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[Conkersbadfurday]

To clarify, it's an instant message conversation, through AIM. Story is set in 2006 since that's when I was in high school Can't be asked to figure out what high school is like now.

So it's not just one message but a talk between characters.

I'll probably wind up styling it out like an actual IM conversation, with usernames and shit. There's a familiar there. I guess the only reason I don't like that sort of thing is I've had it crop up in audiobooks, and it gets really annoying when spoken out. But since this'll just be a self published thing for a dollar, it don't really matter

 

[FlowersisBritish]

The way I usually write text/ instant message conversations is basically the same as my dialogue:

Chet felt a buzz in his phone and Liam's name flashed up.
Chet, do u have a shovel?
Why a shovel? Chet scratched his head a little worried
Don't worry about it. Do u have one?

I just use italics instead of quotes, but keep it to the same flow as dialogue with descriptions or actions in place of "he said/she said" Not that there's anything wrong with those, I just don't usually use them.

 

[AngmarsKing701]

Has anyone tried the CPC (cost per click) ad campaign via Amazon.com and Kindle? I'm thinking of running one (up to $100) to see if I can lure some readers.

I'm just about at the 1-year anniversary of publishing Ahvarra, so I'll be running another sale in a couple weeks. The ad would coincide.

 

[Mike M]

Duotrope is good, The Submission Grinder is also solid. Not as good as Duotrope, but it's free.

This reminds me of a thought I had ages ago that the OP for the thread is geared pretty heavily toward self-publishing and that we could benefit from a similar aggregation of traditional publishing resources.

Not sure what all to include, but Submission Grinder would be top of the list, and there was a searchable database of agents I happened across long ago...

 

[AngmarsKing701]

This reminds me of a thought I had ages ago that the OP for the thread is geared pretty heavily toward self-publishing and that we could benefit from a similar aggregation of traditional publishing resources.

Not sure what all to include, but Submission Grinder would be top of the list, and there was a searchable database of agents I happened across long ago...

I'd be happy to add whatever ya'll would like to have added to the OP.

I just went over to Submission Grinder and ... I don't get it. Can someone explain what exactly it is?

 

[timetokill]

I just went over to Submission Grinder and ... I don't get it. Can someone explain what exactly it is?

Near as I can tell, it's a gay BDSM matchmaking app.

 

[Dresden]

I'd be happy to add whatever ya'll would like to have added to the OP.

I just went over to Submission Grinder and ... I don't get it. Can someone explain what exactly it is?

Submission tracker for short story markets.

 

[Crash Station]

You shouldn't take free downloads as a measure of anything. People will download free shit religiously and you'll never see a single sale for it. It's the sucker game as far as Amazon is concerned. No offence intended..

Yeah, I know all that. I've done my research on making stuff free. I know about book hoarders that never read their free stuff, the danger of getting a poor review because someone downloaded something not in their preferred genre, etc. I just did it as a test with essentially zero advertising. I'm honestly just as worried about poor reviews from those 72 downloads as the 130ish that bought my book from the Book Gorilla promotion. I'm also kind of more focused on driving attention toward my newest book, and since I wasn't getting any sales anyway, thought I might as well try it out just to see if it does anything.

But yeah, I know it's really only worth it if it's part of a series. I might do it with my second book at some point down the line when more in the saga are released. That might be pretty far off though, since I don't think I can keep it contained to three books anymore after some recent brainstorming sessions.

Near as I can tell, it's a gay BDSM matchmaking app.

SOLD

 

[H.Protagonist]

I received almost the exact same results when testing with paid advertising. Something like 60 odd up from one a month.

I think the lesson is you will either need to spend money to shift units (which probably isn't going to be worth it), or have an existing marketing method built up (like 5000 twitter followers which takes years of effort and is relatively much more expensive).

Or just get incredibly, incredibly lucky.

Given how hard it is to get traction, it does feel like 'luck' is the key in many cases. Thank the gods for Twitter, though.

