Timewaster's Guide Archive

Local Authors => Reading Excuses => Topic started by: Chaos on November 19, 2008, 08:15:19 AM

Title: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on November 19, 2008, 08:15:19 AM
So, in order to break the ice between different writers, I think it would be helpful if we got to know each other better. This way, we are more comfortable discussing things. Talk about any pertinent background about yourself that you are willing to share, or anything else you'd like everyone else to know. That would make this topic like the introduction topic elsewhere on TWG, but this pertains directly to our writer-ness, so it works being here.

A small profile about yourself couldn't hurt, or why you write what you do. Really, it's any background knowledge you want to give out. For example, your name, if you are want to give it out. Anything which makes Reading Excuses more homey for you.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: AvalonDreamer on November 19, 2008, 08:31:25 AM
Oh joy!

You guys can call me Avalon, and as my name suggests, I tend to write with a slight old-Celtic influence to my works. Over the past few years, I've written the beginnings of a space opera involving chilled ginger-ale being sipped from martini glasses, an odd sci/fi fantasy story, a super-anti-hero book about a hero with no real super-powers as one would think of them (concept inspired by the Watchmen, a little...), and now my current work:

It's an Epic Adventure Fantasy, with undertones from the romance, sci-fi and horror genres. I began my original work on it in eighth grade and keep coming back to it with little success, until recently. Just today, in class, I found the perfect opening line - I came home, scrapped the 3 chapters I had written out, and begin afresh (it all felt contrived before.)

As a lover of literature, my influences are the usual: OS Card, R.J., B.S., Phillip Pullman, and the others. I've heard David Eddings, and Salvatore are good, but I haven't gotten around to them yet.

I'll do just about anything for a joke (lie, cheat, steal, murder, etc.), but I've never contrived a storyline to make one work, and I hope I never do.

I'm happy to be working with all of you guys, and I look forward to reading all of the reat material that I'm sure will come in.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 19, 2008, 08:40:50 AM
I'm nothing fancy.  My first book was inspired by trying to keep myself from offending someone by saying that they acted like they were two going on sixteen (and the claiming it was dream, that in turn became the plot.)  I write mostly fantasy (one sci-fi, which really doesn't make sense because I rarely read it, so I'm kind of hesitate to even write the book.), with major romance driven aspects in most of them.

My book right now is actually the first one in my 21 years that I've actaully forced myself to sit down and write and thus sucks equally.  I've written four short stories that I allow the genral public to see (you can see them at http://firstRainbowRose.deviantart.com in the personal fiction section.  I know there's more pieces there, but one is a stupid poem, and one is a weird flow of thought thing.).

Pretty much, call me whatever you want.  I'll respond to most of it if I realize you're talking to me.  If not, just wack me and I'll notice.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 19, 2008, 08:52:01 AM
Whee.

Let's see. I'm a full-time undergrad who double majors in English and Creative Writing. I work mostly with fiction, and my long fiction is pretty much exclusively fantasy. (Of course, my "long" works consist of an 11k word novella, a novel that's halfway through, and two novels that I have yet to write.) I used to think of myself mostly as a novel writer but lately I've become enamoured of the short story form, as well. A lot of my short stories aren't fantasy at all, but tend towards liter- umm, something that is not literary fiction, because to say that myself would be pretentious.

I'm doing NaNoWriMo for the first time this year, using it to work on my current novel, which you guys probably won't be seeing, because the first eight chapters have already been workshopped to death and need significant revisions, and it would be silly to give you chapter nine. I will be getting started on another novel in December (here's hoping I can finish the first one first, don't really want to be working on two at once) that's related to the novella I mentioned before, and some of that you guys might end up seeing. Until then it'll probably be short stories from me.

I also do some songwriting and playwriting. In fact, a couple of my major projects this year will be a musical (hopefully) and a story album thing. If I knew more about those, I'd tell you. I have a lot of work to do ;)

As for WHY I write what I write, genre-wise? I have no idea. I just tend to go with whatever fits the story best, and lately I'm finding that I have some things to say that don't have to be speculative fiction, which is why so many of my stories end up as, umm, mainstream fiction.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on November 19, 2008, 09:16:49 AM
My name is Eric (you can call me either Eric or Chaos on the forums; it doesn't make a difference to me. I've gotten used to Chaos though), and I am a full-time student at Montana State University - Bozeman. Bozeman being a city in Montana, as you have hopefully figured out at this point. I'm a Physics major, actually, because I decided that if I was an English major, I would just get burned out from all the writing I'd have to do. There wouldn't be enough time to work on what I want to do.

And what do I want to do? I like fantasy, and for my purposes, I define "fantasy" as "anything with magic". I do it that way because you don't find elves, dwarves, or other races in the stuff I write, so the only fantasy element truly being leftover would be magic as well as, I suppose, a completely new world.

Why do I like writing? Well, I remember waaaay back in junior high, around 5th grade, where I would play a video game and get through its storyline. I would get enamored in it, so much so that when I was finished, I would imagine the plotline for my own sequel. This would probably be my creative beginnings, which eventually evolved over a long period of time into my own writing.

I've been thinking about my novel a lot. Long time. My earliest known concepts came back (again) from 5th grade. While that sounds weird, it was only around a hundredth of a percent of actual thinking that came on back then. It has evolved so many times I can hardly keep track of it (my guess would be at least nine massive evolutions). Luckily, though, in this latest incarnation, I have begun going at it with a sledgehammer, cutting out the useless worldbuilding. This has given me a far tighter story than before, and I like it so much better. I don't want to say much more about it until you get a chance to read some of it. I've corrupted you enough already :P

Hmmm, what else? I don't only have my novel. I have a grand side-project called Ascension which I collaborate with two other people on. In theory, we the authors of Ascension would like it to turn into an anime, and what an anime it would be. I've been the main contributor for most of the plot and magic system over its five "seasons" that could, theoretically, be made. It's funny, because while I call Ascension my "side project", it has the capability to be far longer than my novel. (While we would, in theory, make it into an anime, right now it is just prose fantasy-fiction. It is very in-depth)

So those are my main writing commitments, and probably a lot more than I should have said about them. I have the beginnings of two other projects forming in my brain, too. I'm letting those ideas ferment a while :P

I am not doing NaNoWriMo, even though I need to write more in my novel. Schoolwork and any semblance of a social life has reduced my writing time to almost none, so I decided NaNo wouldn't be very helpful. I don't want my grades to slip, naturally.

While I am a Physics major, that doesn't mean I don't take English courses if they would be helpful! I have my eye on the Creative Writing class here :D They don't actually have a Creative Writing major at MSU, just a single course on it (which moves between genres each offering). I came to MSU for the physics, not the writing :P.

Hmmm, is there anything else to say? Oh, I write darker fantasy. That's something that should be disclaimed right out of the box, I think...
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: maxonennis on November 19, 2008, 02:41:35 PM
I'm a twenty-one year old male from Oklahoma. I spent from the age of two until eighteen in foster care.  I've always loved books and wanted to be a writer--even if just for personal entertainment. On the summer of my senior year in high school--I was still months away from aging out of the foster care program--while I was living on a farm, I'd gotten extremely bored and a little depressed and started to write a fantasy novel. I never finished it because I did everything that you're not supposed to, jumping POVs while in the same chapter, clique dialog, and the extreme over uses of internal dialog.

I set the jumbled story aside as I finished my senior year. After which I moved out on my own and began working, about a year later I picked up the old story and read through it--what I could anyway, I'd hand written it because I didn't have access to a computer. I hated it and wanted to try again. So now I'm on my fourth novel, and one I'm very excited about.

I never use serious romantic tones in my works--flirtatious, yes, but not anything serious--,I don't use the "family theme", I don't write idealist character, I avoid having a true definable antagonist, and the closest thing I've ever written to a happy ending is a story where the characters ended up right back where they'd began.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: wcarter4 on November 19, 2008, 04:41:10 PM
Name's Jake

I'm a fourth year at the University of Georgia. I'm majoring in newspaper journalism. Most of what I write tends to be military science fiction or something akin to fantasy. I've been a student in various Martial Arts since the 6th grade, and it shows in my writing.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: M on November 19, 2008, 04:57:47 PM
You can call me M.  I'm 29, graduated with a bachelors degree to teach high school Social Sciences, but never have used the degree.  I have a really good job that pays the bills and am grateful for it.  If I didn't have my current job, I would enjoy teaching greatly.

I never have dabbled, experimented or even contemplated writing a novel before...until last year.  I have no experience in writing, other than long papers for college.  I have some of the most unique friends in the world and one day last year I decided I wanted to write a fictional book about the three of us.  The genre, I suppose, would be fictional comedy.  I love writing but like most people, find that my time to do it is robbed by external forces.  My major battle for time is taking care of my wife (this is not a chore or an inconvenience...just a necessary requirement I enjoy doing).  My wife was recently diagnosed with breast cancer and she and I are fighting that while she attempts to bring out second child into this world. 

I feel like I can take criticism, but my biggest fear is being the "noob" amongst seasoned writers.  Looks like many of you have already polished off your first book or two...whereas I am still working on my first and only.  I hope to learn a lot from your experience and knowledge.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Loud_G on November 19, 2008, 05:17:32 PM
I'm a recent graduate from the University of Maryland. I started out in Electrical Engineering, but as I went a long I began taking a lot of geography and cartography courses to help in the writing of my novel. I enjoyed it so much that I eventually switched my major to 'GIS and Computer Cartography'. I apply the earth sciences to the world I'm making and I get to design my own maps! :D

I started writing in 10th grade. It wrote a short story (if 20 some pages at the age of 16 can be called short (the assignment was to write 2 pages)) I decided that it would be cool to expand that story into a larger world. So I spent my remaining High School years ripping off all the writers that I had read up to that point. The Belgariad had a "bore" so my world hada bore, the Wheel of Time had 'X' so I had X, etc., etc..

Then I went on a mission to Mexico for two years and didn't get to write or plan anything. I came backin 2002 with a desire to start fresh. I threw out all the crappy, stolen bits and worked on creating my own world. I decided that I was sick of the "British Isles Medieval Fantasy" setting and decided to go epic jungle fantasy with a smattering of a treasure hunt(/mystery) through ruins (a la Indiana Jones).  So that is my main project. It is called "Eriadhin: People of the Choice" and probably be a trilogy with a prequel.

I've written several short stories since I began this epic, I am very ADD when it comes to writing, I have lots of ideas, and so little time. :D

I've taken a couple of creative writing classes, which is where two of my short stories came from (a slipstream story of a boy in middleschool and a horror story taken from a nightmare I had once) I've also written a scifi story about what REALLY happened during the moon landing, among others. I have many shorts, and perhaps novels, planned but it is very difficult to find time....

I love to research things, so writing bizarre stories gives me a good excuse :)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on November 19, 2008, 05:39:20 PM
I feel like I can take criticism, but my biggest fear is being the "noob" amongst seasoned writers.  Looks like many of you have already polished off your first book or two...whereas I am still working on my first and only.  I hope to learn a lot from your experience and knowledge.

I don't know about others, but I'm not all that "seasoned". I haven't actually finished my novel before; it usually gets around 30,000 words and I decide to rewrite. Never finished any project, really.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: maxonennis on November 19, 2008, 06:33:38 PM
I've only finished two of three--a third of the way through the fourth--and believe me when I say that I'm not seasoned either. About the only things I've lernt from my first two and a half books is how to write bad endings.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 19, 2008, 06:54:53 PM
M - The novel I'm working on is my first, too; I haven't finished it yet. So you're hardly alone.

