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What do you overdo in your RP writing?

A.Storey

A.Storey

Moon
Joined
Nov 29, 2024
Thought it might be interesting to read what others are self-aware of in their own story writing.
  • Do you use way too many commas? Not enough?
  • Too many question marks? Not enough?
  • Is YC's dialogue with the other OCs often a list of endless questions - leaving your partner the weird task of answering them like a survey instead of like a conversation?
  • Do you overuse certain analogies, phrases or idioms?
  • What colorful adjectives do you keep using over and over?
Share some examples if you're willing and able to!
 
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Recently, I have caught myself overusing "certainly" to describe pretty much anything MC was assessing or considering.

E.g. He certainly felt the intention, but did not catch the nuances of the situation.
 
I used to catch myself using the same format a lot. I think I grew from it, but for some time, I kept starting sentences with "she". She stood up and went to the door. She was shocked by what she saw. She ran. It was years ago, but I had to consciously stop it.

Something I catch myself doing is not writing physical actions. I mean, I do, but sometimes I write a lot and realize I barely had my character even move. Haha. At the same time, that's the kind of writer I am. I specialize in capturing mental and emotional states when I could have more balance with the physical. I guess this goes for physical descriptions of locations and so on too. I should work on that balance more, but I'm mostly happy with my writing... I think.

I also can ramble a lot irl, and a lot of times I notice my characters will too. Too much dialogue ain't great for an RP conversation unless it is meant to be an IC telling of a story or something.

Sometimes I feel like I write "however" too much as well. I don't lose sleep over it, though.
 
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I get carried away with long winded dialogue or descriptions on what’s going on and how my character feels while glossing over his physical actions. This means I’m usually over the text count that I’m aiming for and postpones my post.

I’ve consciously avoided using the same words to describe something I.e. blood, eyes, or the genitals just to name a few that I notice myself falling prey to using the same word over and over again.

I’m sure I also overdo more, but I’m not aware or thinking of them right now. I love writing like an art so sometimes it’s hard to just stop and cut unnecessary parts since I mainly write for my enjoyment with the hope of making something nice to read for my partner(s).
 
The one I'm most self concious of is stringing ideas together with 'as' or 'while'. "He sat at the table sipping at his cup of coffee as the waitress brought his food while he eyed the other occupents of the cafe." I have to catch myself and make sure I break it up into separate proper sentences or reorganize the sequence of events.

I keep catching myself and being like "dude, finish the thought and start a new sentence."
 
Adverbs, especially with speech. I'm apparently not satisfied with stating that a character says something, I also have/need to try and describe how they say that something.

eg:
"Come on, I haven't got all day!" Grant snapped irritably, his fingers drumming rapidly on the tabletop.
or:
"Come on, I haven't got all day!" Grant snapped sharply, his fingers drumming heavily on the tabletop.
 
I constantly use '--' to break up sentences or connect thoughts, like way too much.
 
Many things...

I am horrible whne it comes to mixing up words like they're, their, and there. Anyword with the same sound but different spelling I am prone to using the wrong version DESPITE knowing the correct spelling to use. The worst part is when I read over my message I will always miss it too since my brain just processes it in the moment as being right though giving it a few hours or seeing it the next day I will IMMEDIATELY spot it.

I can end up repeating myself without noticing it. Usually when I go back to delete and rewrite I bit my brain deletes anything before it so I end up rewriting portions I had typed out before. I usually notice since I tend to proofread through the paragraph after I do those sorts of changes, but I've missed it a few times before.

Reusing the same word multiple times. It's going to happen sometimes, but I really try not to use the same words to describe certain details. I like to at least try and not repeat in the same paragraph. This somewhat applies to me using my characters name where I feel like I repeat it too many times which isn't nessisarily true but my mind can't help but feel like looking at it I should of replaced it with something else.
 
Passion said:
I used to catch myself using the same format a lot. I think I grew from it, but for some time, I kept starting sentences with "she". She stood up and went to the door. She was shocked by what she saw. She ran. It was years ago, but I had to consciously stop it.
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The start of my sentences are infested with pronouns and proper nouns as well 😅 . It comes from a gut-churning revulsion to passive language. To use the above example, Shocked by what she saw when she stood up and went to the door, she ran. Vomit inducing isn't it? I still use it, but I will literally count the sentences since the last time I've used it. I'll consider if the character is having something done TO them that would justify their passivity. Only then, would I intentionally use passive language to fit the mood. I am a REALLY slow writer because of stuff like this...The first thing I put on the page would normally make me cringe 😵‍💫.

I end up re-writing the same damned sentences until I get something like...

The door beckoned. Her legs moved of their own accord, unable to resist its temptation. The rough grain slid against her slender fingers as she grasped for the knob. She carved a slit for her questing eye, pulling back the portal a mere inch to feed her curiosity. It was an inch too far. Ice shot up her spine as the bottom fell out of her stomach. Her mind screamed its command, flogging her legs to do its bidding. Run!

Oh right! And I anthropomorphize EVERYTHING. Inanimate objects, smells, the weather, you name it. Doors can beckon, smells can assault, weather can creep, smother, and lick.
 
Lots of description on things that aren't necessarily sexy.

Would probably drive smut-focused writers absolutely insane. I like to paint vivid mental images of things, and it probably loses some people because of the depth I sometimes go into.

Another thing is that I get too much in a character's head, like Passion mentioned above. Sometimes I'll write a post and realize that it was all what my character is thinking or feeling in a given moment, and no "action" at all! So I have to re-read things from time to time to make sure I'm giving my partners something they can actually work with.
 
Everything?

I write too much and tend to scare people. I misuse the comma, though I've gotten better with the whole "—" in place of them sometimes. I don't like repetition in words, so I tend to branch out to forgotten vocabulary and use those, (you study Lexicology as long as I have, one learns a lot of words). I tend struggle to keep things on the easy-ish side of writing, so I tend to lose a lot of people with either the length of a post or the content... seriously thinking of taking a hiatus, but, can't please 'em all.
 
I tend to overuse the word ‘and’ along with trying to figure out where commas should be. I do cheat and use Grammarly. I also become over descriptive at some moments in the story that seems like filler.

But at the end of the day, no one’s perfect.
 
transcendence said:
I do cheat and use Grammarly.
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Grammarly is such a big help... Not gonna lie. I'd overlook a lot of comma misuse without it. :/ I also really enjoy the synonym feature it offers. : )

*edit*
It's not really cheating. Most people use Spellcheck, and without which, most of us would be at a loss... <3
 
echo said:
Grammarly is such a big help... Not gonna lie. I'd overlook a lot of comma misuse without it. :/ I also really enjoy the synonym feature it offers. : )

*edit*
It's not really cheating. Most people use Spellcheck, and without which, most of us would be at a loss... <3
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Grammarly is the best tool ever invented. haha

Yeah, I know it’s not cheating. I had to make a joke cause I rarely post in these topics.
 
I'll +1 every answer about repeatedly using the same conjuctions and sentence structures. I'm especially prone to writing "this but/however/yet that", and to turning descriptions into lists, colon and all. In general I should permit (or force) myself to write a short sentence from time to time.

Also, I very often throw onomatopoeia like "huh" and "ah" in dialogue, but whenever a partner points that out they also say they like it, so I wouldn't say I'm overusing that yet.
 
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