Ah, first of all (and I feel like I must get this off my chest now otherwise I won't be able to write my fic in peace), I do feel obligated to dispel any expectations of my "long fic" being some paragon of brevity that models itself entirely after these guidelines posted here! Certainly, it's not going to be anything like the devastating Kitty Makes Three series you've recently shared, and I don't really intend it to be, either. After all, Kitty Makes Three was practically prose poetry! And perhaps that's kind of what drabbles are. It's certainly what Rin-chan your drabbles feel like! They're so compact, so dense with meaning and feeling, that they feel practically like free form poetry! Now having written 6000+ words of my long fic (most of which I will probably delete and rewrite orz), I think what I have in mind is something a little more towards the "prose" side of the spectrum. Naturally, many elements of the drabble guidelines here work just as well with short story prose, like the part about deleting phrases/adjectives/verbs that serve only to reinforce a motif that has already been established, and of course, the part about leaving the reader clues but refraining from stating the theme outright (Show, not Tell, right?). So you'll see that I'll have taken these points to heart in my fic, but obviously, I am not going to do away entirely with paragraphs of description (though I will shy away from purple prose) and I'm also not going to have an evocative "punchline" for every 100 words I write (though I always do try to end each scene on a line with some kick).
In fact, I responded to this post because so much of what you've detailed here are rules that I've been trying to impose upon myself as I get more practiced at writing, though of course, you've summarized them a lot more eloquently and systematically than I ever thought to. Like the two points I mentioned above. One question I've often asked myself during some of my more recent fics is: "What is the point of this?" Like, what is the point of writing "Nino glued his eyes to the ground." Well, it's to show that he's embarrassed. But I've already established his embarrassment when I wrote "he mumbled" in the paragraph right before! So do I need this sentence? Probably not. I'll admit that I've been guilty on several occasions of keeping these extraneous little bits simply for the sake of rhythm or flow. But I know that's my ego talking.
I like to look back on my fics every now and then, just to allow myself a good cringe, and to identify what isn't working. And though it may sound smug, I can honestly say that my writing has improved since I first started. It's still far from perfect, but I've improved enough to know that the guidelines you outline work.
What you say about the need to resist that feeling of "I'm so done with this!" is so true. It is easier to just throw in the towel, especially when the plot's already been wrapped up neatly and all that requires retooling is style. And have I done it? Yes, numerous times! I usually regret it. Ah, we live and learn, right? ♡
It might actually have been a good thing that we both went on this fic-hiatus for a few months. I think re-entering the scene now, at our own pace, with our own musings, in our own low-key fashion, is a pretty good way to get ourselves back into fic writing, ne? ^.^
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In fact, I responded to this post because so much of what you've detailed here are rules that I've been trying to impose upon myself as I get more practiced at writing, though of course, you've summarized them a lot more eloquently and systematically than I ever thought to. Like the two points I mentioned above. One question I've often asked myself during some of my more recent fics is: "What is the point of this?" Like, what is the point of writing "Nino glued his eyes to the ground." Well, it's to show that he's embarrassed. But I've already established his embarrassment when I wrote "he mumbled" in the paragraph right before! So do I need this sentence? Probably not. I'll admit that I've been guilty on several occasions of keeping these extraneous little bits simply for the sake of rhythm or flow. But I know that's my ego talking.
I like to look back on my fics every now and then, just to allow myself a good cringe, and to identify what isn't working. And though it may sound smug, I can honestly say that my writing has improved since I first started. It's still far from perfect, but I've improved enough to know that the guidelines you outline work.
What you say about the need to resist that feeling of "I'm so done with this!" is so true. It is easier to just throw in the towel, especially when the plot's already been wrapped up neatly and all that requires retooling is style. And have I done it? Yes, numerous times! I usually regret it. Ah, we live and learn, right? ♡
It might actually have been a good thing that we both went on this fic-hiatus for a few months. I think re-entering the scene now, at our own pace, with our own musings, in our own low-key fashion, is a pretty good way to get ourselves back into fic writing, ne? ^.^