Maxonennis, even if your endings are as bad as you say they are, just getting there is a huge accomplishment. So congratulations.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: maxonennis on November 19, 2008, 07:04:48 PM
I just realized I misspelled learnt on a writing group thread!  ;D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Dangerbutton on November 19, 2008, 07:39:31 PM
I'm a freshman at Weber State University in Utah, majoring in Art with a Visual Communications emphasis.
     My writing career began at the age of eight, when I wrote a whopping 3 page novel (1/2 of each page was illustrations). I have no idea what is was about. At age nine I wrote the sequel, about 10 pages, in which the bad guy was Megaman. . . I had drawn a picture of him in the same notebook as I was writing, so when I got to that page I just decided to incorporate it into  the story. Later that year, I wrote my third book. 30 written pages (each one 1/2 illustration (stick figure style)), Entitled "Crono and Scott". It was about me going on an adventure with my favorite video game character. . .
     I didn't write anything until seventh grade when I wrote 100 page book.... notebook page... it came out to about 50 pages typed... it was pretty lame....
     The next year I wrote one that took me about a year. It turned out to be about 90k words. Unfortunately, I'm ashamed to even read it, it was so bad. The first chapter was blatantly ripped off from a video game. I tried to go back and change it, but it had such a huge part in the rest of the story that there was no way to salvage it.
     Over the next several years, from the time I was 15, until I was 21, I started a bunch of stories, but none of them got anywhere more than 15k words. In July, however, I began my current novel, Pathros Ascending, in which I am making more progress than I have in anything since I was 15.
    It is a Sci-Fi/Fantasy novel, about dragons in space, basically. Right now I'm at 30k words, and I'm thinking I'm about 1/5 of the way through.
    Hmm... can't think of much else to say about myself.... With most of my works, I spend a LOT of time on World-Building, but, surprisingly, my current novel has very little.
   Well, thats me.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Flo_the_G on November 19, 2008, 07:44:32 PM
Right, you can call me Flo, everyone does. I'm 22 years old, a student of English Language and Literature (with a side dish of History), and I wrote my first (extremely short) novel when I was eight or so. I believe it was a sort of fanfic of the Famous Five series (or some other similar series, I can't remember), featuring the search for a stolen necklace that ended with an encounter with aliens emerging from UFOs that had landed in the robbers' cave.

Anyways, I have one technically finished manuscript that I'm in the process of rewriting, and once I'm done with that I'll throw a coin to decide whether to continue with fantasy or sci-fi - and I hope to be done sometime early next. Apart from that I've had a few periods of not writing anything, and a few more of writing the first few chapters and then losing interest. Working with a proper outline and and ending to aim for seems to have taken care of that habit, though.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: maxonennis on November 19, 2008, 07:46:31 PM
     My writing career began at the age of eight, when I wrote a whopping 3 page novel (1/2 of each page was illustrations). I have no idea what is was about. At age nine I wrote the sequel, about 10 pages, in which the bad guy was Megaman. . . I had drawn a picture of him in the same notebook as I was writing, so when I got to that page I just decided to incorporate it into  the story. Later that year, I wrote my third book. 30 written pages (each one 1/2 illustration (stick figure style)), Entitled "Crono and Scott". It was about me going on an adventure with my favorite video game character. . .
     I didn't write anything until seventh grade when I wrote 100 page book.... notebook page... it came out to about 50 pages typed... it was pretty lame....

Wow, are we related? This is basically what I'm child hood writing experience looks like. But I wrote my notebook novel as a senior in highschool.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: AvalonDreamer on November 19, 2008, 09:13:58 PM
I wrote a short story where the hero was Megaman... Never did anything with Chrono Trigger, though (too busy playing the game lol)

@M: You aren't a noob amongst seasoned writers, by a long shot. I've personally written only about 120 pages as my longest bit of work (don't know what that comes out to word-wise...), every other time I get to about half that and end up scrapping it in favor of a massive revision or a new idea altogether.  You are amongst peers, some of whom will have done more than you, some who have done less, but peers just the same.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: M on November 19, 2008, 09:57:40 PM

@M: You aren't a noob amongst seasoned writers, by a long shot. I've personally written only about 120 pages as my longest bit of work (don't know what that comes out to word-wise...), every other time I get to about half that and end up scrapping it in favor of a massive revision or a new idea altogether.  You are amongst peers, some of whom will have done more than you, some who have done less, but peers just the same.


@ AvalonCreamCorn:  Thanks for the thought.  It is comforting to know that.  Regardless of who I am around, I planned on submitting my work, but now I won't feel as intimidated...I'll still feel intimidated, but not as much! :)  Looking forward to reading all your work. 
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: little wilson on November 19, 2008, 10:57:10 PM
My name's Kendra, and I guess you can call me that, or little wilson....or something else new and original. Doesn't really matter to me.

I'm 21, and I'm a junior (almost a senior) at Brigham Young University-Idaho in Rexburg. My major is English, with an emphasis in Creative Writing. My goal is to be an author. That may or may not fly....We shall see. I love music. I adore playing the piano (even though I really wanted to quit lessons when I was younger...). I'm crazy (not literally, but one of my friends did once refer to me as being quiet, meek, and psycho...and those first two are first impressions. The last is actually fairly accurate, sadly enough). I'm sarcastic. I'd like to think I'm funny. I love learning new things...I'm also the queen of geography quizzes (has anyone ever taken the traveler IQ test? love that thing...)

Now onto my writing style, or whatever:

I originally wasn't planning on writing. In 5th grade, I decided I wanted to be an architect because I loved drawing houses. In 11th grade, I realized that architecture wouldn't work, because there's lots of math involved in getting a degree. Now, don't get me wrong--I love math. Intellectually, we're best friends. Work-wise, though, we're bitter rivals. You see, I don't see the point of doing homework when I already understand the concepts. Hence my horrible math grades! I am the queen of slacking off...Anyway. My horrible math-homework-ethic led me to the English department, and from there to writing.

I've been writing almost as long as I've been drawing, but I have no finished works to speak of. I do have about 10 very different novel ideas though. The cool thing is that they're all pretty original. Or so I'd like to think....

At first, I didn't want to dabble in fantasy. I've read too much great fantasy, and I knew I couldn't even come CLOSE to anything I'd read.....My ideas didn't really flow around this choice, though. I only have one sci-fi idea (and my brother pretty much ripped that one to shreds.... :-\), and the rest are fantasy. So here I am, writing fantasy.

And I think that's pretty much all the relevant personal info.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Necroben on November 20, 2008, 02:32:52 AM
My name is Ben and I'm 31.  Unlike most of you who have graduated or are going to collage, I am not.  I am currently working and putting my wife through Vet school at UGA(Junior).  I'll go when she's done, going for my MD/PhD.  I never got through High School but my Sat's where really high so I can probably get in.

I was a late reader and consequently a late writer.  I too have never finished a story (I have a plethora of ideas) but alas, my ADD also gets in the way.  Fantasy is my Genre of choice but the book I'm working on now (NaNo) would not I think, be classified that way.  I mix way too many other concepts.
For some reason I think I'm funny (my wife just shakes her head now and then when I give it a shot) so I could be.

But the reason I'm writing, is because I love it, the freedom of thought and creation actually gives me an Adrenalin rush.  I'll stay up 1, 2, maybe 3 in the morning just writing or thinking about a story or world building.  I just enjoy writing, probably not any good at it, but I do have fun.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: AvalonDreamer on November 20, 2008, 02:45:34 AM
I think we should have a mandatory format for these things:

"Hello my name is _____, and I'm an aspiring writer with ADD/a social life/children/[insert other reason and/or excuse]."

Then we reply:

"Hello ____!"

Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Necroben on November 20, 2008, 02:52:31 AM
Hello!  Haha! ;D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on November 20, 2008, 02:54:53 AM
Hey whats up? My name is Erik and I'm 23 from Massachusetts. I personally never took any writing classes or any English classes beyond whatever my vocational high school required. I'm not going to say that I have written much before because to be honest I haven't ever written anything before. I went to high school to be a mechanic. I then worked on cars for a while before I joined the army national guard to be a mechanic. Now I do security along with my national guard duties.

I find as a reader there aren't many books out there besides fantasy that really interest me. Don't get me wrong I love learning and reading up on subjects but when it comes to fun reading I need fantasy. Now when it comes to expressing myself I always leaned towards drawing and I have spent a long time taking a couple of classes having to do with that field. The funny thing is I would find my self creating characters and worlds in my drawing. I would almost create a story with sequences of drawings. I think that is the reason I would like to try my hand at writing. I have no shortage of crazy things going around in my head that I'm sure I can spare a few.

Oh and by the way as a person who has never written anything before I am not afraid to be shredded by criticism. I know that isn't the idea here but its bound to happen and I look forward to it.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on November 21, 2008, 09:37:26 AM
Hello, my name is... um... Karl. You can call me, er, Karl.

First I'll mention that I did take the time to read each of your bios. I am fascinated by the breadth and depth of experience and backgrounds here.

Oh, and I feel like the old man of the bunch. I'm probably twice the age of the average member...

I have my degree in Art, in particular photography and film making (yes, film). Later I taught myself video. Oddly enough, Chaos, I started out as a physics major! Writing for me came out of the necessity for a cheap script. Since I don't have the budget to pay a writer, I might as well learn how to do it myself. Besides,  I can hyphenate my title: director-producer-writer-chief cook-bottle washer.  However, I have taken a couple of standard creative writing classes, and have a couple of modest short stories under my belt.

My first feature length script, written many moons ago, was written and edited literally by cut and paste. No really. At the time I didn't own a computer or type writer. So I hand wrote a first draft, photocopied the whole think, the cut the copies apart to insert or delete various parts. Finally a friend gave me his old 386 computer that was not much more than a typewriter with memory. The first script was called My Requiem, contained just about every rookie mistake, and shall never see the light of day.

Currently I am working on a series of shorter scripts that are supernatural thrillers (not quite horror, but touches on it). Keeping my prospective budget in mind, these stories are set in contemporary time in a modest sized Mid-western college town. Coincidentally, not unlike the town I live in. Convenient, eh? This will be the series that I would appreciate feedback on.

As an aside, I am working on a prose short story as a break from script writing. It is mostly as self-indulgent exorcise and is better categorized as fan-fic. I am a huge fan of Anne McCaffrey's Dragonriders of Pern series. After buying the first book in the series for my nephew, I decided to re-read what I owned, and have gone on to read almost the entire series (I only have a couple left).  My short story is set in McCaffrey's Pern.

My favorite author is Roger Zelazny. I had the pleasure of receiving a letter from him allowing me to use one of his short stories for the film that got me out of college. Sadly he passed away before I could present him with a copy of the finished film.

I am probably more influenced by Katherine Kurtz Deryni and Adept series.  Also, in the last few years I have been reading a lot of historical fiction such as Horatio Hornblower and the Aubrey-Maturin novels, as well as the Richard Sharpe series.

And I wouldn't be much of a film maker if I didn't mention the fact that my favorite director is Terry Gilliam.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on November 21, 2008, 07:53:10 PM
Welcome, Erik (DARN YOU FOR SPELLING YOUR NAME WITH A "K"!)! I look forward to seeing your writing!

Welcome, Karl! That's cool that you are a film maker. I think that having you in Reading Excuses will be a fantastically rewarding experience for everyone that you come in contact with. Experience is very, very good, and I look forward to seeing your stuff!

Coincidentally, I've read the original 11 Richard Sharpe books, along with Sharpe's Devil, I think. I haven't read any of the India ones yet. Still, they are fantastic military novels. I really should do a quick reread of a couple, considering that my epic fantasy has strong basis in war. Learn from some of the best, right?

My dad--who introduced me to Sharpe--has always tried to get me into Hornblower, but I couldn't get too far into that. I probably should, though.

I am very exciting with all the different writers here. Reading Excuses will be an incredibly rewarding experience for everyone!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Flo_the_G on November 21, 2008, 08:17:14 PM
I assume the Sharpe novels are better than the movies, then? Don't get me wrong, I liked those. But I also liked the Hornblower movies, and those were significantly inferior to the novels. Not because they were bad, but because the novels are awesome.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on November 21, 2008, 08:20:34 PM
I don't remember the movies very well, but I remember that they grouped a few novels together for each film, which didn't work so well (but then again, it is very foggy in my memory). The books were excellent, though.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on November 22, 2008, 03:53:05 AM
Hello, my internet name is sortitus. Titus is my real name, so you can choose which to call me.

My writing history begins in 3rd and 4th grade, when a friend and I collaborated on a series of novels in a sci-fi setting. I've lost all but about 10 pages of my writing from the books, which is a shame since it's HORRIBLE! I really wish I had some of my friend's writing, but I left that school unexpectedly and he had all of the manuscripts. All I have is pages I was working on at the time.  :'(

In 5th grade I got interested in poetry, where I spent my time until 7th. In 7th grade I had the best English teacher in the world. She got me into short stories and reinforced my interest in sci-fi/fantasy. My HS teachers sucked enough to actually diminish my skill in writing, and I actually stopped writing for a few years. My 9th grade year I had the idea for a novel, but wrote two pages and scrapped it. I wrote a bit of poetry my senior year with a friend, which got me back into writing.

