So, I Doodled Some Sly Cooper Because I Was Super Needing To Be An Artist And JUST AN ARTIST For One

Writing Dialogue: Ways of Saying No

When your characters are saying no without saying "no"

INARTICULATE

Ah

Oh

APOLOGETIC/UNCOMFORTABLE

Alas ⚜ Can’t help ⚜ Do me a favour ⚜ Give over

I’m afraid… ⚜ Sorry ⚜ Unfortunately

EVASIVE

Any other time… ⚜ Ask Arthur ⚜ ‘Bye ⚜ Must run

Not right now ⚜ Talk to me later ⚜ The thing is… ⚜ What a pity

DEFINITE (with negative word)

No can do ⚜ No chance ⚜ No go ⚜ No way (José)

Never (in a thousand years) ⚜ Not in a million years

Not on your nelly ⚜ I should say not

DEFINITE (no negative word)

Are you serious? ⚜ Drop dead ⚜ Fat chance

Get lost / knotted / stuffed… ⚜ God forbid ⚜ Hard cheese

I’d rather die ⚜ Impossible ⚜ Over my dead body

Push off ⚜ See you in hell first ⚜ Tough titty

Unthinkable ⚜ You must be joking ⚜ You’ve had it

EXCUSES

If it were up to me ⚜ I’m right out ⚜ It’s more than my job’s worth

It’s not in my hands ⚜ Love to, but…

EUPHEMISMS/CLICHÉS

Chance would be a fine thing ⚜ Closed for business

Correspondence closed ⚜ If wish were father to the deed

Je regrette, mais… ⚜ Not my department ⚜ Not my remit

The editor regrets… ⚜ The umpire’s decision is final

Would that it were possible

Parents begin to teach their children to read between the lines in this way at an early age. Here are some of the negative responses used by parents to a request by their 4-year-old for another biscuit.

You’ve just had one ⚜ It’ll be tea time soon

Ask Daddy ⚜ I haven’t heard the magic word yet

Source ⚜ Word Lists ⚜ Notes & References

http://misstalwyn.tumblr.com/post/74146663162/was-dwelling-on-honor-among-thieves-again-and

was dwelling on honor among thieves again and decided to list actual hard proof of Penelope’s badassery

went toe to toe with Sly once

on the wings of a plane iN THE AIR

set up an international flying competition just to wipe the skies with everyone

all of her RC vehicles have little flowers…

do you have any tips for writing in-character fanfiction?

Writing Notes: In-Character Fanfiction

Fan Fiction - a type of writing that responds to something else like a book, a TV show or a film.

People write fan fiction typically because they are big fans of their chosen story, and want to create more of it.

They might imagine what happened before or after the story's main events or imagine other scenes in the lives of their favourite characters.

Fan fiction is a great way to get started with writing, because a lot of the work has been done for you. Characters, settings and plots are already there to be customised, changed and adapted. The possibilities are endless.

Fan fiction usually falls into 2 big categories: in-universe and alternate universe (AU).

In-universe fan fiction takes place in the same general setting and plot line as the original story. It could be, for example, a prequel or a story that follows characters that aren’t focused on as much in the main plot.

Alternate universe fan fiction explores different settings or plot lines for characters within a fandom. This can be anything from a fanfic where a character who dies in the original story lives or an alternate setting where all of the characters work at a coffee shop. AU fanfics are great for if you want more control over your storyline or want to explore an entirely different setting with characters you already love.

Writing Tips for In-Character Fanfiction

Know the Canon. In fan fiction, the original story, characters and world you are responding to is called the canon.

Know the story you're responding to.

Read it a few times and make sure you have the detail straight.

Make your story make sense for the existing story world.

If the protagonist can't swim in the original story, don't start yours with them doing the front crawl across the British Channel unless you can explain when and where they learnt the skill (and how it's relevant).

If characters act out-of-character, or the world has changed in your version, make sure there's a good reason for it.

Consider the Past. You aren’t inventing new characters, and you can’t change the lives they’ve already lived unless you’re writing a prequel. So, you must be familiar with the lives your characters have already led and can work their lived experiences into your story. It can be helpful to ask someone who is also a fan of the series you’re pulling characters from to read your work before you publish, as they’ll be able to let you know whether you’re on the right track when it comes to sticking to the story’s canon. 

Consider a New Approach. While it can be fun to dig into the lives of everyone’s favorite characters, fanfiction can take an exciting turn when the writer provides context for the behaviors of a not-so-beloved character. For example, describing a character’s difficult home life can help readers understand why they act in an undesired way in the original story. This doesn’t just help readers engage with the material you create – it can also help them to see their favorite stories and characters in a new way.

Ask "what if"? Fanfiction is, by its very nature, speculative, which means that every piece of fanfiction starts with this very simple question: What if?

What if this happened?

What if this didn’t happen?

What if this character and this character got together?

What if everything changed?

What if we knew what happened next? 

Ask yourself “what if” questions about your chosen media, and follow the most interesting answer.

Once you’ve picked your favorite simple version of the question, start asking questions again.

