From: remus@panix.com

mumble  wrote:
> Is storytelling a talent one is born with, or is it a skill that can be
> developed?

   Both.  It is commonly said that good writers are born with talent for
one aspect of storytelling -- characters, plot, description, and so on.
The rest you have to learn through practice.

   I think I have an in-built talent for plot.  Other authors are natural
at making their characters seem real.  G.R.R. Martin, I think, has a
born talent for description.  Everyone has their strengths; play to them,
while making sure your weaknesses aren't show-stopping flaws.

> Aside from autobiography, where do the stories come from?  Are they
> imagined up out of thin air?  Are they transformations of stories one
> has lived himself?  Other?

   Oh, boy.  Hmn.  The answer is 'all of the above plus syncretic mixing
of accumulated knowledge'.

   Let's take an example.  I have a webcomic about an old man whose
job is to commit genocide.  The root inspiration came from my experience
working in WMD detection, which gave me knowledge about chemical and
biological weapons.  Other characters come from my computer skills, my
struggle with empathic relations, and my infatuation with powerful women.

   It's important to note that all those elements were included consciously.
You can't just throw random stuff from your psyche into a pot and have it
gel together into a story...or at least that's never worked for me.  I play
with ideas, throw some away and keep others, always with an eye for what's
best for the story.  When the story needs an element that doesn't come to
me naturally, I research it.  Sea captains, wheelchair design, whales,
volcanoes -- these are things I know nothing about, so I looked them up and
then decided how to introduce them into the mix.

   The plot line I'm pulling out of thin air.  I trust myself to pull
plot out of nothing, because I think that I have a talent for it.  :)
Or in other words, I can do it subconsciously so it doesn't occupy my
conscious thinking time.

   I guess it comes down to research (what you don't know), practice (what
you do know), and self-awareness (of your inbuilt talents).  Get those
down and you'll go pretty far, no matter what field you're in.

...                                                                  ...
Remus Shepherd 
   New Webcomic:  Genocide Man             http://www.genocideman.com/
   Life is funny.  Death is funnier.  Mass slaughter can be hilarious.

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
 * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)