My college writing experience so far has been good, though I haven't taken any English classes. I have continued writing poetry, and have some posted at my deviantart (http://sortitus.deviantart.com/). Listening to Writing Excuses made me a bit nostalgic for the good old days in prose, so here I am, writing a novel for NaNoWriMo and considering two short stories for after it's over.

Reading-wise I am pretty inexperienced compared to a lot of my friends but I get most of the references people throw down. I'm cool like that. Writers on my list to read: David Farland and Michael Moorcock come to mind, though there are many others. :\

I'm not sure how good my writing is, as I rarely share it with anyone. Often I actually destroy what I've written, which makes it hard to tell if I ever had any skill at all...
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on November 22, 2008, 06:43:35 AM
I believe I've read all but one of the Sharpe novels. All are quite excellant. Bernard Cornwell does really well at doing exacting research, and then breathing life into history.

Okay, here's some trivia to wrap your noodle around: I read Moby Dick, A Tale of Two Cities and the Hornblower series because of Star Trek II: Wrath of Kahn. Both Moby and Cities were used as metaphors in the plot, and the director has admitted that he characterized both James T. Kirk and the ship battles on Hornblower (sea battles in space)!

Bernard Cornwell has admitted that he characterized Richard Sharpe as the land-based, army version of Horatio Hornblower.

I'll give credit to the folks that made the Sharpe movies (I own the original batch) for doing an amiable job portraying the Battle of Waterloo with only about 80 extras. I did not like the Hornblower films which deviated too far from both the spirit and the text of the books. I did greatly enjoy Master and Commander.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on November 22, 2008, 07:26:56 AM
That's a really cool chain of logic, there. Wrath of Kahn is certainly the best Star Trek film for the sense of space warfare. I don't think the others really capture it as well.

Also, my dad was always telling me that Hornblower was the sea version of Sharpe. :D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on November 22, 2008, 06:54:34 PM
Perhaps the Hornblower films were an attempt to cash in on the popularity of Napoleonic war/romance stories like the Sharpe films. But Hornblower author C.F. Forester was quite dead long before Bernard Cornwall started the Sharpe novels.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: spejoku on November 22, 2008, 08:25:02 PM
Hey, My name is Spencer, and I'm in utah currently. (spencer or spejoku, whatever)

I started wanting to make webcomics, but then I realized that those take a lot of work, my writing stank, and I wasnt all that good at drawing.  I've had at least five different prospective webcomic series going through my head at one point or another, then decided that I'd just write one without drawing it.  it didn't stink too bad. 

Right now I'm doing NaNoWriMo and reading the WoT series at the same time (I can tell it's rubbing off on me), but I also have a less sophisticated and more fun YA story going on with a class.  I like stories with nonhuman characters and how they react with regular people; I've been able to see that theme kind of repeated in almost everything I write. 

Anyway, deadlines and a writing group are just what I think I need to get my stories done.  :D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: WEKM on November 23, 2008, 04:27:59 AM
Great, I get to be the old man of the group. I will be 40 in January.

Hi! My on-line name is WEKM, my RL name is Jon.
Despite what others have said, I am NOT a radio station. WEKM is short for Wide Eyed Krupp Monster. I got the nickname in BoyScouts. It later got shortened to WEKM in the Marine Corps.
If anyone asks, the stickers all over the world that say "WEKM was here"; it wasn't me. No, seriously, these are not the droids you're looking for...

I have been writing since I started Jr. High. Everything from poetry to Sci Fi to epic fantasy, even wrote some DnD adventures back in school. I was always tasked as the one to write up new character background for new guys. In High School, I even helped write an all original play that we tried out in drama class. I still have a destroy on site order for any of the surviving videotapes. I'm sure someone is hiding at least two copies, which is why I can never run for public office.

I am working on several projects at once, but my biggest push was triggered by my desire to enter the writing contest at the local Con that will be coming up next year. This is a first for me.
As well, This story is not one that I have been working on for an extended period of time, but developed fresh for the contest. I may also toss in a short story on the 15th to be chewed up, as I am trying to decide whether to throw that in the short story contest as well, and if I do, it most likely needs to be picked apart and put back together as well.

I was one of the most vocal about starting this writing group, as I have an unstable schedule and an on-line group such as this will allow me the freedom to be able to participate much more than an in person one would.

I too live here in Utah and have had the pleasure to become friends with Howard, and to meet Dan and Brandon.  I have not as yet wormed my way into the two of their lives yet, but I am planning on it in the future, as part of my plot to take over the world. :o
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on November 23, 2008, 06:06:36 AM
Welcome, WEKM, glad you could tune in! Oh, and welcome to this end of the age curve. But sadly, you don't get to be THE old man of the bunch, yung'en! I've still got you beat by a couple.

I am, of course, intensely jealous that you get to know the Honorable Trio since they seem to have an averson to the midwest. Howard made it to Indianapolis last July but it was on the same day as my dad's 80th birthday so I was with my family.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: maxonennis on November 23, 2008, 06:14:20 AM
Welcome, WEKM, glad you could tune in! Oh, and welcome to this end of the age curve. But sadly, you don't get to be THE old man of the bunch, yung'en! I've still got you beat by a couple.

I am, of course, intensely jealous that you get to know the Honorable Trio since they seem to have an averson to the midwest. Howard made it to Indianapolis last July but it was on the same day as my dad's 80th birthday so I was with my family.

lol

As long as we don't start calling them the trinity...
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: WEKM on November 23, 2008, 06:53:11 AM
No, that would be silly of course. There can only be one trinity, and I would hate to see Howard in a black leather cat-suit. Ewwwwwww!

Yea! I do not have to fill the roll of resident old fart, I get to pass that on to Karl.  ;D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on November 23, 2008, 07:20:37 AM
I'm curious to know who is the youngest in the group. Since no one in their bios said they were in High School... I think that means that honor is turned to me, since I'm just a college freshman in his first semester. I just recently turned 18 on October 30th, too. So, I'm fairly certain that makes me the youngest.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: WEKM on November 23, 2008, 07:59:56 AM
Well, I won't risk your wrath as a Mod by calling you a N00B then.  ;)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on November 23, 2008, 08:09:35 AM
Actually, if I do noobish stuff, I expect everyone to get on my case ;P
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 23, 2008, 08:14:17 AM
Darn straight!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: AvalonDreamer on November 23, 2008, 09:08:09 AM
You think we'd let you slip just because of a little thing like modship? The scriptures of His-Lordship-Who-Enjoys-Pants-and-the-Baconier-Parts-of-a-Pig state that all noobs and newbs alike shall be ridiculed and laughed at, and made to relive their shame for their many years to come.

As for the trinity... that'd be implying that his aforementioned lordship was equal to the others...

~AvalonDreamer,
 Fellfroschian High Priest
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 24, 2008, 12:00:53 AM
Hey, all.

I'm a 22 year old final year student from North West England. Studying International Tourism Management, I've drafted a few things in the past, but never really got....

Dare I say....

Never really got anything finished. So this'll be a challenge, definitely :)

But yeah, I'm Hayley, Hayz, Hayzie.... it varies depending on who you talk to.

Don't know what else to say, but if there's anything you'd like to know, just ask.

Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 24, 2008, 12:07:50 AM
Sweet.  I could be wrong (and feel free to smack me, one and all if I am) but I believe you're are first international group member, so congrats!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 24, 2008, 12:12:26 AM
Well, I'm from Canada, so perhaps the second. :P

Hmm. Maybe we should add a special rule, just for Hayley. Not allowed to rewrite your first chapter until you've submitted the second. Not allowed to rewrite the second until you've finished the third. And so on. ;)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on November 24, 2008, 12:16:07 AM
And may I be the first to say that you will most likely be worshiped here. I'm going to guess that at least half of the members of any writing group are anglophiles.

Also, British people are hot. Will you marry me? 
:-*
:-* :-*
 :-* :-* :-*
:-* :-* :-* :-*
:-* :-* :-* :-* :-*
(That is my tower of love.)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 24, 2008, 12:17:52 AM
I think that rule should apply to everyone.  You're not allowed to rewrite anything until you've compleately finished the book.  Otherwise we might have people submitting the same chapter each month, having been updated with our suggestions.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 24, 2008, 12:18:54 AM
Oy :P

It's not re-writing it that's the problem. It's looking at it again, hating it, and then losing the will to carry on (if I'm going to be dramatic about it hehe.)

And........... kind of writing I usually do varies. It's mostly romance, but I'm trying to dabble in a bit of fantasy and a bit of 'whodunit'.


Oh.... wow..... o.o must admit, I've never had a proposal so quick before :P
Let's take things slow, hey :P
And on the condition Raethe will wear a dress and be a bridesmaid, of course.....
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Flo_the_G on November 24, 2008, 12:20:40 AM
Well, I'm from Canada, so perhaps the second. :P
Or the third, seeing as I'm writing this from Hamburg, Germany. ;)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 24, 2008, 12:21:14 AM
Well, yes, it should apply to everyone. But I thought to add it because Hayley joined us. I know the way she writes. ::)

I'll be a bridesmaid as long as I don't have to wear heels with the dress. And as long as it doesn't interfere with your submission deadline!

*whip crack*

:P

Haha! Third is all right, too.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on November 24, 2008, 12:25:00 AM
I've never had anyone accept before, so this is new territory for both of us.

Maybe I was a bit quick to propose. Perhaps we should go to a coffee shop and talk over a cup and some pastries before the ceremony. Then we'll go to the church.  ;) :shifty eyes  :D

This is lovely! I should have gotten married ages ago!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Flo_the_G on November 24, 2008, 12:29:56 AM
We're all invited to the wedding and the food is free... right?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Necroben on November 24, 2008, 12:30:48 AM
oooh, ooooh, Open bar? ;)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 24, 2008, 12:31:12 AM
*sniff*  Everyone gets married before me  I'm going to be an old maid *cries*  Maybe I can find a guy at the wedding... *looks hopeful*

Any of you guys hot, with a hot accent, and willing to put up with a very unique personality?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 24, 2008, 12:32:09 AM
I've never had anyone accept before, so this is new territory for both of us.

You mean you've been asking other girls?!?!  :o

Oh dear.... :(
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 24, 2008, 12:35:03 AM
Hm, Hayley it sounds like you might have a cheating problem if you aren't careful.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 24, 2008, 12:35:48 AM
Rose, if it makes you feel better, I'll also be an old maid? Everybody tells me so.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Flo_the_G on November 24, 2008, 12:36:45 AM
I won't be an old maid. For obvious reasons. :P
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 24, 2008, 12:37:17 AM
*sniffs a couple of time*  It does.  We shall be old maids together, trolling for men at the wedding!  :D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 24, 2008, 12:38:06 AM
*pats soothingly*

That sounds like fun!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on November 24, 2008, 12:40:16 AM
It just so happens that I'm single, and will also go to the wedding.

Oh, the possibilities :D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Necroben on November 24, 2008, 12:48:24 AM
I think this is a perfect opportunity to try out the Evil Laugh Chorus!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: AvalonDreamer on November 24, 2008, 01:14:51 AM
I didn't think Raethe was interested in men... Too busy being a mighty viking... :P

So... Wedding, huh? Want to get married in the Church of Fellfrosch? The chapel smells of bacon ^^ and we provide a free buffet of hors d'oeuvres.

Fell Bless,
High Priest Avalon
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 24, 2008, 01:39:06 AM
Raethe mighty warrior!

Avalon's remark implies that I'm interested in women, though, which couldn't be farther from the truth.

Hmm... An evil laughter chorus as they walk down the aisle? I like it!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: little wilson on November 24, 2008, 01:42:58 AM
Are the hors d'oevres bacony? Because I don't think the Church of Fellfrosch would really be the TRUE Church of Fellfrosch unless EVERYTHING is bacony.....

And I shall join the old maids in the search for the ever elusive "perfect man"....or rather, just a man. Perfection--albeit nice--is unnecessary.

And Chaos, if you weren't younger than my youngest siblings.....(although, you're only 3 1/2 years younger than me, so I guess it's not REALLY cradle-robbing)

And yes. Instead of that one song that's normally played (can't remember what it's called), the ELC can perform. It's perfect! Now we need a sweet location....Hmmm.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 24, 2008, 01:44:33 AM
This is going to be the most interesting wedding in human history. ::)

Indeed. Where is the Church of Fell located?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 24, 2008, 01:46:59 AM
Is the perfect man actually real?!?!

