The Dastardly Dungeon of Deliciously Devious Drinks

LadyV said:

I used to get into my characters a good bit, mostly all research, but I did manage a trip to London. I need to go back.

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You and me both.

Sigh.

E.F.B. said:

*decides to re-heat an ordinary looking doughnut in the Cantina microwave* *pulls the doughnut out to find that it's not even hot*

Aw, man. Something's wrong with the microwave! Hey, wait a minute...There are glowing words appearing on the side of the doughnut! What do they say?

"One doughnut to rule them all,
One doughnut to find them,
One doughnut to bring them all,
and in the frosting, bind them,
In the Land of Mordor, where the caffeine lies."

Uh-oh. This must be the One Doughnut that the Dark Lord Sauron Sourdough created from his own super secret evil recipe! Well, I guess I better take care of this thing before he comes to get it and tries to take over all the Krispy Kremes of the world again.

*sets off on an epic quest to dunk the One Doughnut to Rule Them All into the raspberry-chocolate coffee of Mt. Doom, where it was created*

I don't want to destroy the One Doughnut, mind you. I just want to eat it.

*wonders what the Elvish word for "doughnut" is*

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*snerk*

tianaluthien said:

Currently my characters are a jewel thief and a former assassin, so I don't think practicing either of those trades is going to fly. But it does mean I get to read a lot about sparklies and gem cutting

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Your book sounds like something I would totally love. <3
Although I don't know what you mean you can't practice assassinations. Come to my house. I'll show you.

Blinkk said:

Your book sounds like something I would totally love. <3
Although I don't know what you mean you can't practice assassinations. Come to my house. I'll show you.

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Sold.

*books flight*

Semester, what semester?

Blinkk said:

Your book sounds like something I would totally love. <3
Although I don't know what you mean you can't practice assassinations. Come to my house. I'll show you.

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Hey I think video games is practice for some things... such as this. lol

Blinkk said:

Morning all.

How into your characters do you get? I have a character who's favorite weapon is throwing knives. I did tons of research on throwing knives and really enjoyed what I read. In fact, I enjoy it so much I bought a set of throwing knives to teach myself the skill so I could write it better. xD They just came in the mail and I've been practicing throwing them all morning. Holly hell it's fun!

Do you get into your characters like that?

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Shadowflame said:

Heh yep throwing knives are fun. Had a set as a kid. Got pretty decent at it too. Lost them in one move or another.

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As if you two weren't cool enough already.

I sort of kind of get into my characters like that. When they are interested in activities that I don't know anything about, I do at least research how to do them and watch youtube instructional videos and stuff like that. For example, one of my characters likes to keep his hands busy by whittling when he has down time, so I've researched how to whittle and seen what it's possible to make with a piece of wood that's small enough to carry in your pocket. Several of my characters also carry and are quite proficient with weapons of various sorts, so I've researched fighting techniques. Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately in the case of the weapons since I'm not a particularly sporty/active girl) I don't have the money to buy anything like whittling knives or "how to fight with ye olde weapons" classes, so I won't be doing any of these things myself anytime soon.

In the case of the whittling, this is one of those times that I wish my granddaddy was still around. My mom says he whittled in his younger years and I know he would have been more than happy to show me how to do it were he still here.

Multiquote Age: Inquotisition

E.F.B. said:

I've decided to research seals a little bit today as a sideways way of researching selkies. Just wanted to get an idea of what kind of seals would live in the type of climate I have in my story, what those types of seals look like and how they behave, so on and so forth. General conclusion: Harbor seals are cute and pretty interesting. Also, leopard seals are really big, really scary and I'm glad my story isn't set in the Arctic because then the selkies would be really aggressive and try to bite a chunk out of my MC rather than help her.

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Hmm, maybe I can cram selkies into this world. Or something inspired by selkies. A little more flavour than normal mermaids, perhaps. =^_^= (But no vampire selkies. Okay, probably no vampire selkies.)

Shadowflame said:

Word of advice. Never go back and read some of your first published works... I'm cringing.

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This kind of makes me want to reread the first novel-length thing I ever finished (if I can actually find it on my laptop again...).

E.F.B. said:

*wonders what the Elvish word for "doughnut" is*

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I can't remember the exact word, but I recall the literal translation for their word is something to the effect of "that one good thing those stupid ugly humans ever did".

