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Nuclear Winter Story...

Posted: Tue Jun 04, 2002 5:56 am
by desertf
Does anyone want to help create a story for a Dungeon Siege Mod. I already have a kind of good story but I am looking for other input.

Thanks

Posted: Tue Jun 04, 2002 8:19 am
by Archchancellor
Post the story and you will recieve reviews inpts and possibly some flaming

Posted: Tue Jun 04, 2002 11:19 am
by desertf
Well... I have a lot of details but not really a story. I need someone to work with to help me mold this scattered info into some sort of working story. I will post the details by friday.

cigs

Posted: Tue Jun 04, 2002 1:34 pm
by Ruben Rooben Reuben
I'd like to help out. I can't promise much time but I like having several projects going at once. Let me know, yeah?

Nuclear Winter Mod

Posted: Wed Jun 05, 2002 5:56 am
by desertf
Ok man if you would like to help me out I would really appreciate it! Email me and we can get to work =)

Thanks

The Ideas...

Posted: Wed Jun 05, 2002 11:25 am
by desertf
Ok so here are the ideas for my story... I have only been working on this for about 5 hours over the course of one week.

The year is 2148; the earth has been under a nuclear winter for the past 83 years. You have emerged from your fallout shelter in search of answers and out of necessity. Why did this war start? Who was involved? Who is still alive? What has happened to the people in my shelter, how did they become sick?
You need to find supplies and a cure for the people in your shelter or the remaining people will die. You have entered the inhospitable surroundings of what was once earth. You were born in the fallout shelter from which you are now leaving, a 19 year old given the massive assignment of saving your dying family and friends.

LOL I know that is cheezy and well... stupid but I can't think of anything else and that is why I am posting here.

Thanks for your help.

zuh

Posted: Wed Jun 05, 2002 12:29 pm
by Ruben Rooben Reuben
Let's think more about the setting. Is this world very similar to that in "Fallout?" How is it different?
I'm guessing that we'll see a lot more snow than sand. That sounds really good. ...what you've got so far is a good precept, but no direction to go. It's like being impotent: having all the tools, but no thrust.
Try building some backstory for this world first. Come up with some of the answers your young hero will discover. Make up some possible dangers for him/her to encounter. All that stuff. (mail me if you want to bounce the ball on doing this stuff. That'd be fun.)

Hope that helps. I feel a lot better.

Posted: Sat Jun 08, 2002 12:50 am
by Sim
Hmmm, each person has his own style of writing and vocabulary. But I must say, noting annoys me more than bad spelling. Grammar can take a back seat if it's well written but there are several things to remember.

1. Don't try to be too clever, some people may not get what you’re hinting at.

2. Some writers may place lots of details to describe the surrounding but too much detail can be over doing it and cause the reader to deviate from the story and lose interest, the same rule applies to not enough. Finding the middle of the road will take some time.

Enhanced examples of your starting sentence.

Cold start?
A. A slow northern wind blew over the frigid wasteland. The shattered wreckage of a broken town lay before me. It's death of countless innocent people and a ruined world could be heard in its frozen shriek, a result of a pointless, forgotten war.

Hot start?
B. A slow wind blew over a baked wasteland. The burnt wreckage of a broken town lay smoking before me. The deaths of countless innocent people and a ruined world could be strongly smelt now. All were the result of a past but pointless war.

Dead stop?
C. The slow wind blew ripples of dust over the desolate cracked wasteland. But the wreckage of a dead and broken town lay sometime away from me. The legacy of a countless people, but not innocent race. And this ruined world was the result of their greed.

3. Read. Read. Read! You will have to read books to get the feel of how to write a plot line and story. You will notice that most authors will pop in and out of telling the plot and story to developing the characters directly.
Example...
It was a cold and stormy night (This part will be the narrator)
Ben said in a low voice "I need a coat now damit!" (This part is the character)
Many new writes will just concentrate on the character part, which is perfectly fine providing you also include some small detail. It’s up to you.

4. Don’t get ambitious, few writers are gifted with an ever-imaginative mind but for normal people you may want to brainstorm ideas and plots, even characters. Remember to keep the audience entrapped, to do this don’t reveal everything on page one. You could even leave lose ends early on but remember to tie them all up when you need to.

5. Always type numbers as words and not directly from your Num-pad unless it’s part of the story. Some larger reviewers find this to be lazy and can mar your work.

6. Keep the story in mind. You must keep the plot/storylines strong by not having diversions like the hero going on a side quest that has no relevance to the main story except to tie him up ready for when the big event or the main quest arrives, like marriage even…

7. As with real life location is a big factor, look at detective books. They are set on trains and boats, even a circus of all sick things. Who wants to read about what they do at home/work/school already? All though this goes against my better judgement the Harry Potter “erk” series is a good example, including a new fantasy element to a other wise drab and shitty life. The locations were neatly placed over each other so to gradually bring the reader to see what would happen next. Yes I am over 20.

8. New things sell better. Natch.

If you don’t want to agree with any or some of the above, that’s fine, this is not meant to be a guide to the galaxy but it’s here to show you one or two of the many angles of writing. Don’t forget you towel!

Posted: Sat Jun 08, 2002 2:34 pm
by desertf
WOW! Thanks guys! Ruben I will email you soon...

Posted: Sat Jun 08, 2002 2:46 pm
by Sykotik
Something for you to chew on a bit:

How is this world unique? Was the destroyed world highly technological, modern-day, or retro-tech? Are there any obscure cults?

Can't really think of more now... maybe later, if you want more :)

dag!

Posted: Sun Jun 09, 2002 1:47 am
by Ruben Rooben Reuben
Damn you, Sim! You've discredited the rest of us "writers!" 8O
Back to manning the slushie machine for me...