You shouldn't take free downloads as a measure of anything. People will download free shit religiously and you'll never see a single sale for it. It's the sucker game as far as Amazon is concerned. No offence intended.

There is already the 10% sample anyway with ebooks, so making your work free is just inviting the grave robbers early. Similarly with pricing, in my opinion. A few years ago, a guy named John Locke (not to be confused with the empiricist) was heralded as having sold a million units. Which is genuinely great, until you look at how.
His price was / is 1 dollar for every single novel, meaning that he uses the 30% royalty (1 to 2.99 USD, 3 to 9.99 is 70%), so that before taxes he made a total of 300k. 200k after taxes (which is 30% minimum) over a multi-year period of time. That sounds like a lot, sure.

But then there is "the very rich indy author" by the name of Amanda Hocking, who has also reached the million+ territory around the same time. She sold her novels at 2.99 to 4.99, meaning she gained 70% right off the bat. She made at least 2 million before taxes (less than 1.4M after obviously) versus Locke's "impressive" 200k. So she made five times what he did, with the same amount of sales. And that was just first the million. I imagine she has sold a similar amount, if not more, since then.

That's why the erotica 'spammers' (my opinion obviously) price at 2.99. Because less than that means: "I want to be fucking robbed". Putting your shit up for free (one book in a series) is used by people who have many serials running. Even Hugh Howey has a free version of the first Wool story, because people will buy more of what they know, but then you're going to need to have a lot more so you can afford that loss.

If you're not a serial writer, it's probably best not to play this game.


Which is of course why Amazon want ebooks to become cheaper. So they can use the numbers without having to pay a lot more.
Consider: 1M times 0.7 is 700k, 1M times 0.3X3 is 900k. They don't make real profit on the 2.99 to 9.99 range compared to the other ranges. Their profit range is either less than 2.99 or above 9.99 (which is also 30% for self publication).
In a per-unit profit analysis, they would immediately see their margin (versus paying people that is) is a lot bigger for the 1 dollar suckers.

Insert Robocop line.

edit: I feel like I've made this post before. It also should be noted that I was only referring to how this system works, not to an individual.

This is really interesting, thanks. I've had a bit of back and forth with my pub about the $ point of my book because I'm priced out of a lot the promotions/marketing plans available to most indie authors/self-funded stuff, and it's been a bit disheartening to try and get the word out past the usual resources. The points they raised were similar to what you brought up. Among other things, at $8 a book, even if I sell considerably less, the profit is much better. That said, they might use my book as a trial run for some of those sales by dropping the price and seeing if the exposure gained is worth the drop. I'm very curious to see what happens between that and the book going physical in Spring.

 

[The Atticus]

Alright, I've sketched out the basic notion for a story - two halfbrother boys who live on opposite sides of a playground (read: street soccer cage) wage a 'war' on each other, which ends up dragging the whole street of kids in their conflict.

In the story, the street and playground is encased in an unrelenting dust storm (for reals) and the area is a part of a Chinese community.
Should I bother with this premise? I'd love any thoughts x

I've written a couple character profiles for the two main brothers: Polly and Kilo (who wears a lion mask)
Lemme know if you'd like to read em.


I realise this is strange.

 

[L.B. Jeffries]

Great thread. Of all the curses to have as a writer, marketing is my biggest issue. I shell out 1000 words a day and love doing research for books. I spent 3 years as a freelance writer on video games under the name L.B. Jeffries, so I have the discipline down cold.

But I just don't know how to market anything. I don't write about video games anymore and I don't have the time to develop an online following again. All I've done so far is self-publishing on Amazon (my profile pic is my first novel, the rest are novellas) but it is a struggle to know how to reach people. I will check out those marketing websites listed in the OP but I always feel like it's a scam.

The next one is a historical fiction book about the founding of my college in Reconstruction South. I'm going to just put aside my pride and contact every single person, alumni, and historically minded person I can think of with a free copy of Book One (out of five). It's basically Game of Thrones but with the Confederacy. And College. And violent moonshiners named Whiskey Bill.

