Another Thing

I wasn't entirely finished with that list I made. I shall add the final point I have now:

4) Sympathetic Characters

Now, don't mean the characters are sympathetic; I mean the reader has to connect to them. Your goal is SUPPOSED to be to ENTERTAIN the reader, so you want them to have some kind of connection to the characters; why should they care if your protagonist is shot in the stomach? Why should they celebrate when your character makes a full recovery? Shouldn't they believe that your character believes they're part of their world (unless they don't, in which case the reader should believe whatever the character believes). In other words, why not humanize your character? Make them react to a bad day. Make them unsuccessful somehow. In the words of Joachim Valentine, "Nobody likes a perfect superhero."

What makes a good story?

I know I've heard people ask this (to better authors than myself, as I don't generally think my stuff is any good), so I'll try to cover a few points:

1) Originality*
2) A plot that fits the genre (or non-genre, for literary fiction)
3) A conflict

Yeah. That's all it takes. I'll cover these points one by one.

1) I marked this with an asterisk because there's no such thing as a new idea. The key to having an original story is to use a tried and tested idea and tweak it so it APPEARS original. I don't mean read a book and reword every sentence. I mean pick a general topic and change it. For example, let's say you wanted to write a story about vampires. What makes your vampires different then all the classic vampires (Nosferatu, Dracula, Lestat...not necessarily in that order) and the..."Pop"/"Fad" vampires (Edward Cullen)? Here's an idea! Make them created through scientific means (i.e., a medicinal cocktail). Now it's time for research. I know, the dreaded 'R' word! But to make a story believable, you NEED research. I spent an hour researching Walther PPKs for a part that didn't even stay in Iron Cross. I also spent weeks researching combinations of medicines that could create a vampire (bloodlust, anti-resistance to sunlight, pale skin, super-strength, and super-speed) without causing INSTANT DEATH. My way would make the injection EXCRUCIATINGLY PAINFUL, even worse than a Rebif injection (Multiple Sclerosis meds that kill your immune system so it doesn't eat your nerves and brain...you're injecting acid just below your skin...yeah). Anyway, back on topic. You need to come up with an idea and research a way to do it that hasn't been done before, but is believable.

2) Okay, this part is TECHNICALLY not that important. Lots of craptastic novels make New York Times' Best-Seller List. Look at Twilight (I know I'll be brutally murdered for insulting this "great work of fiction"), for example. Basically, all you need to do is look at the genre's formula (Romance novels, the current most written novels at about 90% of fiction if I remember correctly, follow a formula that's fairly easy to pick up: Two people fall in love and have sex. Or at least that's what I gather, never having read a TRUE romance novel. I prefer macabre fiction). I can't tell you all the formulas for every genre. The best way to figure it out is to read a book or two. The more the better.

3) There MUST be a conflict. Without a conflict, your story has no plot. No one reads a story with no plot (even Catch-22 had a plot and it's known for not having one). Conflicts can come in many varieties. There are two MAIN kinds, however: Protagonist vs. AntagonisT and Protagonist vs. AntagonisM. The first is what is generally used in JRPGs: Good Guy(s) vs. Bad guy(s)/Evil Empire. This CAN still work in novels, though...it's a little on the "This should be a game, not a story!" side. Books of this type include: Ring (Reporter vs. Virus), Spiral (Doctor vs. Virus), Loop (Kid vs. Virus), Moby Dick (Man vs. Whale), and the Lord of the Rings Trilogy (Frodo vs. All those evil dudes and that f'ing ring...though the book is mainly about walking). Protagonist vs. Antagonism, on the other hand, is what is much easier to write and generally has a deeper meaning.
"WHAT?! Easier to write AND has a deeper meaning?!"
Yes, you read that correctly. Pick a topic. Research it. Write it. See? Tip 1 is still paying off here. Now, that seems a little simplistic, doesn't it? I'll give some examples of books you can read that will explain it better than I can. Famous works that are Protagonist vs. Antagonism: George Orwell's 1984 (Man vs. Society), Anthony Burgess' A Clockwork Orange (Man vs. his own past), Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita (My favorite book, Man vs. his own mind, though he's losing the fight...the book was written as evidence for a court case (fictionally)), and Fyodor Dostoevsky's Notes from Underground (Man vs. Loneliness, though the book is mostly just a long rant, but it's f'ing hilarious if you understand Russian humor...if not it's depressing as hell). I only recommend these because they're often more memorable. I'd also recommend all of Stephen King's books as Richard Bachman. They often make you question what's right and wrong (Specifically The Running Man, which is the name of a game show in the book, where a man goes into the Games Corp. to register to be on the show because his family needs money...badly. The game show he gets on is The Running Man, where he has to run from a man who is trained in hunting people. It's powerful, but it's...Society vs. Itself).

And on a sidenote: AVOID fan-fiction. That's just plagiarism lawsuits waiting to happen...and those stories automatically suck because you are not the original author and everyone has his or her own voice. You're ruining what could have been a perfectly good story...or a fad book. Either way, people rip that stuff off all the time. If you're going to take the time to write, take the time to come up with your own ideas.

