I just joined this site, and I'm mainly here because someone recommended it to me, and I want to improve my writing a bit. Any tips for a new user?

3677970
Before you start writng, take some time to understand how the site works if you haven't already. The site is your tool and if you don't learn how to use it properly you'll only be hurting yourself

3677980 Thanks. I've already looked at a couple of stories. One thing I've learned:
No black and red alicorn OCs, or else you will be banished to the depths of hell, where you will be tortured for your horrible wrongs.

Right?

DO NOT write about OC alicorns, red and black, or 'you' going to Equestria or 'Anon' going to Equestria, especially not engaging in a romantic relationship with one (or, heavens forbid, more) of the Mane 6.

Have creative ideas. Like say... write a story about Tirek/Twilight romance! Celestia is secretly a windigo. Obviously I'm not telling you what to write, but try to avoid extremely done topics unless you have a super-creative twist on it. And I don't mean like 'I crossed it over with this instead of canon Earth' I mean creative creative.

Beyond that, good grammar, good spelling, good storyline.

3677970
It's best to really consider what do you want out of this site. What are you looking for? Really looking for as in between posting stories and receiving reviews. The best way to improve is to simply write. You'll know yourself that you are improving if you're doing what you set out for.

3677987 Thanks for the tips! No overdone tropes. Got it.

3677993 No problem!

... brb, writing about Celestia secretly being a windigo, and shipping Tirek with Twilight.

3677991 Thanks! Honestly, I'm just hoping to improve my writing!

3677986
That's a big one. Same goes for regular OCs to a lesser extent. Human fics get panned too unless you can be creative enough to do something new and interesting. Honestly, do what you want and be creative. Think ahead on how people might react to yourself fic and if you can take it. I wrote a Human fic but it was pure comedy so it wasn't panned (still not sure how I pulled that off).

3677998 I'll have to read it! From what I've seen, the best things are the most creative things!

3678001
That's how it always goes

3677986

No black and red alicorn OCs

It also depends on how it's written. Some do good, others not so much.

However, hold off on Alicorn OC's if you do any until you get more experience.

3678007 I'll definitely be sticking with Slice of Life/Random stories for now.

3678021 when you get a few months, maybe a little more, but start out small.

3678025 I will. Thank for the tips!

3678027 np

3677993
Tropes aren't bad.

Really, for me? 3677991 got it. Just be as solid as you can with the mechanics, remember, when writing dialogue, that spoken language is not the same thing as written language, that the verb in a dialogue tag should, with little exception, be "said", and that it is okay to ignore the rules if it helps you convey your meaning. Also, fewer words are better than more, so always edit, edit, edit. Really tighten things up. But, above all, write.

And my really big one: upvotes and favorites are nice, because, hey, someone liked my stuff! Downvotes kinda suck because, aw, someone didn't like my stuff. In my book, it's comments you need to really pay attention to. Taste is taste. Not everybody's going to like everything you do, and that's okay so long as you, yourself, are happy with it. We're here to have fun, after all

I recommend Stephen King's memoire, "On Writing". It's very short, doesn't mess around, and is full of good advice.

3678042 Thanks for the tips! I'll be sure to pay attention to the comments!

3678049
Because, for example... I'm (very slowly) writing a story about Fluttershy and a certain bubble-butt pegasus. If you downvote it without leaving a comment, then, sure, maybe I really did mess it up, but for all I know you're just mad I don't call her "Derpy Hooves"

Comments. Not votes

3678049 don't get discouraged. I leave my stories up, so that one day, I can see how far along I am. Oh, and darkfics about mindless gore (called "grimdark") are hated heavily. No story to it, no good to it. That is the rule.
No matter how daunting this may seem, the rewards are excellent.

3678056 What idiot would downvote just because you didn't state her name? The internet is weird.

3678168 Thanks! I'm not that good at writing darkfics anyway, so I probably won't be attempting them for a while.

3678215
I'm just saying that people downvote things for dumb reasons, so don't worry too much about it. Comments

3678230

3678262
COMMENTS

3677970 Here's a good way to write your stories:

3678312 Perfection!

3678336
Or "I just write very slowly".

There's a story about a friend visiting James Joyce and finding him in a fit of despair.

"What's wrong?" says the friend. "Is it the work? How many words did you get?"

"Seven!" says Joyce.

"But, James, that's pretty good. For you, anyway," says the friend.

"I know," says Joyce, "but I don't know what order they go in!"

Might be apocryphal, but there are also real stories about how much Douglas Adams procrastinated. There's a quote somewhere about how he liked everything about writing except actually writing.

