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Appreciation post: I just spent 3 hours figuring out a character's motivation for a prompt about a sentient lighthouse.
Has anyone else ever gotten stuck on a tiny story detail that just wouldn't click?
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ivanpatel2mo ago
What was the specific motivation you landed on that finally made it click? I've found the solution is often way simpler than the hours of overthinking would suggest.
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robinc252mo ago
Start by asking what the character wants more than anything, even if it's a weird thing for a lighthouse to want... then work backwards from there. I've wasted whole afternoons on a single line of dialogue that felt off. Sometimes you just have to walk away and do something dumb, like wash the dishes, and the answer pops into your head. Forcing it never works for me.
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