Think about how the answer to that “what if” affects the rest of the story - do the characters change? Their relationships? The setting?

This will help you build out your plot more effectively.

Identify the Gap. Many fanfiction writers choose to focus on aspects of the story that were left unexplored in the original work. Look for gaps in the plot or characters of the story that you can use as a jumping-off point for your own story. Typically the concept for a fanfiction will be some gap you see in the source material’s story—or just something you’d have rather happened.

Revise, Revise, Revise. When you write an excellent fanfiction story, it can be tempting to publish it immediately, especially if you have an eager audience to read your work. However, taking the time to revise is critical. After you finish your work, take a day away, and then come back and reread it. Don’t just keep an eye out for spelling and grammar mistakes. You’ll also want to ensure that you don’t have plot holes, facts that go against canon, or characters acting in a way that won’t make sense to your readers.

Get a Beta Reader. Fan fiction writers often work with other fans called beta readers, who read their work before they post it online and edit it or suggest changes or improvements.

Reading your own work aloud to yourself or others is a good idea; alternatively, ask a friend to read it through for inconsistencies or points that need clarification.

Doing either (or both!) of these will help make your writing the best it can be before you post it on a fan site.

Out of Character: Make sure you keep true to the personalities of the cast. Even if something about the starring character is being changed, it should be changed accordingly. Also, even if the canon characters never do anything to contradict their personalities, if they never do anything distinctive to their personalities, that's generally a bad sign since it makes them seem too generic.

Interact with Your Readers. You’re going to get plenty of comments when you publish a fanfiction story that becomes popular. Interacting with your readers is key to keeping them coming back for more. Engage in conversation, ask them questions about what they’d like to see next, and remember – your readers are there because they love the characters just as much as you do.

"Original Flavour" - a Fanfic that attempts to emulate the tone, atmosphere and style of its inspiration as closely as possible.

The goal of the Original Flavour fic is to seem as though the original production team could have thought it up.

Even if it heads off into previously unknown and unexplored territory for that property, the story will emphasize the use of existing gimmicks and devices rather than introducing totally foreign ones.

If you are writing an Original Flavour fic, you (usually) don't introduce or kill core characters, revise continuity, or do anything that is non-canon beyond the events of your story.

To an extent, it is possible to pull these off and still maintain this trope, but only if it's in a way that the canon itself could have evolved (as opposed to anything drastic). Original Flavor is exactly like writing a spec script you could submit to the showrunner, but not necessarily in script form.

Examples for inspiration:

Alice Through the Needle's Eye is a Fan Sequel to Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland that perfectly mimics Carroll's style.

Peter Pan and the Only Children is a Fan Sequel to J. M. Barrie's Peter Pan, that perfectly mimics Barrie's style.

Zootopia: A Tail of Two has been regarded as having the definite feel of the original Zootopia movie.

Sources: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ⚜ More: References ⚜ Writing Resources PDFs

Hope this helps with your writing! Do go through the sources for more information and examples I wasn't able to include here.

I’d like them to be friends

Bentley, Penelope, and Murray

I just felt like drawing these guys as a cute BFF trio (again)

Let me spell out the first act of this episode. This would consist of the first two missions.

Our three heroes tail a certain "mouse" to a place called Conquest Island. They find out she's found a new boss: Sir Raleigh, who escaped from prison a while ago. The boys don't know what their plan is, but they're going to stop it.

It's Bentley who tails this "mouse" into Raleigh's fortress, only to make a shocking discovery. He's been following a robot this entire time!

Raleigh, thinking he's already won, brings out the real Penelope to gloat to her. Turns out she's been kidnapped and impersonated.

And that impostor? Turns out it was her our heroes fought back in Medieval England. It was her who broke up with Bentley. And her who built that blimp for Le Paradox. The real Penelope is innocent.

It also turns out Raleigh has an entire Robo-Cooper Gang at the ready, and he's hoping to have everyone eventually kidnapped and turned against each other.

The villainous frog basically goes "Your name's been thoroughly ruined! Those friends of yours hate you! Why not work for me?"

Only to be told to stuff it. The real Penelope says she only wants to work for one person; that being Sly Cooper. She also hasn't forgiven her impostor for breaking Bentley's heart. She says these things knowing full well she might never be allowed back in the Cooper Gang.

Bentley, who witnessed this entire scene, orders an immediate rescue mission. When the boys find her, Penelope is terrified (thinking they're here to kill her), but she does agree to go with them after a tearful reunion.

After having Penelope reinstated, our heroes swear revenge against Raleigh for what he did to her. Bentley also takes her back.

Penelope has her life back, but... something is seriously wrong with her. And she's not talking about it.

Second act coming soon.

I want to believe Penelope was kidnapped and impersonated. She still designed the blimp. Her impostor (an evil robot) did everything else. Even her motive was fabricated.

Here's something that could happen in Sly 5.

When the boys (Sly, Bentley, and Murray) eventually find out and take her back, she's going to be a guilt-ridden mess hell-bent on destroying her impostor and her creator for breaking Bentley's heart and making everyone hate her, with several measures of self-loathing for nearly doing the same thing herself.