I did research on spiders and scorpions for a novel. The MC has various arachnids as a familiar, which meant figuring out if the personality of a scorpion would be different from a spider. (I decided the answer was yes. Spiders strike me as more tactical and patient. Scorpions are active hunters.) But I'm not sure I've tried out any of my characters hobbies or skills. *is not about to let a spider live in her ear*

Ever feel like you keep writing the same novel over and over again? Not like revisions. As in, you sit down to write a new novel and it feels suspiciously like all the same themes and tropes/inverted tropes you wrote in the last one. I worry my plots are too predictable because of this.

Morning, Cantina peoples! Today promises to better. ^_^ Looking for jobs to support myself and needing to really work on promoting my three published stories as well as the need to take care of some other business.

Yes. Today is going to be good.

E.F.B. said:

Want.

*notices the price* Never mind.

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The price is the ONLY reason why I didn't march to my local techie shop and buy one this morning.

I'll be putting money aside to get one, though. We wants it.

"One doughnut to rule them all,
One doughnut to find them,
One doughnut to bring them all,
and in the frosting, bind them,
In the Land of Mordor, where the caffeine lies."

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Awesome.

*rubs hands together gleefully

Since WiPA funded, I'll be getting paid soon and that means I can start on the website! WhooHoo! 3 domain names, 3 faces, 1 site.. yea might be just a little complicated. The more I think about it, the more I'm considering paying someone to do this. I'm just not good at coding. But still CAN"T WAIT

Aggy B. said:

Ever feel like you keep writing the same novel over and over again? Not like revisions. As in, you sit down to write a new novel and it feels suspiciously like all the same themes and tropes/inverted tropes you wrote in the last one. I worry my plots are too predictable because of this.

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Aww, don't worry. I think that's normal to some degree.

I do this in a slightly different way. My plots are all different enough the but MCs from each of them could be related. A lot of the MC's struggle with the same thing. I tend to make them all highly skilled in some form of combat (from gunslinger to assassin to samurai) and they're dark characters, yo.

I gatta get down and dirty with some sciencey nerdy character who wants to solve his/her problems with a math equation instead of a sword...

And just by being in the right place I picked up a simple graphics gig needed by a friend. Easy $50

Aggy B. said:

Ever feel like you keep writing the same novel over and over again? Not like revisions. As in, you sit down to write a new novel and it feels suspiciously like all the same themes and tropes/inverted tropes you wrote in the last one. I worry my plots are too predictable because of this.

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Maybe that's just your voice as a writer. It's not like great writers don't repeat themselves. In fact repeating yourself is a crucial part of building a style and a "brand", if you want to look at it that way.

Aggy B. said:

Ever feel like you keep writing the same novel over and over again? Not like revisions. As in, you sit down to write a new novel and it feels suspiciously like all the same themes and tropes/inverted tropes you wrote in the last one. I worry my plots are too predictable because of this.

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I don't think it's too much to be worried about.

Unless they all star a dragon-shapeshifter named Ryu and a winged girl named Nina, but that would be a different problem entirely.

Out of the three novel plots I've created, two feature MMCs down on their luck who by chance meet up with FMCs. The other is the only divergent. The FMC is a woman, but the MMC is a dragon.

Aggy B. said:

Ever feel like you keep writing the same novel over and over again? Not like revisions. As in, you sit down to write a new novel and it feels suspiciously like all the same themes and tropes/inverted tropes you wrote in the last one. I worry my plots are too predictable because of this.

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Well it might be time for some introspection then.
First, what makes them similar? Is it the types of characters? The plot? The resolution? Style? Theme?
Next, identify what makes them different. Do you have fantasy stories, science fiction, horror, or just a single genre you prefer?
Third, see if your stories follow a certain pattern. Romance stories often follow one and these authors do very well. There's nothing wrong with creating a pattern in your stories and following them.
Lastly, relax. Just write. If you really feel that your stories are predictable, toss a wrench in there. A great rule of thumb especially in SF and F is to have your characters fail, fail, fail, until they succeeded at the end.

I tend more toward fantasy, than SF, with a fascination for geared things, but not everything I write is steampunk/clockpunk.

It's more the general aspects of the story. FREX: Somewhat antisocial woman with special skill meets (usually) older man whose journey/quest/goals somewhat coincide with hers. They go from acquaintances to friends to lovers, face some deadly danger (which the FMC usually rescues the MMC from), and eventually emerge victorious.

The details are different.
Book 1: The Steampunk Novel - Irish Fey on a mission to rescue her father meets a Shifter clan lord (from Scotland), they help the police in London solve the mystery behind the Ripper murders, but it leaves them both disabled in some fashion.
Book 2: The Spider Thief Novel - A sorceress/thief apprenticed to a sorcerer/matchmaker go on a quest to rescue her brother from a long-standing bloodfeud with the head of the Assassin's Guild. (This one has a happy ending.)
Book 3: Weird West Novel - A girl who is immune to the zombie plague and a young Warden (kind Illuminati guardians of civilization) foil the early stages of a plot to turn their city into a hub for religious zealots.
Book 4: Airship captain and an undying soldier from before the war against Machine fight to save the remnants of humanity from one final conflict.

