Quote:
Originally Posted by Kazu-kun
That's why you have to think about the plot first, especially the ending. Once you have that figured out, you create characters who are perfectly suited for that story. That is, characters who will take it to the ending you have in mind.
Of course, along the way you may need to make adjustments and take detours, specially if you're dealing with characters who evolve, psychologically-wise. However, it's important to keep in mind that the ending is sacred. No matter how many detours you take in order to remind true to the characters, you have to be able to reach the ending you planed for since the beginning, because the main theme and premise of the story depend on that.
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As a fanfic writer, I agree with this. Fanfics where I already had the ending plotted out long in advance where fanfics I ended up finishing, and they were probably my most well-received fanfics. Fanfics where I didn't have the ending plotted out long in advance are ones where I tended to lose motivation over time, or run out of ideas of where to take the plot next.
Of course, the considerable benefit for fanfic writers is that we're working with well-established characters with set goals and personalities. So that can provide good guidelines for what are believable endings for a fanfic.
It's interesting (and a bit ironic) that Reckoner raised Gen, because my impression of Gen's works is that Gen usually has his endings plotted out long before he gets to them, and in some cases from the very beginning. Clearly, this was the case with Madoka Magica, just based on certain plot elements in it. Fate/Zero is another obvious case of where the ending is known long in advance (in this case, it's because Fate/Zero is a prequel). With Gargantia, I definitely think Gen had that ending planned out from the beginning. The only recent Gen anime I can think of where the ending might not have been settled on until near the end is Psycho-Pass... and Psycho-Pass arguably had the least satisfying ending of all of these Gen works.
So I respectfully disagree with Guardian Enzo and Reckoner on anything plot heavy. For anything plot heavy, it's probably good for the writer to have the ending determined long in advance, ideally from the very beginning if possible. But for something light on plot, for something more character-based (like Slice of Life), it's probably better to let the characters take you wherever they want to.
As for Okada, my take is that she let the characters take her wherever they wanted to in Hanasaku Iroha, but that she probably had the ending to AnoHana planned out long in advance. That's something Guardian Enzo might want to consider.
