About the Belonging Short story (2 Viewers)

[Paulus_999]

Just wondering is it possible to write the story in third person without the protagonist actually saying anything aloud and still get a good mark (13+)

Thanks in advance

 

[brendroid]

Uh, you should be able to. Only perspective I would advise not doing (unless you can really pull it off well) would be second person.

 

[Paulus_999]

Yea i hate second person anyway, confuses the hell out of me when im trying to write something in second person.
Would it better to include his thoughts to show character development

 

[brendroid]

It depends on what effect you're trying to create. Do you want something more intimate or less intimate?

 

[Paulus_999]

Probably more of a deep character.

When i finish would i be able to PM u a copy of it to read over and see if its alright. I really want to nail the short story coz i usually suck at the unseen text part (7/15 for my half yearly exam)

 

[brendroid]

I don't see any reason why not...

What level do you do?

 

[Paulus_999]

just standard English.

 

[brendroid]

Right, just wondering.

 

[thongetsu]

but dialogue is usually very important in stories.

 

[thongetsu]

to show character development you should use metaphors and heaps of language techniques like pathetic fallacy.

 

[brendroid]

Dialogue is important for creating character voice, so you do need it, but it needs to come across well. You only have a certain amount of time to write - don't waste it writing pointless 'hello, how are you?' 'good thanks, and you?', use it to actually talk about things and move the plot forward.

 

[Paulus_999]

im thinking that the main character only has thoughts throughout the majority of the novel. Then towards then end he breaks his silence. Hopefully it shows how he doesn't belong to school, but still belongs to himself.
Also if its in third person when i talk about his thoughts do i use quotation marks or just state what he is thinking?

 

[brendroid]

You have to signpost that he's thinking something. Just keep in mind that first person's an option for you to use.

 

[Paulus_999]

"You have to signpost that he's thinking something."

Not 100% what you mean by this. Does that mean you write something like he believed or he thought before you actually write what hes thinking.

Eg: [FONT=&quot]He believed that school should allow people to create their own thoughts and opinions, but in reality he saw it as nothing more than a part time prison where conformity was almost forced upon. (actual excerpt from story)

I have considered writing in first person, but id like to finish off a third person narrative first to see if its any good

[/FONT][FONT=&quot] [/FONT]

 

[brendroid]

Yeah, just point out that he's thinking something.

 

[H4wk1n4t0r]

Yes, it is quite possible to write a story in third person, with minimal or without any dialogue, in fact, dialogue shouldn't really play a huge part. One of my practice creatives got full marks, with 8 words of dialogue, and then again it didn't contribute to the concept of belonging.

 

[gesh17]

Just wondering is it possible to write the story in third person without the protagonist actually saying anything aloud and still get a good mark (13+)

Thanks in advance

Yeah I've done it before. That being said, however, I incorporated a lot of philosophy within my creative and had a sustained internal monologue.