EWR Writing Guide - Must Read for New Writers

My Disclaimer
This is in no way an attempt to show off, plug my diary or dis any diary writers. It is here simply as a help to those who struggle at times. I hope this helps some people. I accept no responsibility for any negative feedback you may experience whilst writing your diary.

Choosing the right fed
Only you can choose the right fed. Ask yourself the question: "Which fed will you enjoy writing the most?" This is the fed for you. If you enjoy writing with it then it will reflect on your results.

Having the right roster
Same as choosing the fed ask yourself; What type of wrestlers do you enjoy writing with? Kevin Nash can be used to greater effect than Kurt Angle if you want to use him. It is not about having wrestlers who can put on the best matches. Remember people cannot see matches in your diary, they see your writing and how you use your roster. Personally I prefer using charismatic workers like Chris Jericho and Chris Nowinski, so find out what your favourite type of wrestlers you like. Having said that I will offer you two other pieces of advice. Firstly stick to those you know, you will be able to get into character more and put on better promos, interviews etc. And finally you need to have a diverse balance on your roster, I also need guys like The Undertaker and Triple H are needed for the charismatic guys to play off.

Starting the diary
So many times I have seen the first post wasted. Don’t start with ‘WWE Diary, feedback please’ then follow it up with a show. Think of an original back story, it is more important to have a decent back story than it is to put on a decent first show. A wasted first post shows readers you lack the effort and creativity needed to make a successful diary. It also gives readers a negative view of your diary and they will either ignore it or not see your shows for their true worth.

Show content
Here is where many diaries fall down, I see Hell In A Cell matches too often, I see WWE title matches too often, I don’t see enough original ideas. For me the content of the show is far more important than match descriptions. Imagine you are watching the show, get into the mood of it. i.e. SmackDown is a competitive mood driven by great matches whereas Raw is a more intense angle and gimmick driven show. Use gimmick matches and title bouts sparingly and build up to them in advance, anyone can bung a title or gimmick match together to boost ratings but it shows no thought has gone into it. Plan where each show is going to leave you, as a reader I want to see a realistic diary which could realistically take place, not Hell In A Cell or Ladder matches every other match.

Appearance
Human nature attracts us to things that look good. If your diary is clear, easy to read and good to look at then readers will take longer to red your shows and take it all in. If it is plain, hard to read and boring it will be skim read and not given a fair chance. Use bold and colour, but do not go overboard. Just find a layout that you like.

Bringing readers back
Writing something memorable and original on each show is vital in keeping readers interested. Whether it be an original angle or match variation or a funny promo, or even an ending that leads onto the next show, will bring readers back. Previews and hyping of big shows/matches helps as well. Originality is paramount.

Feedback
Learning to take all feedback, whether it be good or bad, constructively is important in running a successful diary. Good feedback is fine, it builds your confidence up and makes you want to write more, however you must always aim for more praise and better praise. Don't get complacent, keep the high standard up and you'll be ok. Negative feedback is harder to deal with, however it is worth more to you. Take note of any suggestions regardless of the tone they were written in, use them to better your diary. If you get a reply like "this is utter s*** you are a talentless w*****" then use this as motivation to improve your diary and prove them wrong.

Putting Shows Out
Remember the golden rule, quality over quantity. One good show is better than three bad shows. So take your time when writing and don't be pressured by your readers. If you aren't happy with a show then take some time out and come back to it later. Always read your shows a while later after finishing, an idea that sounded good first time might not be such a good idea in you view later. I would advise you not to take too much of a workload on, always do less diaries at once than you think you can manage, I would advise you to only do one at a time, like I said earlier it's quality not quantity.

What next?
So what do you do after you have written a successful diary. Well I would like to make a shout out for doing a split diary with someone you respect as a writer. Split diaries may not be the most popular but they will help you develop as a writer the most. Do not worry about what feedback you get on the shows, concentrate on putting together great shows whilst discussing your ideas with your partner. Experiment, change your style a little, have fun. Do not feel pressured by anyone, just talk between you. My split diary helped me so much. You'll head back into the single world a better writer.

Main points to remember
- Get a good mix of you'll enjoy working with
- Make a good first post
- Write realistic, original and well presented shows
- Take you time with shows, it's quality not quantity
- Take all feedback constructively
And finally:

DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES COPY AND PASTE. WRITE ALL RESULTS BY HAND.

