?
I despise OCs, both as a writer and as a reader, to be honest.
Speaking specifically as a writer for the purposes of this question, though... it just gets in the way of what I'm actually here for, you know? I'm writing fanfic -- it's a safe bet I'm doing so because I love the characters and want to explore their stories. If I wanted to write original characters, I'd be writing original fiction. And honestly, even when I have to pull out a one-line minor NPC for plot reasons or whatever, I always overthink everything to the point of insanity, and every decision I make feels like it sticks out like a sore thumb. If I could get away with writing only canonical characters for the rest of my life, and never again needing to create even a one-line background character, I'd die a happy fangirl.
Do you prefer writing chaptered fics or one-shots?
I'm gonna have to go with chapters here. It's not that I don't like writing one-shots, per se, it's just that they very rarely stay one-shots. I'm just... really, really terrible at being concise, and beyond the occasional PWP (or, well, P-mostly-WP?) it's tough for me to stick within the confines of ~5-15k. So chaptered fics tend to fit my style a lot better -- and my usual subject matter too. Like, I'm not going to want to try and squeeze an entire character arc's worth of trauma recovery or grief (or whatever other angsty moment I've got into my head to dissect) into a one-shot, that would feel like it's not doing it justice, you know?
Do you prefer writing AUs or canon fics?
Heh, good question. I used to be exclusively into canon compliance, to the point that I would either refuse to write anything until a show ended and then stick to post-canon, or else tie myself in knots trying to write shipfic where my ship ended up In Love But Not Actually Together solely so I could say it aligned perfectly with canon. I... do not do that any more.
Nowadays, it's more of a mix. My episode tags are obviously set firmly in the realm of canon, my ongoing series is a canon-divergent AU which still stays within the basic framework of 'canon-adjacent', and my current unending WIP is a complete and total AU of the 'fandom fusion' variety. The longest of its type I've ever attempted, and by far the most ambitious... if someone could save me from myself, that would be great.
IDK, they both have their own unique merits, you know?
Canon-compliant or canon exploration is interesting in that you get to dissect and pick apart actual moments and really get inside them in a way that really tickles my brain. AUs let you stretch your creative muscles in different ways, and really test how well you know these characters you think you know -- how would they react in this universe, this situation, this whatever? What fundamental parts of themselves will always exist, and where will they have changed by necessity? And most crucially, how can you combine those two things into a character that is still fundamentally them while also being inextricably and indelibly a product of that specific universe / situation / etc?
Both. These days, the answer is both.
Do you outline your fics? If yes, how detailed are your outlines? How far do you stray from them?
Not really. Like, I have a vague concept of things I want to happen, themes I want to explore, emotional journeys I want my characters to go on, etc, etc... but how, exactly, those things manifest is usually left to the page. Not least of all because, every time I do come up with a specific and detailed outline, three lines is all it takes for these assholes (affectionate) to throw it all out the window.
Do you listen to music while you write? If yes, what have you been listening to recently?
I used to, like, all the time. Nowadays, I save my music for when I'm out and about or doing chores or whatever so I can lock in more easily, and write in relative silence... also so I can lock in more easily.
As to what I'm listening to... other than a brief break to check out the new Shinedown album, I'm listening pretty exclusively to the playlist I made especially for the ongoing WIP. It is 997 songs, which is one (1) song less than my generic "inspiration for my current fandom" playlist. Moderation isn't really my thing.
What is your favorite location and position to write in?
If it's warm enough, I like to sit out on the balcony. Either at the table or just in a random chair, depending on the time of day and position of the sun. Best place ever, even if it does mean I have to crank my screen brightness up to max. Failing that, my desk in the living room is just fine.
What’s your favorite time to write?
Depends on various things -- schedule, availability of tea or coffee, whether or not I'm alone, whether I'm running on more or less than seventeen minutes of sleep, etc etc. Early afternoon tends to be the most productive, I guess?
Do you write by hand, on your phone, or on your laptop?
Laptop, almost exclusively. If I get bitten by the inspiration bug after I've shut down, or if I find myself somewhere where the laptop isn't, I will make notes either by hand or on my phone, whichever is more convenient in the moment, to be written up properly when I'm back in front of the holy screen. In general, however, I'm very much a "words go from brain straight into document" kind of writer.
Do you have a writing routine?
Whenever I can do it, I do it.
Seriously, my general experience of this -- specifically on the subject of creative work -- is if you have to stick to a specific routine in order to get things done, things will not get done. It's like that "don't sit around waiting for inspiration to strike because it never will" advice. Sometimes a day doesn't allow for the usual time or situation or routine or whatever, and you've just got to drag whatever tiny handful of words out of yourself that you can in a moment you can steal for it.
Do you enjoy creating OCs or do you prefer to stick solely to canon characters?
I despise OCs, both as a writer and as a reader, to be honest.
Speaking specifically as a writer for the purposes of this question, though... it just gets in the way of what I'm actually here for, you know? I'm writing fanfic -- it's a safe bet I'm doing so because I love the characters and want to explore their stories. If I wanted to write original characters, I'd be writing original fiction. And honestly, even when I have to pull out a one-line minor NPC for plot reasons or whatever, I always overthink everything to the point of insanity, and every decision I make feels like it sticks out like a sore thumb. If I could get away with writing only canonical characters for the rest of my life, and never again needing to create even a one-line background character, I'd die a happy fangirl.
Do you prefer writing chaptered fics or one-shots?
I'm gonna have to go with chapters here. It's not that I don't like writing one-shots, per se, it's just that they very rarely stay one-shots. I'm just... really, really terrible at being concise, and beyond the occasional PWP (or, well, P-mostly-WP?) it's tough for me to stick within the confines of ~5-15k. So chaptered fics tend to fit my style a lot better -- and my usual subject matter too. Like, I'm not going to want to try and squeeze an entire character arc's worth of trauma recovery or grief (or whatever other angsty moment I've got into my head to dissect) into a one-shot, that would feel like it's not doing it justice, you know?
Do you prefer writing AUs or canon fics?
Heh, good question. I used to be exclusively into canon compliance, to the point that I would either refuse to write anything until a show ended and then stick to post-canon, or else tie myself in knots trying to write shipfic where my ship ended up In Love But Not Actually Together solely so I could say it aligned perfectly with canon. I... do not do that any more.
Nowadays, it's more of a mix. My episode tags are obviously set firmly in the realm of canon, my ongoing series is a canon-divergent AU which still stays within the basic framework of 'canon-adjacent', and my current unending WIP is a complete and total AU of the 'fandom fusion' variety. The longest of its type I've ever attempted, and by far the most ambitious... if someone could save me from myself, that would be great.
IDK, they both have their own unique merits, you know?
Canon-compliant or canon exploration is interesting in that you get to dissect and pick apart actual moments and really get inside them in a way that really tickles my brain. AUs let you stretch your creative muscles in different ways, and really test how well you know these characters you think you know -- how would they react in this universe, this situation, this whatever? What fundamental parts of themselves will always exist, and where will they have changed by necessity? And most crucially, how can you combine those two things into a character that is still fundamentally them while also being inextricably and indelibly a product of that specific universe / situation / etc?
Both. These days, the answer is both.