If so, he needs a neon sign above his head saying: "Talk to me. I'm THE perfect man"

And yes.... it'll be very interesting...
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 24, 2008, 01:49:40 AM
I sure hope so. If he's not, I'll never have the chance to hook up with him and laugh at everybody who's ever told me I'm going to end up as a cat lady.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 24, 2008, 01:51:29 AM
Do you even like cats??
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 24, 2008, 01:56:09 AM
I have no problem with cats...
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 24, 2008, 02:24:16 AM
I think the perfect man is subject to opinion.  My pefect man for example would be a half asian, half british who was rased in England, but has come to america and gotten his citizenship.  He would have a really high end job so I could relax and focus on my writing for a living, and would enjoy the mideval times (including going to ren faires in full costume), anime and fantasy.  What I'm really likely to get... well, I doubt he'll even be half of those things.  *sighs*

When is the wedding anyways?  Has there a date been set?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 24, 2008, 02:38:01 AM
(Meant to be asleep) was the proposal formally accepted?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 24, 2008, 02:40:06 AM
I think that's up to you to decide.  We've all been kind of planning this thing without you.   ;)

Actually, I was thinking it could be really fun to set up a time and a chat website or im program and have everyone rp it out.  It would give us a chance to get a feel for everyone's writing style and junk.  But then again, I'm personally partial to rp things anyways.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 24, 2008, 02:49:38 AM
Rpings good. Means you can sort of bounce off other peoples writing too. A lot of the stuff i write now is role play, so... Yeah.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 24, 2008, 02:51:08 AM
Exactly!  It's like a round robin story, except each person can only control one thing.  (Round Robins are way fun to do as well.)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: AvalonDreamer on November 24, 2008, 03:59:47 AM
The Church of Fell is located in the hearts of it's followers!... And in an undisclosed location in the rockies.

As for the bacon-ocity of the petite appetizers, yes, they are all related to either bacon or pants - for the Church of Fell endorses pants, for they are pantly, and awesome.

And that wasn't a lesbian joke, Raethe, it was an ambivalence joke. <.<;

RP Thread for the Wedding? I'm sure there's a board appropriate to it around here...
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 24, 2008, 04:05:15 AM
Well, yes, there is, but it's a lot more fun to do such things in real time rather then waiting for replies, and it would be too much of a pain to constantly refresh.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: AvalonDreamer on November 24, 2008, 04:09:15 AM
This is true... IRC? MSN? Skype? We could embed a chat into a thread... ^^
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Necroben on November 24, 2008, 05:22:20 AM
Sorry my sign was handed over to my wife, incidentally, most just forget to turn their's on. ;D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on November 24, 2008, 05:23:16 AM
I don't know, I actually prefer forum RPing over live RPing :P
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 24, 2008, 05:28:13 AM
My vote is for either msn, or else we find one of those free chat websites and set up a room for ourselves.  Password protect it and then figure out a day and time when everyone meets (If we even went through with this.)

And to each their own as far as rping.  I know those who hate "story style rps" as I call them, and others who can't stand table top d&d, dice rule everything stuff.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on November 24, 2008, 07:05:57 AM
Ack! The thread exploded when I went to dinner!

You mean you've been asking other girls?!?!  :o

I never said that I'd proposed to other women before. I merely said I had yet to be accepted. It makes me sound like an oft-rejected playboy and all-around awesome guy! (Or I was allowing for the possibility that your response was not an acceptance.) To be honest, I wasn't even looking to get married until it just slipped out. That is the power of my love. I couldn't be unfaithful to you, my [insert rhyming lovey-dovey nickname here].

An RP would be fabulous! Let us begin at once! I mean... all at once! So we'll all be there at the same time!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Dangerbutton on November 24, 2008, 07:41:47 AM
I'm totally gonna be the dude that bursts through the doors at just the right moment and shouts, "I object!" and then I ride off into the sunset with bride, or something cool like that.... Then she says, "Um. . . who are you?" , and thus ends our short-lived romance.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 24, 2008, 07:51:06 AM
Haha! Oh, that's classic.

Yeah, um, the thing with doing something like this on a real-time chat is you'd have to get all of us into a room at once. Getting a number of people into a room, even a virtual room, all at the same time is unconscionably difficult.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Dangerbutton on November 24, 2008, 08:38:50 AM
And then me knowing when to burst through the doors. . . . yeah. . .  hmm. . .  good point there, Raethe. . .
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 24, 2008, 09:02:11 AM
Wow it's too early for this being awake malarky.

Yeah, getting everyone in one place, what with work, school, uni, social lives, etc could be.... er.... madness?

Plus then there's always en-promptu stuff that you can't get out of.

Could be a logistic nightmare!!!

There we go... big word...
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 24, 2008, 09:15:15 AM
And then me knowing when to burst through the doors. . . . yeah. . .  hmm. . .  good point there, Raethe. . .

Clearly this need - for it is a need, all things such as this must have their cinematic moments - poses an entirely different set of problems.

The solution is clear - we need to get together and do this in person!

That's so far on the other side of "logistic nightmare" that it will work out perfectly.

Don't ask  me how. I say it shall be so!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on November 24, 2008, 09:18:58 AM
Quickly, let the rich among us contribute to the plane ticket fund!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 24, 2008, 09:34:37 AM
Woo. Plane ticket fund!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 24, 2008, 09:50:24 AM
We're all would-be writers. Are there ANY rich among us? ::)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 24, 2008, 09:51:48 AM
Very, very true.

Speaking of which. Work calls.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: AvalonDreamer on November 24, 2008, 09:57:00 AM
Raethe makes an excellent point... We are aspiring writers, mere social steps above 'starving artists', and only because what we do creates tangible results during it's progress.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Flo_the_G on November 24, 2008, 09:59:10 AM
Yeah, getting everyone in one place, what with work, school, uni, social lives, etc could be.... er.... madness?
To say nothing of different time zones and/or continents. And I'm sure there's someone from a different hemisphere here somewhere. There always is.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on November 24, 2008, 01:48:53 PM
This is why I love this site. I go away for the weekend and now there is a wedding and plane tickets involved. Not only that but our ELC will get its chance to shine while the bride walks down the ilse and wonders why I have a neon sign over my head and her "husband to be doesn't".
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 24, 2008, 04:35:11 PM
You mean this kind of thing happens often?

And yes... timezones are annoying. Very much so!

Maybe forum/post-based is the best thing for it. It means a little waiting around, but a bit of suspense never killed anybody before.

.....Did it?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: maxonennis on November 24, 2008, 04:53:31 PM
This thread got really awkward really fast.   :-X
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 24, 2008, 05:01:46 PM
Sorry :(
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on November 24, 2008, 05:35:20 PM
You are right about awkward. The thing is that tends to happen around here, especially when people are having fun. Once a thread is set up for critiquing then I think it will be a little more on topic.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 24, 2008, 05:53:59 PM
Definitely.

Would it be worth having a 'general chit chat' thread? As opposed to taking over the Introductions board?  ???

Save things getting awkward?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 24, 2008, 06:19:37 PM
Awkward? But weddings are lovely and wonderful!

::)

Eh, I don't really think it's an issue. As pointed out, everybody will probably stay more on topic when it comes to critiques. And as for this thread in particular, it's probaby kind of redundant to start a new one after like... four pages of nothing but us messing around.

Maybe once the moderation options become un-invisible for me and Chaos, I'll see if I can't split this thread where it starts to go astray. That at least would make more sense... Until then I wouldn't bother.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 24, 2008, 07:48:56 PM
I wouldn't worry too much.  Thread hijacking happens quite often.  The next person to post their background will put it back on topic, and suddenly everything will be back to normal.

So, the question is this: Shall we go into the rp forum and start us a topic?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 24, 2008, 07:55:13 PM
Ahahaha. Ohmygod. Do it.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 24, 2008, 08:07:32 PM
Why did I feel like a compleate idiot as I typed that?  I seriously hope I'm not pointed and laughed at (too much.)

Anyways, it's done.  For all who are intrested, you can now start typing here:

http://www.timewastersguide.com/forum/index.php?topic=6258.0#msg132715
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 24, 2008, 08:15:40 PM
Haha, nice. Maybe I'll take a few moments after I get back from class/D&D tonight.

Whoa, we're writing this in first person? that's a first.

Hee hee. This is going to be hilarious.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 24, 2008, 08:17:24 PM
I was trying to decide between first and third, and decided that first would be nice at first.  If the masses put up an outcry, we can always switch to third person.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on November 24, 2008, 08:26:42 PM
Haha! This is brilliant! :D
I sure hope that we see His Baconfulness at some point.

In a post-separated room, first person works great. Chat room? Confusion happens really fast.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 24, 2008, 08:28:31 PM
That's what I was thinking would be totally awesome.  But who knows, we shall see.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Reaves on November 24, 2008, 10:58:04 PM
I've never done this before but I'll probably put in a few posts.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Necroben on November 25, 2008, 12:11:50 AM
I've noticed The Wedding seems to have taken a Dark, almost Gothic, turn.  This is actually kinda fun, I've never done something like this before. ;D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 25, 2008, 12:14:10 AM
Oh... wow.... There's like... a wedding!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  ;D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on November 25, 2008, 12:44:45 AM
Oh this wedding is goning to be great. I am already drunk and nothing has happened yet.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Necroben on November 25, 2008, 12:51:14 AM
I know right, is this cool or what? :D


Sorry, my geeky-ness is starting to show...doh!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: little wilson on November 25, 2008, 04:19:30 AM
I've never done an RP, but I think the first person is nice. I imagine that it WOULD get confusing in a chat, but with a forum, it makes it more interesting and involving. It's easier to imagine that we're actually there and experiencing this wedding between two of our members....*tear* it's so nice.

On a side-note, I wasn't sure what I wanted to be in it, and then I realized we didn't have anything about the Evil Laughing Chorus, and I knew that they HAD to make an appearance.....Therefore, I found my calling within this RP, and I think it's rather fabulous.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 25, 2008, 04:23:33 AM
For everyone who's never done this before, it's rather simple.  You pretty much just write a story with (at least in this situation) yourself as a character.  The only real rule is that you can't "god-mode" which means you can't control another person's character.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Necroben on November 25, 2008, 04:27:13 AM
For everyone who's never done this before, it's rather simple.  You pretty much just write a story with (at least in this situation) yourself as a character.  The only real rule is that you can't "god-mode" which means you can't control another person's character.

Oh good.  I almost broke that rule without even knowing it.  I thought it might be too much trouble and decided to go another route.  Are there any other rules or guide-lines us NooBs should know?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 25, 2008, 04:41:45 AM
Nope, I think that's the only rule really.  At least for our situtation.  When you do these type of things with other people you can get very specific in your settings, and have rules to follow as a result of setting, but I think for us it will be more fun to just leave it open.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Necroben on November 25, 2008, 04:53:29 AM
This is lots fun.  I tried it out a little a long time ago, but it never went anywhere (I don't even remember where now) so I wasn't sure of rules or anything.  I just figured it would be bad manners to hijack someone like that.

Danger: that was quite clever to take the opening I left.
(I was originally going to kill that guy, but I think it worked out better this way)
This is way more fun like this! :D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on November 25, 2008, 10:06:02 PM
I also like having an open thread where we can talk about the RP while it isn't in the RP. As a first timer my self I find that conversation isn't very easy.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 25, 2008, 10:13:38 PM
Genrally if you want to talk about something ooc (out of character) you just put it in parethsis (or double perenthsis if you feel the need.  I've never seen the reason, but to each their own.)  Some of the other stuff I've seen is things like:

*I walked up to Monsta, and hold out my hand*  Hi, how are you?  ::I really hope that he doesn't think I'm weird::

It's really something that's decided by the person who starts the rp as to what symbols mean what (for example, above * means action (which is the reason I always use them as such around here) and :: means thoughts.)  There's no real set standard.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on November 25, 2008, 10:17:06 PM
That makes sense.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 25, 2008, 11:04:17 PM
I never really understood the need for weird symbols in a forum RP. In a chat, sure, but in forum RP you're just writing prose. You wouldn't use * * or :: in prose. Why do it here?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on November 25, 2008, 11:26:45 PM
What I've done in my forum RPs is to just go with normal prose. The special symbols for action would only be necessary in more of a screenplay format, such as:

Chaos: *Walks up to Raethe* How's it going?

