【Creative Humanity】Things under ten years of writing experience (end) Reflection questionnaire and self-introduction

I really don't know when the phenomenon started.

From time to time in the Web 2.0 world, there are questionnaires that people fill out by themselves, which we call "followers". For these questionnaire trends, Ben Xiong believes that there are good and bad, the good thing is that it can help everyone to clarify some of their thinking, and it is convenient for the public to know themselves; the bad thing is that sometimes filling out this kind of questionnaire may lead to attention. Elsewhere, as a result, when filling in, it seems that their goals are not clear, which leads to many influences, such as a blow to confidence.

In the face of various questionnaires, some people are happy to fill out, because following a "trend" means one more opportunity for people to know themselves, but some people will feel bored, and Ben Xiong has become both characters.

What is nostalgia? Missing an old love is sometimes for self-comfort, telling yourself that you have been happy, but sometimes it is actually for self-reflection, telling yourself that there are still some shortcomings in the ointment. This time, on a seven-day nostalgic journey, Ben Xiong once again faced the stories he once wrote. In addition to lamenting that those dark histories are over, he also appreciates his own progress and shortcomings that have not been improved.

The road is still very long, but at least we have left where we started.

Next, Ben Xiong will send a writer's questionnaire that Ben Xiong filled out in 2020. I will miss the naive self in the past, and look back at myself, whether I have made mistakes in writing and violated myself. the rules.

Of course, it is also a formal self-introduction of Ben Xiong in the square:

I'm glad you came to read my work, I'm Xiong Taixiansen.

01. What is your pseudonym? Please briefly describe the development history, and if possible, please write down what the pseudonym means to you.

Ben Xiong's pen name is Xiong Taixiansen, and he is currently active in the i-BOOM creative house with the painter Bird Ye . The pen name comes from the bear beer named "Mr. Xiong Tai" at home. Because this bear beer has been with me since kindergarten, watching Ben bear grow up, so Ben bear adopted this name, hoping to use his whole life experience in his writing.

In addition, I will change Mr. to Xian Sen, which is based on the plot that has appeared in her works in my favorite BL cartoonist, Mr. Sakurai Ladder.

02. Why do you invest in writing? If possible, please write down the opportunity as a reflection on the original intention of writing.

When I first started writing , I wanted to be surprised by my classmates who made fun of my poor writing skills, so when it comes to the original intention, it should be "competitive".

03. How long have you been writing? If you are still writing now, why do you persist to this day? Otherwise, why give up?

It has been written for over ten years. From being competitive at first, to now wishing to use writing to educate the community, this is probably one of the reasons why I still persist to this day.

04. Even if you are still writing, have you ever thought of giving up writing? If so, try to write why.

I often have this thought. This kind of thought usually occurs because of discovering one's own incompetence, failure, or seeing social injustice, but unable to do anything about it.

05. What is the source of inspiration? What methods will be used to stimulate inspiration?

Ben Bear's inspiration comes from his own experience, world history, current events and love. Chatting with partners, reading stories, watching animations, listening to music, playing games, etc. can stimulate inspiration , but generally listening to music and watching animations are the main ones, because it is more convenient.

06. What bottlenecks have you encountered in writing? In what way will it be overcome?

In fact, Ben Xiong has been considered to have a tendency to be popular for three minutes since he was a child, so if a long story cannot be written in one go, he will often get stuck and delayed, and then directly put the manuscript on the computer for three, five, or ten years. to touch. In order to solve this problem , I practiced my typing speed and tried my best to finish writing the story within a period of time. And those stories that have been affected by this problem will try to make their own responsibility cold.

07. What are the writing tools? (such as Notebook, Word2016, Google Docs, etc.)

Notion, Word2010 (I actually prefer to use 2007). Paper and pens are used for card drafts.

08. What font (size) and font type (such as new fine body) do you like to use?

New detail body, 10pt.

09. Is there a custom typesetting method? Such as fixing a few blank lines in each paragraph, or randomly.

The first line is shifted by two characters, single-line spacing, and no paragraph spacing is used.

10. Are you good at writing first person or third person? What is the reason?

First person. Because I prefer to write about the conflict between a person's thinking and the behavior of others, such as the "Assistant of the Magician" written by me. However, when writing, you will know that some stories are better written in the third person, so there are stories in which the third person is the main character, such as "Red Harmony" written by me.

11. Continuing the question above, do you prefer to write in the first person or the third person? Because being good at and liking cannot be equated, I ask this question for comparison and reflection.

I personally think it's the first person.

12. Would you like to make changes in first or third person? Such as using first-person multi-view, mixing first-person and third-person, etc.

like. But later, an editor said that this would make it difficult for new readers to enter, so it was used less. But looking back now, is this a question of strength, or is it a question of expression? I think it's the former.

13. Are the protagonists more male or female? What's your take on this?

It used to be female, but now it seems to be more male. However, when determining the gender of the protagonist, it is generally based on "the truth that the story wants to express the most". For example, when you want to explain "love", rather than the love process of the relationship between men and women, you will want to express "because he is him, so If you want to express this truth more forcefully at this time, you will be more inclined to use homosexual love to dominate.

14. Do you think your works are mainly male or female? Or is there no significant difference?

In terms of originality, I think there is no obvious difference, but it seems that there are more female readers of "Red Harmony".