Every writer has their weakness. It feels good to talk about it.

 

[Freeza Under The Shower]

.

 

[H.Protagonist]

Great thread. Of all the curses to have as a writer, marketing is my biggest issue. I shell out 1000 words a day and love doing research for books. I spent 3 years as a freelance writer on video games under the name L.B. Jeffries, so I have the discipline down cold.

But I just don't know how to market anything. I don't write about video games anymore and I don't have the time to develop an online following again. All I've done so far is self-publishing on Amazon (my profile pic is my first novel, the rest are novellas) but it is a struggle to know how to reach people. I will check out those marketing websites listed in the OP but I always feel like it's a scam.

The next one is a historical fiction book about the founding of my college in Reconstruction South. I'm going to just put aside my pride and contact every single person, alumni, and historically minded person I can think of with a free copy of Book One (out of five). It's basically Game of Thrones but with the Confederacy. And College. And violent moonshiners named Whiskey Bill.

Every writer has their weakness. It feels good to talk about it.

Are you on GoodReads yet? And, developing an online following doesn't have to be a chore. Things like Twitter should be be a round-up of your own interests that you occasionally use as a platform for marketing. There's also WattPad, if you just want to throw stuff out there to gain a following without 'peddling', among many others. Post your links to what you've done so far/everything you have up and I can offer you suggestions, if you like. If you're willing to make some effort you can definitely get the word out.

 

[DD]

Sorry for the delay in answering, guys. Carnival here in Brazil is serious business, so I was far from computers and stuff for a few days. Sorry.

Why the frown? You'll think of something.

# never give in.

Thanks! I won't.

How long is your story? If you have a tight plan you will need to rejig things a bit at some stage (but only when you are done writing it!) to keep it focused and get the message across.

If it is open ended in your mind? Just keep going and it'll work itself over time as you discover who the main characters really are. We all face that "where is this shit going?" Moment. Push through.

Just don't release it in parts and become famous and then spend years while you work it out.

It has 70 MS Word pages for now. I believe that it could reach... I don't know, 200 pages, maybe.

Anyway, when the first draft gets done, I'll try to rework most of the characters to see what happens.

Thanks, guys!

 

[Conkersbadfurday]

Alright, I've sketched out the basic notion for a story - two halfbrother boys who live on opposite sides of a playground (read: street soccer cage) wage a 'war' on each other, which ends up dragging the whole street of kids in their conflict.

In the story, the street and playground is encased in an unrelenting dust storm (for reals) and the area is a part of a Chinese community.
Should I bother with this premise? I'd love any thoughts x

I've written a couple character profiles for the two main brothers: Polly and Kilo (who wears a lion mask)
Lemme know if you'd like to read em.


I realise this is strange.

Sounds like a cool idea for a story. I think you should bother with it.

 

[Mr-Joker]

So how do you guys focus on your writing, do you write out a rough plan and then go straight to writing or do you just write and work out the detail later?

I personally do the first option but I am wondering if there is a quicker and easier way of writing as it feels I am spending a lot of time planning and not writing.

 

[Mike M]

So how do you guys focus on your writing, do you write out a rough plan and then go straight to writing or do you just write and work out the detail later?

I personally do the first option but I am wondering if there is a quicker and easier way of writing as it feels I am spending a lot of time planning and not writing.

Depends on length. A short story, I will think it out in my head and then plow through to the end.

Books are a different story. Last year's NaNo, I did 40K of prewriting before I even wrote one word of the book.

 

[FlowersisBritish]

So how do you guys focus on your writing, do you write out a rough plan and then go straight to writing or do you just write and work out the detail later?

I personally do the first option but I am wondering if there is a quicker and easier way of writing as it feels I am spending a lot of time planning and not writing.

I'm the later usually. I try to find a song that i'm obsessed with at the time, or an interesting piece of art, and I just work off of that till I make a story. Sometimes I'll have an idea of what to write before hand, but I don't do a usually do any prewriting. Just a start and go kind of guy I guess?