And the screenplay format only works if you are controlling multiple characters, in my opinion. I've grown out of that and decided prose was much better, not only for added description, but because it helps out my writing skills.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 25, 2008, 11:35:09 PM
<3 Prose
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Necroben on November 26, 2008, 02:22:24 AM
Wasn't it also, that we are doing this to get a feel for everybody's writing style as well?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on November 26, 2008, 02:49:03 AM
That would be tough in the first person. I also am only part of this for the fun and experience.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on November 26, 2008, 02:52:29 AM
I dunno. To me, first person is a better gauge of someone's ability in writing than third. Lots of people can throw down a convincing third. First is much harder (to me). Of course, I've heard others say the opposite. Opinions. Who needs 'em?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on November 26, 2008, 04:11:40 AM
Just in case people didn't know:

http://www.timewastersguide.com/forum/index.php?topic=6258.0
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on November 26, 2008, 05:40:04 AM
Honestly, I think we are getting a feel for everyone's writing.  And so far it seems to me that everyone's doing fine.  I'm also discovering a lot about people by the "powers" they're giving themselves.

Also, good point Chaos.  I guess that would be the best way to explain the use of those... I had never really thought of it that way.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Necroben on November 26, 2008, 05:42:50 AM
I'm also discovering a lot about people by the "powers" they're giving themselves.

lol!   ;D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: AvalonDreamer on November 26, 2008, 07:51:26 AM
I have the power to commune with the Lord of Pork.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on November 26, 2008, 08:11:11 AM
Why, in my day... *scratches belly* we usta use pencil an' paper for our RP! And blank notebook paper, mind'ya. None o'this pre-printed, graphicy stuff those carpetbaggers try to sell to ya. And you sat across the table from someone so'z ya got a real good idea who yer talkin' to. Well, shoot, that was last century an' all!

Oops, slipped into cantankerous old man mode! You kids and your rock and roll music! Git off my lawn!!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 26, 2008, 08:51:23 AM
Aww, but I LIKE your lawn.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on November 26, 2008, 09:46:59 AM
Y'know, I just realized I used a couple of phrases on the RP thread that would basically go unnoticed in the USA, but might be offensive to someone from the UK. Since I know we have at least one person from yon illustrious isles, I hope I did not offend.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 26, 2008, 10:19:27 AM
My goodness! Yours is so hectic-sounding, I get exhausted just reading it.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 26, 2008, 02:29:11 PM
You should be able to relate to it then, Raethe?
I know I can....  ::)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on November 26, 2008, 05:26:45 PM
I was trying to use the 3-act formula. Did it work?






*tick*            *tick*           *tick*

Just waiting to see if anyone actually went back the the thread to see if it was true...
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 26, 2008, 05:30:22 PM
Arriving

Being there

Leaving




????
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on November 26, 2008, 05:57:41 PM
Did you know the word 'gullible' is not in the dictionary?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 26, 2008, 05:58:46 PM
[sarcasm]

It isn't?

[/sarcasm]
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on November 26, 2008, 06:51:33 PM
"Clean up in aisle three, clean up in isle three! Someone spilled some sarcasm. Get Sortitus to clean up this mess!!"
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 26, 2008, 07:43:36 PM
Yay aisle 3?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: little wilson on November 26, 2008, 09:34:21 PM
So I just went to the kitchen to get something to eat. I opened the microwave, and guess what was in there?....Bacon. Yeah, that's right. Bacon. My mom's cooking it now.....I think it's hilarious.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on November 26, 2008, 09:54:26 PM
Haha!!

I was at work earlier, putting bacon into the fridges.

It's actually scary looking stuff.... It's all like... weird...
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on November 27, 2008, 12:20:40 AM
Ach! The treads explode if I disappear for a day!

Anti-sarcasm deployed. Cleanup imminent.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: jwdenzel on December 04, 2008, 06:13:05 AM
Ok, hi.

My name is Jason. I'm 30 years old, and I live in northern California. I'm married, and I have two little boys.  By day I work for a major technology company that makes routers. Chances are you own one of our products.  Your school or work certainly does.   At work I say things like "Here are the quality metrics for that product line."  And "The customer downgraded their Linux kernel to a version unsupported by the file system."  ... Yeah..  I know.  Blah.  Tell me about it.

By night, however, I'm a filmmaker, writer, and webmaster.  I've made a fair number of short films, some of which have won awards, and all of which can be viewed here (http://www.argonaut-ent.com).  My most recent project is called Spectre. It's an (ahem) epic fantasy short film about a Paladin who finds a cursed sword on a battlefield.  You can learn more about it here (http://www.spectre-movie.com).

Although I have never written a novel, this year's NanoWriMo inspired me to get off my butt and try.  30 days and a wimpy 13,000 words later, I was hooked.  I didn't have a lot of time to write, but I love the process, I love my story, and I can't wait to go farther with it. 

In addition to filmmaking and writing, for the last 10 years (eep!) I've been the webmaster of a big ol' giant website called Dragonmount.com (http://www.dragonmount.com).  It's a fan site for the Wheel of Time novels, which probably explains to you how I first heard of Brandon Sanderson, Writing Excuses, and TWG website.  One of the best parts of running a site like DM is that I've had the amazing opportunity not only to meet and become friends with Robert Jordan, but that I got to see a lot of the behind-the-scenes action at Tor Books.  I've had some very open conversations with editors and other writers, including Mr Tor himself, Tom Doherty. (Tom is, hands down, the Nicest Man In The World).  I actually met Brandon in person recently. We had a few hours together, so we played MAGIC: THE GATHERING.  Bad idea.  Never play Magic with Brandon.  He wins every time. At least when he plays me. :(

What I hope to get out of Reading Excuses is pretty simple:  I look forward to reading your stuff and giving you some insightful input. I'm no stranger to collaborative writing (mostly from my screenplays).  I've been around the block enough now where I'm confident in my ability to provide useful feedback. In turn, I can't wait for you to read over my stuff and tell me how bad it is, and how I should stick to making short movies and big websites.

Oh, and, I'm definitely looking forward to getting to know all of you.  Y'all have a nice cozy little community going here and it looks like a lot of fun.

See ya around
J


Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on December 04, 2008, 06:26:28 AM
Dude! We so need to talk! So glad I'm not the only film maker in this bunch.

And lay off the Spectre title! I just submitted my script Spectre's End to this group on Monday!

Jeez, not even a title is sacred...

Look forward to seeing your work and reading your critiques.

Welcoome!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on December 04, 2008, 06:26:46 AM
Wow, a big name person joining our small group of nobodies... now I'm almosts scared to submit.  Just kidding.  Welcome to the group!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on December 04, 2008, 06:28:35 AM
Never play cards with Sanderson. Got it.

And Karl, I don't do film, but I do scripts? They're... sort of the same...only ... not...

(Hah! I can't imagine two mediums farther apart. Two narrative mediums, that is.)

Welcome, Jason - pleased to have you on board. :)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: jwdenzel on December 04, 2008, 06:40:01 AM
Karl... Yeah, I hear you're the other filmmaker around here. Very cool.  I also hear that, unlike most of the kids here, you remember the 80's.  Granted, I'm a decade behind you still, but I tellya friend... This side of 30 is already seeing less and less hair on my head.

@ M... A fellow dad with two kids!  Right on, brother.  I applaud you and your wife for fighting the good fight.  Thanks for sharing such a personal bit of info.  Looking forward to seeing how those experiences reflect in your work.

@ WEKM... thanks for pushing this writing group idea. Good stuff.

@ firstChristmaSnow...  LOL.  I'm hardly a 'big name'.  But speaking of big names, yours is the largest one here I think, and also the coolest.  I just stare at it wondering if you mis-spelled "Christmas Snow" or if this is just your First Christmas Now.  I'll probably be up all night thinking about it.  Scary.

Oh, and based on how quickly you guys reply to this thread, I bet I'll NEVER have time to write. I'll just be trying to keep up with your posts and wedding plans and stuff.

I'm going to go log off now and try to watch some LEGEND OF THE SEEKER.  I could use a good laugh and cry.

J
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on December 04, 2008, 06:42:24 AM
It's how we weed out those who are not dedicated.

Those who can keep up with us, AND write, those are the worthy!

Or... something.

Laugh and cry?

Yeah. Yeah, I've heard that about Legend of Seeker.

>>;

<<;
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: little wilson on December 04, 2008, 06:47:01 AM
So have I....Not outside of this board, though. I liked The Sword of Truth, so I'm thinking I should go find it to watch online somewhere....But I'm afraid to 'cause I've heard it's VERY different from the books....And that's sad.

And we do keep a VERY fast-pace around here. 'Tis fun!...Speaking of which, I wonder if 'the wedding plans'  he was referring to happen to be "The Wedding" thread that we need to pick back up...somehow. Because that was one FUNNY thread.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on December 04, 2008, 07:09:12 AM
Um... yeah... I remember the 70's too. *shudder* Why did any of those cloths come back in style?!? And though I was around for the Summer of Love, I can't say that I remember it.

And be proud of the lovely head of forehead you are growing! Them's battle scars!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on December 04, 2008, 08:20:01 AM
The only thing that will get the wedding going again is more posts.  I would post again, but I don't think I should quite yet.  Give others a chance to post and stuff.

As for my name, it's a hol tradition to change your name.  It's supposed to be first Christmas Snow.  Normally I'm firstRainbowRose.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Manyang on December 04, 2008, 11:27:28 AM
Wow, you get sidetracked for a couple of weeks and you miss a wedding and the guy from DM suddenly pops up.

My name is Chris and I'm a 30 year old Dutch guy. Since being sideways involved in the founding of this writing group is my only claim to anything of note I will hang on to that as though my life depended on it. (yeah I'll admit to being slightly intimidated..)
I've done my share of studying, most notably psychology and law but had to cut that short due to health reasons. The upside to that is that I have time to be a fulltime writer before ever even submitting something for publishing.

I'm currently working on my first epic fantasy novel. It's rather dark fantasy in terms of atmosphere. Other than that I have a short story somewhere in the rewrite process somewhere which should be submitted as part of a collaborative collection somewhere next year.

Since I'm currently slogging through the middle part of my novel I have forbidden myself to start new writing projects until this draft is completely done in order to prevent it from being shelved. Therefore I requested a place on the readers list for now. I'll be building up credit for the next few months so I can hit you with my 200k manuscript all at once. Muhahah, wait, how's your Dutch?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Flo_the_G on December 04, 2008, 12:25:55 PM
wait, how's your Dutch?
Add an e and an s and I'll say that my Deutsch is excellent.
I might be able to understand a word or two of your novel, maybe even get the gist of a few (short) sentences and guess at others... it worked with milk cartons and the like when I was in Amsterdam a few years back, a novel can't be all that different, right? Right? ::)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on December 04, 2008, 02:20:03 PM
Welcome Jason and Chris  ;D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: wcarter4 on December 04, 2008, 07:23:29 PM
J...as in Jason of Dragonmount? It figures. You're one of only  four people I am highly jealous of. Welcome aboard
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on December 05, 2008, 12:16:42 AM
Lets keep the talk about The Legend Of The Seeker out of RE please. I can only take so much of it. If you feel the need to bash it please come join our communal bashfest in this thread http://www.timewastersguide.com/forum/index.php?topic=5945.0.

Anyway welcome, not all of us reply quickly. I have a hard enough time keeping up because I only post Mon-Fri and the posts can pile up over the weekend. Also its funny firstChristmaSnow, you said that you were almost scared to submit with a big name person here and then you said you were joking. I am scared to submit and I won't even lie to myself about it. Thats not to say that I wont its just showing the lack of confidence I have in my abilities.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on December 05, 2008, 12:27:50 AM
Also its funny firstChristmaSnow, you said that you were almost scared to submit with a big name person here and then you said you were joking. I am scared to submit and I won't even lie to myself about it. Thats not to say that I wont its just showing the lack of confidence I have in my abilities.

