Ramblings of not-so-great writter

[EverKing]

I love writting. For many years now, since I was a young adolescent, I've wanted nothing more than to write. I have characters that are screaming at me to be released and moreoever I want to share my love and affection for them with the world.

So, why don't I try to get anything published?

Everytime I start work on something that I hope to send to pupblishers, whether novel or periodical, I read something that disuades me. On occasion it is something that seems too similar to what I am working on and I cease work for fear of being thought of as a hack; more often though, it is this site.

I know that sounds strange because this site and Mike in particular are among the greatest inspirations to better my skills and ability and to produce something I can be proud of. But there is another side of the coin; everyone here has an eloquence, intelligence, and proficiency that makes me bow in both shame--at my poor attempts--and awe--at those very aspects you possess.

I guess you can just say this is a "hats off" to all of you. It is a real pleasure to be here and I know that all of you are driving me to better myself and my ability every day. So, thank you!

Oh, and expect to be seeing more of me from now on. It is time I broaden my horizons and all of you are just what I need!

[mordenkainen]

pupblishers

LOL

wether it was intentional or not...

LOL

[Whiskers]

Let me give you some advice.

Sell your television or at least the remote.

Completing some pieces, regardless of their merit, is the key to feeling successful in my experience. Once you've succeeded a couple of times, you may feel enthused to get through those epics you're thinking about.

Boil your epic down to a 1000 words or so. For you and I, writing very small stories is just the trick. Try a couple of flash fiction pieces, say, 100 to 200 words. Write 6 or 10 of them over the next week and toss them up onto the site for peer review. Don't bite off more than you have time to chew.

If you're looking to practice, writing about something that you will feel is unique, then write about yourself and one of your experiences that is sure to be different than anything else, and twist into something that's not about you, but about your character.

Anyone else?

[mordenkainen]

sell your game console, too.

[David Mosley]

Don't sell the PC though, or you may have trouble posting afterwards. :P

[xidrep]

Everking, your eloquence is more than up to speed. You have exactly two weeks to send me a 1000 word piece and two 100-200 word flashfictions, for consideration for publication in Prototype X.
For every day you are overdue, I won't feed my new 7 week-old kitten*...






*Not the second bit. But the first bit stands.

[A_Non_Ymous]

Don't think about publication. That comes after the process is complete. Think about what you want to write, then shape it and write it as succinctly as you can manage.

Post it on Enclave if you want comment.

Don't compare what you do to the work of other people, unless you are interested in trying to copy some trick or effect.

Read all that you can.

Set aside time in your day to write and write at least 3-5 sentences every day on the work. (More if you can.) It adds up.

Publication will take care of itself if you're happy with the work.

All of the above is personal opinion, of course.

Mes 0,02 euros.

LSN

[DeeCrowSeer]

There's a story that Robert Rodriguez tells on the commentary for one of his films (possibly the second Spy Kids), which I found very inspiring... it involved a pottery teacher who decided to give her class the option of how they would be graded for their work. They could either go for quality or quantity, basically. So half the class set about producing 50 average pots, and the other half set about a single "perfect" pot. At the end of the year, the ones who'd gone for quantity were churning out far better pots than the ones who'd spent the whole year trying to create a single "perfect" pot.

So, the moral of this story is... er... practice makes perfect. The more work you finish, the better you'll get. I was lucky in that I got a lot of writing practice done in university, with tutors around to point out my mistakes. I'm not sure how good my writing is now, but I know that the stuff I was handing in back then was awful. The first week of a new job is always hell, and the first pots/poems/stories anyone writes will always be a bit crappy, and a bit derivative. But you have to get through that stage before you can find your own style/voice, and figure out how to bring your own obsessions and interests into what you're doing. It's an on-going process sadly... I'll get there one day...

Yes, there are some cheeky gits who get it right first time, and they can be very discouraging, but I'm pretty sure no one here falls into that category.

Sorry, I'm ranting again. But P-X is a force for good in this world. Join us...

[A_Non_Ymous]

I thought of it as "Come to the dark side..."

It worked for Carter and his inner Rod Steiger, didn't it?

LSN

[EverKing]

Oh wow! Thanks everyone. Here I was just doing my best to convey how impressed I am with everyone here and how pleased I am to be part of it all and what I get is volumes of support and advice that has done the trick that was intended: spur me on! :notworthy:

Perdix: I will fulfill your request to the best of my ability. Feel no obligation to include the piece(s), although I will write them in a manner worthy of such. I won't be over due! I love cats and I could not bear the thought of being the reason for the suffering of but a single poor feline soul! Are there any particular styles or themes you are looking for, or is it free game?

As far as ridding myself of the TV...er...well, I watch Adult Swim once or twice a week and occasionally I'll catch something on History, History International, BBC-America, or one of the Discovery channels that piques my interest; but not often. I'm not even going to get into detail about the game console; I haven't owned one since Super Nintendo and I haven't found a video game or computer game I like since the American version of Final Fantasy 3 (FF2).

Thanks for the encouragement! I have writing to do...

PS: pupblishers was an enjoyable accident.

[A_Non_Ymous]

It's free game.

Just do your best, and let the sheditor sort things out!

LSN

[A_Non_Ymous]

As a suggestion, if you are casting around for something to write about, pick something about which you feel strongly as the starting point. Pick characters and a setting to illustrate that starting point.

It works. You'll be surprised how much you feel you have to say.

As an example, I suggested a story challenge for people to write a story set in their home town 25 - 30 years in the future. I laid down a ground rule that the story should NOT be about the changes that have taken place, but should REFLECT those changes.

In part, this was bait for Dee, whom I gather harbors strong negative feelings towards the place of his birth.

So far, we've gotten 3 pretty nice stories out of him from this challenge.

LSN

[Grey Mouser]

Everking, you probably already know this. The old DGB was merged with this forum, so Rodelkeep is still here. :)

[xidrep]

Can someone get me details of 'Adult Swim'?
Sounds really sleazy. I'd like to see it.
Go to it, Everking. Much good advice, here: Despite being an 'editor' (pfh!), however, my writing is quite shockingly bad: I found my first 'published' story again yesterday (I'd forgotten about it) in the 1985 'Suttonian' magazine (er, think 'school' and 'local') and I'm getting the distinct feeling I'm getting worse...
Look forward to your submissions! As LSN says, write for you, not us or some nebulous public, and it's likely to work better...

[mordenkainen]

Can someone get me details of 'Adult Swim'?
Sounds really sleazy.

Nah. It's just Cartoon Network's not-completely-stupid cartoons hours. Cool stuff, but nothing even close to sleazy :D