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Is it mandatory to rewrite the entire novel from scratch for the second draft?
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Jul 25, 2012 06:15
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I've had the first draft done for about a half a year now, and I'm editing it piece by piece, which is, according to a goon, the hard way to do it. [Blah blah blah] so rewriting really sounds like it would be the harder thing to do.
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Jul 25, 2012 06:25
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I just thought I'd mention that when I say edit, I'm pulling out scenes that I've been told are troublesome, just copy-pasting them into a new doc for easy referral, and rewriting those scenes in particular. Is that the wrong way to rewrite? And "scenes and sequels" is the dumbest bloody thing I've ever heard of. There has got to be a better name for those. Goonperson was trying to teach me about them but never made as much sense as "The scene is upping the tension, the sequel is releasing it to give the reader a little breather". That's the only way anyone's explained it that I've actually understood. I don't know if I've been doing that and I didn't know it, or if I haven't been doing it because I'm a moron with "the craft". This is the first time I've ever edited a story. Nothing I've written before has ever been good enough to warrant it--and for all I know, this isn't good enough to warrant it either. I'm not a good judge of whether or not things are objectively good or bad, from what I hear.
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Jul 26, 2012 05:08
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All 200+ pages of it?
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Jul 26, 2012 06:11
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My apologies. I'm just very frustrated with this entire thing. I've never been a particularly nitpicky reader, so I'll refrain from imposing on everyone asking a favor I'm not good enough to return.
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Jul 26, 2012 06:46
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Is there an IRC or anything for rambling about writing? I lost any sort of writing "community" years ago and the only person I still talk to about it (my friend who I call my editor because she's helping me edit my story) tends to vanish from the internet for extended periods of time. Gonna be honest here, I'm afraid of goons and I don't think that posting for critique would be good for my motivation. My story, perhaps, but my ego, not so much. Still, having people to talk to would be nice. I'm interested in other people's stories and I like hearing about them, and talking about your own stuff of course always pumps you up, but I don't feel like a post in this thread (or any other, really) that is purely enthusing about my story would be welcome, needed, helpful in any way. Also I've looked for writing groups locally, but google isn't much help. All the info is either out of date or everything that IS up to date is at least a few hours drive away and I don't have a car. Despite pretending at being a writer I don't think I'm getting across what I want to say very well. How do you guys make writing friends?
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Mar 27, 2013 05:33
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Mr.Drf posted:The details in your post don't make me very optimistic about your writing. This thread moves along pretty fast, and any IRC anyone could give you would probably be full of goons. If you want you can start slow. We have threads for really short pieces, you can post one for your own stories, or if you feel really brave go to the Thunderdome. Why do you think your ego is so fragile dude? Sucking at something is just the first step towards being great at it. Yeah. I tend to ramble when I'm not sure what the most succinct way is to say what I want to say, like in this case. I'm aware that IRC would be full of goons, but it seems like it might be a bit more casual than a forum post that everyone can see and scrutinize. Not really interested in writing short fiction, it's never really clicked with me. The ego problem boils down to an atrophied thick skin and a lot of self-confidence issues. Also hubris. The main problem is that I want help editing--real, one-on-one help with an understanding of what I'm trying to accomplish by the end of the story-- and since my editor friend is kinda touch-and-go at the moment, it's impossible to find anyone willing to read something that's over 200 pages. I've tried editing by my lonesome but an objective eye towards my own work is not something that comes easily to me.
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Mar 27, 2013 06:08
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Erik Shawn-Bohner posted:I think I speak for everyone when we say that we all just can't wait to sign up to be your personal editor for your long work since your only editor-friend is avoiding you. Surely, an IRC channel to talk about our writing without showing it to anyone is productive. I'll post the first chapter in the forum. It was too late to do it last night. sebmojo posted:Link me to it and I'll have a look. Thanks! I'm assuming that posting it in the forum will do the same general thing, but I'm willing to send you the entire story via email if you want. It's chopped up into a different document for every chapter to make it easier to edit, so you'll be getting a bunch of smaller documents instead of one large one. Unless you want the first draft. Chillmatic posted:I'm assuming you write everything the way you wrote the above post, which is horrible. Cut down on the folksy conversational tics and write for clarity and voice. Didn't know I wasn't allowed to ramble. I tend to type how I talk. Sorry about that.
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Mar 27, 2013 17:08
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Chillmatic posted:Oh don't be such a baby; you either want help or you don't. Fair enough.
