I DON'T UNDERSTAND?!?!

Some people tend to use romanized korean words when writing a story. Sure, it's nice to have the simple annyeong or whatnot, but some authors tend to overdo it. It's A-Okay if you're talking about food such as Kimchi Jigae. But if you're going to use something like... I don't know... hwangyong-hamnida, I bet that most people wouldn't understand what the phrase meant unless they were to google search it. That also disrupts the whole purpose. I understand that the settings are mainly in korea, but the common language here in this community is english.

Sure, by using romanized korean words, you can begin to emphasize the fact that 'Hey! This is actually set in korea!' But if you have stated the setting and described it clearly, you don't actually have to use romanized korean or go overboard with it.

Some romanized korean phrases that are commonly used here are:

Annyeong - Hello

Gomawo - Thank you

Ajussi - Older/Old man or uncle

Ajumma - Older/Old woman or aunt

Umma/Eomma - Mother

Appa - Dad

Oppa - Older brother (for girls)

Unnie - Older sister (for girls)

Hyung - Older Brother (for boys)

Noona - Older sister (for boys)

______-ssi - honorofics

So in saying this, the problem with include romanization of Korean words is that not everyone will understand. And if you do plan on using it, at least put the definitions in your author's note or whatnot.

BUT

In saying this, there are also instances in which you can use the words. For example, I'd rather read noona than older sister; or words that sound downright silly when translated into english.

long time no update, oops!

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LuAnn98 #1 Aug 14, 2014 14:09:19

And for kissing scenes, talk about HARD! In one of my stories, the kissing scene was in the rain, and writing it took a tremendous amount of brain cells because I had to consider their body language, emotions, actions, etc. To me, a kissing scene isn't just connecting lips, like you said, but it's the hands, the eyes, the nose, the mouth, the feels, and more. And because a lot of readers like a real intense kissing scene, knowing how to deliver is not an easy task.
Character development is different for everyone, I guess. I have read literature classics that have literally very little character development, but are praised for their prose and diction. Some are highly respected just simply for the realism of the novel, and not exactly the characters. While I do think characters play a big role in a story, their development is shaped by the events that happen, and sometimes they don't grow at all. I'm honestly fine with reading static characters, as long as they are well-rounded and not just a typical Mary Sue or Gary Stu.
And can I just tell you how much I love the words you listed? My personal favorites are eloquence, connive, and ephemeral. Chide is nice too.

LuAnn98 #2 Aug 14, 2014 14:02:29

Hiya! I'm going to be writing a really long comment so please don't mind me! I just wanted to give you my thoughts on what you said, and I agree with most of the points you made!
Honestly, when it comes to point of views, I like to stick to first or third person. Second person to me is so underdeveloped character-wise, and I hate being told what *I have to do, what *I have to say, etc. A lot of inexperienced authors go down the 2nd POV path, which is a terrible choice if you don't know how to work around it. In the end, it only makes your story seem really immature. While I have read great stories written in 2nd POV, not all authors have the ability to achieve that kind of success, so I mostly ignore those stories for that reason.
I do like first person, because you do get in touch with the main character's emotions and such on a personal level. The only drawback is that exact same reason. Instead of getting a roundabout view of the situation, you only see what the MC sees, in which the view may be distorted according to a prejudice or bias. So for that reason, I tend to prefer to write in third person (limited). In this POV, writing emotions is pretty hard, but I feel like third does so much better in conveying a whole story.
As for author's notes, I do hate them when they appear randomly during a chapter. However, I do like placing my author's notes at the bottom, mostly just to thank my readers or share a thought with them that I may have, or even ask questions. I find that my readers are really nice and have great replies, so author notes are quite fun.