Me too.... It's a big thing submitting to people you don't know really... I've not let anyone really see my writing unless I've known them for a while. Forum RP posts are different to actual pieces you've written on your own. But yeah, it's a scary thing.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on December 05, 2008, 12:34:42 AM
I think the best thing about it is that I don't actually know anyone here. If I did then I would more likely than not be more reserved about submitting. Showing these things to friends. . .   no thank you. I would rather have a complete stranger read something I wrote and give me a straight forward criticism than have a friend. A friend may have a biased opinion and it also gives them something to reference forever. "Hey remember that time you let me read your story" yeah I think im ok with that.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on December 05, 2008, 12:36:42 AM
I have a few close friends who I consider very reliable crit partners, but I wouldn't ask a friend that I wasn't sure I'd get a straight answer from.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on December 05, 2008, 12:49:42 AM
Yeah most of my friends don't read. They just aren't interested, I only have one friend who reads and has similar interests. I really want to be part of the group to see if I can write. Im fairly creative and like to try new things and this is just another way to express myself. Plus although I am scared I don't really fear failure seeing how I expect it.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hayley on December 05, 2008, 12:51:52 AM
See, from some friends you just get the "I've read it and it's fine." Done.

But with others, I get red marks on the page showing where I've gone wrong. In some cases, a lot of red. And it's nice to have friends who'll take the time to do that, really :)

It's just about asking the right friends, I think...
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on December 05, 2008, 12:53:53 AM
I hear what your saying. My friends are a little unforgiving and they never let things go so I think I found the right group of friends right here.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: little wilson on December 05, 2008, 01:05:59 AM
It's even better when you're friends with a fellow writer...One of my roommates last semester was writing a book. Now she sends it to me, and I give her feedback--extensive--and I send her my chapters as I complete them, and she gives me feedback....It's a sweet little system we've got going.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on December 05, 2008, 01:09:44 AM
When I say I have friends I trust to give me decent feedback, those are usually friends who are also writers. I trust them to do that because we all want the same thing.

Writer friends are the best.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: maxonennis on December 05, 2008, 01:35:55 AM
When I say I have friends I trust to give me decent feedback, those are usually friends who are also writers. I trust them to do that because we all want the same thing.

Writer friends are the best.

I just ask my oldest sister to look at my stuff, the toughest critic I have. :)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: firstRainbowRose on December 05, 2008, 05:37:46 AM
Also its funny firstChristmaSnow, you said that you were almost scared to submit with a big name person here and then you said you were joking. I am scared to submit and I won't even lie to myself about it. Thats not to say that I wont its just showing the lack of confidence I have in my abilities.

I actually was compleatly joking.  I would rather let someone who I will more then likely never meet in person rip my piece to shreads.  I'm actually not all that shy of a person, and if I am, I get over it quickly.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on December 05, 2008, 08:22:39 AM
Let me tell you this: so far I've read just about everything submitted, and so far no one has submitted something I just could not stomach to read. That sounds like a backhanded compliment, but it is true. And the posts are buzzing with observations, suggestions and even debates about what these people have submitted. This means folks are actually paying attention to what's been submitted.

The result is a good mix of writers and readers.

So fear not, y'all! Com'on in an tell us a tale'er two. We really want to hear what you have to say!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on December 11, 2008, 07:25:47 AM
This topic is now pinned, so new members can still introduce themselves.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on December 11, 2008, 03:03:53 PM
Yay. Go Chaos, I'm proud of you. It took you long enough.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on December 11, 2008, 07:57:41 PM
Not our fault, man. :P
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: little wilson on December 11, 2008, 08:11:44 PM
Wait. So you guys finally have access to the mod tools now?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on December 11, 2008, 08:14:27 PM
Yes. Sprig triumphed over the Cosmic Forces at last.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: AvalonDreamer on December 11, 2008, 09:08:13 PM
Sprig did no truimphing, he merely confused and astounded them long enough for you kids to finally get your powers... That'd be an awesome superpower, the ability to confuse and confound people....
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Frog on December 13, 2008, 07:20:05 PM
Alright, now that I've dominated/ruined one thread, it's time to move to the next...

Hi! I'm Frog/Jacque. I just recently graduated from college, though it was not in writing. Not even remotely (I'm a nurse, believe it or not). Anyway, I have been working on my story (it's a fantasy) off and on since my freshman year of high school (about 7 years ago if you want to do the math and figure out how old I am). I never liked to show it to people, but I am now running out of things I can do with it on my own, so I am trying to show it to a few more people and see what I can do about submitting it. So I will have to apologize now for trying to push the submission limit (not the whole book in one go, but as much as I feel I can justify after reading the rules) since I have already kinda/sort of completed it. I hope you don't throw too many things at me....

Hey it's me:

It's even better when you're friends with a fellow writer...One of my roommates last semester was writing a book. Now she sends it to me, and I give her feedback--extensive--and I send her my chapters as I complete them, and she gives me feedback....It's a sweet little system we've got going.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on December 13, 2008, 07:27:57 PM
Hello-o-o-o-o nurse!

Is that Jachque pronounce like Jackie? And not like Jack?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Frog on December 13, 2008, 07:31:50 PM
It's pronounced Jackie, though you wouldn't be the first one to call me Jacques... grrr....:)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Necroben on December 13, 2008, 07:32:31 PM
Welcome Jacque, hope you get what you are looking for out of this (little?) group.  Well it was small but it's grown by leaps and bounds now.  Anyway have fun with us! ;D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: AvalonDreamer on December 13, 2008, 07:38:16 PM
Welcome child, to the Arms of His Baconship.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: little wilson on December 13, 2008, 10:28:46 PM
Careful, Avalon. You just might scare her away....It took me long enough to convince her to sign up for this, I'm not sure I'd be able to convince her to come back if she runs away....

And Jacque, you found that quote? I forgot I'd written that....haha
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on December 15, 2008, 11:19:21 PM
You might not want to warn Avalon to be careful. You might be more worried about me. I mean I am a punk and all. But seriously Frog, welcome. I also have problems with showing people my writing. It just makes me feel uncomfortable, but I guess that's the only way to get somethings done. I look forward to reading your stuff.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: little wilson on December 15, 2008, 11:24:29 PM
Hmm. Maybe I should be more worried about you, but I find I'm not. Not in the slightest right now. That could change when it gets closer to said duel, but at the current moment....No fear. (*singing* Don't worry. Be happy. *end singing*).

And I think it's hilarious how we're taking this duel talk all over the forum....
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on December 15, 2008, 11:29:44 PM
Yeah we have been jumping threads with the conversation a bit. I dont mind, as long as we put in a line or two that has to do with the topic I think others will be fine with it aswell.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Frog on December 16, 2008, 01:23:58 AM
Thanks everyone! (except for you Monsta. You're still a punk.  ;) )
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on December 16, 2008, 02:57:26 AM
Ouch. I mean really? I honestly welcomed you to TWG and also related to you about my fears of displaying my writings and I don't even gat a thank you. Well I see how it is. I guess you do to because you still realize that I am still a punk and I will probably continue to be one. That aside I guess I can deal with it.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: little wilson on December 16, 2008, 06:45:32 AM
Don't be too hurt, Monsta. I've polluted her mind. She can't help thinking the way she is. My Jedi mind powers are just too overwhelming for her...I called you punk. Therefore, she now considers you a punk....probably always will too. Sorry (not really, but....yeah :P).
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on December 16, 2008, 06:43:04 PM
Well I guess that's a good enough explanation. It doesn't hurt. I guess it just stinks when someone realizes I'm a punk right off the bat. It cuts down on the amount of fun I can have. Its better for them to think I'm nice so that I can destroy their perception with amusing antics.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: little wilson on December 16, 2008, 08:05:45 PM
Well, if it makes you feel any better, you succeeded in that with me....:P
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on December 16, 2008, 09:24:27 PM
I'm glad to hear it. See it does nothing to negatively alter our interactions. We still talk and have fun, its just more fun to surprise someone with being a punk than telling them straight forward.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Flo_the_G on January 01, 2009, 01:07:06 AM
Right, I'm going to hijack this thread to wish the eastern hemisphere a happy new year. Sucks to be you, western hemisphere! :P
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on January 01, 2009, 01:15:33 AM
Are there any other kids here?? I feel so alone… everyone's talking about their double majors in English and Bio-whatever and some other super-advanced science that I've never heard of and likely would kill myself trying to work with it…I have no desire to get into the science field. Sixth grade life science was bad enough. English and Writing, on the other hand….that I could work with :D.

Anyone else still in M/H school? If you are, and you love fantasy/sci-fi/writing, send me a message. We'll chat some time.

By the way, no offense to any who is taking part in the above-mentioned subjects. Just sharing my feelings 8).
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: The Jade Knight on January 01, 2009, 12:11:51 PM
There are several youngsters about, though as you'll notice, the Official Time-Waster's Guide collects a large amount of older, well-educated folks.  A recent survey made evident that the average level of education for frequent visitors is a 4-year college degree.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on January 01, 2009, 06:35:29 PM
Oh wow…I wish all schools had those kinds of numbers.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: GreenMonsta on January 02, 2009, 09:06:53 PM
There are all types that come here. Kids, house moms, non-graduates, highschoolers, multi-degree holders. All sorts, and although the majority may lean to the well educated or college student I for one as a person who hasn't attended college, have a really good time here. It doesn't matter how old you are or what you've done, only that you enjoy yourself here.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Reaves on January 02, 2009, 09:13:27 PM
There are all types that come here. Kids, house moms, non-graduates, highschoolers, multi-degree holders. All sorts, and although the majority may lean to the well educated or college student I for one as a person who hasn't attended college, have a really good time here. It doesn't matter how old you are or what you've done, only that you enjoy yourself here.

I have a dream...
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on January 03, 2009, 12:14:14 AM
I guess that's true…and I am 8) having fun.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: cathar on January 05, 2009, 05:53:03 AM
I'm Cathar, and I typically write fantasy, inspired by B.S. that is to say I try to take cliches, and turn them on their heads to come up with an original, yet slightly familiar idea. I'm 20 and have finished a book, along with ALOT of short stories.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on January 05, 2009, 07:01:21 AM
...

You know, it occurs to me occasionally that our esteemed Mr. Sanderson has rather unfortunate initials.

Ahem.

Welcome, Cathar.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on January 05, 2009, 07:13:41 AM
Oh! Right, I forgot we were doing that shout-out thing.

Welcome, cathar! I look forward to reading your stuff!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Reaves on January 05, 2009, 10:19:32 PM
...

You know, it occurs to me occasionally that our esteemed Mr. Sanderson has rather unfortunate initials.


lol yes, I love it when people say "lets spread the BS around!!"

I have a friend with the same initials btw.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on January 06, 2009, 06:26:14 AM
Greetings Cathar! Glad to have an Albigensian in the group. Luckily, I'm not in the mood for a crusade right now.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on January 06, 2009, 11:07:05 PM
 ???What's an Albigensian? ???
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Reaves on January 07, 2009, 01:25:35 AM
it was a crusade launched by the Roman Catholic Church against the Cathar heresy.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on January 07, 2009, 01:55:10 AM
Oh, I get it now. Sorry–
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Reaves on January 07, 2009, 03:07:00 AM
Oh, I get it now. Sorry–

Honestly- I had to google it  :P
my curiosity could not be sated
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on January 07, 2009, 07:28:24 AM
Is it a bad thing that I knew about the Cathars off the top of my head?

Curious note: not ALL of the Catholic church was behind the crusade. The Hospitallers were on the side of the crusaders, while the Templars were attempting to remain nuetral (so as not to have to oppose the church). It was almost a French civil war.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on January 07, 2009, 03:40:14 PM
Reaves–haha I can understand that. Thanks anyways.

Not at all! I wish I had amazing quantities of historical data memorized in my head. I have always been envious of people who can remember dates and facts and names. I usually just remember who stuck the sword in the other guy first.

Did you take a history course at high school or college?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on January 07, 2009, 04:52:12 PM
Most of the history classes I took in college were art history. But that still gives a good sense ot time and place.

I'm really just a big Templar history geek -- both actually history as well as some of the various conpemporary conspiracy theories. Suffice to say there was very little in The Da Vinci Code that I hadn't already read about.