 

[show me your skeleton]

Books are a different story. Last year's NaNo, I did 40K of prewriting before I even wrote one word of the book.

good lord.
i now know why i'm struggling. planning is key.

 

[H.Protagonist]

So how do you guys focus on your writing, do you write out a rough plan and then go straight to writing or do you just write and work out the detail later?

I personally do the first option but I am wondering if there is a quicker and easier way of writing as it feels I am spending a lot of time planning and not writing.

I just do a basic plot outline with key events marked and then let it run from there. I don't like over-thinking the details. Letting it flow and shape without too many constrictions is the interesting part for me. As long as you have guide posts (the general plot graph as mentioned), I think that's enough.

That said, I have trouble focusing when I'm not being ridden by a deadline, plot graph or no. Thank the gods for NaNoWriMo's unforgiving schedule. ;_;

 

[toddhunter]

So how do you guys focus on your writing, do you write out a rough plan and then go straight to writing or do you just write and work out the detail later?

I personally do the first option but I am wondering if there is a quicker and easier way of writing as it feels I am spending a lot of time planning and not writing.

I've tried both and the more I plan, the more plan I end up ignoring. I think it is something that you just have to experiment to find what works with you and a top down approach (breaking it down iteratively) works for me.

I'd try the Mike M approach last

 

[Ophelion]

That said, I have trouble focusing when I'm not being ridden by a deadline, plot graph or no. Thank the gods for NaNoWriMo's unforgiving schedule. ;_;

I have a...a "friend" who has become equal parts amateur editor and potential love interest to me who keeps me on task for that kind of stuff. She's super scary when I'm not writing. I emailed her a short story for Valentine's Day connected to the novel she's torturing me into writing. She sent back notes for corrections she wants to see in it.

God, I love her.

I've put down like 50k+ words in the last few months because of our weird literary S&M relationship. Can't complain with the results.

 

[Conkersbadfurday]

So how do you guys focus on your writing, do you write out a rough plan and then go straight to writing or do you just write and work out the detail later?

I personally do the first option but I am wondering if there is a quicker and easier way of writing as it feels I am spending a lot of time planning and not writing.

Depends on the length. I tend to think short stories and novellas through pretty completely before I begin writing. For novels, I'll start with an idea and just run with it until plot holes begin to bite me in the ass

Novels are way more fun to write.

 

[L.B. Jeffries]

Are you on GoodReads yet? And, developing an online following doesn't have to be a chore. Things like Twitter should be be a round-up of your own interests that you occasionally use as a platform for marketing. There's also WattPad, if you just want to throw stuff out there to gain a following without 'peddling', among many others. Post your links to what you've done so far/everything you have up and I can offer you suggestions, if you like. If you're willing to make some effort you can definitely get the word out.

Okay yeah, here's my tumblr: http://kirkbattle.com/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7184765.Kirk_Battle

Amazon List: http://www.amazon.com/Kirk-Battle/e/B00EDKA72E

Any advice is appreciated. I actually don't want to use Twitter again. Ever. But I'm down for any other websites you think I should try or changes that should be made. Thank you, I appreciate it.

 

[Crash Station]

Three weeks after finishing it, I finally started proof-reading my third novel. Only 4 chapters in, but I'm having more fun with this than I expected. Despite knowing what happens, I'm getting into it. That hasn't happened before. Don't know if that's arrogance, my own messed up tastes, or the possibility that this actually isn't bad. Of course there's plenty of both positive and negative "did I really write this?" moments, but that's always how it's been with me.

That being said, it's still supremely fucked up that probably doesn't have as big an audience as I would like.

 

[MidnightCowboy]

I'm the slowest goddamn writer in the world. I just can't turn my internal editor off, no matter how hard I try.

 

[Veelk]

I need some advice for a ....worldbuilding/plotstucture/franchise issue.

