For me it is creating backstories for my characters. If anything I can come up with complex backstories that reflect the traits my characters have.
I'm good at stripping away all the illusions and pretensions from things and laying bare the raw, action-packed truth.
World Building, Characters, Dialogue, action and strong emotional scenes, I believe there might be others, but these are the top ones.
Usually I put in the points of the plot, characters as I do the plot, revise to story form, and than revise for that familiar SPAG check. I also don't do the normal route of starting 2nd volume while publishing 1st volume. I like to make several volumes before I publish my series of books and than continue onward from there. The reason for this is that my mind is analytical and so it is easier for me to do details first than story.
I don't really know. I think I am best at creating storylines that don't just take the typical route. And I am good at creating reasons for why a character is how they are.
I'm not really sure, because my writing is still evolving. But at this point, I would say that moving from the initial idea to a plan to the story itself. I started out a pantser, like @peachalulu, but found that it really doesn't work for the kinds of stories I write. I also think I have pretty good editing skills.
Hmm...I have random daydreams about my characters, often involving not-completely-related-but-kinda? background stories, which heavily emphasize symbolism. So I'm pretty good at themes/symbolism, as well as conceptions for plots and mood and tone. Now, about character development and personality traits... *sudden urge to jump off a bridge*
Characters and the world. When I first started I was incredibly good. I could imagine almost the whole story scene from scene in my head, but now I'm struggling about the premise of the plot and writing scenes are becoming difficult, but I think it's because I've been out of practice for quite a while.
I think for me, development is easiest. So things like what world, what culture, environment, characters, governement systems, flora, fauna, and key moments for characters all come normally to me. Maybe because I find those things the most interesting or important, who knows. Dialogue, narrative, and actually getting beliveable scenes where character growth occurs are my weaker points as you gotta make it believeable unlike the whole world building which it just has to mesh and make sense. I'll talk for hours about my world, the people, the cultures, key places and characters from lore, but god forbid I convince you my character had some sort of growth occur without stating it in bold font. Or maybe it's so subtle because I am a character scene/dialogue genius and don't even know... Yes, I am. I have no weaknesses!!!!
Dialogue. And dialogue. Also, dialogue. Characters also come easily to me, but my world of characters is relatively narrow.
I'll second this, but I'll also add, narrative tension. I have yet to master writing with emotion, tension, and conflict in a way that isn't overdone, cheesy, lame, annoying, or just plain flat. I can get it in most of my dialogue, but narration is a bit harder. I'm getting better at writing from within my character's POV, which primarily involves maintaining consistent voice, but also the things he would observe or think. I'm also improving at controlling the clarity and progression of information. This is one thing that shines in the editing. Editing is where I really do my best work. ha ha.
Perfection is attained not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing more to take away. - Antoine de Saint Exupéry Revision is the only part of writing that comes naturally to me, especially the process of whittling a scene or an entire plot down to the essentials. If every book in the world was edited by me, then the body of literature would contain about half as many words. Everything else is a conscious effort that suffers from indecision at every turn.
At this stage in my writing-or at least in my current project-I'd say it's crafting short but descriptive sentences. After a few years of stopping and starting my WIP, I've finally found a rhythm to crafting sentences with a good balance of description and pace.
Character development, especially their "back stories" and how it affects them presently... are my writing strong points. Everything else in regards to story creation - especially the [final] plot line is either half-thought-out or incomplete. (sobs to self; hugs characters.)
Dialogue and character creation are strong suits that I get props on. I think I'm pretty decent at the broad outlines of interesting plots but maybe not the nuts and bolts of constructing said plots.
Dialogue, first of all. I don't say it's good dialogue, but it flows nicely and I don't have to struggle with it usually. And then, coming up with connections and possibilities to flesh out the characters. As in, "Hey, I'll give him a father who . . . " Sometimes it feels like I'm discovering these things about them rather than making them up myself.
Oh, I don't know. I liked how the story with child called Merry and her Aunt Adelaide was shaping up. And the one about the more-than-slightly-tetched theatre seamstress. Maybe you'll tell me you write characters like that all the time, and that's what you mean by "narrow." But I've observed that they're not the run-of-the-mill protagonists on this site or anywhere else. I've been thinking of finding the Merry postings again and giving you a crit, but I worried that you'd made all the revisions you want and it's too late.
Ooh! No! I'd be delighted. In fact, the timing would be just exactly right, because I've been turning them over in my head lately and just about to get back to them.
I would like to think my strongest point would be my scene development and the actual pacing of the novel. I remember being told once to make sure every scene is relevant, if you feel it is not pushing the story onwards in any way then it is excessive and should be removed. Obviously there are some authors who circumvent this with their well known name. But as an amateur I like to think that I keep every bit relevant.
I'm not sure. Certainly I have no end of idea's and the small samples of writing I have completed people have commented on the naturalness of the scene and conversations. But as I'm yet to write anything completed I really can't say.
