Writerly Ways

[cornerofmadness]

I've been reconsidering my publishing path lately. It used to be I could write fan fic and three novels all at the same time. Now I can barely write one thing. I know a lot of this is down to internet addiction and pissing away time on facebook games etc. I don't even LIKE facebook. I never see posts I want to see but I'm still there all the time.

Anyhow, I know gay romance is not the only thing I want to write and let's be honest, my career is luke warm at very best. I think I need to take a step back a bit. Yes, finish my ongoing projects but I need to start doing other things to do (maybe ones where the female audience aren't worse misogynists than men and aren't just in the story to watch the pretty men fuck because seriously some of this makes me feel ...annoyed, dirty, angry, pick one)

I have a couple finished novels. I think that Machiavelli Moon as much as I love it might never be viable. Sigh. Makai and his universe need me and my coauthor to get our crap together which is easier said than done.

On the other hand Splinters of Silver & Cold Iron might be easy to polish up. I know there's at least another story there to tell. I think that I stand a good chance with this, even if it's YA and my pub credits are not. If nothing else, having my novels out there with a publishing house (as opposed to self pubbing) proves I can take directions from an editor and know a little bit about marketing etc (not nearly enough mind you). Not knocking self pubbing mind you. One day that might be how Machiavelli Moon gets out there. I need to make some serious changes to some of that, however.

I have my dieselpunk mystery that has two half done stories in them but judging by the comments from my writers group the first of them is way worse than I think it is. It's going to take some serious rewriting.

I know that around this time of year I say this same thing, hold my feet to the fire and poke me if I'm not talking about editing this stuff and moving forward. I know I've done it the last two or three years if not more. I don't do it. No one pokes me and the stuff just sits.

I need to be more serious about it this year. I hope I have it in me. I want to be able to do it. Wish me luck. I hate failing and I have been lately. Badly.

But I WILL try for this anthology because SF!
beyond the infinite So what would you like to see in gay SF? Seriously, I'm asking.

And Jana's been busy. You can see her a week in writing here (with props to several of you) and my rainbow snippet complete with buy links.

Also my friend ES has shared two good links today. I haven't had time to full appreciate them but here we all could use them.

when a character is clever

costuming your character

Yearly word count -

144717 / 110000
(131.56%)

And oh non-writing things. I celebrated the end of the year with overpriced chocolate bars now buy one get one free (because NO ONE in Jackson can afford this) It's by Vosges, Mo's Dark Bar which is 62% dark chocolate, alderwood smoked salt and bacon. It's good. Not it's price tag good but still. Also my 215$ bill at Krogers (I bought gift cards with the groceries and also the groceries are gifts too) was only 182$ because of all my coupons. I love coupons.

Comments

[evil-little-dog.livejournal.com]

Okay, I'll have to look at the links when I have time because they look up my alley.

I would think any type of novel publication would put you ahead of someone who's never published anything, personally.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

They're good links

True, not arguing that. However, we've all seen self pubs that are very obviously completely unedited. I think (I could be wrong) that agents and publishing houses would probably put a little more weight on the story by someone who's gone through at least an indie publishing house over nothing at all.

[evil-little-dog.livejournal.com]

I always forget self-pubbing. Sorry, but I do.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

And I avoid a lot of it

[wildrider.livejournal.com]

I think you have it in you, too!

Good luck! You can do it!

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much. I appreciate it

[tinhutlady.livejournal.com]

good links. Thanks!

Maybe you should look at the type of person you are. Are you easily distracted? Could you devote a specific amount of time to one project and then write fanfic as a reward for when you finish a piece? Do you get bored? Could you plan out a week to work on one project and challenge yourself to a wordcount before working on something else for another week? Maybe you could experiment with deadlines?
Take some time during the winter break to really look at what you accomplished the past few years and how you did it. See if there's a pattern. Are you more focused in the summer? During NaNoWriMo? You are the best judge of how you should be pushed...

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

I actually don't have to really sit and assess. This questions Are you easily distracted? nails it. I know that I am. That's why I sometimes write on my netbook with its lack of internet because that helps.

Also I love deadlines but if they're self imposed I tend to ignore them. That's why Camp Nano and Nano work for me. Also I am competitive and it helps to have someone to write with and 'beat' or 'lose' to in word wars. A lot of my friends are interested in that in nano but less interested in doing it at other times.

My depression plays a huge role in this. This is not helped by my current genre where the authors/readers can be a strange, paranoid and hurtful bunch (they're terrified of catfishing and can't seem to understand having a pen name is NOT cat fishing)

[tinhutlady.livejournal.com]

(nods) Yeah, self-imposed deadlines are hard, and it sounds like you already have a good handle on what derails your efforts. I would volunteer to be competitive with you, but things always conspire (work, home) to keep me from writing on any kind of steady basis.

By the way, what is catfishing?

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

I have been thinking about this for a while so I've already gone over my issues. Not writing at the same time as my friends is an issue. I'm more productive after 11pm for example. My local nano friends and I get together year round but it's often more of us sitting and talking instead of writing. I'm okay with that because hey, they're my only friends in this place outside of work.

Cat fishing is we called sock puppets in fandom. Fake identities to lure people in. I don't know how it got that name in online dating but that's where it comes from. I've seen cat fishers there (one had David Boreanaz's picture as his profile pic. It's like dude, find someone less famous, okay?)

Often they're also used online to create tragic back stories (often to put a go fund me account up for cancers/accidents/ etc that don't exist).

Yes there have been cat fishers but not everyone with a pen name is cat fishing and they can't see that line any more. Worse, they're out there ruining the careers of people who simply have a pen name and doxxing them

[tinhutlady.livejournal.com]

Sounds like a good time to be productive. Nice and peaceful at that hour. And sitting and talking can be so inspirational, you know? Firing up your imagination with people who understand.

Sock puppets in fandom. THAT I understand...all too well.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

It is.

Actually I find talking to people very helpful in kicking things loose which is why I am sad more people don't use chat any more.

Yeah apparently there are people pretending to be male when they're not. 20 years ago you HAD to pretend to be male if you wanted published in gay fiction but that is no longer the case and the opposite is true. You'll be seen as being deceptive.

on the other hand there is a faction out there who will not read gay fiction unless a gay man writes it so it's a catch 22