Getting the Best Out of Your Sims – Part 4

Getting the Best Out of Your Sims – Part 4

One of the most overlooked aspects of any sim is the polish that takes a good sim and makes it great. Everything is more enjoyable to read when it is polished up and sims throughout the Starbase 118 Fleet are no different. Though this section of the guide is shorter than the others, it is more vitally important to the overall creation of a sim. Ask anyone in the Starbase 118 fleet; making sure that you don’t just send out your first draft, but put some time and energy into making sure that it is polished, will go a long way towards making the game enjoyable and fun for all.

4) Polish
I always try to polish my sims before sending them out. Sometimes when you are filled with ideas, or if you have to change your plan as you write there are things that need tidied up at the end. I have a couple of friends who don’t like to do this, for various reasons, but honestly here is what I tell them. “Do you honestly think there is a single writer out there that doesn’t have to go back and polish their work?” Sometimes it is easy to look at all these great published novels and think how great a writer they all are, but this wasn’t their first and only draft. They polished their writing and I polish mine. (Most of the time. 😉 hehe.)
It doesn’t have to be a painful experience.
# Run a spelling and grammar checker.
# Re-read the sim.
First to check for words that are correct, but which do not fit in. The grammar checker will often let you get away with putting things like he instead of the. I have seen more bizarre examples too but can’t think of them off-hand. Then for readability. This is where people tell you to read it out loud. I generally don’t but I can see why this is good advice. You are just reading it to make sure the sentences are easy to read. If it seems a bit odd or not quite right maybe it needs extra punctuation. (I have seen whole paragraphs written in one, unpunctuated sentence.) Maybe the punctuation is in the wrong place or maybe a sentence just needs rephrased. Simple edits can make a huge difference to how well your sim reads.
Read the guide in its entirety on the forums: https://starbase118.net/forums/index.php?/topic/6346-simming-tips/

We are a star trek roleplaying game

We are a free, fun, and friendly community of Star Trek fans who write collaborative fiction together. It’s easy to join – we’ll teach you everything you need to know!

Latest Mission Reports

Latest Interviews

Latest News

OOC Activities

Looking for something fun to do? We have a whole list of fleet activities that are looking for members like yourself! Check out the Fleet Activity List today to see where you’ll fit in.