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I can say, having just been through my first experience with being edited for publication, that you need to put your ego on the side and focus on what your editor is trying to do. Their goal is a story that is readable and marketable. They want you to sell books. That means the publisher makes money, and they get paid. They're not being mean, but they're not going to soft-soap things, either. Now, being very honest, I knew that from friends who'd been published. It still felt awful when it happened to me, and I was ready to chuck it all in at least twice. But I didn't. I stuck with it, listened to what my editor told me, rewrote the bits that needed it, and in the end, my story is enormously better for it.And I apologized to my editor for whining, too.

So it is. I...can't wrap my mind around that kind of laziness. I understand working with what the creator has revealed, but going purely fan fiction to avoid having to make up back story on a character? The mere thought is giving me a migraine. True. The ones I deal with tend to have their own methods, that's for sure.

I wish I could like that post more than once. Yeah, or complete, furious rage. Anger can result in sarcasm. Rage so bad a character is willing to torture another character to death is usually not a fitting moment for a dry remark. Most of those who can't tell the difference between sarcasm and whining are also those who can't tell the difference between descriptive and purple prose or between witty and boring. (-cough- Hey, those sound like key-characteristics of Sue-writers... how surprising-cough-) Aw, thanks for the compliment.

You had me smirk at that bit of dialogue, Cuzosu. I agree, sarcasm and snark are wonderful in almost any circumstances. Pity that there are some people out there who apparently never got the key-word: almost. (That, and people who confuse 'sarcasm' with 'whine'). I like it as a writer, because I know it gives my characters backstories and a past without me having to info-dump. I like it as a reader, because it means someone actually thought about their story and what way they want to write it - means they've put in effort. Ah... but is wisdom not exactly that anyway? Paying heed to life's lessons, I mean.

Exactly. If for some reason you have to introduce a skill not long before the skill has to be used, it's better to not do it by having the skill-possessing character mention it out of the blue. (There are exceptions, of course. Can be humorous if done well, especially if followed up by a deadpan snarker along the lines of 'anything else you should have told us about before?', but it's just as easy to do it wrong.) Perhaps my favorite way is dropping some small hints here-and-there a bit earlier, simple sentences that don't necessarily attract attention but that do hint at the skill (at the very least, hint at it in hindsight), however, that's not always possible - especially when earlier chapters/books/episodes/cartoons/name-media-form-here have already been released. When not possible, I agree that the ways you mentioned would work very well. Or have it be a skill closely linked to one the readers already know the character possesses. (Say, you have a character that has a lot of experience with potions. It wouldn't be much of an issue to reveal they also have knowledge about poisons. Or, like you said, picking pockets and picking locks.) Though basically, I guess this all comes down to, "before you tie your plot into a nice pretzel-shape, at least have a clue how to get it straight again". It's difficult to pull something off as anything else than an Ass Pull when it is an Ass Pull. (Also, I apologize for using tvtropes terminology. )

A valid point, Silenia. Timing and phrasing are very important when introducing skills. If the skill is going to be used shortly, the best three options (in my opinion) are: to have another character present who already knows about said skill. This character would, at the appropriate time, presumably say something like, "Hey, you still practice that like you used to?" flashbacks. Show a scene where the character was using the skill and so would think of it and act without prompting. to have the main character (or another character, if you'd rather) see the skill being practiced in secret. This person can then bring it up as needed. Of course, there's always the option of having the person seen/caught using a different skill that can lead to being asked about the skill needed. "So, Char. B. I saw you picking pockets the other day. You, uh...pick locks, too, by any chance?" Or, for that matter, wearing something that could be considered a tell-tale sign. "Char. A, you wear arm guards. Do you use knives or am I lucky enough to be on the run with an archer who can pick our enemies off at a distance?" "Char. C, you've got calluses like a sword master. If I steal a sword, would you fight with it?"

The main thing I try to remember about back story on characters is that, apart from the main characters, I'm probably never going to know their entire past. I don't want to. I have enough details floating around in my head; I don't need that many more to add to my problems. Also, leaving some details unknown allows for "treats" to give to the readers later, kind of like throwing a dog a bone. Besides, mysterious characters are often a lure, too. The style I like most, as a reader and as a writer, is to only explain the history of a given character as it comes up...except in special cases, such as when using foreshadowing, where there's typically a flashback or a dream to hint at what lies ahead. As a writer, I don't like putting all the info on any character's past into only the first few chapters; it's an info dump...and most readers won't remember at least a good portion of the information.

The exception to the rule is Star Wars, where every single thing from the original trilogy has been given a backstory of several books, comics and occasionally video games. It's slightly scary.

I notice alot of animes deal with the afterworld, like DeathNote and Bleach. Is there a fascination for this thing? Anywho...just thought I'd throw that in there. Randomly. I like a story that goes along dangerous lines. Very often, I'll have a dream and I'll re-live it over and over making sure I got every detail described down to a "T" For instance, this morning, I dreampt that we lived on a very remote ranch, and as I opened the door to let our cat in, I saw in the distance, a leopard, a grizzly and a cougar respond to my call. The hillside was sparsely treed with an old stand of spruce, so I could see them moving toward me, downhill, rushing with a speed that alarmed me. They knew the door was closing, and I didn't want to leave the cat out with THEM, so I had to hold it open. The moment the cat ran in, I closed the door (the leopard was SO close!), and I thought: "Where are my kids?" There are some nights when I wake up I'm glad there's a body next to me to hang on to.