well its okay to repeat in fiction. a lot of writers do it. as long as it follows the tips above - it’ll be fine. and if it does end up being an issue you can always revise it in the editing and or beta reading process.
in terms of not describing thats okay too- the reader is just going to make it up in their head.
the larger issue might be a lack of awareness of how your characters feel about themselves? and or a lack of awareness of how their apperance effects/ impacts them and the life they live? how others treat them etc? - or just those things being underdevelope.d
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Explain further what you mean?
what I mean is how a character looks doesn’t exist in a vacum ie isolated alone. It’s not there just so the reader knows what the character looks like etc in a manner the reader generally prefers. Having the reader know what the character looks like etc is a byproduct.
the character’s looks etc have a relationship to themselves internally and the world around them externally. it’s a part of who they are, there life etc.
what I am saying is if you find that doing descriptions (however you do them) is like doing a chore or like I am supposed to for the sake of the reader but if the reader were out of the picture you wouldn’t do them or their would be no reason for them. then it may be a sign you haven’t developed your character enough or your character’s relationship to the world/ story/ others enough.
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That could be it. I just write and see where it takes me. I don’t flesh out my characters because I just don’t know what personality and appearance would fit them. I describe my characters through visions of the mind that I CANNOT EXPLAIN THROUGH WORDS AND DRAWING SKILLS! And because I can’t draw or express what I see in my mind, I just don’t do it.
I tend to overthink these things WAY before publishing even happens.
ooh i see. what you are describing is pantsing or “gardening”. and what I said still applies to that as well. Albeit a bit differently than if you were to plan it out ahead ie plotting or “architecting”.
in the case of writing and seeing where it takes you- as that is occuring your characters are developing consciously and unconsciously. so its okay if you don’t have it all figured out before. But you might not be aware of what is developing, being revealed as you write - and thus are not able to use that or allow that to effect as you continue to right ie it can’t take you somewhere because you have not established a connection or awareness to it.
another thing is while a lot of people write in terms of what would fit the character- you don’t have to take that approach. what you can also do is as you are writing organically things are going to come up- and those things will have a relationship to how the character looks and who they are- even if you don’t know what those things are yet. sometimes its the story and circumstances and world that make the choice for us. like oh having this detail would make the scene more compelling.
in both cases its just a matter of awareness of what is happening in front of you as you write and what has been unfolding.
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Yes, I am a natural panster who is trying to become a planster. Being a panster is my downfall because I really screw up something that I don’t want to mess up.
Writing chapter summaries and a plot outline summary from beginning, middle, and end, are my bread and butter until I don’t eat it enough. Not too much, but enough to savor it every now and then.