What's On Your Mind About Your Writing?

auzerais · Jun 2, 2017

Someone accused me of making things difficult for myself, and told me I need to "just write." His delivery was problematic but I think he had a least a foothold in truth, and I am reacting by overthinking it and making things difficult for myself. ;-)

Anyway I just spent a month on one single, solitary chapter, overthinking it and I am finally finished with it. So now I can go overthink another chapter...yippee.

rwm4768 · Jun 2, 2017

Simpson17866 said:
Does it have to be all at once? Would alternating Past chapters and Present chapters work?

Then, when one of the Present chapters ends in the flashback starting, followed by the final Past chapter, then we would find out that the MC had experienced all of the Past chapters at the same time?

It wouldn't work like that because it's a character revealing his memories to my main characters, and I think it flows better all at once. It's pretty much the most important section of the entire series in terms of understanding the greater mysteries in the plot.

I do have quite a few scene breaks throughout the flashback sequence, so the reader has places to stop. And it is interesting, and I placed it so that it's in a part of the story where I'm not interrupting other plot lines.

RLGreenleaf · Jun 2, 2017

Auzerais:

I understand when you say that you spent a month working on a single chapter.

Once, I spent an entire month working on a single sentence!

And at the end of that month...I ended up leaving the sentence as it stood.

And that was the right choice.

Best of luck on that one chapter.

rwm4768 · Jun 2, 2017

Simpson17866 said:
Does it have to be all at once? Would alternating Past chapters and Present chapters work?

Then, when one of the Present chapters ends in the flashback starting, followed by the final Past chapter, then we would find out that the MC had experienced all of the Past chapters at the same time?

rwm4768 said:
It wouldn't work like that because it's a character revealing his memories to my main characters, and I think it flows better all at once. It's pretty much the most important section of the entire series in terms of understanding the greater mysteries in the plot.

I do have quite a few scene breaks throughout the flashback sequence, so the reader has places to stop. And it is interesting, and I placed it so that it's in a part of the story where I'm not interrupting other plot lines.

Now I'm thinking I might be able to break it up into parts. Revealing these memories involves the use of magic, and I've decided that only so much can be revealed at once before the person gets too tired to show any more memories. That way, I can keep the plot moving in between the flashback segments.

I love it when solutions come to me in the middle of eating dinner.

Simpson17866 · Jun 2, 2017

rwm4768 said:
Now I'm thinking I might be able to break it up into parts. Revealing these memories involves the use of magic, and I've decided that only so much can be revealed at once before the person gets too tired to show any more memories. That way, I can keep the plot moving in between the flashback segments.

I love it when solutions come to me in the middle of eating dinner.

That was actually a minor plot point in a Doctor Who fanfiction I wrote a while back

rwm4768 · Jun 2, 2017

4270 words today! That puts me at over 8000 words the last two days combined. It's been a while since I've had this kind of productivity.

heykatydid · Jun 3, 2017

I got started on my 2nd WIP today, and I already love the story and its possibilities. I got over 1k written on my 1st WIP, so my totals for today are over 2,000 words! A successful day for me as well.

Lakey · Jun 3, 2017

rwm4768 said:
Now I'm thinking I might be able to break it up into parts. Revealing these memories involves the use of magic, and I've decided that only so much can be revealed at once before the person gets too tired to show any more memories. That way, I can keep the plot moving in between the flashback segments.

I love it when solutions come to me in the middle of eating dinner.

It's reminding me of the sixth Harry Potter book, where all this exposition about Tom Riddle's backstory is set out via Harry and Dumbledore visiting people's memories and watching the scenes in them unfold. The magic that stores these memories more or less equates "one memory" to "one scene" and so you get a little bit of Riddle's past, a little bit of Harry and Dumbledore discussing what they saw, and then a few days of Harry's life go by with other things happen (the main story) before Harry and Dumbledore take another flashback trip.

Lakey · Jun 3, 2017

While I'm here, let me post to the thread with what's on my mind about my writing. My day job has exploded into an incredibly stressful nightmare with deadlines bearing down on me and many people pulling me in many directions on other matters. I'm miserable. I will get a lot of writing done in the next 7 weeks - but I don't mean writing of my novel, I mean technical writing, producing the deliverables that are due.