This is the most important thing to remember. I write the shows myself then book them into EWR afterwards to get ratings.

One last thing. Use good English and make sure your spelling is correct, it makes it so much easier to read.

Right, this isn't greatly planned; it's entirely on the fly. I'll write a better, more detailed version later on if needed...

Anyway, often, I look in here, and I see lots of 'what should I do next?' questions. So I thought I'd give you a little insight into how it's done in the real world, but adapted to EWR, to help with diaries. This is partially because when I read some of the diaries here, I see a lot of feuds that could've worked, but didn't. Why? Because the audience wasn't given a reason for it to be happening.

The Guide
With that said, I'll move on to the guide. 'So what do I do first?' you ask. Go through your roster. Work out who you want, and where on the card you want them. If you'd like to make your lower midcarder a main-eventer, you can't just book him there right away; you have to build him to it. How? Feud him with people higher on the card until he gets there. This may take 3 months, it may take a year, but it will work. The most important thing is to plan, and stick to that plan as far as possible. Always know exactly what you will be doing for the next four weeks, if you have a TV show, or the next four months if you don't.

Length
About 12 inches, thank you.

In all seriousness, this may seem basic, but it really isn't. Always book from a mark's perspective. For example, say I wanted to book a Big Show vs. Kevin Nash feud, (Don't laugh; it WOULD get over in real life.) I wouldn't book it for say... three months. I might give it one month at the most, because even for the casual fan, it will get boring if it's any longer. However, if I were booking Chris Benoit vs. Kurt Angle, I'd be well inclined to give it three months. Unless your diary is pre-1984, do not book feuds more than three months in length , because it isn't realistic, and won't hold the interest of a lot of members. If you book a diary dated before 1984, however, you can get away with it, because it is both realistic for the time, and because a lot of your reader are likely to be reading because they have some recollection of that era, or are a fan of old-school wrestling, so they will be used to that format. The length of feuds, ideally, should be divisible in weeks by four, with some exceptions. This is so that you can slot it in nicely between Pay-Per-Views. The exceptions to this rule are normally minor feuds that you don't need to finish up by the PPV, but you'd like to build up for the next one. An example of this, loosely put, is the current Lesnar-McMahon feud. It is an off-shoot of the McMahon-Mr. America fiasco, which leads to the other exception, off-shoot feuds. I recently booked a storyline for a friend in which his two main eventers were feuding, and both had female valets. So I made the feud start between the main eventers because of the valets, then let the valets have their own feud which lasted beyond the next big event, onto the next one.

Reasons
Every feud needs a reason. Again, I know it's common sense, but a lot of EWB diaryists ignore it. I've lost track of how many times I've seen people feud guys on the basis of nothing more than being the top heel and top babyface. It can be a simple reason, like the heel's valet attacking the face's 'girlfriend' or a complicated one, 'You always held me down in the past.' (A la Eddie Guerrero & Chris Benoit recently.) It doesn't matter what the reason is, but it needs to be substantial, entertaining and compelling. Think of it this way. If you book The Rock and Steve Austin in a feud, it may have entertainment value, but there is no 'legitimate' heat between the two, which leads your audience to think 'Why are they fighting? There’s no reason for it.' Think about it in real life. When you get into fights at school, it isn't 'just because'... someone always starts it.

Turns
So you have decided who to feud, and why, and even for how long... but shock horror, they're both babyfaces! That means you need to turn one heel. So think about it... who would make the best heel? Then think again... is that best for the company, or your long-term booking? Be prepared to think outside the box, you may become a revolutionary in the world of your game. I'll give another example. Think Eric Bischoff, WCW, 1996. He booked the unthinkable... The Hogan heel turn. Why was this revolutionary? Well if Hogan hadn't turned heel, then the nWo wouldn't have formed, meaning it couldn't run forever and kill WCW. But also, if there had been no nWo, there'd have been no D-X, and no attitude era. Had it not been for D-X, neither the WWF nor WCW would have felt the need for more exciting wrestling to win the ratings, thus the WCW Cruiserweight and WWF Light heavyweight divisions wouldn't have happened, thus we would be stuck watching only big men on WWE TV right now. No-on would have heard of Rey Mysterio outside of Mexico and ECW, no-one would know Rob Van Dam outside of his little corner of Philly. This just goes to show, always explore every possibility, instead of going with the obvious. Think about it. Had... Lex Luger run in at BATB 96 to join the nWo... there'd have been no shock... the nWo would have had no initial impact, and it no doubt would have died within a year, killing the careers of Hall, Nash & Luger with it.

