Everything I Know About Warriors (and writing a fanfiction)

Detail

I believe one of the most important parts of any story, Warriors or other, is the detail put into scenes. I like to try to put my readers into the mindset that they know what everything looks like, so they know what's going on. To show what I mean, I'll do some simple paragraphs and then add more in to show you the difference. It's amazing that just putting in a few more words can make an already-good paragraph even better, and it will help fill the word count! And, I'm not too good of a writer, I'm not trying to show off or anything like that. This is what good writing looks like to me, it could be completely different for you!

(Also, detail includes punctuation and capitalizing)

Before Adding Detail:

Fernfoot stalked forward towards a mouse pawsteps quiet. She jumped forward and hit the mouse perfectly. "Yes!" she yowled, hid her prey, then went off to hunt more.

After Adding Detail:

Fernfoot stayed low to the ground, her muzzle open and her scent glands flaring as she searched silently for prey. Through the thick undergrowth of the forest, she detected the faint trace of a mouse, and she softly stalked towards it, ears flicking softly; she was listening for the sound of the mouse maybe eating or stepping over the fallen leaves of leaf-fall. The mouse's sweet scent got closer, and she carefully slipped past a fern to see the small creature sniffing at the leaves, looking for something to eat. She let out a calm, smooth breath, loosening her stiff muscles and getting into a hunter's crouch.

(Since I put in so much detail, maybe too much, I added another paragraph to finish it up.)

Fixing her gaze, the young brown tabby suddenly launched herself from the ground, soaring over the forest floor. The mouse squealed and tried to run, but it was too late. Her paws landed on its back, and she gave it a quick nip on its neck to silence it. "Yes!" she said quietly, flicking her tail. She was excited about the good hunting, but she didn't want to scare off any prey that had stayed around. Thank you for the prey, StarClan, and thank you for watching over my Clan, she thought to her warrior ancestors, then dug at a little patch of soil and stuck her mouse inside. She scratched earth over it with her back paws, checked her surroundings to remember where the mouse was, then padded off to find something else to hunt.

Before Adding Detail:

Brambletail ran his claws over an enemy's ears. They yowled in pain and fled. He looked around the battle and saw a Clanmate being attacked by two large warriors. He screeched and jumped on the back of one of the cat's, digging his claws into her fur. They rolled on the ground and she ended up pinning him. He threw her off with his legs and stood up, and saw her jump at him. He reared but she went for his legs. He fell on the ground and her claws dug into his back.

"RiverClan, retreat! Retreat!" Lightstar yowled, and her warriors broke away and ran to her. Brambletail struggled to get free from his attacker.

"Let go, the battle's over!" The she-cat didn't listen, but she was gone a moment later. He saw Branchclaw next to him, helping him to his paws. Together, they ran after their leader. WindClan celebrated their victory.

After Adding Detail:

The sound of the battle raged in Brambletail's ears, filling his head with the yowling and screeches of his Clanmates and the WindClan warriors that had started the attack. Claws raked his flank, and the brown tabby whipped around to find himself faced with a lithe black tom. Hissing, the RiverClan warrior launched himself at his attacker, teeth bared. The black tom lashed out at his muzzle, but Brambletail managed to avoid the swinging claws and slashed at his opponent's face.

While the tom was distracted by pain, Brambletail shot past the warrior's side and ran his claws along the other cat's flank. He yowled, turning to face the RiverClan cat, but after the tabby pelted him with strike after strike on his ears, he ducked away and fled into the heat of the battle. He growled after the tom, then turned and searched anxiously for a new enemy. He spotted his old mentor, Branchclaw, tussling with the WindClan deputy, but it was clear the she-cat had it handled. 

A yowl stood out in the screeches, a cry for help, and he looked quickly to see a young warrior from his Clan, Hawkpool, getting attacked at different sides from two quick-moving warriors. Letting out a battle cry, he hared through the battle, dodging fighting warriors, and launched himself at one of the cat's, a she-cat with a bright ginger pelt. He rolled her over, but she somehow managed to throw her weight and trap him on his back.

She reared up, claws flashing, ready to sink them into his stomach, but he quickly drew in his back legs and threw them against her stomach, sending her flying away. She fell heavily on the marshy ground, but swiftly scrambled to her paws and jumped at him. He reared up, ready for her to go for his face, but instead, she shoved herself to the ground and rammed into his legs. He dived to the side in an attempt to stick the landing, but his legs crumbled underneath him, sending pain through his muscles.

Claws gripped his spine, and he yowled, wriggling around in an attempt to get free, but she held him there strongly, claws digging deep into his coat, and he felt blood run down his sides. Then, he heard his leader above the screeches and yowls. "RiverClan, retreat! Retreat!" He spotted Lightstar breaking away from the WindClan leader, who yowled in victory.

"Let go, it's over!" He struggled under the WindClan warrior, but she didn't budge. Her claws dug even deeper, and he yowled in pain. Suddenly, the she-cat was pushed from his back, and he looked up with misty eyes to see Branchclaw right next to him. "Go on, get up!" The senior warrior helped him to his paws.

He muttered a quick thank you, pain flaring through his back as he struggled away from the WindClan warriors, bleeding and tired but still yowling in victory. "Get out of our territory, fish!" one growled.