He doesn't travel well. He's like fine shrimp.

Anya ,'Touched'


The Great Write Way, Chapter Two: Twice upon a time...  

A place for Buffistas to discuss, beta and otherwise deal and dish on their non-fan fiction projects.


deborah grabien - Sep 18, 2005 5:31:13 pm PDT #4063 of 10001
It really doesn't matter. It's just an opinion. Don't worry about it. Not worth the hassle.

Apropos of absolutely nothing to do with writing, Billy Idol's playing in Golden Gate Park next weekend, about eight minutes from my house.


Zenkitty - Sep 18, 2005 6:02:39 pm PDT #4064 of 10001
Every now and then, I think I might actually be a little odd.

You should go see him, deb. For research. You know.

Equally apropos, The Dalai Lama will be visiting Rutgers on Sept 25. I'm debating going. Pro: Probably my only chance ever to see him, even at a distance. Con: It will be in a stadium with 20,000 other people, and I expect any spiritual feeling will be lost in the crowd.


Amy - Sep 18, 2005 6:12:07 pm PDT #4065 of 10001
Because books.

But I'm so damn frustrated I want to cry

This is why you need to let the book rest for at least a week without looking at it or reading it. You've got no distance at this point.

Read for fun, do some of the other things you wanted to do, and try not to even think about it. When you come back to it after a few days, I think you'll be surprised that it does not, in fact, suck.


deborah grabien - Sep 18, 2005 6:22:04 pm PDT #4066 of 10001
It really doesn't matter. It's just an opinion. Don't worry about it. Not worth the hassle.

Amy's right, Susan. Step away from the manuscript.


Susan W. - Sep 18, 2005 6:42:28 pm PDT #4067 of 10001
Good Trouble and Righteous Fights

Well, the only thing I've been doing related to the manuscript is turning in my regular ten pages to both my weekly critique groups. It's just that the online group happens to be at one of the key turning points of the story, and so when they came up with big picture problems about characterization and motivation instead of just pointing out awkward wording or reminding me that I occasionally need to provide some action and emotion to reinforce my dialogue, it freaked me out.

The Monday group tomorrow should be fine--they're on a bridging scene, one that's necessary to the story in that otherwise the transition between what goes before and what comes after would be hella abrupt, and one that has some useful information and foreshadowing woven in, but it just doesn't have the same level of story significance or emotional investment from me.

But I promise that's all I'll look at until next weekend.


Connie Neil - Sep 18, 2005 6:47:34 pm PDT #4068 of 10001
brillig

Billy Idol's playing in Golden Gate Park next weekend, about eight minutes from my house.

Well, invite him to your house, then knock him on the head, and I can be there in two hours.

we hates her, my preciousss, we hates her ... sss ....


deborah grabien - Sep 18, 2005 6:49:56 pm PDT #4069 of 10001
It really doesn't matter. It's just an opinion. Don't worry about it. Not worth the hassle.

Well, invite him to your house, then knock him on the head, and I can be there in two hours.

I thought I might wander over and see if I know any of the gate guys, truth to tell. If I do - if any are the old crew from BGP and FM Productions - I can slither backstage.

But even money on the crew being a bunch of newbies. Feh. Ah well.


Topic!Cindy - Sep 19, 2005 3:44:13 am PDT #4070 of 10001
What is even happening?

Susan, is a CP a Critique Partner?

Also, is it possible they're just at a section of the book where they don't yet have the big picture--that your characters are more complex than their assumptions?


Amy - Sep 19, 2005 4:41:46 am PDT #4071 of 10001
Because books.

I have another column up at Romancing the Blog today. It's reader-centric this time, though.


erikaj - Sep 19, 2005 5:20:24 am PDT #4072 of 10001
Always Anti-fascist!

My brother finally knows I really have a book, because he was looking over my shoulder as I edited over the weekend. I don't talk about it a lot because when I was in college I thought I was Maupin for five minutes and tried to write one, and people that were my posse then still ask about it and I never finished(partly because in lieu of structure, it has more jump-cuts than a Homicide episode...I just wasn't equal to that at twenty.) But I thought I was and hyped it to everyone and felt horrible when it came apart and I abandoned it. Part of it is, of course, that he doesn't listen when I talk, but even he could not ignore the page counter.