As to the novel, it's stalled out completely, partly because I'm exhausted and don't have the mental bandwidth, partly because I'm just not happy with the story and can't push it forward, partly because the last couple of chapters I've written have been truly awful, writing I'm embarrassed to look at and in which I see no redeeming quality. So instead of being a solace and an escape, it's another source of stress, another impending failure.

An idea I've had is to resituate one of the main characters, which would add another thread to the story and up the stakes for her. That might revitalize things for a while for me, but I think the fundamental problems are still there, and they are problems I don't know how to solve - because I am not a fiction writer, not a storyteller, and never have been. I'm not sure why I have wasted the past year obsessed with something I knew I would never have the ability to do.

Cindyt · Jun 3, 2017

WIP1 the historical. Spent all this morning designing Mimi's wedding dress for a short, single paragraph. Much of that time was spent trying to find out what the peaks are called on a crown. The answer? Peaks.

And I ended up not using it.

WIP2 the crime thriller. Revised the opening and added some humor to the storm scene. Found an incredible nonfiction about an undercover agent that will help boost my drug deal scenes. The one I read today isn't a far cry from my own instincts. In fact the biggest difference is the drug dealer was strung out and mine isn't. My goal is to get Billy and Pussycat going on their cruise. He's a lady's man and she's a sexual cripple. Should be interesting.

That storm scene taught me more than wind velocity. It broke me from a certain answer site. Some of the answers I got were fine, but there's always a dumbbutt that fries my grits. It ain't worth it, especially when I can ask AWers and get a bunch of polite, informative answers.

Aregeo · Jun 3, 2017

Dysnomia said:
IT IS SHIT. EVERYTHING IS SHIT.

I think we all feel this way at some point. Especially when we write something because we are a little bit TOO worried what other people are going to think. At that point the fun can be sucked right out of something, right?

Take a break and start up again with the feedback you have received previously and a fresh perspective. Maybe write just for yourself till you feel more confident in it all? I too, have feel like this! Please don't give up, if you are here then we all know writing is more to you than pure hobby.

(I still write just for me, alone!)

Yarns · Jun 3, 2017

Interest, interest, interest. What will keep my readers interested. What am I doing wrong. Why aren't my hooks catching, what's missing. This is always on my mind. I just ran a five hour long-form writing session role-playing game and my readers just aren't going after the hooks. I can't wait until I'm allowed to get a critique on this site.

Punk28 · Jun 3, 2017

Now at the final bit where one of my characters finds that he's the only one of his immediate family still alive from the plague. I'm amazed, but I'm still world-building (the planet's double that of Earth, but compromises of 16 districts on one side and possibly the same on the other, and has two minor oceans but many freshwater sources on it).

Cindyt · Jun 4, 2017

I decided to downsize my 85-foot yacht. That size would require at least one crew member. A, say 48 foot forty-ton yacht would be perfect for one man. But I upped it to 58 foot and 50 ton. I figure if McGee can handle a 52 foot houseboat by himself, Star can handle 58.

Yes, the McGee books inspired the current Billy Star incarnation, down to using a color in the title. However, Star has been screaming for a voice since I was 14 and had never even heard of JDM. I grew up on the water and Star is my baby boy.

Taylor Harbin · Jun 4, 2017

I am now prepared to begin what I hope will be a great science fiction short. I've spent a few days doing the appropriate research, which was made easier because the principle expert happens to be a good friend of mine. Learning was a lot of fun, but now it's time to write a draft. This will replace most of the first draft I already penned a week ago.

Sweet Escape · Jun 4, 2017

I am having moments of, "What is even the point anymore?". Generally getting the chances of getting published are very small. Most of all a book series if you are not an established author. Why do I want to write a book series? Maybe because I like work more with the world and setting I have, even if the setting does not seem "amazing and complex" and what if I want to work longer with the characters I create and I like to develop before writing, but the funny thing is... I don't have plot idea's. I have most my setting and worldbuilding worked out, but it probably could use more developing but that can happen later. I have a few theme idea's that I would want to explore, but I don't have a clue what to write about. My character idea's are too vague, and I can not work with a character that is too vague. Or character idea's where I am not sure if it could lead to a set of different characters, or just easily be one. I am ashamed to say that I have not been writing anything for months... Maybe it's just not mean to be? -_-ik

Yarns · Jun 4, 2017

Sweet Escape, discovering what you really want could be a step towards setting the right goal.

