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Panda So Panda, it might be useful to look at why your character is both brainy (intellectual/educated) and physical (fit/strong). Being smart doesn't make you know things automatically, and having the potential to be fit doesn't mean you'll work out. Was she placed in the gifted program at school? Did her parents place an emphasis on education? Did they notice her becoming withdrawn or a bookworm and put her into team sports to develop her emotional intelligence? Did she realise she couldn't relate to peers in her age group and so decide to take up sports to make friends? Did she read about feminism and realise that the stereotype of brainy=weak was bullshit and decide to work on her physical strength? Does she find her brains difficult to deal with and enjoy the stress release and endorphins of exercise? You need to think about your character and what forces have shaped her life.
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Jul 22, 2013 01:38
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| # ¿ May 21, 2024 17:24 |
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Panda So Panda posted:Actually, she isn't necessarily both brainy and physical at the moment. In fact, the way I've thought of her so far, she's primarily a brain. However, over the course of my story, she would be thrown into some hairy situations where she would benefit from a little more than just book smarts. My original question was about how much buttkicking could she reasonably do without it seeming ridiculous and unlikely? The questions you listed gave me additional food for thought, so thanks for them. Ah, my apologies. Well, being a relatively average girl here's some random information for you (I'm assuming that you're a guy). I'm not terribly fit - I can do a few boy push-ups, but I can't do a pull-up. Interestingly, though, my sister is incredibly fit and quite strong - she does yoga, pole-fitness, aerial hoop and more. She can't do a pull-up. What she does have though is a very high level of endurance, and from my experience with people I know this is quite common among girls who are fit. Will your character be likely able to go toe-to-toe with some six foot guy? Nope. Could she outrun him over a long distance? Maybe. Basically what I'm saying is, if your character has no real history of physical fitness, be wary of applying your own experiences to her capabilities. Pull-ups in this scenario stand in for upper-body strength which most guys (even the not so fit) have more of than girls.
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Jul 23, 2013 04:22
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Symptomless Coma posted:500w / Borgesian thought experiment seriously not trying to be a dick but I don't know what else to call it / a comp for under-500w fiction, and a mag here in London called Cadaverine, but I really don't think that's what they're looking for. Try dailysciencefiction.com - they do fantasy as well, which I think this would count as, and they actively seek sub 1000 words pieces. edit: you'll need to edit out the link here though - they're strict on no prior online publication
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Nov 26, 2013 19:28
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Would anyone be interested in beta-reading a 7000 word urban fantasy short story? I'm happy to return the favour and critique something in return.
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Dec 31, 2013 01:38
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Try http://thegrinder.diabolicalplots.com/ maybe?
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Mar 5, 2014 07:51
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In terms of the plot discussion, I've found Jami Gold's worksheets really useful for figuring out the basics of plot. What I like best is that she gives example page layouts for each beat andvsection. Obviously, sticking to this rigidly and writing by numbers is probably a bad idea, but it's been very helpful for me in terms of figuring out the basics of plot. The Master Beat Sheet is my favourite.
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Apr 3, 2014 10:17
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SurreptitiousMuffin posted:Is there a certain amount of words you should devote to each act in a novel? A decent guideline? I'm currently finishing up Act 1 of the second draft of my book and it's sitting at about 13k words. I'm aiming for about 65k total. Have I fallen short? Gone too far? It makes sense that Act 2 is the longest but I don't have a good idea of how much longer it needs to be. The sheets I posted earlier have page/word counts as a guideline. SuBeCo posted:In terms of the plot discussion, I've found Jami Gold's worksheets really useful for figuring out the basics of plot. What I like best is that she gives example page layouts for each beat andvsection. Obviously, sticking to this rigidly and writing by numbers is probably a bad idea, but it's been very helpful for me in terms of figuring out the basics of plot.
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Apr 10, 2014 14:45
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If you're into science-fiction and fantasy, a bunch of the pro mags are free to read online. http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/ http://www.strangehorizons.com/ http://dailysciencefiction.com/ (mostly flash, but longer stories on Fridays) http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/ http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/
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May 11, 2014 18:18
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Maybe a modified Toxx thing? Like, if the goal is 3000 words, and you only manage 2000, donate $5 to charity. 1000, $10 to charity. Nothing at all, $15 to charity. I mean, the precise amount of money / effort doesn't matter, it's more the public shaming aspect of it that I think might work.
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Jul 12, 2014 11:52
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I'm up for it, but can't contribute until Friday week, as I'm super busy teaching at the moment.
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Jul 13, 2014 16:06
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