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Hello everyone and happy new year! 2018 is upon us, and along with it, the chance for a fresh start and new ideas. So, we thought we'd ask all of you what kind of fun events you would like to see this year!

All suggestions are welcome, but naturally, we can't make any promises that every idea will be used. In addition to the questions about events, there are also a few general questions about you; what brought you to our community, what you like about us, what sections interest you the most, etc. This is so that we can find out what our members want to get out of this site, and what we should focus on to help you get what you want. As such, I'd like you to answer as many questions as you can, but you're also allowed to leave any of the questions blank if you want to.

In order to submit your survey, please copy the questions below, start a conversation with me in private messaging, and send me the survey with as many questions filled out as you can. I'm going to take the information you give me and post it in the staff section where we can discuss how best to meet everyone's needs. Because of this set up, you'll be allowed to post anonymously by leaving the Username blank. I'll know who submitted the answer, but the rest of the staff won't. However, this isn't recommended, so if you're comfortable leaving your name, I highly suggest you do so. :)

Username:
Age:
Join date:
How did you find KHV?
What made you decide to join KHV?
How active are you on the site?
What section or subsection are you most comfortable posting in?
What KHV event, either discontinued or still running, do you like the most?
What event do you dislike the most?
What is one event idea that you would like to see implemented on KHV?
What are some of your hobbies?
Do you think you’d like to stay on KHV for awhile?
Why or why not?
Extra comments:

~CLOSED~​

Dialogue is perhaps one of the most important aspects of a story. You can have an amazing plot, beautiful characters, the plot twist of a lifetime, and the perfect ending, but if your characters can’t talk to each other, it’s going to fall flat. Dialogue is used to set moods and tones, to develop characters, to relay information integral to the plot, and to give a sense of realism to your story. As such, it’s going to be crucial that you learn the ins and outs of character dialogue. If the readers can’t follow what your characters are saying, they’re not going to enjoy your book.

“Woah…” Marushi smiled, reading over the introduction she’d just written and feeling a sense of accomplishment. “That’s a good start. Hey, Jo, come read this!”

Calling over to her sister, Marushi pointed at the computer screen, smiling proudly. “Isn’t that a great beginning?”

Jo walked over to stand behind Marushi, leaning over and reading the introduction before nodding. “Sounds good,” she agreed. “What are you going to follow it up with?”

“Well, I haven’t quite decided,” Marushi admitted. “I was thinking about writing up some actual dialogue, to give an example of what I’m talking about, but I don’t really feel like making up characters and setting a scene for it or anything.”

“Hmm…” Jo looked over the introduction for a moment longer before standing. “Why don’t you just write a conversation with us? Like, looking over the introduction. Like what we’re doing right now.”

“Dude, that’s actually a really good idea,” Marushi blinked up at her sister, letting out a slight chuckle. “See, this is why I keep you around.”

