2008-08-06, 08:19 | Link #81 | |
Dietrich fan #681675
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Best advice I can give is not to give up. Just keep writing and keep a journal/log handy to jot down ideas that come up. By keeping track of other ideas, I think you will have a better guide for your story. One thing you could try to do is come up with briefs about each character. Give yourself an idea of what direction you want their development to go. What are their motivations? What role do they play? What relationships do they have with each other? Using that information could help you come up with a direction for the overall plot. You could do it mentally as well but it could be a benefit to have it written down so you don't forget anything. Hope this advice helped.
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2008-08-06, 08:37 | Link #82 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: England
Age: 34
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I have identified a little on most of the characters, their personality, and their relationship towards one another. I have also basically planned out the entire story, events, occurances, even the huge and dramatic twist at the end. As you said, I really desperately need to write/type the basic events down so that I do not foeget them. The idea for this novel has been going through my head for a very long time now so I have thought up a lot of the story and what route it takes. I want it to be quite a dark-themed thriller that all takes place in one horrible place which is like a faction of some kind. Have you read George Orwell's "1984"? I planned it out to have a similar effect that novel had with the same certian themes, which is a dystopian [society is a state in which the conditions of life are extremely bad, characterized by human misery, poverty, oppression, violence, disease, and/or pollution] and political story which is quite a lot like my idea exept mine is more of a thriller. I was not influenced from this book although it has the same type of atmosphere. Planning is one thing and then actually writing it is another. As you said, it is a case of going from point A to point B, which can prove difficult. Nontheless thankyou for you wonderful support! I shall not stop and give up on this decent and well thought into idea so that it will go unnoiticed. |
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2008-08-06, 08:46 | Link #83 |
Dietrich fan #681675
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Nervous Venus, the excerpt you posted reminded me of something Raymond Carver wrote, titled "So Much Water So Close To Home." There is a part of that story that kind of reads similarly to what you posted: a husband sits reading a newspaper in the kitchen while his wife does the chores. The husband and wife have some sort of distance between them, as it has much to do with the husband's past.
Is "Marsha" supposed to symbolize anything? Interesting that the guy wants her dead, even though she is a fictional character in a fictional story within a fictional story.
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2008-08-06, 08:55 | Link #84 | |
Dietrich fan #681675
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I had an idea of writing something set in a futuristic setting, though not quite in a dystopian society, but with similar themes of people living in an environment where one giant entity controls almost everything. I don't know if I'll ever write this, whether as a novel (light, heavy, or graphic) or even as a comic. The story I'm working on now (an excerpt is posted somewhere on page 4) was something I had started writing last year (while being in a depressed state after my birthday—how ironic) but the concept was being composed mentally at least six months prior. It has evolved a lot since then, starting out as being a comedy (in the mental states) to a depressed/psycho-analytical piece, to being a crude story involving sexually-charged and perverted teenagers, to being what it is now: a coming-of-age (I think) story about a boy and whether or not love can truly be rushed and forced. It's still very much a work in progress and I pray there doesn't come a day where I just curse aloud and start all over yet again... It does help to have a plan B in case things go awry during the writing process. Sometimes things look good on first viewing but inconsistencies and other shortcomings reveal themselves through more careful inspections of the work. At least that is what I've found from my experiences.
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2008-08-06, 16:43 | Link #85 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Between a rock and a hard place.
Age: 38
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I was actually basing this scene on something that I experienced while living with my sister ( who writes for a living also), who was considering divorce at the time. I suppose that peaks my interest in Raymond Carver even more, as he can write so realistically. I'm actually not sure about Marsha yet. Something about her ticks Will off, and the MC doesn't know why. I suppose this will have to explored later on. Any suggestions could be helpful (maybe she reminds him of his mother? = a neglectful past? = would explain his childish behavior?), as this story is still in the process of fleshing out. Thanks a lot for your kind words. I posted this on a writing forum and a reviewer got irate with me, so I was really discouraged with posting anything ever again. He had a problem with the "rice cooking". He feels that I didn't cook the rice correctly, that I introduced the rice into the story only to have it disappear and it should have been burning, and was angry when I pointed out that I had the MC jab at the rice (to show she was still at it) and then turn the gas off the stove in the story. I really didn't think that it was important, as I wasn't focusing on this in the story, but maybe he's right. If you, or any readers, feel that it was a bit confusing, any suggestions on how to make it less confusing would be nice.
