Andrea chuang

Fantasy and science fiction author


忘言

網路小說家,喜歡透過寫小說體驗生活,代表作《夢域》、《熱帶海小丑魚》。

ABOUT

Hi, I’m Andrea!
Born and raised in Taiwan, I spend my whole life living on this small island. I write stories ranging widely across different genres, attempting to bring a new taste into the conventional storyline. My love for stories started from my childhood when I first watched Harry Potter movies and became immediately enchanted by this magical world. Then I began writing my own novels and posted them online.
 
I started learning English when I was in high school, and I have a bachelor's degree in English Instruction, which aims to train students to be elementary school teachers. Instead of being a school teacher, I choose to be a writer to pursue my dream. My greatest happiness is to see that people enjoy my works as much as I do.
 
When I’m not writing, I can be found watching movies or anime.

作者

哈囉,這裡是忘言!自幼喜愛泡在圖書館裡閱讀,尤其以西方翻譯文學為主,大學就讀英語教育相關科系,於是接觸了不少外國文學鑑賞的課程,經常從歐美電影與日本動漫中汲取靈感,但仍是靠著自身廣泛閱讀和大量寫作累積小說的寫作技巧。興趣是觀察人類,在腦海中產生奇思妙想,透過寫小說體驗生活。
 
創作靈感取材自學生時代的回憶,筆下的角色原型來自身邊的同學朋友再加上自己的想像,擅長從日常生活中發掘複雜的人性,文風多變,文筆在華麗嚴肅與詼諧幽默中切換,作品風格涵蓋美式懸疑、日式清新,將各種奇幻元素融入台灣文化背景,建築出一套獨特的本土世界觀。關注的主題為青春期迷惘、自我成長、社會寫實。目前共有《夢域》和《熱帶海小丑魚》兩部長篇著作。
 
更多資訊請參考過往作品集:

BOOKS

熱帶海小丑魚

連載期間:2023~2025
青澀初戀如《刻在你心底的名字》
奇幻性轉如《因性而別》
校園純愛x年下耽美x浪漫喜劇
女同學的姐姐,其實是哥哥
功課優異情感遲鈍高中生攻  X  溫柔賢慧氣質受
幻想系☆青春戀愛物語,就此揭開序幕——!!!

夢域

連載期間:2018~2020
1座城市,2次輪迴,3個世界,4個奇異生物,5位人類,6種不同的夢想
關於現實與虛幻,過去與未來
關於願望與消失,成長為理想中的自我
群像劇風,披著懸疑皮的青春冒險史詩

CONTACT

謝謝您造訪這個網站!如有任何疑問或批評指教,請寄到聯絡信箱:
Thank you for visiting my website! For inquiries, please contact me via e-mail:
[email protected]

Q&A

身為一個寫作多年的小說家,這裡收錄了許多創作上常遇到的情況、關於作者的問題,分享自身的經驗提供給大家參考。
 
寫作時有大綱嗎?
有的,一開始有個模糊的概念,再往後想出幾條適合發展的故事線,就像人物設定一樣,所有人設標籤就是讓讀者快速了解人物,剩下的細節就是靠邊寫邊想,遇到不確定的地方就先跳過,回頭再來想辦法。
總而言之,先從自己感興趣的橋段開始寫。
 
從哪裡汲取寫作靈感?是不是源自自己的親身經歷?
不一定。作者的腦洞很多,一半是自己做夢夢到的,另一半是日常生活經歷的,通常會把這些點子隨手紀錄在筆記本裡面(夢境小本本get),等到想開坑的時候再觀察這些點子適合什麼故事,可以發展成哪種類型小說。
如果只能依靠現實中的經歷才能寫故事,應該真的寫不出什麼東西。不會的東西就去查閱資料、看看別人的想法意見。最重要的是能代入筆下角色的心境,其實小說家就像個演員,即使沒有親身經歷過也能靠著同理心體會別人的想法。
 
寫作遇到瓶頸該怎麼辦?
一句話總結就是沒梗,沒靈感,不知道劇情接下來發展,通常最好的辦法是擱置個幾天,這段時間可以去做其他喜歡的事情,而不是一直埋頭苦幹下去,通常寫出來的品質也會很糟。
等到有想法的時候再把它們寫下來,即使沒什麼關聯性也沒關係,這些想法就像一個點,點跟點之間會連成線,線會變成圓,最後可能在不經意的地方全部拼湊起來,變成一個超乎自己期待的圖形。
 