Writer's Block?

Well, I can't exactly help; different things work for different people. Some people gain inspiration from an art museum or forest, some from games, some from cartoons, some from other books, and still others randomly go back into "writing mode" from seemingly nothing.

I'm one of the last group, though I draw my inspiration from EVERYTHING. I'm easily amused and so long as I'm in a good mood, will generally always be writing something or thinking about something TO write.

But, strangely, the thing that gives me the most creativity is NEARLY unrelated: Math/Programming. With programming, you get to write and your writing creates something; what's better than that? It can be frustrating, but that comes with being a writer, as well.

Anyway, I've said my fill. Go out and try doing something, ANYTHING. You're bound to find SOMETHING that will get you writing again.

Addicted, Take 2

I like this version much better. It's much closer to my writing style...and isn't as drawn out; at least not at the moment. This, like all my other works, is subject to change and WILL be added onto. So, since I don't have anything to add (save for my notes, which won't go public until I get near the end, if not later). So, here it is!

Addicted

She tied the knot tightly. Her victim struggled to get out of the chair, but failed.
“So, how are you?” Yana asked. She pulled a small bottle and a syringe from a case on her hip and started filling the needle.
“I’m fine. Peachy.”
“Peachy? Well, maybe you don’t need the injection, then.” She looked up from the syringe and hesitated filling the rest of it until he answered.
The man gritted his teeth together in pain and kicked his legs in their ropes, not even successfully moving an inch. Her orange blossom scent was something she knew would set him off. It always did this to her patients.
“Well, I won’t finish until you tell the truth. I’m not afraid of making mistakes. I can’t make this any better for you until you take it and your death would still help me improve the drug.”
“You’ll never get it past the FDA.” The words were distorted through his teeth, which now had a mix of blood and saliva coating them. “You’re all going to hell. All of you!”
“And? I’d have to believe in it to go there, now wouldn’t I?” Yana said, then giggled.
The man jerked, turning the chair thirty or so degrees. “I don’t believe in whatever hole you crawled out of.”
“I’m sure that would be fun to explain to my mother. Want to see a picture of her? I have one in my office.” She filled the syringe a little more, then stopped. Just a little more and she’d be able to keep him alive for another week. “Besides, you have no reason to provoke me; I keep you alive for a week and give you plenty to feed on.”
The man said nothing, blood from his quickly receding gums filling his mouth.
“Good. Let’s get this over with.” Yana filled the syringe to 40cc. She pushed his head down to his left shoulder and held it firmly as she injected the drug into his jugular.
The man screamed in pain. His veins were on fire. His eyes were red.
Yana kissed his cheek. “You were a good boy. Want your treat?”
He forced his arm over about an inch in the rope. The pain from it was almost a relief from the drug. Anything was better than that. He turned his head to face Yana, but she was out of his field of vision. She came back and sat on her feet, holding a blood pack in her left hand.
“How much do you love me?”
“This is wrong!”
“How. Much. Do. You. Love. Me?” She repeated, much more slowly.
“No matter how much you make me say it, you know I don’t mean it.”
“Fine, don’t eat. Like I said, you’d only help me by dying.”
The man lunged forward, one arm coming loose. He clawed at Yana’s face, but she moved far enough back to only allow his hand to brush her cheek. She got to her feet and walked away, taking the blood pack with her. She opened the door, but hesitated.
“Do you really hate us so much you’re willing to die to prove a point? That’s not bravery; it’s just stupid. We’re doing whatever we can to make this drug better, so you won’t have to go through the pain anymore.”
The man stayed silent and untied himself. Yana hurried out of the room, locking the heavy, steel door behind her.
The man needed that blood. He clawed at all the knots in the ropes holding him in place until he was finally loose. He stumbled and swayed from the drug in his veins and from his deep hunger. He pressed the button on the intercom.
“Come back, doctor. Please…” He whined, knowing she wouldn’t come back until at least tomorrow, assuming she would ever come back.
He went back to the chair and sat; collapsing with his head on the back and arms limp over the sides. He groaned and tensed from the pain, but the drug was slowly losing the burn.
Suddenly he heard a voice on the speakers on the ceiling.
“Will you be good and stay in the chair?”
He nodded, knowing there were hidden cameras everywhere in this cell.
“You won’t attack me again?”
He nodded again. He didn’t get anything else from the speakers. The locks on the door squealed open and Yana came in again, holding the blood pack. She was followed in by armed guards that were reminiscent of riot police. She got back on her knees in front of him again.
“Now tell me how much you love me.”
He slumped forward and rested his head on her neck. He hugged her with excessive passion, causing the guards to prepare to fire. Yana held her hand up to lower their weapons. She gently pushed on him to get him off of her and he fell back in the chair.
“That’s going to get you killed, 14. Next time, just tell me. Here.” She held out the blood pack and dropped it in his lap. She stood up. “They’ll be coming in here with me from now on. You’re starting to experience some of the same side effects as the other patients. You were doing so well…”