Writerly Ways

[cornerofmadness]

You know if I had in my story a GOP politician who took a look at the comment comparing the anti-lock down protestors to Rosa Parks and said 'hold my beer, I can do better' and have her compare being asked to stay in our houses as being the same as the extermination of the Jews in Germany no one would believe such a character. And OMG Idaho, if you let this person stay in power, I think you can be the one state I never visit. Shudders.

So writing shit. Why are endings SO hard? Did I work on the novel today? Nope. Did I write 3600 words of fanfic today? You betcha. OMFG. What is WRONG with me? Oh right, endings.

I can end short stories, no problem. It's novels I struggle with. I'm not sure if it's because I've had so much time, so many words in which to fall in love with my characters and I don't want to say goodbye. I'm not sure if it's because I'm lured away by the latest new shiny thing. I suspect that it's a mix of the two.

So how do you all find your endings? It's not as if I don't know my ending. It's a romance so obviously the couple is going to live happily ever after (or at least happy for now) I'm down to the last 10K and I've written maybe 1500 words all month on it. God. I wanted it done this month. And thanks to shanachie_quill who volunteered to beta read some of this! It's much appreciated.

Okay I'll never get anything written if I don't move on to the links
so here from Betty

How to Become a Writer: Going From Hobby to Career

CHARACTER MAP—AN EXERCISE (this looks like fun)

Creating And Promoting A Podcast

10 Tips for Irresistible Writing, Part 1

13 Ways To Increase Your Email Open Rate

Is Relatability Actually Important?

Podcast
270 – Redemption Arcs

Vampire Film and Arts Festival (okay not really writing related but fun!!)

Creating The Wow Moment

The Sensual Pleasures Of A Beautiful Book

How To Boil Loads Of Research Down To A First Draft

Corry L. Lee: Five Things I Learned Writing Weave The Lightning

Why Do Some Characters Live On Beyond The Book?

A Writer’s Intuition: Receiving Inspirations and Insights from the Beyond

85 Writing Quotes To Revive Your Writing Inspiration

Write Drunk Edit Sober Is Sound But Only Idiomatic Advice

Comments

[alexseanchai]

if nothing else, I now wanna read Weave the Lightning

“Sometimes I write drunk and revise sober,” he had said, “and sometimes I write sober and revise drunk. But you have to have both elements in creation — the Apollonian and the Dionysian, or spontaneity and restraint, emotion and discipline.”

—huh. *contemplates in Hellenic polytheist*

[cornerofmadness]

now that is something

[enemytosleep]

Write the god damn story, Shinji. *evil anime glasses*

[cornerofmadness]

Ahahahaha, damnit I NEED to (so far today isn't my day but work beckoned)

[tinx_r]

No help, but I can’t end stuff for shit. Fanfic is easy (at least easier); I have a 20k novelette that needs a showdown and smooshy ending, it’s been needing those for a couple of years at least.

I’ve never been satisfied with the endings of any of the novels, and few of the novelettes, I’ve produced.

Maybe they have to be neater than fanfic, because it’s not a shared universe? I’ve considered that as a source of my block in the past although I’m not sure if it’s true

[cornerofmadness]

I hear you. I think you're on to something. I think that because these are OUR characters, the worldbuilding, saying 'goodbye' to our characters can be hard and we throw up blocks.

Fanfic we have characters we love and the worldbuilding is done for us. It's easier. We just need plot, not the whole rigamarole

What is your original fiction like? Is any for sale?

[tinx_r]

M/M romance... literature at its finest 😆😆 most of it’s unavailable by now I think as most of the publishers went bust

[cornerofmadness]

ha, no fears, same here. Well Dreamspinner hasn't gone bust just isn't paying anyone except a select few (I need to go get my rights back at this point). At least Nine Star is hanging in there.

The novel I'm whining about lately is probably one of the last things I'm doing under that pen name. I feel like it's time for me to move on.