Purpose
Now you've set up everything for the feud, you need one thing in mind. Why? This is a different 'why?' to the 'Why are they feuding?' This one is a 'why are you doing the feud?' So think about it, like I said at the start... what do you want to achieve? Maybe you'd like to elevate Steve Lombardi to the WWE Title shot he never had. Maybe you want to produce a series of classic matches for a title. Whatever the reason, before you can even start booking, you need to know why you're doing it.

Booking the feud itself
This is (obviously) the most important bit. The important thing is to keep it fresh. Ideally, with exceptions, you never have the opponents meet one on one until the blow off match. (Although you can always start the feud from a match between the two, and build to the rematch.) The general exception to this rule is when you split a tag team by having one turn on the other. If you must book them in the ring together, do it as a tag match, incorporating another feud as well. As for backstage segments... use them sparingly. For example, if you keep using backstage segments (x cuts promo on y, y ambushes x, y cuts promo on x, and so on and so forth...) you will bore the audience, and kill the heat. As a general guide, using run-ins and match aftermaths is better entertainment. Also, remember, the ending of a feud should, ideally, be linked to the beginning of the next one for both characters in some way. If it isn't, and you have a big enough roster, take one of the guys in the feud of TV for a month immediately after the feud ends, or give him a congratulatory speech to make t his opponent, or whatever, then get him the hell off of there.

To close off, I'll give you an example of a fully booked feud. I've chosen to use Rob Van Dam and Rey Mysterio. I chose these two because they appeal to both the smarks and Mr. Joe Average fan, which is, ideally, what you'd be looking to book, but remember, regardless of what conflicting opinion you may have, there is no way of escaping this one rule: the casual fans ALWAYS come first when booking.

Reason

This feud is born from the tag team of Mysterio and RVD. They were my tag champs until the last show, when they lost because A-Train was able to destroy Mysterio quickly and easily. RVD got in the ring and shouted at Rey, before telling him that he (Mysterio) wasn't carrying his weight in the ring. He then said "In this team, I'm the whole damn show. You aren't even half a show, you're a commercial break."

This is the motivation for the feud.

Purpose

The purpose of this feud is to elevate Rey to the Upper Midcard, where RVD is currently situated.

The Shows

I will be only booking this over 4 shows, just to give you the basic idea of how to plan a feud.

Show 1: We have a midcard interview, where Terri Runnels is with RVD. Terri observes that RVD said some harsh things to Mysterio last week, and asks him why. RVD tells her that Mysterio isn't on his level, and that he had to carry the team. He also says that it is because of Rey's inadequacy that they lost the tag team titles. After the interview, Matt Hardy passes RVD and Terri. Matt is heading for the ring to defend his Cruiserweight belt against Mysterio. RVD asks Matt to make an example out of Mysterio for him. Rey beats Matt Hardy, at which point RVD runs in and beats Mysterio down.

Show 2: The next week, our main event is RVD and Matt Hardy vs. Rey Mysterio and Billy Kidman. RVD and Matt win when Shannon Moore attacks Billy, leaving Mysterio on his own against RVD and Matt. (You could use this to work into a Kidman-Moore feud, if you wanted.) Naturally, RVD and Matt win.

Show 3: Rey and Billy are arguing because Billy left him alone. Matt and Shannon come in and goad Rey and Billy for losing. Billy and Rey run at Matt and Shannon, ready to attack, before Matt challenges them to a match in the ring. Matt and Shannon win the match through the interference of RVD. This prompts Rey Mysterio to challenge RVD to a cage match on the next show.

Show 4: Rey and RVD have the cage match, but not before Terri interviews Rey. She asks Rey why he challenged RVD to a cage match, and he explains that he did it so that he and RVD can face off to prove who the better man is without having Matt or Shannon interfere. Terri points out the size difference, to which Rey says that while RVD may be bigger, you need speed to escape the cage, and he knows he is faster than RVD. The cage match then goes to a clean win via escape for Rey Mysterio, which wins him the feud, and gets him over.