I'm trying to build a universe here wherein the main plot of the original entrance of the story is that a character has to save the world from complete destruction. And I mean this in the most extreme sense, that the universe is literally under threat of being broken.

The problem is that I also plan to have other entries in the series. In fact, some of those may come first rather than the idea I originally started with. I'm curious to know if someone has some advice regarding tension. My inner gut tells me it should be possible to maintain tension post the most dangerous threat imaginable, but when I think about it, my mind immediately jumps to "Will people care about these characters when they know the end of the universe is coming?"

 

[Crash Station]

Anyone ever end up with accidental foreshadowing that works surprisingly well? Always fun to find those in a proofread.

 

[fredrancour]

I need some advice for a ....worldbuilding/plotstucture/franchise issue.

I'm trying to build a universe here wherein the main plot of the original entrance of the story is that a character has to save the world from complete destruction. And I mean this in the most extreme sense, that the universe is literally under threat of being broken.

The problem is that I also plan to have other entries in the series. In fact, some of those may come first rather than the idea I originally started with. I'm curious to know if someone has some advice regarding tension. My inner gut tells me it should be possible to maintain tension post the most dangerous threat imaginable, but when I think about it, my mind immediately jumps to "Will people care about these characters when they know the end of the universe is coming?"

Assuming it's about a wide variety of characters: If people like the characters in a particular storyline, and the safety of those characters is not assured, the lower-key stories may be more tense than a save-the-universe storyline. A story where the author would actually, realistically have an ending that goes "literally all living things died, the end" is basically unheard-of. All the other ways in which a character can suffer? Those might have a chance of happening.

 

[FlowersisBritish]

I've had a weird last few days. I got a rejection letter for a short story, and it's been awhile. It's a story that hasn't really gone through a lot of places and it's been a couple months since I got a rejection letter. It was actually really refreshing. Anyway, today I got news that the latest edition of Inwood Indiana called "Crossroads" would be getting released in a few days, and a story of mine will be in it. After that, we'll be discussing a token payment and this will be the first time I'll ever be given money for a story. Then, on this same day, I get another rejection letter, but it was personalized with the comment "this was a beautiful story... we were very impressed with your writing and hope you will send to us again."

About two months ago I had my first published story in about three years (here incase anyone wanted to give it a read). February has been the worst month for me as a person in what feels like forever. Yet, at the end I feel like I am starting to break through the brick wall of the short story market. This feels so weird and i really don't know how to react anymore...

I'm curious to know if someone has some advice regarding tension. My inner gut tells me it should be possible to maintain tension post the most dangerous threat imaginable, but when I think about it, my mind immediately jumps to "Will people care about these characters when they know the end of the universe is coming?"

Tension is this really weird thing. On some level, every reader realizes that the MC will be fine because they have to get to the end of the story. That's the way it works. That's why side characters are usually the ones that are in physical danger, because they don't have to make it to the end of the story. There's also the way of horror, where tension can be created by making the reader uncomfortable. In more specific regards to your story, readers will care about the tension of the universe ending if they like your characters. If they like something, they don't want them to die. If you want a grade A example of tensions, watch August: Osage County. That is a tense movie because of the characters.

Anyone ever end up with accidental foreshadowing that works surprisingly well? Always fun to find those in a proofread.

Love finding that in editing. When i see little things like that, I make note and try to put more of it sprinkled through out.

 

[show me your skeleton]

hit a personal word count milestone, hurrah!

 

[DD]

hit a personal word count milestone, hurrah!

Congrats!

It's funny how a living creature a story is. I was getting to a point where I though that I was about to hit a wall, and when I got there, the thing started unfolding in my head, as a surprise. I can't see where I can go from here, but at least I have something to write, and maybe the thing will keep unfolding til the end. :3

 

[Captain_Spanky]

So, I dunno if this is appropriate thread or whatever, but I've been doing a challenge to write a play a day for a month, I was wondering if anyone would like to read any of them and give me some feedback?