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2008-08-06, 19:38 | Link #86 | ||||
Dietrich fan #681675
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I read a bunch of Carver's stuff (and watched a biography about him) for this online class about short stories that I took in college. A lot of his stories kinda have this grittiness to them...a lot of them feature every-day regular people...hardly anything with happy endings or with pleasant happiness...lots of his work was based on his personal experiences, iirc. Quote:
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2008-08-06, 21:39 | Link #87 | ||
Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Between a rock and a hard place.
Age: 38
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It was just a really odd experience for me. So I backed out of the place immediately. Quote:
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2008-08-31, 00:03 | Link #88 |
Dietrich fan #681675
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I guess we've all been so busy writing that no one's updated lol
After reading a fortune from a fortune cookie, I finally came up with a title for the story I've been working...hope whatever I write can mirror the theme I'll try to present...
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2008-09-12, 12:14 | Link #89 | |
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Join Date: Mar 2004
Age: 37
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Funny that people are talking about Raymond Carver, I just finished reading "Cathedral" by him (frankly, didn't think it was all that great, but...)
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2008-09-12, 20:02 | Link #90 | ||
Dietrich fan #681675
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Our professor recommended we read the assigned stories at least twice—once to familiarize ourselves with it and repeated readings to pinpoint things we may have missed. A few of Carver's stories were three-read minimums for me... Quote:
I think I'm probably more of a detail-oriented writer; I always want to let people know what the characters look like, how they dress, what they do, what mannerisms they make, and so on.
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2008-09-12, 23:51 | Link #91 | |||
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Join Date: Mar 2004
Age: 37
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2008-09-13, 10:48 | Link #92 | |
Every word must conjure
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That said though, I like some of his earlier stories like "Put Yourself in My Shoes", "Why Honey?" and a Chekhov-fronted story called "Errand". |
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2008-09-14, 06:29 | Link #93 | |
Dietrich fan #681675
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I guess what drew me to his writing was how the characters were everyday people—no fantasy elements or any deus-ex-machinae—but his stories aren't pleasant (not the kinds you want to read when you're feeling down) as his stories feature characters who either don't get along well with certain people ("Cathedral" or "A Small, Good Thing"). Do you have Where I'm Calling From or another anthology? I did write down potential twists and endings for stories I was working on but oftentimes I abandoned writing stories if they went in a direction I didn't like. It's probably because I'm too much of a perfectionist so whenever stories reached a point where I thought they were no longer good reads, I had a habit of just starting over. But I did have a notebook that had outlines of various characters, including notes about them.
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2008-10-16, 12:33 | Link #94 |
✖ ǝʇ ɯıqnɾl ☆
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Mortuary : D
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Something I had written in 9th Grade : )
I seracheth Heaven, I seacheth Earth .
But I dont find thee anywhere. Where shall I find thee I ask everyone, I get assured I ask when,will I meet my wen Is it today with the hopeful sunrise Or shall it be tomorrow with dreamy sunset. I question everyone, now and then.
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2008-10-16, 17:42 | Link #95 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: UK
Age: 14
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To my love, Today the roses awoke, Under the sun it’s noble glory. I dreamt of you, a love so dear, Who’s loveliness is beyond mortal words. I’ll think of you when times are hard, So your face blows away my tears. Until such time we meet again, My dreams will burden the years. Yeah, it is ridiculously sentimental, but I was a young teenager, lol. |
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2008-10-16, 19:39 | Link #96 | ||
Honyaku no Hime
Fansubber
Join Date: May 2008
Location: In the eastern capital of the islands of the rising suns...
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Did that need to have some kind of ole english theme, or it was from your own initiative? Quote:
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2008-10-17, 15:43 | Link #98 |
Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Between a rock and a hard place.
Age: 38
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I've never understood poetry, so I wouldn't be able to comment much on it. Only poetry I wrote I erased all the lines except for:
ilovehislove his blueeyes hislips i love / the way his kisses taste so sweet bitter sweet. Apparently, this was the kind of crap poetry I wrote, so I tend to stick to short stories Xvoki, I think being a young teenager in love brings out the most touching words. I guess it's because you're experiencing for the first time (or second or third, lol). I enjoyed your poem.
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2008-10-17, 17:50 | Link #99 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: UK
Age: 14
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Thanks, I‘m glad you liked mine! Unfortunately I’m an unlucky romantic. Hmm, this has got my mind juices flowing, maybe I should take up writing again, lol. |
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2008-10-17, 20:38 | Link #100 | ||
Every word must conjure
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I especially like the last 3 lines. The images - face/ tears/ dreams/ years - does feel a bit over-sentimental, but it's still a very strong collection of meanings. |
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literature, writing |
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