“Gee, thanks,” Jo rolled her eyes, though Marushi could tell by the smirk on her sister’s face that Jo knew she was teasing. “Love you too, Mar.”

~~~

Plot twist: My sister isn’t here. XD But reading through that, you thought I was just writing down something that actually happened, didn’t you? That’s the goal when it comes to writing dialogue. It should flow naturally, it should feel like you’re actually reading a real life conversation. Here are some of my tips when it comes to writing dialogue:

1. Don’t use the word ‘said’ when there’s another way to say what you mean. I won’t say not to use it at all, because honestly, I do feel like there are times when it’s alright to simply add a ‘she said’ onto the end of a sentence, just not very often.

“I just don’t understand,” she said, pinching the bridge of her nose in irritation.

See? That looks just fine. But, it’s not a good idea to use the word ‘said’ more than you need to, and as you can tell from the conversation I ‘had’ with my sister, there are plenty of ways to get your meaning across without using the word ‘said’ at all. I’ve found that a lot of times, if you describe what the character is doing in lieu of the word said, you’ll not only avoid the trap, you’ll also let your readers know what your characters are feeling about what’s being said. This will make your characters seem more real, and will make your writing read more like a story and less like a script.

2. Try not to use the same word too many times.

This applies in any aspect of writing, but it’s still important to remember when approaching dialogue. Using the same word over and over will make your writing seem stale, so it’s important to keep things fresh and not to become redundant. One thing that’s important to keep in mind is that it’s important not to use words like ‘important’ four times in an important sentence. XD

3. Don’t worry too much about grammar when you’re writing the actual dialogue itself - unless the character would worry about grammar. Most of the time, people don’t talk in proper, structured sentences. The rest of your writing should all be written correctly, obviously, but don’t be afraid to drop a preposition here and there if the character would do so. Also, contractions are your friends here. XD People do not don’t usually talk without using contractions, or at least, I have not haven’t met anyone who would not wouldn’t use contractions. That just does not doesn’t sound natural and is not isn’t something you would find in everyday conversation. XD

4. If you’re stuck, talk to someone.

I guess, this one might be harder if you don’t have a writer for a sister like I do, but a lot of the time, if you can’t figure out how to write a conversation, you just have to step back and talk to someone. Talking out loud about the problems you’re facing helps you see things from a different angle, and gets your creative juices flowing so that you can figure out what’s got you stuck in the first place. Sometimes, when my sister is too busy to come to our chat and talk to me, and I’m stuck, I’ll actually start typing out the responses she might have said, and I’ll write both halves of the conversation, responding as my sister until I’ve figured out what I need to. And then I usually send her a picture of the conversation and she replies “lol sounds about right.” XD So yes. Marushi talks to herself. XD

So there, just a couple tips and tricks I have for writing dialogue. Obviously, everyone’s going to have different tricks that help them with this tricky, but important part in the writing process.

What are some tricks you’ve come up with?

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Hey guys! As you can see, the Writer’s Nook has been given a makeover! We’ve worked hard to try and create an awesome new place for everyone to post their stories, make new friends, hire out help, and get writing advice for when you face the dreaded block. But there’s a lot of new stuff, so let’s take a quick peek at two of the new sections, hmm?

Networking

Here, you’ll be able to officially hire Betas, Editors, and Critiquing Partners to help you in the various stages of story writing! Authors looking for Betas will be able to post advertisements, so that Betas can (hopefully) apply for the chance to review earlier drafts of your book, while Editors and Critiquing Partners will be able to create a page all for themselves, so that authors looking for a little extra help can come find you!

Tips and Tricks

In the Tips and Tricks section, you’ll be able to find or post threads containing advice about anything writing related! How to write a plot twist, tips on overcoming writer’s block, the best methods for outlining stories… If you have some know-how, go ahead and share! And if you’re looking for help and can’t find a thread already, we even have a Q&A board for you to ask your questions and get answers directly!

In addition to these two new sections, we’ve reorganized the Writer’s Nook, so let’s look at what’s changed:

• Original Works and Fanfiction have been merged into one Written Works subsection, with new Prefixes added to accommodate
• Archives have been moved into the Written Works subsection
• The main ‘Writer’s Nook’ page is now free to contain all news and updates about the WN, without being lost among the fanfics
• The Workshops and Recreation subsection and the Poetry and Lyrics subsection are still here for your enjoyment, though be sure to check out the new rules in the Workshops area to understand what belongs there and what belongs in the new Networking section.

I know the place is gonna look a little bare in there for awhile, but with all these new changes, I hope we’ll be able to get it up and running in a little while, so that we all have a place to share our creativity and grow together as a real writing community!

Happy New Year!

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1. All works posted in this section must follow site Content rules, which means nothing over PG13 or T may be posted here. All works in the romance genre must also follow these guidelines, with no graphic sexual scenes posted on-site. Works in the Erotica genre are not allowed. Swearing and cursing will not be censored or moderated, however, but please keep in mind that this site is for a game targeting a mostly young audience, so if your work leans on the mature side, please indicate it in the OP.
   
   
2. Make use of the prefixes! They’re here to make your work easier for your target audience to find, so don’t be afraid of them. XD
   
   
3. Post all updates of a story to the same thread. Don’t post new chapters in separate threads, as this will clutter the section and make your work hard to follow. All updates to a story must be posted in the original thread the story was first posted in.
   
   
4. Do not leave flame comments on people’s stories. Not only is this rude, but this section counts towards posts, so spam, flaming, and unhelpful comments will be deleted. If you want to leave a review to a writer’s work, please, do so! But be careful to leave reviews that are respectful and thoughtful, and don’t just post a single sentence like “this was good, can’t wait for more.” Put some heart into it, sometimes those reviews are what keeps a story alive. XD
   
   
5. Don’t post Networking Adverts, Prompts, Workshops, or Guides in this section. There are other sections for such things, this section is only for posting actual written works.
   
   
6. Only an author may bump their stories, and you may only bump when adding new content to an OP. Don't post small comments just to bring your story back to the forefront of the page.