I’m writing stories on Episode. Mainly one called “Save Me”. But I can’t write them without help from friends or strangers, this makes me feel like I’m a failure as a writer. WHAT SHOULD I DO?!
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First off, don’t feel like a failure because you asked for help. It’s part of the learning process. Three-four years ago, when I started writing, there were no fvcking tutorials whatsoever! I didn’t feel like watching the YouTube vids about it either. It took me a full year and a half to know pretty much everything about writing. Now that there are tutorials out, you should check them out and see if they help. Watch the YouTube vids about writing the script if you need to. And if that doesn’t work? Just keep asking us for help, the Episode Community is so nice! Eventually you’ll remember everything and stuff.
All in all, what I’m trying to say is writing requires time and patience.
YOU ARE NOT A FAILURE!!!
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Ask for criticism / feedback on your stories. Beta readers will often help point out areas of weakness in your story, and you can learn from your mistakes.
The most important part is learning from your mistakes, and asking for help. You aren’t a bad author if you ask for help - it will only help you grow and become better than you already are.
If you’d like, I’d be happy to offer to a beta reader for you. 
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That would be nice. Thanks.
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Never feel afraid to ask for help from friends / strangers! If you ever are stuck in an idea plot hole, taking suggestions and twisting them to your own little unique way can create something original and creative.
Also, pm me if you’d like me to read your story. I’m in need of some new stories atm. 
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Okay, I get it, I’ve been in the exact same place as you before too.
Some advice:
- If your issues are with coding, read through all (and I mean ALL) of the manuals on the episode website. It may seem unnecessary and tedious, but if you really read through it and digest all of the information it will help you so much.
- If your issues are with the plot itself, try to make a rough outline of bit events in the story. Then, when inspiration strikes, you can fill in the smaller details.
I hope this helps, but you are not a failure!! It took me a year to learn all the ins and outs of episode, and they still release new things a lot! (when I was learning stuff, they released INK and that changed everything). Also, the portal is a lot easier to use as of recently (ish). Have fun writing
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It’s not coding and stuff like that I gave problems with it’s coming up with ideas and dialogue (mainly the dailouge) But thanks.
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I think the majority of us start there.
I can recommend that you practice. It costs a lot, especially at the beginning, but it’s necessary. Explore writing in general, not just on Episode. Read articles and books about writing. There’s a book that’s often recommended to aspiring screenwriters: it’s titled Save the Cat. Maybe check that out? Also, a lot of Episode writers have blogs with great advice, so check those out as well. And of course, watch movies and TV shows and observe how the scenes unfold, how the characters interact, what dialogue works. If you like reading, do the same with books. It is recommended that you follow the Hollywood style on Episode, though, so at least with movies and TV, you got a start.
Be observant, imitate. Let yourself be inspired by the stories you like. Remember that nothing is 100% original, so don’t feel bad about using elements from other things you’ve seen or read out there. Just add your own twist, thus making them your own. Maybe it’s the setting, the mood, or the characters’ backstories. Maybe it’s a combination of these and more. And when you’re ready, maybe write one scene, not necessarily from the beginning of your story. Keep experimenting, dare to “fail,” though it’s not failing, it’s learning. You have a desire to write, so you’ll get there.
I am on the same page as you right now, I think. I struggle a lot with writer’s block. But if you ever need someone to beta test your story, I’d be happy to.
Best of luck! Don’t give up.
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Here’s the most recent piece of dialogue I came up with:
Anna: Because of how close my father and I were.
Anna: We were inseparable.
Anna: Or so I thought…
Lindasia: How so?
Lindasia: What happened?
I got stumped again after that.
I don’t think that’s bad! It seems natural. Try to get in the characters to figure out what they say next. Or maybe have something happen to interrupt the conversation, some distraction. It depends on where the story is going, of course. But, I suppose… since Lindasia is asking Anna what happened, maybe you can show what happened, instead of having her just tell it. You could introduce a flashback scene right there and have Anna comment over it.
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Well, Anna is currently at a therapy session and Lindasia is her therapist. And Anna’s telling her about her abusive stepmom and negligent birth dad.
Do you think Anna is ready to talk about what happened? Is it painful for her? Or would it help her heal to do it now? Since she’s in therapy, I mean. Maybe you can have a choice here. 
Does Anna want to talk about it? Or does she prefer to do it some other time? And if she talks about it, in how much detail could she do it? And there you can decide if a flashback is the right way to go, or if having her just explain it through dialog is better.
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Well, Anna’s already had to talk about it through a trial (She’s also raising her dead aunt’s daughter as her own)
Hmm, there you go then. So maybe you don’t want to have the reader read about it again, right? So what if you make a cut in that scene, like, fading out to black or going to some other scene (if there are other characters or something else going on in the story at the same time), then fade back into the therapy scene with Anna and Lindasia, and just go from there? Anna has just finished telling what happened, and now Lindasia can respond. Maybe, just show time passing in some visual way.
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How about something like…
Anna: Because of how close my father and I were.
Anna: We were inseparable.
Anna: Or so I thought…
Lindasia: How so?
Lindasia: What happened?
@transition fade out black
Lindasia: Whoa… That’s terrible. I’m so sorry, Anna.
Yup! I think that flows nicely. You got this.
From what little you’ve told, I can already see that you have a good story there. You’ve given it a lot of thought. I hope I get to read it.
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It’s published! Here you go:
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Moved to Episode Fan Community since Community is for discussion of specific stories. Make sure to check out our Forum Tutorial for more info about where to correctly create topics, and feel to PM me if there are any questions.
Oops…xd
Whatever, lol.
Yeah, ideas and dialogue is probably harder than writing the script. What helps is planning the whole episode beforehand so you know what you’re doing.
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Don’t ever call yourself a failure! It’s okay to have your friends and people within the Episode community to help you write a story . Personally, I’ve had many people within the Episode community to help me with writing my stories until I started to get the hang of it. Therefore, you’re not a failure for having people help you write.
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