15. Have you tried writing a first-person, opposite-sex perspective? What is your experience with this?

Have. There is no particular difficulty or feeling, maybe because my personal character is more like the opposite sex.

16. What is the male to female ratio of the characters? Is there a special design?

average. Unless I deliberately want to write female-oriented or male-oriented stories. Gender conflict is a good topic to write about.

17. What is your style of writing? How do others evaluate it? You can compare your self-confidence with other people's evaluations.

Translation novel style. Generally, the comments I hear back are "easy to read", "not cumbersome", and "easy to enter". It is a simple style that readers who are less contemptuous of text can read. However, this does not seem to apply to netizens...

18. What is the main influence on the style of writing? Novels, animations, plays, etc. can be cited as examples.

Gaia Publishing, Ilona. The magical mercenary series by Andrews and The Lion in March by Japanese manga artist Chika Hanamino.

19. Do you have a favorite creator? Such as novelists, script writers, directors, etc. can be proposed.

Ilona of America. Andrews, unfortunately my English is not very good and can only read the translated version. In addition, there are BL cartoonist Sakurari Ladder, Korean illustrator Paperblue , Taiwanese graphic designer Wang Zhihong, and Hong Kong illustrator and my partner Bird Ye .

20. What is the main subject of your writing? Would you like to experiment with various themes?

Fantasy, science fiction, suspense, human nature, zombie themes. Will like to try the subject that is considered unpopular, and try to prove that the unpopular is not the subject, but the strength.

21. In your own works, what do you value most? Such as plot, writing, characters, etc.

Character interactions and worldview. Because after designing the world view and figuring out the characters, basically the plot will come out on its own.

22. What is the main length of your work? And try to describe your own word count identification for very short stories, short stories, medium stories, and long stories.

In terms of originality, it is definitely a long story. Very short stories of 2,000 words or less, short stories of 5,000-15,000 words, medium stories of 70,000-120,000 words or less, and long stories of 120,000-300,000 words.

23. If you have written a serialization, how many words do you usually use to divide the chapters? If you have never written a serial, you can write an ideal number of chapters.

A section of 3,000-4,000 words.

24. Are you good at writing scenery? What is the purpose of a scene usually?

I think I'm not very good at it, compared to writing character interactions. Generally speaking, the scenery is to be used as a metaphor and to set off the atmosphere. More directly, it is necessary for the camera, right?

25. Are you good at writing battles? What do characters usually fight for?

Probably good at. Characters usually fight for their own goals.

26. What is your favorite thing to write about? What is the reason?

Because of personal interest, I like to write about issues related to the real society and some stories about history in an indirect way.

27. What are the core concepts of your own writing? Try writing common elements or concepts in your own work, preferably five to ten.

Any creation should have educational significance: but it should not be too direct, because modern people are basically not taught, so it is necessary to use stories to make readers feel the same. So in my work, common elements or concepts are:

• "History", which means that people have to learn from history, no matter how stupid that seems;
• "Good and evil", discuss justice and evil, and consider whether they are one or the other;
• "Zombie", experience the most beautiful and ugliest side of human nature;
• "selfish", understand the diversity and importance of this kind of human nature;
• "Magic", another manifestation of cognitive consciousness, trying to bring people back to the origin of creativity;
• "Nature", promote environmental awareness, and hope to let people know that human beings are not the masters of the earth, but only one of the small life on the earth.

28. What is your approach to creating the climax of the story? Is there a common method?

The character's behavior and belief conflict. is a common method.

29. What is your main purpose of writing? Do you have expectations or ambitions?

The answer is in question twenty-seven.

30. What would you like readers to gain from your work?

To gain a channel of experience and venting emotions, I hope my works can make readers think, introspect and have unforgettable experiences.

31. Do you have a deep writing experience? If so, please give an example.

I think it was the first time after watching "Yuri!!!on Ice" that I finally understood what love is, and everything I wrote after that seemed to be different. That feeling is like suddenly awakening to something, adding more wonderful colors to my creation. The "Lion in March" is a must-have work for "solving the card draft" problem that I still use. The way of description and the rhythm enriched my imagination.

32. Do you like writing? Where do you put writing first in your heart?

like. There is no ranking, because it is already a habit that cannot be lost, and it is part of the body.

33. Have you ever had the idea of being a writer? If you are already a writer, you can briefly talk about your feelings as a writer.

Have. I hope that one day, when society comes out of hell, I will become an ideal writer.

34. Do you have any Baja writers you admire? If there is, please give an example and explain the reason. If possible, please recommend a work. If not, you can also recommend online writers and their works on other platforms.

No... To be honest, I really rarely read online novels.

35. Finally, please write about your experience in filling out the questionnaire. If you are willing, you are also welcome to name writers and friends to fill out this questionnaire.

Thank you to the author who created this questionnaire. It has been a long time since I wrote this kind of questionnaire that can help clarify my writing concept. Ben Xiong believes that this is a questionnaire that is very suitable for us as writers to introduce ourselves. I hope that more writing friends will participate and fill out.

 Original author of the questionnaire: Zhanlan Qinhai 

This article first appeared on Grid and has since been published on Penana , Matters , Mirror , and Potato Media .

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