Punk28 · Jun 5, 2017

Got in around 1,717 words, which isn't bad considering that I could of written none.

Cindyt · Jun 5, 2017

WIP1 the historical: My goal later today is to finish draft 8 of the sea voyage part.

WIP2 the crime thriller: I'm still hacking away at the storm chapter. Storm's over and they are in the kitchen. She hasn't told him she's decided to go on cruising with him to the Keys.

WIP3 the autobiography: Finished part two. I'll pick it up Sunday with part three.

RLGreenleaf · Jun 5, 2017

Sweet Escape asks "What is even the point anymore?"

I believe that we all feel that way, at one time or another, and not just about writing. But as far as writing is concerned: I keep seeing many published books that are poorly-written, and whose stories are dull and lackluster...and yet THEY got published, so that means that we have just as good a chance, if we keep at it.

So the point is this: YOU WRITE.

Whether you get published or not, YOU WRITE.

Punk28: Congrats on the 1717 words. That is 1700 words, plus 17 more, for good measure.

Well, I finally finished my short story collection of HansChristianAndersen-like stories. Began it years ago when I was in college and never finished them until now. Was worried that I would not be able to, since I am a much different person now (as most of us are), and the stories carried a certain flavor with them.

But I kept at it, as difficult as it was: the stories I re-wrote were 200% better than the originals, and the new stories I added were much better than I could have hoped for.

Now I can set them down for a while and come back and look at them again later, when I can look at them from a fresh perspective.

Now I can move on to my next WIP.

Cindyt · Jun 5, 2017

RLGreenleaf said:
Sweet Escape asks "What is even the point anymore?"

I believe that we all feel that way, at one time or another, and not just about writing. But as far as writing is concerned: I keep seeing many published books that are poorly-written, and whose stories are dull and lackluster...and yet THEY got published, so that means that we have just as good a chance, if we keep at it.

So the point is this: YOU WRITE.

Whether you get published or not, YOU WRITE.

You sound a bit like John D. MacDonald.

RLGreenleaf · Jun 5, 2017

cindyt: I understand that John D. McDonald would sit and write for 14 hours at a time!

Question: If you submit a query, and then realize that you left out an important detail (total number of words), what do you do?

Do you re-send the query with the correction added?

Or do you just let it go?

ManInBlack · Jun 5, 2017

What's on my mind right now is that I've realized my plot is dense, and not necessarily in a good way. In fact, the only story I can think of as dense as I was aiming for is A Game of Thrones (one book = one season of TV) and I realize that I'm expecting my characters to accomplish more in the first book than was accomplished in that one. I'm toying with the idea of splitting it into a trilogy, which would give the major subplots their breathing room, but this introduces a problem in the fact that I had already settled on a trilogy. If I split each book into a trilogy I'll have 9 books, which isn't as ambitious as Rick Riordan's three pentologies about Camp Half-Blood but also doesn't have the added bonus of starting out as being MG; I would be asking readers to stick with the same teenagers for nine books, in what is written as a pretty urgent series of dilemmas; I particularly am not sure about setting the first book over three years, though if I can come to terms with that then the rest may fall into place.

CJSimone · Jun 5, 2017

RLGreenleaf said:
cindyt: I understand that John D. McDonald would sit and write for 14 hours at a time!

Question: If you submit a query, and then realize that you left out an important detail (total number of words), what do you do?

Do you re-send the query with the correction added?

Or do you just let it go?

Hi RLGreenleaf. I'd just let it go, but see what others say. Some agents may assume there's a problem with word count (too high or too low) if it's not included, but I think most would probably just go off the information they have and decide based on your story and bio.

Good luck!

CJ

MaeZe · Jun 5, 2017

I had a dilemma, started to write out a thread asking for opinions on the order of critical action vs stunning scene description. It's first person so it matters what would go through the character's mind first. Lo and behold, the solution came to me as I wrote up the question. Thank you forum members, your input was critical, seriously. :tongue

What's On Your Mind About Your Writing?

I like puppies.

practical experience, FTW

Ummm, just one more chapter...

practical experience, FTW

practical experience, FTW

Business Lumberjack

professional dilettante

professional dilettante

Gettin wiggy wit it

Gettin wiggy wit it

Power to the pen!

Gettin wiggy wit it

Ummm, just one more chapter...

Gettin wiggy wit it

Ummm, just one more chapter...