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Mar 27, 2013 20:19
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It's not that I have no desire to, I suppose, so much as it that I'm very bad at containing the setting to just the story. Maybe I should do nothing but thunderdome from now on. God knows I'm not a good enough writer to do anything else.
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Mar 28, 2013 17:08
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Jinnigan posted:Do y'all have any advice for any honest to god new writers? I got it into my head to learn some basic fiction writing (I'm a fine nonfiction writer) but as soon as I actually sat down to try and write I froze up with anxiety and insecurity and ignorance. I don't even know where to start. Any suggestions? I'm assuming you already know how to ignore the inner editor during the first draft. Just remember that it doesn't have to be perfect on the first try. I'm likely wrong, but I don't really see much difference between nonfiction writing and fiction writing, except that in the latter you get to make things up.
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Apr 4, 2013 03:29
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magnificent7 posted:Oh I checked your Thunderdome. Your people scare me. As someone who has only entered Thunderdome once, I have to say it's not that bad. I'm signed up for this week too and I've got my submission ready. I think I might keep doing it, because otherwise I'm not writing anything at all, and flash fiction is better than nothing. Think of it this way: if you lose, the worst you get is teased and a new avatar--and that's only if you're the Superloser. You don't even have to win, although that is the ultimate goal. At least look at the new prompt when it comes up.
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Apr 6, 2013 03:17
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Join Thunderdome. one of us one of us
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Apr 20, 2013 01:44
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One of these days, magnificent7, I'm gonna challenge you to a throwdown.
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Apr 28, 2013 18:11
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Does Tolkien count as blabby? I'd say he's stuck around pretty well.
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Apr 28, 2013 21:40
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sebmojo posted:Just do it. Here, I'll make it easy: this isn't my thunderdome But you know what, I sat out this last 'dome so I'm down. Is my opponent? Sitting Here: Names depend. So long as they're consistent and everyone has names like Grud OR Greenrock without alternating or doing both, I think it's fine.
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Apr 29, 2013 03:49
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I hate going in right up against the deadline so here we go. Sinner 569 words My dearest Joseph, I write to you with the blood still fresh upon my hands, in the hopes that you will understand why I did what I did. I have already prayed to Almighty God Himself, but this shall be my confession to you. From the day we first met, I have loved you with a fierce passion. I loved you and love you now but there is evil in your blood from your father, that foul murderer of women and children. There is that evil in you, and I feared it would carry on through your lineage. And then came the day when I carried that blood in myself. For those long nine months I felt it grow and stir, and did not recognize the wickedness I carried. This was to be an innocent babe, I thought, and I would have to protect it if the evil in you suddenly turned upon us in echoes of your own father. I prayed every night that we would be safe from you. After the birth I found my heart growing heavy and fearful. I did not sleep at night, kept awake by fear, and one night when I did fall into slumber I was awoken by a horrific revelation, a warning from God. I dreamt that I saw you and your father at a crossroads, and you held little sleeping Isaac in your arms. Your father pointed down one path, one that I could sense was full of malevolence and lead to death and destruction. It was a road to Hell that he tried to pull you down, but you stood your ground. Your father grew mad, shouting and gesturing wildly. I saw you hand Isaac to your father. This appeased him and he strode down his Damned road with our babe in his arms, and I knew this was a message from Him. Somehow the evil in your father had skipped you and was now twice as strong in our child, and if he had been evil then surely Isaac was the Devil. I prayed that it was not true for months, but I knew in my soul that it was. This weariness at life was his doing, this Devil-child sapping at my strength and my joy. I knew that when it was done with me it would turn to you, and was afraid. I prayed to God for strength this night, strength for what had to be done, and was granted it. I left our bed that night as a viper slides from its hole, and crept to the babe’s bassinet. He looked like an angel, sleeping there, but beneath that beat a heart of evil. I took a pillow from our bed and laid it over him, pressing down gently and repeating the Lord’s Prayer until he was dead. I still cannot sleep. The ache in my soul has not abated, and I fear that killing the Devil-child somehow passed the evil on to me. In saving you and countless others that would have suffered at his hand I have damned myself. I go now to turn myself in, and I pray that through the justice of the courts I will be absolved and not be Damned by Him for what I have done. Never forget that I loved you, and love you now, and shall love you always. May God have mercy on me. Yours, Emma
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May 3, 2013 04:13
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 You didn't think it was serious? What could you lose by doing it?
