The Great Story

Edward G · Jan 17, 2007

Thank you for letting me participate in your forum. I'm glad to be here and to read what other writers have to say. My name is Gordon Jerome, and I'm in pursuit of the Great Story. I write ghost stories. That doesn't mean I believe the Great Story can only be a ghost story; I believe it can be any genre, but mine is ghost stories.

The Great Story is sitting out there waiting to be written. I can see it, but I can't define it. I can reach out to it, but I can't touch it. I'm not even sure it's just one story, and I'm not sure if it's ever been written. Maybe it's like a platonic form; all I know is that for me it manifests as a passion. Academics try to analyze it; greedy new writers see it as a lottery ticket. It shines out there, tempting me and possessing me--taunting me to catch it.

Nice to meet you all!

Sincerely,

Gordon

The Lady · Jan 17, 2007

Nice to meet you too. I sure hope there's more than great story cos I'd like to write one too. Or maybe about fifty or sixty. If they're novel length. More if they're shorties.

TrainofThought · Jan 17, 2007

Welcome GordonJerome! It’s nice to meet you. You might want to introduce yourself in the Newbie Forum, so people can pop in say hello

and point you in the right direction.
http://smiley.smileycentral.com/download/index.jhtml?partner=ZSzeb113_ZSYYYYYYJNUS&utm_id=7921

PeeDee · Jan 17, 2007

Plenty of great stories. Some are sitting on bookshelves, and some haven't been written yet. That's fine, 'cause I hope I'm not nearly done reading them all.

Welcome, glad to have you.

alaskamatt17 · Jan 18, 2007

I know of several Great Stories, and for me the majority of them are science fiction:

Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game
Richard Chwedyk's "Bronte's Egg"
J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings
Dan Simmons's Hyperion
James Tiptree, Jr.'s "The Only Neat Thing To Do"
John Varley's "Air Raid"

As far as I'm concerned, those are the best of the best. They are the high marks I strive to reach.

Mandy-Jane · Jan 18, 2007

I think "A Tale of Two Cities" is a great story (although a very old one).

I'm hoping to write a great play one day.

Manderley · Jan 18, 2007

I don't believe in The Great Story, just as I don't believe in The One True Love.

However, I do believe in great stories and true love, and may we all experience both. Welcome, GJ.

KiraOnWhite · Jan 18, 2007

Hey! I believe that The Great Story can be anything from any perspective...it might even be gradually growing within you! Welcome on board, I'm a newbie too...lets al write great stories together! =DD

Shadow_Ferret · Jan 18, 2007

Hi Gordon!

Me, I just hope to write several good stories. I'll leave you guys to worry about the great one.

Garpy · Jan 18, 2007

I dunno, at the risk of sounding wilfully cynical...I'd say there isn't a Great Story out there, just good writing and appalling writing.

I think you'd be unneccesarily handicapping yourself if you stall writing until you've stumbled upon this Great Story. Far better to just get going, knowing the first novel you write is going to be so-so, but, you'll get to learn loads from the mistakes you make.

PeeDee · Jan 18, 2007

I dont' think you fail to write while looking for The Great Story (or the Great Bird of the Galaxy, for that matter). You keep on working, and then you die, and a hundred years later someone goes "Wow, he wrote a great story."

Or, alternatively, "Who wrote that, the bloke who did the Da Vinci Code, right?"

Edward G · Jan 18, 2007

Garpy said:
I dunno, at the risk of sounding wilfully cynical...I'd say there isn't a Great Story out there, just good writing and appalling writing.

I think you'd be unneccesarily handicapping yourself if you stall writing until you've stumbled upon this Great Story. Far better to just get going, knowing the first novel you write is going to be so-so, but, you'll get to learn loads from the mistakes you make.

I checked out your books. Who publishes them? The cover art is great.

The Great Story is out there, however. If one believes in it. The only thing left to talk about is what is the best qualification for pursuing it.

The way I see it. The key to success in fiction is to first believe in the Great Story.

PeeDee · Jan 18, 2007

GordonJerome said:
The way I see it. The key to success in fiction is to first believe in the Great Story.

No, the first part is a willingness to work very hard, to tell the best story you can every time (to tell every story like it was your Great Story) and to be willing to learn.

It's fine to believe that there are Great Stories. I think this is probably true m'self. But belief is, I think, less important than legwork.

The Great Story

Edward G

The Lady

Critical Member

TrainofThought

A flowering bud of bitchiness

PeeDee

Where's my tea, please...?

alaskamatt17

Mandy-Jane

venturing ever further into the unknown

Manderley

Slowly does it.

KiraOnWhite

Shadow_Ferret

Court Jester

Garpy

keyboard monkey

PeeDee

Where's my tea, please...?

Edward G

PeeDee

Where's my tea, please...?