 

[NipplesAndToes23]

Does anyone know the proper format for writing weather in a scene or footage displayed from a tv? I'm editing a screenplay.

 

[Plasticine]

If the weather is necessary, it should only be mentioned in the action and nowhere elase. If television footage appears on screen, it probably should be handled through a secondary slug.

INT. JOHN'S LIVING ROOM - DAY

Rain pounds the window. JOHN on the couch, stares blankly at the television.

ON TV SCREEN

JOHN'S GIRLFRIEND sinks to her knees in front of a CLOWN. The Clown winks at the camera. Puts his hand on the back of her head. Guides her towards his crotch.

BACK TO SCENE

John shakes his head. There's nothing on television.

 

[show me your skeleton]

so i have a problem that you talented people may be able to help me with:
my story's main character is a runaway who has left her home country to hide away abroad. i want this fantasy setting to avoid the trope of a universal or common language but there needs to be lots of dialogue between her and the other denizens of her new setting.
my way around this is that she is from a background of privilege and that this would have gifted her with an education in a variety of languages (similar to how say, a young lady of the upper class may know french, latin etc. as well as english). that seems reasonable right?
my question is how would you remind or inform the reader that there's a language barrier without it becoming something that affects the story? so far there is no story beat that hinges on mistranslation or confusion so it can't be a major hurdle but i would like it to appear that she isn't a flawless speaker of this second language, for sake of believability.
so far i have used untranslated slang that she is unaware of (mainly curse words etc.) but was wondering if anyone else has had a similar situation and what their approach was?

in short, i am trying to reinforce the difference in my characters' voices. my main character is from a different country, from a different social class, and i would like to keep that constant without it being an important part of the story. should hints be used throughout or should it be dropped from the writing almost entirely? as a reader would you see it as an annoyance?

apologies for the long post!

 

[Conkersbadfurday]

so i have a problem that you talented people may be able to help me with:
my story's main character is a runaway who has left her home country to hide away abroad. i want this fantasy setting to avoid the trope of a universal or common language but there needs to be lots of dialogue between her and the other denizens of her new setting.
my way around this is that she is from a background of privilege and that this would have gifted her with an education in a variety of languages (similar to how say, a young lady of the upper class may know french, latin etc. as well as english). that seems reasonable right?
my question is how would you remind or inform the reader that there's a language barrier without it becoming something that affects the story? so far there is no story beat that hinges on mistranslation or confusion so it can't be a major hurdle but i would like it to appear that she isn't a flawless speaker of this second language, for sake of believability.
so far i have used untranslated slang that she is unaware of (mainly curse words etc.) but was wondering if anyone else has had a similar situation and what their approach was?

in short, i am trying to reinforce the difference in my characters' voices. my main character is from a different country, from a different social class, and i would like to keep that constant without it being an important part of the story. should hints be used throughout or should it be dropped from the writing almost entirely? as a reader would you see it as an annoyance?

apologies for the long post!

First, yes that seems reasonable. I have no problems with it at any rate.

I guess one way to do it is show a slight gap in her lexicon. She might know the word "accident" but not "coincidence" for example, and while the two are synonyms, they don't exactly mean the same thing. So you have her fumble a little.

I don't think it would need to be terribly constant though. If she knows a good amount already going in, being forced to speak the language full time will just make her better at it. So you have some stuttering or slight miscommunication early on and then it goes away as time goes on.

 

[ElTopo]

Long time writer. Have written nothing that has any kind of following but I've had no interest in being a famous writer. My influences are primarily French Surrealism, and anything subversive or bizarre. Most influential to me were Wiliam S. Burrough's Naked Lunch and Lautreamont's Maldoror. So, that's where I'm coming from.

Have written one extremely obtuse, bizarre, and semi-biographical work which I'm preparing to re-release on Kindle with proper editing.

Finishing a 2nd work that's equally bizarre but not nearly as obtuse work about a nihilistic universe that is recurring.

