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Post by byates on Sept 15, 2017 15:51:38 GMT -6
What is the collected wisdom on having a glossary giving a brief overview of the characters and world situation? I tend to write shorter but inter-related stories that use the same characters, sometimes as a minor character, other times as the main character. And I was thinking of a way to tie them together. Also it might help me from writing myself into a corner.
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Post by papaof2 on Sept 15, 2017 17:32:05 GMT -6
If you have a cast of characters that repeats, perhaps write a generic "cast" list and include it with each story. Add the unique characters to each story, or make the generic list in sections of "Repeat Characters", "This Story Only", etc. You can introduce the circumstances in a separate prolog or have the characters reminisce about it or discuss it in the first chapter. Partly what you're comfortable with, partly what your characters might do. When I get beyond the number of characters and places I can keep in my head, I make a list in Notepad. If I need more than that, I'll fall back on Excel (the freebies like Open Office also work) with columns for First Name, Last Name, nickname, DOB, location, relationships if not obvious (Sarah Gentry is daughter of Paul Williams), other key items such as military background, shooter or not, etc. I like Excel because you can sort on any column and have the related columns all tag along. For complex relationships, a genealogy program can be helpful. Personal Ancestral File (PAF) which works with all the version of Windows I've tried is available free here: parowansoftware.com/ (link on right side of page).
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Post by byates on Sept 16, 2017 9:14:16 GMT -6
A spreadsheet sounds good for my use. Or, maybe a database program. multiple characters in multiple stories with complex relationships, i.e. friend, uncle, niece, brother, cousin, etc.
At the end of the stories, give a list of related stories broken down by character. Complication is that I have used different nicknames for the same person, depending on who is talking about him, I will figure it out.
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Post by papaof2 on Sept 16, 2017 14:59:36 GMT -6
Nothing says you can't have more than one nickname for a character. Remember that The Flash would probably call "Flash" Gordon "Slowppoke" ;-)
I suggest Excel because while thought is needed in setting it up for future usefulness, a spreadsheet is visual and obvious to the user. Database design requires greater thought and a lot of visualization. Not everyone sees the wireframe supporting structure of a sofa; many just see the outer fabric.
In the distant past when laptops still included 3.5" "floppy" disk drives, I wrote a very long sci-fi story and used both a spreadsheet and a genealogy program to keep track of the characters and their relationships. Because the key players were descended from aliens who landed on Earth thousands of years ago, they had similar names and when together they used nicknames to avoid confusion when speaking to another Joe or Sue. There was no confusion when using telepathy as their "mental identity" went along with their thoughts so others could "see" who was "speaking" (compare to recognizing a voice). I doubt that it would have been publishable but it gave me experience tracking a large number of characters (more than 80). (No, I don't plan to search it out and resurrect it.)
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Post by byates on Sept 17, 2017 10:03:21 GMT -6
I have written a few database programs for pay, if you can call an Access program a program. So am somewhat comfortable with them.
Hopefully my stories relationships never grow as involved as yours. They do have the potential though..
Thank you for you advice.
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Post by papaof2 on Sept 17, 2017 16:12:53 GMT -6
You're welcome.
Access is most definitely a database. I've used it, SQL 7 (and later) plus a half dozen others over time (whatever someone else had purchased). One disadvantage of being a contract programmer is that you never know for certain *all* that the next job may require.
I wrote my own very small encrypted database for password storage on a Palm III (truly ancient pocket tech). I also wrote the Windows reader for the backup copy of that database so I could have it on my laptop. The database works on Palms at least up through the Zire series and that PC reader still works in Windows 10 - nothing like coding to the basic standards of an operating system and not the bells and whistles which may not be stable.
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Post by headlesshorseman on Sept 18, 2017 17:08:15 GMT -6
As new characters show up in my stories I add their name and a few lines of info below the body of the story. If their situation changes in the story I use the search feature and go to their name and enter that data. when I finish it looks like a reversed outline.
I tried to make an outline once and will not try that again.
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Post by papaof2 on Sept 18, 2017 20:32:38 GMT -6
All our brains seem to work a bit differently, so what works for A may not work for B or C but maybe for W or X. Just consider how many different word processing packages there are, whether commercial, shareware or free. You find the process that works for you, whether starting with a setting or an event or a face or a phrase from an advertisement or a line from a song or even a bad pun. Some put together an outline for the entire story, others take an idea and clothe it as the characters in their heads direct them to ;-) Others may have an idea for a character and build a story around how that character came to be. The only thing that matters is that the story gets the reader's attention long enough to set the hook. What kind of story could you build around the "Luci", a solar charged light with a blow-up "shade"? mpowerd.com/products/ Look at the Luci Outdoor 2.0 (24 hours of light from 7-8 hours of sunshine and the current deal of buy any light and get a free EMERG plus get an EMRG donated to hurricane relief in your name). What would you do with the item you purchase? With the freebie you receive? What adventures will the donated EMRG light have along the way? Will the donation of the EMRG come back to you positively (person who receives it keeps it on car dash and uses it to have light to change your flat tire) or negatively (person who receives the light uses it to illuminate his way to loot house of your friend who evacuated for the next hurricane)?
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Post by freshwaterpearl on Sept 20, 2017 11:20:36 GMT -6
Remember Henry Higgins? He was a character created by Beverly Cleary because her male students did not like the stories they were forced to read. It was a huge success and spawned a book about the girls down the street, Beezus and Ramona. Also, a story about Henry's dog, Ribsy. As long as there are not too many characters, it can work well. I love the changing point of views.
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