如何提升自己的文筆?
多閱讀多寫,沒有輸入就不會有輸出。先去模仿別人的文筆,再內化成自己的東西輸出,順便檢驗自己有沒有學會。
可以先從某個具體的目標開始,想寫哪個類型的作品,就多看那方面的書。例如想學習推理小說,就多讀阿嘉莎.克莉絲蒂或柯南.道爾的書。還有一個簡單的方法,去旁聽外文系或中文系的課程,系上都有很多基礎的創意寫作和文學賞析課程,裡面會教大家如何分析各種敘事手法和人物塑造,知道作品是怎麼被解讀之後,以後可以嘗試運用在自己的作品裡(這就是為什麼我這麼愛吐槽自己小說的原因。)。
 
如何在商業與藝術之間取得平衡?
這是一個非常弔詭的問題,即使是寫了這麼多年的作者,也不能保證寫什麼一定會在商業上取得成功,不過還是那一句老話:選擇比努力重要。
選擇大眾喜歡的題材就能事半功倍,例如在台灣來說,校園愛情的類型就會比奇幻/科幻/恐怖的受眾還要多,自然就容易被人看見。但也不是一昧地模仿流行趨勢,同質性太高的商品反而會令人審美疲勞,無法凸顯亮點還容易被埋沒。所以真正的課題是,如何在爛大街的類型裡加入自己的特色,才是需要努力的方向。
 
有沒有固定的寫作行程?
有的,因為自己是晨型人,所以通常在早上或下午寫作。不過並不會強迫自己每天都要寫多少字數,只是預計大概要寫到哪個段落。
因為每天的狀況都不太一樣,取決於當下能想出多少靈感,想不出來就暫停下來,回去修改前面的稿子。有時候重新閱讀前面的劇情就會想到新的東西,這時就知道後面該怎麼寫了。
 
大學唸的科系跟寫小說有關嗎?
完全無關。雖然自己讀的是外語教育類科,系上有開設西方文學賞析與寫作相關的課程,但因為是師範體系,系上的資源仍然以培育學生成為學校老師為目標。而且學校教的東西非常有限,一堂課兩個小時內也不可能把所有書都讀完,自己必須額外花很多時間去鑽研,靠著大量閱讀和練習才能提升自己的寫作技巧。
 
有沒有得過文學獎?
沒有,完全沒有參加過文學獎,也沒有得獎紀錄。
是說如果有得過文學獎的話,為什麼還來寫網路小說呢???素來對文學獎的印象都是評審的喜好相當難以捉摸(?)而且反思自己寫的作品主題、性質也不像是會得獎的樣子,於是沒有研究得獎作品應該要寫什麼內容。
 
在學時期的國文成績好嗎?
雖然的確有被老師稱讚過作文的經驗,但也有老師不以為然。畢竟作文的品質見仁見智,主觀成分居多,若有人不喜歡也很正常。
而且寫小說本身就和念書考試不一樣,念書考試會有固定的標準答案,寫小說沒有,不是寫了什麼題材、用了什麼受歡迎的人設,作品就一定會爆紅。
 
喜歡的書籍?
(先後順序不代表排名,沒提到的也不是不喜歡,只是重刷次數比較少)
哈利波特、大亨小傳、穿條紋衣的男孩、墨水心、鹽的代價、天才雷普利、移動迷宮、使女的故事、盲刺客、仿生人會夢見電子羊嗎?、逮香蕉魚的最佳日子、1984、美麗新世界、別讓我走、克拉拉與太陽
 
喜歡的電影?
(先後順序不代表排名,沒提到的也不是不喜歡,只是重刷次數比較少)
【外語電影】
盧.貝松:終極追殺令、露西
雷利.史考特:異形、銀翼殺手
吉勒摩.戴托羅:羊男的迷宮、猩紅山莊
大衛.芬奇:火線追緝令、鬥陣俱樂部、龍紋身的女孩
克里斯多福.諾蘭:全面啟動、黑暗騎士
史蒂芬.金改編:迷霧、魔女嘉莉、站在我身邊
其他的:哈利波特系列、對面惡女看過來、千鈞一髮、天才雷普利、男人的一半還是男人、汪洋血迷宮、鐘點站
【華語電影】
王家衛:春光乍洩、花樣年華、阿飛正傳
李安:色戒、飲食男女
吳宇森:喋血街頭、英雄本色
其他的:霸王別姬、讓子彈飛、末代皇帝
 