And I've begun writing a 3rd work that is hopefully not obtuse but I see it as a challenge for myself to do something slightly more readable and not so much an endurance test ala the 120 Days of Sodom. I have a title but it's not quite finalized, but the plot is that of an apocalyptic horror title set in the same universe as Fulci's The Beyond.

 

[Mike M]

After months of work, I've finally relaunched my site in the hopes that I can use it as a platform for promotion. We'll just have to see how that goes.

 

[FlowersisBritish]

so i have a problem that you talented people may be able to help me with:
my story's main character is a runaway who has left her home country to hide away abroad. i want this fantasy setting to avoid the trope of a universal or common language but there needs to be lots of dialogue between her and the other denizens of her new setting.
my way around this is that she is from a background of privilege and that this would have gifted her with an education in a variety of languages (similar to how say, a young lady of the upper class may know french, latin etc. as well as english). that seems reasonable right?
my question is how would you remind or inform the reader that there's a language barrier without it becoming something that affects the story? so far there is no story beat that hinges on mistranslation or confusion so it can't be a major hurdle but i would like it to appear that she isn't a flawless speaker of this second language, for sake of believability.
so far i have used untranslated slang that she is unaware of (mainly curse words etc.) but was wondering if anyone else has had a similar situation and what their approach was?

in short, i am trying to reinforce the difference in my characters' voices. my main character is from a different country, from a different social class, and i would like to keep that constant without it being an important part of the story. should hints be used throughout or should it be dropped from the writing almost entirely? as a reader would you see it as an annoyance?

apologies for the long post!

Have a couple thoughts on this. 1) accents, I don't know if it's third person or first, but descriptions of differing accents are always good to give a sense of "visiting another place." Just be careful with them. If you'r approach is to write them out phonetically, you might come off a little offensive. So careful with that. I'd recommend metaphors or similes. If the people are from a northern mountainous place, compare their c=voices to snow or mountains. A desert place smooth sand. 2) another way is to have your character constantly as questions. What does this word mean? Why do you do this? This is pretty good, because you create a cross examination of culture expanding both sides of it in your story.

Long time writer. Have written nothing that has any kind of following but I've had no interest in being a famous writer. My influences are primarily French Surrealism, and anything subversive or bizarre. Most influential to me were Wiliam S. Burrough's Naked Lunch and Lautreamont's Maldoror. So, that's where I'm coming from.

I never understood how someone knows who influences them? I would be baffled to try and make a stylistic comparison to any of my favorite writers.

After months of work, I've finally relaunched my site in the hopes that I can use it as a platform for promotion. We'll just have to see how that goes.

Looks good. Looks like the kind of site I'd go to a friend and be like "check this funny shit out"

 

[show me your skeleton]

First, yes that seems reasonable. I have no problems with it at any rate.

I guess one way to do it is show a slight gap in her lexicon. She might know the word "accident" but not "coincidence" for example, and while the two are synonyms, they don't exactly mean the same thing. So you have her fumble a little.

I don't think it would need to be terribly constant though. If she knows a good amount already going in, being forced to speak the language full time will just make her better at it. So you have some stuttering or slight miscommunication early on and then it goes away as time goes on.

great insight and i think when i get a stronger impression of timescale between certain sections of the story (perhaps jumping forward weeks/months etc. or thinking back to her first few days there) i can create a stronger impression of miscommunication or misunderstanding. thank you!

Have a couple thoughts on this. 1) accents, I don't know if it's third person or first, but descriptions of differing accents are always good to give a sense of "visiting another place." Just be careful with them. If you'r approach is to write them out phonetically, you might come off a little offensive. So careful with that. I'd recommend metaphors or similes. If the people are from a northern mountainous place, compare their c=voices to snow or mountains. A desert place smooth sand. 2) another way is to have your character constantly as questions. What does this word mean? Why do you do this? This is pretty good, because you create a cross examination of culture expanding both sides of it in your story.

definitely avoiding phonetic writing for accents as a language/race thing because of how easily it can become offensive, instead using it to highlight differences in education/class and age. rewrites will probably soften that and make it a little less 'on the nose'.
metaphors and similes are my tools of choice so far and hopefully i'm not over using them.
i like the questions idea and is a good way to show differences in the cultures.

thank you both for your insights and suggestions!