The main trick to knowing lots of stuff is to read constantly and get old. The later part is easy enough, but the first part can be tough.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on January 07, 2009, 05:16:27 PM
Haha. I'm still pretty young, although I do read constantly. But I don't read much  history.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Flo_the_G on January 07, 2009, 06:24:11 PM
Ah, but history is the key to the future. ;)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on January 07, 2009, 06:45:24 PM
Hehe. But I wasn't demeaning the importance of learning/reading about history!!! Not at all!!! I was just saying that I don't read much of it  :P.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Pipe on January 16, 2009, 04:48:58 PM
*looks nervously at prior posts on Cathars and Crusades - and promptly hides his rosary*

Hello my name is Pipe, and I'm an aspiring writer with a beautiful wife who perfectly complies with Scalzi's Advice Numero Tres: http://whatever.scalzi.com/2008/02/11/unasked-for-advice-to-writers-about-money/

I hail from the Philippines where I'm a lawyer by profession, although I'm planning to take a bit of a break soon to try other business ideas. I was raised on the post-Tolkien epic fantasy novel - Rosenberg, Eddings, Brooks, Williams, Jordan, Hobb, Gemmell - though my favorite authors at the moment are Lois McMaster Bujold and Jim Butcher.

Home-grown Speculative Fiction is slowly growing here in the Philippines (in the cities at least) and I really want to be part of that (If any of you are curious: http://philippinespeculativefiction.com/) (http://philippinespeculativefiction.com/)). Since most of my reading has been in the form of epic novels though, I've been trying to learn how to write short fiction since that is what most are in the market for here (I've had one success so far). I do think though that it's only a matter of time before local Spec Fic novels and series emerge, and I want to be ready when that time comes ^_^

So anyway, I just recently discovered writing podcasts in geenral and writing excuses in particular which lead me here so... Hi!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on January 16, 2009, 05:02:03 PM
Welcome, Pipe! What Class are you training?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: jwdenzel on January 16, 2009, 06:03:08 PM
Hi Pipe!  Welcome.  Looking forward to reading your work
J
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Frog on January 16, 2009, 06:36:27 PM
Wow, you're already published? That is so awesome, and a little intimidating, but welcome anyway! Glad to have you.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Pipe on January 16, 2009, 06:58:32 PM
Hi all! Thanks for the welcome.

@Shaggy: Not quite sure really - truth be told I saw that everyone has a "Class" data item, but I have no idea what it is @_@

@Frog: Well, it's a small genre magazine here -(non-pro rates) the field is only starting here in the Philippines really - so a lot of it is basically luck of the draw. I am proud of it though ^_^ Haven't submitted anything to the "majors" yet but will try for Writers of the Future this year.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on January 16, 2009, 07:08:13 PM
Sweet. I'vegot a story that I'll submit to Writers of the Future this year, too.  Thinking of sending it to SF&F first, though. Quicker turnaround time, since this Writers of the Future quarter has basically just started...

Pro rates or not, you should be proud of that. At the stage most of us are at, getting our work out there is more important than getting paid, anyway. It hurts me to say it, but it's true.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on January 16, 2009, 07:46:12 PM
Pipe, I looked at your profile, and it says you are a Student of Divinity.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Reaves on January 16, 2009, 09:30:13 PM
Wow that is really cool that you have at least been published Pipe! That at least gives us some legitimacy as a writing group, lol  :P
look forward to seeing some of your stuff. That is, if you plan on submitting   :D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: JoseB on January 16, 2009, 11:05:26 PM
Greetings to everybody!

My name is Jose. I am Spanish, although I am now living in the Netherlands. I am a patent examiner by trade (I work for the branch of the European Patent Office located in The Hague) and I was directed to this message board by Howard Tayler, creator of the webcomic "Schlock Mercenary".

I have written some books in the past,  Sci-Fi, which I sent to a contest that my University (the Polytechnical University of Catalonia in Barcelona) was holding. One of them was about an A.I. that achieved sentience and the relationship it had with its creator; another was some kind of wacky surreal humorous adventure (or, at least, that is what I was aiming at) about a guy whose boss had himself put into hibernation (to actually escape from a series of people who, for very different reasons, wanted him very dead) and who suddenly finds that he is being hunted by a series of people who, for very different reasons, want him very dead... But they were definitely not what you might call "good" :)

After those attempts, I concentrated in my studies, went on with life, and ended up working here in the Netherlands.

Now... a friend of mine in Spain is a published author, and reading his work is what finally encouraged me to give another try at writing.

I already have ideas in mind for an alternative-history novel that I think could be rather interesting (at least, after doing some internet research, I have not been able to find anything published on that subject), and I have been trying to put something together.

However... I am writing in Spanish. All of my notes, all of my preliminary writings, everything. I imagine that this would be a problem in this group? Does anybody here speak Spanish to a level that would allow them to perform criticism of anything I might write? (I can read English reasonably well; I think I can reciprocate when it comes to reading and commenting on the writing of other people in English).

Of course, I can translate myself what I write from Spanish into English. Although I don't know if what sounds good in English (after criticism/correction) would sound good in Spanish, and vice versa :)

In any case... Here I am!

All the best,

JoseB
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on January 16, 2009, 11:13:00 PM
Welcome, Jose!

Unfortunately, I cannot say I read Spanish well enough to criticize your work. Sorry. I hope you find someone who can, though.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on January 17, 2009, 01:22:00 AM
My understanding of Spanish isn't bad, but nowhere near the level that I'd need to be able to give a meaningful critique, I'm afraid.

Welcome, though.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Necroben on January 17, 2009, 02:05:13 AM
I'll chime in a little late and say welcome.  Pipe and Josè, Welcome to the club. 

Pipe:  That is sooo cool!  Use that accomplishment as a building block for your dreams.  Don't put yourself down, you now have a Resumè!

Josè:  I'm sorry, I don't speak Spanish either.  Hopefully what you see of other submissions and the response's they get will be helpfull in your own works.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Reaves on January 17, 2009, 02:36:34 AM
I don't read Spanish nearly well enough to help you out I'm afraid.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Pipe on January 17, 2009, 12:51:33 PM
@Silk: Well, you're a step ahead of me for WoF then, since all I have are a few random story ideas. As for the story, I am proud of it, although it's still hard for me to look at a short story and think of it as 'complete'. @_@

@Shaggy: I saw that too, but I have no idea how that was determined :P Is it a random thing? Still, there are worse things to be ^_^

@Reaves: Thanks! I certainly aim to at some point - if I actually do start my novel, you guys can be my barometer of whether or not I can make Philippine culture accessible to foreigners ^_^

@Necroben: Thanks! I'll certainly try to.

---

@JoseB: Hi there! Unfortunately compulsory knowledge of Spanish was out of style by the time I entered school so I will sadly be of no help in Spanish texts... If you need any research done on the Spanish occupation of the Philippines though, I can help with that :P

Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Frog on January 17, 2009, 10:41:51 PM
I tried to learn Spanish once... and failed miserably. So, I'm not much help there, but I think it is great that we seem to be getting such a good mix of people here. Welcome JoseB, and go team RE! :D

Oh, and Pipe, I still think that is awesome... but I'm kind of easy to impress too, so there you go. :)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on January 18, 2009, 05:47:34 PM
Has anyone noticed that we' ve truly become world-spanning? The sun does not set on Reading Excuses!

Sorry, JoseB. Like the rest, my pathetic attempt to learn Spanish in high school is both too long ago and lacked a dedicated student.

So Pipe, what language are you writing in? If you are writing for your local area I can't imagine it would be English.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Pipe on January 19, 2009, 05:31:56 AM
@Karl: A lot of the Spec Fic writing here in the Philippines is in english actually. Most people in Philippine cities, and especially Manila, have at least basic English conversational skills. ^_^
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: mtbikemom on January 21, 2009, 06:42:23 AM
By way of introduction, I am a home schoolin' mom who also coaches high school mountain biking with my hubby in Marina, CA.  I have been a pastry chef, a truck driver (bread delivery), a very bad waitress, a surfing photographer and a singer-songwriter, among many other things.  I have read sci-fi fantasy since the LoTR and the Pern books and always knew I had at least one in me.

I kinda thought I'd wait till the last kid was gone, or at least not home schooled, to write my first book, but it just started pouring out of me not long ago and I got this great new laptop...

Anyway, that's who I am and it's been fun getting to know you all through your posts.  I may disappear and pop back in from time to time.  I am here because of reading and enjoying EUOL at the moment, but I may stay because I like you time-wasters.

Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on January 21, 2009, 06:52:02 AM
Ooh, you're a singer-songwriter? Awesome! We should like totally.. uh... get together and do... uhh... whatever singer-songwriters do together. Uh, sing... songs?

Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: M on January 23, 2009, 06:51:44 PM
Jose, I may be of some assistance to you.  I lived several years in Honduras (Central America) and speak Spanish fluently.  I wouldn't mind spending some time reading your work.  I wouldn't be able to help much with vocabulary or grammar issues, but the main plot and feel I could definitely take a stab at. 
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Hamster on January 24, 2009, 06:30:52 AM
Hello everybody!

I've been a long time lurker after discovering Mistborn and the joys of reading crazy theorizing by some of you guys, but just recently decided to get a little involved. You can call me the Hamster, hammy, or anything you want, I'm Canadian, and don't worry Shaggy, I'm a kid too, still in High school. I have always loved to read, since my parents used to read aloud books like LotR and Narniawhen I was younger, and ever since I have immersed myself into books, mostly fantasy or historical fiction.

I got inspired to write when I was in grade 10 for a lot of reasons: I got 97% in English,which really inspired me, and loved the Short Story and Creative writing units,(which were way too short :'( ), fell in love with Mistborn, and remembered that Christopher Paolini published the book that he started at age 15 (even though Eragon was somewhat painful to read after reading good fantasy).

So I took a stab at writing, and it didn't suck as much as I thought it would. Even though my story may sound like a rip off form Mistborn and WoT, I love my magic system and my plot twists. I decided to join because I also love reading anything done by aspiring authors, and find it inspirational, so since I've had writer's block for months now, I figured this could jumpstart me into starting again, so I look forward to being a part of Writing Excuses, except I probably won't join just yet, because I have exams next week...but I'll be here soon! And just a heads up, please keep in mind that my writing is probably the worst of all of you guys, I really have no experience.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: jwdenzel on January 24, 2009, 06:49:28 AM
Hello, Hamster!  Welcome to our little group.  Always a pleasure to have another Mistborn / WoT addict.

Don't be shy about submitting your stuff.  None of us here are published (Well, except for Pipe, I hear) so we're all in he same boat.   Also, just remember, part of the cool thing about this group is that we like to point out the things you do right!

Looking forward to seeing you around
-J
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on January 24, 2009, 07:51:07 AM
Yes, welcome. And don't be too intimidated - like Jason says, we're all in the same boat.

No rush to start submitting your stuff either - just whenever you're ready.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Necroben on January 24, 2009, 07:52:09 AM
Welcome Hamster! ;D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on January 24, 2009, 10:04:54 PM
Good to have ya, Hammy!

P.S. You may have no experience, but I have  :Dless.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: deckacards on January 25, 2009, 01:06:55 AM
Okay...I guess it's time for me to throw a bit of background down...I'll try to keep it to writing-related information...mostly...

Well, first off - you all can call me Kevin or deckacards. I'm not worried about it. I'll respond to both...and numerous other less than desirable names. I'm 31, married (second) with children, and desperately longing for a life filled with writing.

My B.A. is in English but I'm currently pursuing a dual master's in Marriage and Family Therapy and Community Counseling (I actually get to start seeing clients this Summer as an intern!). During my undergrad, I studied various forms of writing (Creative, Technical, Professional, Essay, Journalism, etc.) and spent a bit of time as a writing tutor. For the past 5 years, I've made a living as a Technical Writer for a bank software company (basically, I write instruction manuals).

I love short stories (especially John Updike and Flannery O'Connor), my favorite novel of all time is Catcher in the Rye, but by far my favorite genre to read is fantasy. I would quickly volunteer Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time (of course) as my favorite fantasy experience, but Melanie Rawn's Dragon Prince series was a wonderful read as well. And, if pressed and backed violently into a corner, I would have to say I enjoyed Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth in between Wheel of Time novels. Finally, my middle school librarian hooked me on literature forever when she suggested Robin McKinley's Hero and the Crown and The Blue Sword. Mom and Dad can blame her for steering me away from a more lucrative profession for the rest of my life (in addition to dooming them to depend on Social Security for their retirement plans...).