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May 3, 2013 05:29
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This wasn't even a throwdown. It's a cheap win, but I'll take it.
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May 5, 2013 04:00
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I could challenge you to another throwdown. Hell, we all could. It'll be your own personal
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May 10, 2013 01:02
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magnificent7 posted:I am that person. Speaking of people who should have a losertar and don't. Yes, join Thunderdome. Even if you don't join for a couple of weeks like you say you won't, read the entries, read the crits. Observe and learn and then jump in.
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May 22, 2013 06:41
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The way I see it, you should take pride in being a natural editor. The world needs those just as much as it needs writers. Absolutely not saying you should give up on writing, by the way. Why not give Thunderdome a try? Like I told someone earlier, even if you don't join immediately you can read the entries and critiques and get a feel for it.
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May 26, 2013 18:06
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So on Kloctopussy's advice, here I am. I get why I lost Thunderdome, so I'm not going to bitch about that. It was a halfassed entry where I gave up and said "I'm just going to do something stupid." I don't really want to get into writing comedy hardcore, because I know and understand that it's one of the hardest things to write. But let's throw this out there anyway: how do you write comedy? Also I'm not sure how to get onto the TD IRC. Also also thanks for the livejournal link, systran. I've read a lot of Butcher's Dresden Files books and he's really good.
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Oct 11, 2013 18:50
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I use hexchat, is that the same thing? Might want to update or get rid of the irc thing on the first page of thunderdome, then.
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Oct 11, 2013 20:39
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I've lost the passion.  I want to write a new story, I want to edit my old story, but I've got no drive. How do I get it back?
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May 8, 2014 22:06
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Haven't really had much inclination to read. Been stressed out of my mind with bullshit. I was hoping to start writing again to take my mind off of things and occupy my copious free time, but that doesn't seem to be the case. And not having anyone to bounce ideas off of is not helping. Do I just need to ride it out or...?
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May 9, 2014 01:50
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Would anyone be willing to help me iron out the mess that is my to-be-edited novel, then? That seems less stressful than trying to untangle the various ideas I have. I don't have PMs, though.
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May 9, 2014 02:17
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Stuporstar posted:I'll have a look at it. [email] Email sent. Thank you for offering to look it over--I've shared some of it before, so if it seems familiar that's why.
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May 9, 2014 03:05
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Dr. Kloctopussy posted:Is there ANYTHING you feel like doing? I guess what I want to do is acting, which coincidentally is one of the things taking up brainspace although not stressing me out. As for reading, I'm just trying to catch up on my WIRED backlog right now. And I do want to start building up a new world to write in, but I am so stuck because I have no idea what direction to go in. I want to write a religious zealot, because it seems like fun, but I've never created religions whole cloth before and it's overwhelming. And beyond that I don't really have any story. I have a bunch of ideas, but any time I start playing with one I wonder if there's even a good story in it and stop.
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May 9, 2014 04:01
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Symptomless Coma posted:...and I on my music backlog, and everyone else on their email backlogs. Funny how it's stuff that will keep getting created, forever. It's only a couple of magazines, and I end up skipping most of the articles anyway, but I know what you mean. Feeling overwhelmed is why I haven't really done much by way of serious editing yet.
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May 9, 2014 20:42
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Blade_of_tyshalle posted:Describing people is hard. Not just the technique of layering the description into the narrative so it's not so drat obvious what you're doing (though some authors make it work having someone look in the mirror and describe themself), but also figuring out the words to use. Jesus christ you are not wrong. One of the trickiest things with writing Star was doing the description well--I couldn't have the main character describe his friends, because no one does that in a casual setting, and describing themselves in a mirror is really hacky imo. (Although I can't talk, because the main character does at one point.) The key is to remember you don't have to describe everything. Skin color, hair color, and style of dress seem to be the basics, although if there are any defining, noticable characteristics like horrible burn scars or a tail you should mention those too. Insert those little details into the actions of the characters (running a hand through their red hair, or something) and it isn't so glaring.
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Jun 11, 2014 17:49
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So I've been feeling pretty lovely and figure that now's as good a time as any to get back into editing. How do people get their lazy bones into gear when they have no idea how to edit? I've got some really good feedback, and I know what I want to do, but I'm having difficulty figuring out how to restructure things and cut stuff out.
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Nov 2, 2014 07:31
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