喜歡的動漫?
(先後順序不代表排名,日本動畫比較多,歐美動畫比較少)
魔法少女小圓、命運石之門、獵人、Fate Zero、新世紀福音戰士、咕嚕咕嚕魔法陣、宮崎駿系列、死亡筆記本、瓢蟲少女、奇幻貓頭鷹小屋
 
沒接觸過的(看不懂的)作品:
世界上作品百百種,也是有作者看不懂的東西,不過有可能哪天想換個口味就會去深入了解(?)
超級英雄電影(例如漫威、DC,但有少數例外:蝙蝠俠、猛毒),武俠類(例如金庸的所有作品)

Q&A

Here are some questions about me as a writer. I’d love to share with you my writing experiences and difficulties I encountered during the process. It’s my pleasure if you find the advice helpful! Hope you have fun reading them!
 
How long have you been writing?
As long as I can remember. My parents were both busy when I was a kid, so they usually took me to a library and let me read by myself. There wasn’t so much entertainment around back then, so I grew up developing a habit of creating an imaginary world that doesn’t exist. To me, writing is not only a hobby to kill time, but also gives me a sense of achievement that no other interest would do.
Do you have any formal writing training?
I have a bachelor’s degree in English Instruction, so I took some courses about fiction writing in college. But that’s not enough if one wants to become a writer. What’s really helpful for me is to read extensively and mimic the writing styles of my favorite authors.
Where do you draw inspiration from? Is it only personal experience?
Not exactly. I have a notebook which records bits and pieces of my thoughts, because I always have some crazy ideas popping up in my head—either from my dreams or real-life experiences. When I create characters, I tend to think about the real people in my life, and imagine how they’d behave in my fictional world.
Do you think about your audience or write primarily for yourself?
Well, let’s just admit that writing for yourself is totally different from writing for others—unless you write what people all love to see, then there is no problem. Otherwise, you have to compromise yourself for everyone’s favor. I always think about this question before I start a book. And when I decide to write for others—primarily for commercial concern—I keep my audiences in mind: who’s going to read this book? What’s their social or cultural background? What do they want to see in the story? By doing so, it helps me plot the story that would appeal to the target audiences.
How do you balance writing for the market and writing for yourself?
While your personal taste may not quite meet the commercial demands, it’s still possible to find a middle path. Besides, it’s not always a bad thing to follow the trend. You can add your favorite elements to a common trope or provide a new angle to make it your own story. It doesn’t matter whether you write popular genres or not, the most important thing is to find your own voice, instead of merely mimicking other stories.
How do you handle feedback and criticism?
I’m easily influenced by other people’s opinions, so I do my best to consider it objectively and learn from the criticism. In the meanwhile, I’d decide if the criticism is useful for me, because I know there's no way to please everybody. All I need to do is to stay positive and focus more on myself. Just like we have our preferences on books, it’s normal that some people like my works while the others don’t.
Have you ever used AI in your works?
Never. All my works are 100% original. If I had used AI, it wouldn’t have taken me so long to write a book.
Do you follow a writing routine or schedule?
I’m a morning person, so I usually write in the morning and afternoon. I keep a flexible schedule, because the situation varies, depending on whether I have inspiration or not. Sometimes I just don’t have much to write about, but I know I’d come up with something in the end.
Did you outline your book, or do you write from the hip?
I think I’m a pantser. I start from an interesting idea, and then add some details and a backstory to fill in the gaps. It’s not until everything feels like getting out of my control that I start to outline the plot.
What are your favorite books?
The Great Gatsby, The Handmaid’s Tale, Maze Runner, Vampire Academy, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? Gone Girl, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, Inkheart, The Price of Salt, Klara and the Sun, Sophie’s World, The Talented Mr. Ripley
What are your favorite movies?
Catch Me If You Can, Léon, 10 Things I Hate About You, Ready or Not, Match Point, Inception, Gattaca, 500 Days of Summer, Dark Knight, Ex Machina, Pan’s Labyrinth, The Talented Mr. Ripley
What are your favorite anime?
Hunter x Hunter, Steins;Gate, Fate Zero, Studio Ghibli, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Death Note, Miraculous Ladybug, The Owl House