That may not be perfect, because, as I said, this was on the fly. Normally in real life you'd tweak it over and over until you got it exactly right. (Unless you're a WWE writer, I should think this is the exact method they use ) However, for the purposes of an EWR diary, this would be sufficient for it to be entertaining.

ALSO... Just because I know I'll get asked it... You should only ever have a maximum 5 feuds going at one time, because otherwise you have too many to work through properly, and you'll confuse yourself and your audience. You’ll also run out of room on the cards to book them. Unless you have a roster split, in which case you should have an even number on each brand... three should suffice, but you can do it with four. You should always be sure to have the same number on each brand though, otherwise on brand looks stronger than the other.

I hope this has helped. Please leave feedback and suggestions below. If you'd like to reproduce this on another forum, please at least do me the courtesy of asking my permission first, and giving me full credit.

Appendix 1:

Problems you might encounter, and how to solve them:

What do I do if one of my feuders gets injured?
I would advise one of two things. End it off-screen, if it's a long term injury. If its short-term, (3 months or less) then put it on ice. Use the guy who isn't injured to put people over in the mean time, then, if it was the face who got injured, you can book it so he comes back, blames the injury on his nemesis, and restart the feud. If it was the heel, you can do the same thing, but reverse the roles. Face becomes heel, hel becomes face.

If the worker gets stolen, you can have a babyface promo on him for deserting you... just have it as self promotion, or use the 'explain feud ending off-screen angle).'

If a worker goes into rehab... fire him, or if he has to be fired for other reasons, take the opponent off your main show for a month or two, and start a new feud.

In this guide, you won't see alot of the 'common' stuff like 'Picking a Fed', or Developing a Schedule etc., but rather a look into a lot of the smaller things, that many people may overlook, that are just as important as; 'the simple stuff'

Many of these are in no particular order.

FUNDAMENTALS

Misconceptions

"My diary has to be incredibly detailed to be successful."

While diaries that are largely detailed get the most response and best praises, it is not a necessity to write out, long promos, long match details, or long stage directions. Just as there is an audience for the meticulous and detailed, there are also a handful of people that like short, quick to the point, diaries as well. In these cases, one must think about Quality, not Quantity. Sometimes, the shorter match descriptions do a better job than the long descriptions.

"The First Post Is The Most Important Post"

Sure, its important. But it's not the most important post. This depends mostly on a writer's patience, than anything else. If the first post is 'wasted', for any reason (Crappy backstory, grammar, etc.), then it is up to the writer to make up for it later on in his diary. Sure, he may not pick up those handful of uncertain first readers, but if the Diary continues for a long time, they will return--realizing that the first post, wasn't representative of that writers ability at writing a diary.

"I'm not getting any replies. No one is reading My Diary."

This has been the complaint of many, and often discourages people to continue their diary. While it's very helpful, and courteous for readers to drop a line, to let the writer know that they're reading--a lot of readers simply don't leave feedback. For some, the reason is laziness. For others, they simply have nothing to say, yet. I would concentrate more on the views, then the # of replies.

Tactics

Storylines/Angles

This is what makes or breaks a diary. Sure, a feud between Triple H & Brock Lesnar will always get ratings in your games...but will it get readers for your diary? In some cases, of course!--in other cases despite quality writing--many people may just become quickly 'bored' of such an idea, and move on. Use your imagination. Try to come up with something that hasn't been done before. Or, if it has been done before, think of ways to make it different, unique, and worthwhile. This is a great way of making YOUR DIARY stand out. A good example of this would be Cardinal's 7 Deadly Sins angle. This angle was what Jay built her diary on--it was new--fresh--and different. This is what helped make that diary popular. Also, continuously developing NEW and innovative storylines is a key to increasing longevity and continued interest in a diary. That is what made such diaries as Bloodlines 3:16's EWF vs. XPW so successful. He has a history...which actually serves as a root for MORE storylines and angles as his diary continues. The same can be said for my diary. Now, not only can I create new angles with the variety of workers that I have, but based on past custom storylines, I can build more angles, based on THOSE storylines...hope that made sense.

