Writerly Ways
Sep. 4th, 2011 02:03 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
cornerofmadnessI've been thinking about a couple of things recently, using what you see as characters/settings and first readers.
Characters first. Sometimes you hear of someone or see someone and just have to make them into a character, if for nothing else their looks. I was reminded that today as I hit the Sonic's drive through and the girl working the window had four tattoos, two on the inside of her forearms that I couldn't read and two on the outsides of her arms. Her right arm read 'broken' and her left 'life.' I was left wondering what could have happened to a lady so young that she would leave indelible marks on her skin proclaiming her life as broken. Did it even mean what I think it does? Is it a profound proclaimation of sadness or a joyful fracturing away from something bad and a step into the light? I will most likely never know but if I were to use something like that in a story, it becomes what I want.
There is a danger, of course, of making it resemble someone too closely. Though sometimes even that doesn't matter. Law and Order in all its incarnations 'ripped from the headlines' storylines where you darn well knew who this episode was about really. There was at least two forensic programs where mystery authors talked about what real life cases prompted their books. On the more negative side, there was a good NCIS episode where McGee's stalker believes these people McGee saw daily (in his case from his coffe house, not the Sonics) and thought they were a real and present danger to McGee. I think we all borrow from real life. How much will vary from person to person and story to story.
now on to
All of us have to eventually have a first reader and we all have different wants and needs from those. Some of us only want someone cheering them a long and pointing out areas of confusion on draft one, saving the deep edit for later. Others, like me, can barely wait until a scene is fresh on the page before shoving it under someone's nose and saying rip it to shreds.
I do have a couple critique groups but the problem with groups is many-fold. You get people outside your genre unless it's a genre specific group (mine are not). You get conflicting ideas, which can make you nuts. On the pro side you get many eyes. On the con, because groups are just that, groups, there is so much to read that you can only do small amounts at a time and wait weeks.
I'm hoping to find someone (besides poor overwhelmed![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
evil_little_dog) who might want to help with two storylines. One is a vampire thing I've put up here many times before, Machiavelli Moon. At one point I was trading this with wildrider and we both kind of trickled off. I've changed this damn thing so many times. I know it's marketable. I know what to do. i've two professional inputs on it outside of my friends' thoughts but I need to go back through, one chapter at a time. Restructure the beginning and rework heavily from mid novel to the rushed end. I need someone to help keep me on track.
The other is Riding with Strangers, a polyamorous (sort of) erotic mystery that I have also put up chunks of before with several people offering to read it but again we're all busy people and we fizzled out. I need to expand this from novella to novel form and I will need help.
So if there is anyone out there who would like to help let me know. My offer is this, I will edit for you in return, either chapter for chapter or short stories if that's your thing. There isn't a huge rush to edit a chapter so it would be at your own (reasonable pace) and if I fall behind on returning the favor, yell at me. Chances are I've spaced out on it. Thanks
yearly word count (notice i am behind)
64906 / 125000 words. 52% done!
Vacation in Victoria (this is the upper word count allowed, not necessarily my ending point)
2010 / 15000 words. 13% done!
Characters first. Sometimes you hear of someone or see someone and just have to make them into a character, if for nothing else their looks. I was reminded that today as I hit the Sonic's drive through and the girl working the window had four tattoos, two on the inside of her forearms that I couldn't read and two on the outsides of her arms. Her right arm read 'broken' and her left 'life.' I was left wondering what could have happened to a lady so young that she would leave indelible marks on her skin proclaiming her life as broken. Did it even mean what I think it does? Is it a profound proclaimation of sadness or a joyful fracturing away from something bad and a step into the light? I will most likely never know but if I were to use something like that in a story, it becomes what I want.
There is a danger, of course, of making it resemble someone too closely. Though sometimes even that doesn't matter. Law and Order in all its incarnations 'ripped from the headlines' storylines where you darn well knew who this episode was about really. There was at least two forensic programs where mystery authors talked about what real life cases prompted their books. On the more negative side, there was a good NCIS episode where McGee's stalker believes these people McGee saw daily (in his case from his coffe house, not the Sonics) and thought they were a real and present danger to McGee. I think we all borrow from real life. How much will vary from person to person and story to story.
now on to
All of us have to eventually have a first reader and we all have different wants and needs from those. Some of us only want someone cheering them a long and pointing out areas of confusion on draft one, saving the deep edit for later. Others, like me, can barely wait until a scene is fresh on the page before shoving it under someone's nose and saying rip it to shreds.
I do have a couple critique groups but the problem with groups is many-fold. You get people outside your genre unless it's a genre specific group (mine are not). You get conflicting ideas, which can make you nuts. On the pro side you get many eyes. On the con, because groups are just that, groups, there is so much to read that you can only do small amounts at a time and wait weeks.
I'm hoping to find someone (besides poor overwhelmed
evil_little_dog) who might want to help with two storylines. One is a vampire thing I've put up here many times before, Machiavelli Moon. At one point I was trading this with wildrider and we both kind of trickled off. I've changed this damn thing so many times. I know it's marketable. I know what to do. i've two professional inputs on it outside of my friends' thoughts but I need to go back through, one chapter at a time. Restructure the beginning and rework heavily from mid novel to the rushed end. I need someone to help keep me on track.The other is Riding with Strangers, a polyamorous (sort of) erotic mystery that I have also put up chunks of before with several people offering to read it but again we're all busy people and we fizzled out. I need to expand this from novella to novel form and I will need help.
So if there is anyone out there who would like to help let me know. My offer is this, I will edit for you in return, either chapter for chapter or short stories if that's your thing. There isn't a huge rush to edit a chapter so it would be at your own (reasonable pace) and if I fall behind on returning the favor, yell at me. Chances are I've spaced out on it. Thanks
yearly word count (notice i am behind)
Vacation in Victoria (this is the upper word count allowed, not necessarily my ending point)
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no subject
Date: 2011-09-04 06:28 pm (UTC)Yeah...those. :D
no subject
Date: 2011-09-04 07:28 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-09-04 07:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-09-04 08:20 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-09-05 02:56 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-09-04 06:57 pm (UTC)Over the first reader part, I tend to make a couple edits first on my stories until I'm either fine with the draft or am tired of keeping to make it absolutely perfect. XD I then would send it to my beta and get to do the big edit of my story/chapter.
I'm willing to help you with the storyline for Riding With Strangers. I quite like mystery, wee. As for the offer, I can let you edit any short stories I need beta'd, most likely they'll be for
no subject
Date: 2011-09-04 08:23 pm (UTC)I used to make sure that I'd get the first draft edited before sending it out but time crunches have been preventing me.
thanks. I'll take you up on that and those stories are short so that should be easy to deal with.
Question
Date: 2011-09-04 08:26 pm (UTC)Re: Question
Date: 2011-09-04 08:53 pm (UTC)Re: Question
Date: 2011-09-04 09:27 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-09-04 11:24 pm (UTC)I'm blanking, though, on which one "Riding With Strangers" was. I started a few of your novellas...
no subject
Date: 2011-09-04 11:38 pm (UTC)Riding with Strangers is the m/m erotica set in Florida with Hikaru the dragon and Liam the homicide detective
no subject
Date: 2011-09-05 01:11 am (UTC)If you happen to have time and are reading the "Nightwalker" blog, any comments there would be taken into account; the 1932 story about Moira is still in flux, as well.
I have to get back to final revisions on RoF and resubmissions. I've been lazier than hell lately, though.
no subject
Date: 2011-09-05 01:34 am (UTC)okay when I'm ready withMmoon I'll go and look at nightwalker.
good luck with that. I'vebeen lazy too