I started lurking in Uncle Jim's novel-writing thread about three months or so ago, reading it twice a week or so. I finally worked up the courage a couple days ago to ask a few questions in the thread, which required registering and so forth. Once I did that, I decided I'd try to get my money's worth by cruising the rest of the novel-writing forum, and the rest of the fora in general to see what I could learn.
And, seeing this forum, I thought I should introduce myself.
See, I've always wanted to have written a book. And the only way to have written a book is to write one in the first place. I tried writing fiction and found that I quite enjoy it. The problem for me is that the last formal creative writing instruction I've had was in the third grade, well before I discovered that girls weren't icky. So I've got some catching up to do. I've been trying to educate myself on writing mechanics and creativity and other writerly subjects, and I hope I can learn here.
Despite a dearth of formal creative writing eduction, I do have a few, non-fiction-writing, but related, bits of background.
1. I read a lot. My first love in reading (and writing) is SF/F; I know what I like even if I don't exactly know how to do it.
2. I've done a lot of technical writing, including ~20 academic papers and a PhD dissertation. Not the same as fiction writing, obviously, but similar issues with meaning and clarity. Plus formatting requirements don't scare me.
3. My wife's a visual artist. Not a writer, but someone who does use creativity daily. And, in some ways, the process of putting this here and positioning this just so to make a pleasing whole is similar in the two fields.
And if you think, from all of that, that I'm a pretty boring person, you're probably right. I'm married and I live in Detroit and I'm 36 and I'm an engineer and I've got a few other hobbies and that about sums it up.
I do have one question, though: I'm coming here to learn and ask questions, but so are other people. Some of the things that other people ask I've got opinions about, but, realistically, the opinions I have, as a neophyte, ought to be given less weight -- a lot less -- than the opinions of someone like, say, Uncle Jim, who actually has some credentials. Is it still OK to weigh in?
So, in conclusion: Hi!
And, seeing this forum, I thought I should introduce myself.
See, I've always wanted to have written a book. And the only way to have written a book is to write one in the first place. I tried writing fiction and found that I quite enjoy it. The problem for me is that the last formal creative writing instruction I've had was in the third grade, well before I discovered that girls weren't icky. So I've got some catching up to do. I've been trying to educate myself on writing mechanics and creativity and other writerly subjects, and I hope I can learn here.
Despite a dearth of formal creative writing eduction, I do have a few, non-fiction-writing, but related, bits of background.
1. I read a lot. My first love in reading (and writing) is SF/F; I know what I like even if I don't exactly know how to do it.
2. I've done a lot of technical writing, including ~20 academic papers and a PhD dissertation. Not the same as fiction writing, obviously, but similar issues with meaning and clarity. Plus formatting requirements don't scare me.
3. My wife's a visual artist. Not a writer, but someone who does use creativity daily. And, in some ways, the process of putting this here and positioning this just so to make a pleasing whole is similar in the two fields.
And if you think, from all of that, that I'm a pretty boring person, you're probably right. I'm married and I live in Detroit and I'm 36 and I'm an engineer and I've got a few other hobbies and that about sums it up.
I do have one question, though: I'm coming here to learn and ask questions, but so are other people. Some of the things that other people ask I've got opinions about, but, realistically, the opinions I have, as a neophyte, ought to be given less weight -- a lot less -- than the opinions of someone like, say, Uncle Jim, who actually has some credentials. Is it still OK to weigh in?
So, in conclusion: Hi!