Interpret Bona Fide Arguments!

[Carraka]

Umm ...

I forgot that I didn't mean to post this today. Below spoiler contains original post minus examples, but I no longer think ... it would be right of me to ... yeah, delete this. I'll repost it at some other time.



A random idea of mine ... thought it would be a fun exercise.

Anyway, take a section from your story where characters are arguing, and strip it down to dialogue + body language. Your job is to get rid of all the plot elements (this includes that actual topic of the argument) and convey what the speaker is trying to say and what the speaker is not saying in the most simplistic language possible. It will sound like a soap opera, but that’s probably the point. You probably don't have to go as far as:

- I'm right. You're wrong.
- Yeah, but I'm right because I hate being wrong.

because although that may be an essential truth of all arguments, it would be boring.

I have no idea what this exercise actually does. Someone tell me so I can promote it.

[Starry]

Um, to prove if your arguments are actually really stupid, or actually just author inserts of random unimportant junk? That would be good to know, actually. If the argument isn't really saying anything worthwhile, it's going to bore the reader.

Hmm...my characters don't really blatantly argue very much. They kind of fume silently and then explode once they're by themselves. I'll think about it.

[Bowie20049]

So...is this exercise live or no?

[Shaun]

So...is this exercise live or no?

Nope. Read the directions. You're supposed to take an argument in an existing story and strip it down. Or, I suppose you could write a story specifically for this, and then strip it down, but either way, the story has to be written before you do the exercise.