You're doing this for fun. Don't worry about it

3678351 Yeah. Still though, it's pretty funny to see shit like that! Even if I can't relate (as I am just writing for fun!).

3677970

If you want to do OC story. Don't do self-insert, or in any case, don't put yourself in the story, but instead put someone else into the story. There's the thing I love about OCs, you're practically out of bound ('cept that mary sue stuffs, but you know that already right?) though the most thing you need to pay attention when writing OC is the personality. Which is why, 1st person OC is the best way for writing OCs. Of course, 1st person OC is hard, since you could, accidentally, do self-insert. Which is why you need to plan a lot of time for creating an OC.

Oh, and plot twists. Readers love plot twists. Me included.

3678363 If you are looking to improve your writing I would take a look at the Prompt tag collabs that are typically found when you push the groups button. They are full of friendly people who will more often than no help you out if you ask for it. Also you should try to get a proofreader and an editor. And have them give you their opinions on your stories WHILE you are writing it. Other than that, look for groups geared towards helping you. And don't forget. Take their advice to heart. As far as writing goes, I know a couple people here who will(so long as you don't mind them pointing out EVERY flaw they see) help you. Improvement is always able to happen so long as you accept that you aren't perfect, and other people can see things (mistakes, problems with story flow, pacing, etc.) that you cannot. And remember, some people here WILL bash your story. Ignore them.

3678591 Thanks! I'm going to practice that one a bit, as it's kind of hard for me to write a first person OC story that doesn't accidentally change into a self insert!

3678776 Thanks for the Prompt idea! I'll be sure to check that out.

3679842 You are quite welcome...young padawan..........I'm sorry I had to.

3679839

It's easy as long as you don't foget who are you writing first. Helps when you lists the OCs personality.

Old style wise, you should, no matter how small the character is, write them on paper, with their personality and pasts.

3679952 Thanks. People will downvote if the first chapter is really crappy, right?

3680213 Totally! I'll check it out sometime today or tomorrow!

3677970 Here's a big one actually. When you screw up (and you will), own it. There is nothing worse than someone who won't admit their mistakes, especially when it's painfully obvious.

3677970
1. Poke around in groups, especially writing and editing ones. If you hang around those forums long enough, you'll pick up some helpful advice on writing, and you might also be lucky enough to get someone to edit your fic.
2. Always use cover art. It helps a ton. Derpibooru's a good place for finding it. Just make sure you track down the artist for permission before using it if you can. Sometimes you can't, like if no one knows who drew it or if the artist left the fandom, but always try.
3. You'll get good comments and bad ones. Try to use discernment when taking advice, but always be polite and never delete comments.
4. Have fun! Write what you want, not what's popular. It seems like the authors who write stories just for popularity burn out faster, since people only want the mass-appeal stories, not the labor of love stories. And every so often, you'll get lucky and get lots of love from writing that story you loved. Either way, if it makes you happy, you've won.

3677970
Advice? Yeah I think I've got some advice.
My cumulative advice for writers.
Let's not forget this: Throughly read the FAQ. No. I'm not even kidding. You'd be surprised how many people don't read the FAQ and then ask questions that are answered directly in the FAQ. So, read it. Read the FAQ.
If you're ever unclear on some rules of the English language, I find the Lousy Writer database to be a good reference.

3678215
Its because it's the Internet. There’s no explanation needed for it, really. People are going to be however they want, because there's a general sense of anonymity on the 'net, unless you've attracted the attention of a government agency.

Basically, people are going to be dicks, simply because they can, and it makes them feel better about their own insecurities by being mean to others.

As for advice, don’t get caught up in the "popularity race" that this site sometimes seems to have. I did, and I stopped writing because of it; I feel inferior to the more popular and "seasoned" writers (ones with big fancy college degrees), and it has impacted my desire to write and improve myself. That's why I joined this group, and created my own group to help self-doubting writers like myself.

3682947

Write what you want, not what's popular.

Sadly, that's a common thing here on the site. I have no respect whatsoever for these types of people, and find myself wishing that I could repeatedly hit these people over the head with a baseball bat. It'll either knock some sense into them, or just knock them out completely.

3680201
People will downvote it if they don't like the theme, ship, etc. Oftentimes, they won't even read your story before downvoting it. Those are the dicks I mentioned in my previous comment.

3678312
That looks like my story, minus all the red and green dots, save for the one at the beginning.

If I had to plan a story out, I would never write it.

3746797 That makes two of us, I do most of it by letting just flow. I do plan some of it though, just not all of the way.