Writing

The best things about writing a diary, is the many styles of writing that one can adopt. I use a wierd one, which can be particularly attributed to my diaries' success--that will addressed a bit more, later. But, many times, different types of writing styles interest readers. Some people choose to cut and paste; which alway suck. Others write from the perspectives of the play by play announcers. Also, there are those who simply summarize. Some writers write in the style of an internet report. Others centre their results, and speak as if they're sitting in the crowd. I've read some from the perspective of a writer. Some change writing styles with each show. No matter what type of method or methods you use, grammer and punctuation are key! Sure, the occasional typo, or a re-occurring small error is not a big deal--but no one wants to read a completely butchered up diary. If you respect the English language, people will respect your diary.

Getting new Readers

Of course, the obvious things like putting your diary your sig and getting other people to do so, will help spread the word. If you impress people, your readers may put your diary in their sig. From established members to nOObs...the more; the merrier. Another idea of putting a little bit of information about your diary/federation in your sig may also help. For instance, if someone see's that my current WWF Champion is, Steve Corino..., that alone could drive Steve Corino fans to checking out the diary. However, I found the best way to attract more readers is too CONTINUE YOUR DIARY! Once again, being patient plays a key role here. If you continue to update your diary regularly, people will start to respond---then...in turn--members of the board will notice that your diary is gathering up quite a number of replies and views, and pages. Then they'll say, "Hmm. Let me take a look inside. This writer must be doing something right, if he's got 23 replies and a few hundred views." And just like that, you have a new reader. This pattern will continue of course, that is...if the writer continues.

Inspector Tips

Here are some special methods that I use, when writing my diaries. These are some things that you may want to incorporate into your diary...these tibits are also my 'Advice or Recommendations' that I would give someone, who ever asked me for tips of some sort.

Please keep in mind that these are not fundamentals. This is my personal advice, derived from my style of writing. Hence, they are my opinions, and may not be attractive to you.

Quality over Quantity-Updates
First off, I'm a firm believer in this mentality. I update my WWF'92 with 1 or 2 shows per day...sometimes, even 1 show every 2 days, depending on my schedule. Reason is, that certain parts of my shows are very detailed...and it pays off. When reading diaries, I'd rather read 11 well written segments, then 11 crap updates in one day. Plus, once again, QUALITY does NOT always mean great detail...something I really don't do anyway...[SEE NEXT TIP]

Developing a Format
Developing a format is GREAT. Developing a format is a great way to keep readers hooked into your diary; this way an established routine/format leads the readers to already know 'Whats up Next'. Here's what I mean;
**I run basically two shows a week. RAW, and my secondary show, WWF Worldwide. They are both always written in the same style;
1) Quick match descriptions
2) Third person view writing style
3) Written out Promos.
**
Once again, this, I think puts away the myth that match write-ups have to be detailed in order to be successful. Hell, I even give away the ending of the match, during my first sentence. But its the way that the diary is written that makes the most difference. It's way I describe certain aspects of a scene. I write in the third person--that is, from the perspective of some else who already watched the show. Actually--I write in the style of a Dave Meltzer recap (i.e. my heading--by 'Dave Schmeltzer'). Of course, this style is much like the widely used 'Internet Style' that many diaries recently have often emulated.

I think that this method is effective, in that it allows people to 'paint a picture', when reading my diary. It does it for me when I write, and it translates to the reader. I think TheReilDeal, once said, "When I read (Javert's Diary), I imagine it actually happening in my head!". That's exactly what I aim to do.

Finally, I tend to put in my best updates into Pay Per Views. THIS is always a great way to picking up new readers, and ensuring that your current readers come back for more. Anticipation, and announcements of Pay Per Views are key; and can always be the turning point of a diary/fed.

Character Potrayal
"I can hear Jesse Ventura saying the things that you wrote! You know how to write in his style!"

When I got that response in my thread, I knew that I was portraying my characters effectively. From the Wrestlers, to the Announcers, to the booking team--everything will come together with proper character potrayal & developement. If someone is a badass, make that character come through. If he's a *censored*--show signs of passivness through your writing. In a serious diary, I've pushed The Berzerker and The Mountie to Main Event status. Hell, Mountie is a freakin' legend in my federation. And each time I mention The Mountie being such an important part of (my) WWF history, there is never a complaint or laughter--simply because I've developed his character over time, so well, that him being somewhat of a Main Event force, is believable--in my WWF. Promos are always an effective away for you to present a character, just as you want to.