The reunion scene would need to happen early in the episode in which this story takes place, during the second mission, and no later. That way, the player can get used to her being fully playable for the first time ever before the boss fight.

All three boys, while elated to have Penelope back, will quickly notice that something is seriously wrong with her. They think her impostor did everything, including designing the blimp. When they ask her what's wrong, she refuses to elaborate.

Bentley is especially concerned, but incredibly proud of his reinstated girlfriend for her enduring loyalty.

Cue Penelope pulling her weight several times over during her return episode and defeating her impostor, only to be consumed by all the guilt and confess to none other than Bentley about her treachery by the end. The only thing she doesn't reveal is her motive, saying it doesn't matter because what she did was wrong.

And because I love a good, happy ending, she will be forgiven. She's already spent the entire episode proving herself in spades. As for Sly and Murray's reactions? I'll leave that for you to decide. Would Sly drive himself crazy over not knowing her motive? I think he might.

I realize she will need a very sympathetic motive for this idea to work.

heimkoheimkofan replied to your post “would anyone be interested if i fixed sly thieves in time or”

Go ahead and tell your ideas, i’m honestly curious.

BUCKLE UP IT’S GONNA BE LONG 

and premise: i’m still using the time travel plot, because i DO have an original story for sly but i legit just want to fix thieves in time, not make a completely different story

to fix it properly the series should’ve ended with sly 3, but lets pretend we can go on

also important: while i’m referring at the main bad guy as le paradox, the main bad guy ISN’T the le paradox of TiT. he’s a stupid character with a stupid name and an even more stupid motivation to be the bad guy, i’m simply using his name as nameclaim for lack of other names.

VARIOUS CHANGES:

the gang doesn’t travel in time because le paradox is specifically attacking the clan; le paradox is stealing stuff that eventually would end up in the cooper vault without even knowing it, and coincidentally deleting SOME parts of the thievious racconus. le paradox themself isn’t even aware the cooper gang is fighting their team off until the medieval england level and isn’t doing anything about them for the time being

no sly doesn’t “misses thieving uwu”, he gets back in the gang because of the whole “hey the pages are missing”  and “penelope disappeared”. carmelita catches him and instead of being sassy and being like “woopsies lol” ofc he’s sarcastic at first but immediatly realizes he fucked up.

carmelita herself is part of the gang from japan, but she actually acts like part of the gang just at the very end of the level, where she actually talks it out with sly. their situation is still a little worrisome at the beginning, but first of all we don’t have carmelita getting kidnapped (NEVER.) nor her threatening him over and over. they very slowly understand to find a way to get over the whole “yea i was faking amnesia” thing

the time machine works differently. you gotta write the very precise date and place to travel!!! questions “shouldn’t we go back when neyla paralyzed bentley then?” or “shouldn’t we directly stop clockwerk then?” happen over and over and they’re quite the big plot point. they’re doing what’s right, not what’s good for them.

sly doesn’t go around saying he’s one of the cooper, once again because of time paradox stuff, but tries to find excuses about being a big fan or something like that. the ancestors don’t know he’s a cooper but his name becomes important for them (other than for slytunkhamen ofc) and is a name used a lot after that time

…also im gonna say it murray’s gay and has a crush for someone they meet during their travels. that’s it. it’s canon now no longer a shitty joke

LEVELS ANCESTORS AND BOSSES:

feudal japan, still w rioichi except that he didn’t invent sushi because it’s stupid and he isn’t a stereotype. el jefe can stay

the wild west is the only good level except for the whole “carmelita gets kidnapped” level and of course her stupid ass flirting with tennessee. everything else is perfect. tennessee is perfect. toothpick is perfect. i really like this level and it’s exactly the same except for that one level and the finale of course

in a better world bob nor grizz exist. the third level is the caribbean during the 1800, and the ancestor is henriette “one eye” cooper because i love her big time. the gang makes lot of jokes about “oh my god we’re with pirates again” and she’s the only one of the ancestors who lowkey flirts with carmelita. dimitri is having the time of his life and throws parties on the ship. idk who the bad guy is so don’t ask :(

ill talk about the medieval england and the black knight later but know that ¾ of it is good and will stay. from penelope’s backstab onwards however it changes a LOT.

arabia can stay but it’s during the 40 thieves golden era, making salim a Big Boss  instead of whatever the hell that was. no bellydance minigame. mrs decibel is a victim of circumstances and eventually helps the gang. i need to change her a lil but ill think about it

instead of paris, the final level would be ancient egypt. again i’m gonna talk about it later :3c

VERY BIG CHANGES I’M GONNA PUT UNDER READ MORE BECAUSE IT’S LONG AND I’M GONNA TALK ABOUT THE WHOLE PENELOPE BULLSHIT AND THE BIG TWIST IN EGYPT HELL YEAH

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Me looking at fanart of characters being friends who are also friends in canon: *practically in tears clenching my first over my chest* ouhgg they're so friends