 

[AngmarsKing701]

After months of work, I've finally relaunched my site in the hopes that I can use it as a platform for promotion. We'll just have to see how that goes.

Looks good. I haven't written a blog on my WordPress site in more than six months. Seriously considering letting it lapse and starting over with just a free blog site.

 

[NipplesAndToes23]

If the weather is necessary, it should only be mentioned in the action and nowhere elase. If television footage appears on screen, it probably should be handled through a secondary slug.

INT. JOHN'S LIVING ROOM - DAY

Rain pounds the window. JOHN on the couch, stares blankly at the television.

ON TV SCREEN

JOHN'S GIRLFRIEND sinks to her knees in front of a CLOWN. The Clown winks at the camera. Puts his hand on the back of her head. Guides her towards his crotch.

BACK TO SCENE

John shakes his head. There's nothing on television.

Thansk for the help. It seems tedious to keep writing it in the action when the rain plays a factor throughout the entirety of my story. I can't put it with the scene heading?

 

[Plasticine]

Thansk for the help. It seems tedious to keep writing it in the action when the rain plays a factor throughout the entirety of my story. I can't put it with the scene heading?

Slugs should only include enough info to detail the location. Rain isn't an attribute to the actual location, it's something happening at the location. Whereas something like abandoned would describe the actual location. Plus the slugs would get confusing if you use the same location with and without rain.

 

[show me your skeleton]

another question: time, should it always be linear and moving forward?

what i mean is, when switching between scenes/scenarios/points of view etc. is it right to assume that my audience will expect that time moves forward for everyone in the story, at the exact same rate?
i shall use an example to perhaps explain my predicament better.

chapter one (following character one, in setting one) ends on a cliff hanger

chapter two (following character two, in setting two) begins and ends

chapter three (back to character one, in setting one) picks up right after the cliff hanger

would it be unfair and confusing for the reader to go back in time, to carry on where the cliff hanger stopped in chapter one, without it being explicit (perhaps in the form of a flashback cue etc.)?

hope that made sense!

 

[toddhunter]

another question: time, should it always be linear and moving forward?

I wouldn't think so.

Where you will get into trouble, George Martin style, is where characters have to meet up again. As long as you have a plan to explain gaps you should be free to play around.

 

[FlowersisBritish]

Holy Shit. I just made a dollar fifty for something I wrote... it's not much, but it's the first time i've ever gotten money for something, and now my name is in a paperback book some random person can just pick up in a book store. Surreal seems the appropriate term.

 

[NipplesAndToes23]

Does anyone know of any magazines or journals that I can get short stories published in?

 

[Crash Station]

Proofread complete!

I think as far as plot goes, I did exactly what I set out to do. Don't want to sound arrogant, but I think I did a damn good job with the foreshadowing, rarely making it too overt if ever. Spotted some subtle foreshadowing as well which was completely unintentional, so that's always fun.

Not gonna lie, despite knowing what was coming, some parts were hard to read. Not sure if I could write something this fucked up again, but knowing me, I'll probably try after my next book. Doubt I'll succeed as this is REALLY fucked up.

So.... anyone want to be a beta reader?

Holy Shit. I just made a dollar fifty for something I wrote... it's not much, but it's the first time i've ever gotten money for something, and now my name is in a paperback book some random person can just pick up in a book store. Surreal seems the appropriate term.

Congrats!

$1.50 at that price? Low royalties, huh? I know that feeling, but still, congrats!

 

[FlowersisBritish]

Does anyone know of any magazines or journals that I can get short stories published in?

I know tons, but you're gonna have to be a little more specific. What kind of thing do you write (genre wise) that's the first step to narrowing it down.