Be Logical; But Don't Limit Yourself
Don't be a Vince Russo. But at the same time, don't limit your imagination. Sometimes, the things that turn people onto diaries, are unconventional and different. Don't be afraid to try out new things. Remember, this is still YOUR game. So if you want to give Barry Horowitz the Main Event WWF push that he never got, then go for it. This is the exact kind of thing that people want to read. One of the main aspects that attract people to my diary is my unique uppercard; consisting of, but not limited to, The Blue Blazer, Bret Hart, Jerry Lawler, Steve Corino, & The Sandman. Combine that with an unique 'never before done' midcard, and you instantly have people curious--including myself. So, don't limit yourself, to give your diary the extra sparkle that it needs, to get that extra reader.

Don't be discouraged; Just Continue YOUR game
At the risk of sounding redundant, I'm putting this here, in this section, only because this is something that I have experienced. I've started a few diaries on the very first EWB board, only to find it dwindle down to the bottom--then to the 2nd page in mere minutes. I did the same at EWB II--starting a few diaries, the longest one being an innovative Street Fighter/WWE diary. It had many views, but I got responces from literally the same 2 people all the time. So, discouraged, I stopped that as well. Finally, after a few more attempts I decided to do that little WWF'92 diary, with the mentality that this was simply a personal enhancement to my game. My backstory was just WHAT I wanted to do. So, I always looked forward to writing up updates. And, for the first few posts, I didn't get many replies. But I just kept updating. Why, even after my first post, I got a reply from someone who was quickly turned off by the fact that I used WCW Names for my WWF--which realistically would lead to a lawsuit. But I continued, once again using the diary to enhance my personal game. The views were nice, replies were nicer--but they were not my main concern. Finally, after my diary (struggled) to reach 4 pages, I started to pick up new readers each day. And from there, I knew, that not only were people reading--but now, that they saw that I was serious about continuing the diary; they started to reply and interact with what was going on in my game. And that, is the starting of a successful EWB Diary.

Oh, as an addendum...My write ups NOW are fairly long..but as you will see (When I repost Part I), they always weren't as detailed. Only after I established an audience, did I start to get really detailed in my updates.

QUICK RAP UP/GUIDE

**Pick a Federation that you think you could play and write about for a while. If you're not having fun with your game...it will show in the quality of your diary which will quickly come to an end.

**Don't worry about writing out detailed matches and promos. If you don't want to write too much, then make up for the lack of detail in other ways-- ie. Angles, workers, characters, backstory etc.

**Replies are great. But the lack of replies may be misleading. We had alot of post whores on the EWB II board, which is why many people are a bit discouraged when they don't receive replies, now. No longer are the insignificant, "Wow this looks great! Keep it up!", or "Cool! Can't wait for the next show!" replies in every diary. And it is for THIS reason, that replies are moderate. Now, people are WAITING, to post intelligent helpful replies. But its up to you to spark the interaction. A quick glance at the view numbers around the board shows me that there ARE PLENTY OF readers. It's up to you spark interaction.

**Take Constructive Criticism. Don't get offended if people say that your show sucks. As long as they provide valid points as to what it is that needs improvement; then their point is just as valid as the next guy who says, "Cool show!"

**Think of storylines/angles that will make your diary stand out from others. Break the norm. Use your imagination.

**Be creative! This guide is mostly for writing a 'regular' diary. But remember, you can also do comedy/offshoot diaries as well. I'm doing a Video Game Diary with a scenerio, many are using the EWB scenerio, while others did other things, like Essa's Bad Gimmick Society diary, or Mr. PPV's infamous Care Bear diary.

**BE PATIENT! There's nothing more rewarding then playing a long game and writing a diary for it. Looking back at how things have changed is a great feeling...and soon, you won't even be worrying about 'who's reading'...because you'll have a cult following for the game/diary that YOU CREATED.

Diaries are the only way, to bring this text based game, To Life.

It's a bit long-winded, and maybe redundant at times. But, I do hope that it helps those who are either, unsure of what to write about, or how to go about writing it...as well as those who are just looking for general advice, that you really won't find anywhere, except in Javert's head.