The it's a loooong story thread version 2.0 - announcement 7/30 - pg6 - blue

I do that all the time Far too lazy to do an outline, but I've already worked out a bunch of scenes and (most of the time) the end.

Does anyone think it's possible to do a completely humorus epic?

It's possible, but it's also possible to completely screw it up by not actually being funny. I wouldn't recommend trying unless you've got lots of practice writing humor.

Pssh! Comedy is easy! All you need is, like, a drum set to emphasize the punchlines and a laughtrack, and you're all set! Right?



"So, I went down to the store today." *Buh-dum KSSH!
*riotous laughter*
"Wait,wait! So I get there and I buy...
...peas!!" *Buhduhbudduh-dum KSSSH!*
*riotous laughter*


It's funny cuz you thought I was going to say "milk"
Get it?!

It is possible to write humorous epics, I've seen it done before. However, what you have to consider is that what you find funny, someone else might not. Sense of humors vary from person to person, so one person might laugh at slap stick, while another might prefer a more subtle humor. That isn't a problem either way, but it should be considered.

You also have to ask yourself do you have enough material to keep the humor up. A humor epic does not need to be a constant stream of jokes, you can take some time to develop the punchline, but you want to make sure you have enough elements to keep the story moving.

For helpful reference in crafting an epic comedy, read "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy," the "Thusday Next" series, the "Diskworld" series, "Bone," and take a gander at the orignal "Pink Panther" movies, which are epic in number if not scope.

Hello, My name is Azeria Jade and I have a problem with epics.

I think my epic has gotten so out of control I need some help writing it. Does anyone else run into this problem? How do you deal with handing over some part of your beloved fic?

Ah ha! The out of control epic, yes I have felt that way about many of mine, 4 of which come to mind. I have only ever given one fic away, and the person that was supposed to be writing it left the boards, so it is mine once again. All I need is a chance to write on it again around my other epics. Let me tell you, I regret handing over my fic to someone else. I've had friends do that and it does not always turn out well (sometimes it can work, depends on who takes it over). You lose control of your story, and it never turns out the way you "envisioned," which can be frustrating for you, the original author. I was lucky in the fact that the writer left the boards for my fic, so it is mine once more.

Now for the few times I have felt my story is out of control, I go back to my outline and see if looking at that will get me on the right track. If that does not work, I will seek the advise of one of my friends on the boards and let them be a sounding board for me to bounce ideas off of. I have also gone on hiatus for a bit so I could rethink my stories direction, because epics have a habit of going in places you did not originally expect.

I guess the question you have to ask yourself is why do you feel you must hand your fic to someone else? Is it because you are lost? Or is it due to time constraints due to real life?

The reason I originally gave up that one story was due to time constraints. I was writing two epics and real life was giving me issues. I only had time or 1 fic and not 2. I loved both stories, but in the end I picked the fic I had not been working on as long. I didn't have as much vested in the story. However, it was still hard, because it was mine and I had put some effort into it.

If you think your story is out of control because you don't know what else to write, I would say give it some time. Maybe go and work on something else for a while. You might find you generate fresh ideas to get your story back on track.

You did call the story your "beloved fic," so I would imagine you would find it hard to give it to someone else.

No, dear, my rewrite of my epic story just passed 200,000 words and is nowhere near done. It's not out of control at all.

I have noticed that I like epics when they get out of control. I started my first major story here, which took on a mind of its own and went in directions I never could have imagined. When I started the sequel, I realised I was going in a totally different direction than I'd anticipated. Out-of-control stories encourage creativity, in my opinion.

let me put it this way,

I got a fanfic that's thankfully not posted here yet, which took a mind of its own. At Chapter 12, I got twice as many characters at different locations with no hope of bringing them together for a cohesive story. At this point, I'll have to reread the whole thing to be able to continue working on it after a two year hiatus.

You know you are not a fanfic writer when you have to catch up with your own work.