But certain things come up regularly. Names that are assumed identities (for a variety of reasons), the FMC insisting she can't be in a relationship because of <insert big dark secret here>, parents who are absent, dead or villains (sometimes all of the above), quirky supporting characters who serve to highlight some emotional issue or provoke a shared moment between the FMC and MMC.

I imagine they probably aren't as similar as they seem to me. But I worry I'm letting too much carry over from one to the next. Or that these are not tropes anyone else will like. Or or or....

You know how it goes. I probably just need to shut up and write and figure my betas will tell me if they've read this book before.

Aggy, ready for rum and the weekend

Hey, guys, an interesting pair of articles here about (directly and indirectly) Terry Pratchett. First, a nasty eulogy of his career that appeared in the Guardian blog, and second, an indirect answer to that article.

Aggy B. said:

I imagine they probably aren't as similar as they seem to me. But I worry I'm letting too much carry over from one to the next. Or that these are not tropes anyone else will like. Or or or....

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Are you still enjoying your stories regardless? I think what you're saying is normal to a degree. I can spew off a list of similarities in my stories as well. I think, above all, if you enjoy writing these stories than write! However if you're feeling stale then yes, perhaps its time for a change.

There are some authors I read and half the appeal is knowing they have a certain style and certain plot elements.

What brought about this worry?

Blinkk said:

Are you still enjoying your stories regardless? I think what you're saying is normal to a degree. I can spew off a list of similarities in my stories as well. I think, above all, if you enjoy writing these stories than write! However if you're feeling stale then yes, perhaps its time for a change.

There are some authors I read and half the appeal is knowing they have a certain style and certain plot elements.

What brought about this worry?

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I always enjoy what I write. I wouldn't be writing it otherwise.

The worry grew out of me trying to figure out if there was something "wrong" with the novels out on submission. That may not have been the smartest idea. But while comparing various things from what I've already written and working on the newest project I started to wonder if there were too many similarities between them. Coupled with the stress of having three novels (and now a novella) on submission, trying to wrangle a pitch for a graphic novel, and finishing up the rough draft of a book that is threatening to turn into a doorstopper.

I have some very smart folks who read the MSs, so I'm certain if they were too similar I would hear about it. So, now I'm just trying to focus on finishing the current thing by the end of the year.

I was mostly curious if anyone else is ever hit by the sense that they write the same story over and over again.

Ah. In that case - yes, me. And they're even in different genres. (A fantasy, a science fantasy and a superhero story all share basically the same plot).

I suppose I should be worried about it, but really it only matters if people *read* the things, so...

*Bats at Eeyore's raincloud*

Hi all! I now want a donut

And I have my notebooks for Ravensrealm and Snow in Olympus! /squees/

I'm just a little bit happy.

Aggy B. said:

I was mostly curious if anyone else is ever hit by the sense that they write the same story over and over again.

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I hope all your subs turn out well Aggy.

As for feeling like I'm writing the same story over and over again...I'm not sure if I feel like that or not. The two stories I've been working the most lately, the one on the top of the list in my sig and the Sleeping Beauty retelling are pretty drastically different. It's hard to tell with the other two stories, because they aren't nearly as developed yet. At this point, I think they're pretty different.

I do worry about my MCs being too similar, though. Especially with my two novel length stories. Those girls have very different backgrounds but very similar personalities. But in all reality I guess similar personalities don't matter that much as long as their stories are different. So...why was I worried, again?

ION: I feel like I'm about to gnaw my own arm off as I sit here waiting for my mom to bring supper home. Starving. Need. Food. Aaarrrggg.

E.F.B. said:

"One doughnut to rule them all,
One doughnut to find them,
One doughnut to bring them all,
and in the frosting, bind them,
In the Land of Mordor, where the caffeine lies."

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That donut exists.

AS for the damn raid, those WERE the backups, but we have some data compiled on alternate drives. One of the tradeoffs of a raid, alas. Slow going, we'll see what happens.

jallenecs said:

Hey, guys, an interesting pair of articles here about (directly and indirectly) Terry Pratchett. First, a nasty eulogy of his career that appeared in the Guardian blog, and second, an indirect answer to that article.

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Pratchett was the first writer I read in English. His work will live as long people who love it lives.