I love movies (Gladiator, American Beauty, Transformers, Sense and Sensibility, etc.), and for 162 games a season, I border on idol worship with the St. Louis Cardinals (hence the corny username - deckacards).

Thank you all for giving me the chance to improve my writing. I'll do the best I can to provide as much useful feedback as I can for all of you as well.

Thanks! (wow...that was long...sorry...)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: jwdenzel on January 25, 2009, 02:58:16 AM
Welcome, Kevin!

(And yes, go Cards!)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Pipe on January 27, 2009, 05:44:42 AM
@Hamster: Welcome aboard! I do find that reading/watching stories is a great way to overcome writer's block - either because the story is so good it inspires you, or so bad you KNOW you could do better. ^_^

@deckacards: Welcome as well! I can't help but envy you for having taken formal writing classes @_@ I hope my prose can pass muster with an English major (since for most of my life, my rules of grammar and syntax have mostly been "if it sounds good, it's probably correct.")

Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: deckacards on January 27, 2009, 06:14:45 AM
hehe...my grammar tends to suck...well, at least, my knowledge of it does...

interestingly enough, the best lesson I learned from writing classes..."if it sounds good, it's probably right"...and "write like you talk/think, not how you think you should write."

Really, after being in classes with many writing students...the best thing in the world to have when you sit down to write is a passion for it...other than that...practice, practice, practice...and a little bit of practice...I have never been able to make myself write as much as I should...it takes a lot of writing and time to develop your voice...something I still haven't done.

FYI - I say a lot in these posts...I hope that doesn't make me sound like I think I know what I'm doing...I'm just following the ass in front of me and hoping the person attached to it knows where (s)he's going. I just like to talk a lot about writing!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on February 23, 2009, 11:40:07 PM
Quote
I just like to talk a lot about writing!
Hear, hear!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Mathom on February 26, 2009, 05:50:29 AM
My name is Mathom.  I'm 20< my age< 30. ;D  In life I am Daniel.  I'm a senior physics undergrad at Brigham Young University.

Mathom is what creative writing has been to me---a long-forgotten gift that I never got rid of, but that I never had any real use for.  I loved creative writing in elementary school and would write about all sorts of different things, mostly fantasy of some sort.  I never could finish anything because the beginning was always the most interesting part.  Then in freshman year of high school, my English teacher had us do creative writing for a few weeks after which he said that that was the last creative writing we would do during our school years.  I don't think he meant it to be prophetic, but for me it has been, mostly.  Except for a sort blurb just after high school, I haven't written anything since those early weeks in the 9th grade.

So why am I writing on this forum?  That short blurb just after high school was a transition in my life and I found outlet by writing stories (mostly in my head) to mimic my situation.  I grew up and got over teenage angst and went off to college.  Then I found Writing Excuses through Schlock Mercenary and the weekly encouragement and discussion niggled at me to write the story that was still in my head from those years before.  Today I sat down and used four hours I didn't have to begin the first chapter.  But I'd like help to make this novel the story I really want to tell.

My story was originally conceived as an episodic cartoon and I am in my writing trying to describe the scenes I see in my head.  For once, inspiration came to me with an entire story: beginning, conflict, twist, middle, development, climax, end.  I don't see everything, but I see all the bits that have to be there.  It has many influences from fantasy and animation.  The main idea that was its genesis was, "What would happen if magic and technology grew together in this world? If we had the same industrial revolution and technology boom, but that magic was also a part of that world?"  The second idea was, "What would people do if they could waive their hand a have anything they want (almost)?  What if magic made work as we know it unnecessary?"  Crystal Palaces is the result---a dirty, hedonistic city which floats above a broken, poisoned world.

At the moment I only have one story to tell, but there may be others.  I am most interested in fantasy.  I love the writings of J.R.R. Tolkein, Terry Pratchett, Douglas Adams, Patricia Wrede, and Alexander Lloyd.  I'm a fan of graphic novels (BONE by Jeff Smith being one of my favorites) and I love the simplistic artwork of Japanese comics and animation.

I love physics and mathematics and I may not have a whole lot of time for writing with the start of graduate school, but I need to get this story out of my head.  I hope that I can entertain you, though I am afraid you may see deeper into the dark recesses of my soul than I intend.  I may disturb you and that is ok too so long as I can leave you with some sense of hope for the world.

Anyway, that may have been more than was sufficient for an introduction. Oh well.  I look forward to giving and getting criticism.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on February 26, 2009, 06:10:12 AM
Sweet, a fellow Physics major.

Welcome :D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Frog on March 06, 2009, 01:05:37 AM
Finally got to reading through your intro so now I will be officially welcoming you to the mad house. It's great to have you here (and not just because you seem to like my book, though it certainly helps). I love all the authors you mentioned (though I've yet to read Pratchett  :-[ ) and your brief discription of your story so I am really looking forward to reading your chapters. You will be submitting soon, yes?
See ya around! :D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: RavenstarRHJF on March 17, 2009, 10:02:16 PM
Hello, all!  You can see my handle to the side, there... I go by Ravenstar, as I'm not really comfortable giving out my real name on the internet.  I'm a waitress by day, and use my B.A. in Music to teach private voice lessons on the side, though not very many of them at the moment.

A little bit about me:  I'm 24, female, married with no children (yet), and at the moment I hail from the south-east coast.  And I like stories.  I always have.  As a child, I would rather sit and watch my sisters play with Barbies, or Playmobile, or other toys of invention and imagination than to be put to the trouble of inventing things myself.  Ergo, I really like books, mostly sci-fi and fantasy, though I won't say no to a good action adventure, a non-smutty romance, or well done historical fiction.  I avoid horror and mystery because, frankly, they annoy me.

Right now I'm working on my NaNoWriMo novel (which will eventually be finished, I swear!), but sporadically.  At this point, I'm laying everything out in my head, playing around with ideas and characters until I find the best fit for the plot.  I find that I do this best in imagination rather than with an actual outline and character portraits- mostly because I'm lazy and don't like putting the nitty gritty details on paper.  There are also two other stories I'm working on which grew out of the aforementioned Writing Contest thread, one of which I will probably be using here.  It's sci-fi, but not hard (I don't have the technical experience or knowledge to make it hard, and I find that I mostly skip technical jargon in the hard sci-fi I read, so you'll just have to bear with me... or re-educate me on the error of my ways ;)). 

There will probably be lots to critique with my submissions, and frankly, I'm looking forward to it.  Please no inane "Yeah... good job... um, I really liked it..." If you're going to say you liked it, please tell me why, with examples.  That goes for negative comments too, btw.

Anyway, I'm really looking forward to both reading stuff and having mine critiqued!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: jwdenzel on March 17, 2009, 10:09:30 PM
Welcome, Ravenstar.  Always nice to see a new person here.  I'm looking forward to reading your work.  We get a lot of fantasy around here, and not a whole lot of sci-fi, so that will be enjoyable.

Like you, I like to let my stories and characters "stew" in my head for a long time.  And like you, I'm still working on my NaNo novel which ISwearWillBeDoneSomeday. ;-)  One thing I've found to be helpful, and maybe it will be for you, is to write down notes. I hate doing it too.  But jotting them down into a dedicated notebook (even an inexpensive pocket-sized one) might spark an idea later on.  You can still do the heavy plotting in your head, but writing down small elements could be useful later on.

Anyway, looking forward to seeing you around
J
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: RavenstarRHJF on March 17, 2009, 11:27:02 PM
Thanks!  It's more of a blend of sci-fi and fantasy, and like I said, it's not "hard."  I'm dubious about the jotting down notes thing for myself though.  Most of the time when I'm "plotting" (heh) it's because I'm doing something mindless at work and daydreaming at the same time, so there's little opportunity for jotting anything down.  I might start keeping a small notebook in my apron, though, just to see if it works out.  Thanks for the tip!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Necroben on March 18, 2009, 04:06:45 AM
Ravenstar, welcome!  I'll go ahead and add my voice to say it always great to see (or read) new faces.  My current novel was from NaNo as well.  I'm working to get it done by Nov. so I can start fresh on a new project.  Look forward to reading you work,  ;D.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on March 18, 2009, 05:34:07 AM
Welcome, Raven.

It seems the people working on the ISwearItWillBeDoneSomeday NaNo novel are legion. One of the books I'm working on is in that category, too.

(Yes, I'm working on more than one right now, and yes, this was a dumb idea.)

Looking forward to reading some of your work... Eventually. Because I'm a bad moderator and just all-around bad person (or so I've been told), I'm on a bit of a critique hiatus until, well, probably the end of April. But yeah... welcome.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on March 18, 2009, 06:02:32 AM
Welcome to the Ravenstar. I have the spades. ♠

Umm, my NaNo work was a crossover Sci-Fantasy, but so horrible that none shall ever see it. I'm in the plotting stages for the rewrite, which will have even more Sci-Fi. 8) One of these days I'll get brave enough to submit. :-\

I look forward to reading your work.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Flo_the_G on March 18, 2009, 10:24:07 AM
Ooh, sci-fi! Feel free to ask me if you want to make it harder (i.e. "more hard sf-y"), I've spent way too much time reading about mass accelerators, particle beams and warp drives on the internets. So while I'm (definitely) no expert, I do know what happens when you switch on your headlights while travelling at light speed, if only because I've read "The Physics of Star Trek". ::)

What's this I hear about me being supposed to hand in a term paper a week from now? I guess I should start writing that then...
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: writerchick on March 22, 2009, 10:33:16 PM
I'm an elementary school teacher, having taught 4th grade for the last 2 years. I love to read, which is an excellent thing, considering that is what I teach! I have always wanted to be a writer but just recently started to actually take steps towards that goal. I keep pretty busy and am in the process of working my writing time into my schedule.
Writing wise, I like to write primarily fantasy but also love to write poetry.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Reaves on March 22, 2009, 11:37:26 PM
Oooh, poetry! I've heard a lot of great things about poetry and how it will improve your prose from Dan.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on March 23, 2009, 12:05:59 AM
I admire those who can actually write poetry and make it work. Me, I like reading it just fine, but I am never going to write it again. >>;
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on March 23, 2009, 03:13:20 AM
Yeah I wrote a poem once…and it came out kinda frightening, so I stick to regular writing now. It's safer.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: RavenstarRHJF on March 23, 2009, 03:50:06 AM
Whee!  Good to see you Writerchick!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Necroben on March 23, 2009, 03:58:08 AM
Hello Writerchick and welcome! ;D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: ErikHolmes on March 24, 2009, 09:57:46 PM
My favorite author is Roger Zelazny. I had the pleasure of receiving a letter from him allowing me to use one of his short stories for the film that got me out of college. Sadly he passed away before I could present him with a copy of the finished film.

Wow, RZ is my favorite author as well. Which short story did you do a film on?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Renoard on April 01, 2009, 05:40:47 PM
My name is Renoard or Fred, I'll likely answer to either.  Like I said on "email list", dunno if this constitutes crashing the party.  If not, then let me say that I am a Student of Divinity, ironically, in real life.  I have loved speculative fiction for more years than there has been an MTV and I dabble a bit at writing and criticism.

Mostly I'm a professional time-waster, though I haven't done the RPG thing since before D&D had Drow...

The Writing Excuses threads are fun and really helpful, so they lead me here.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: jwdenzel on April 01, 2009, 05:44:34 PM
Hello Renoard,

Welcome to the madness. :)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: ryos on April 01, 2009, 07:34:16 PM
So, I'm finally getting around to throwing my hat in this here introductions ring.

My name's Ryan, I'm a Computer Science student at Brigham Young University, and I've always liked writing. I wrote my first story in first grade - it was about a pair of M&M's that came to life and it covered a single handwritten page. (I think I was on a "Short Circuit" kick at the time.) Since then, I've written little bits of fiction here and there, but never anything serious. Well, I'm trying to change that - I want to start producing potentially salable material.

I don't really aspire to write full-time - it's far easier to profit by writing code, I'm already good enough at that to get paid for it, and I love it as much as I love writing fiction - but I would love to be able, some day, to sell a story here and there.

I don't really harbor any illusions that my first serious attempt at a story will actually sell, but your wonderful feedback is pushing it closer than I could have on my own. Thank you all for that, and thanks for welcoming me so readily into the group.

Oh, I also love to read! And critique things I've read. I have strong opinions, and I hope that I don't offend people by letting those show through in my critiques. As I told one person, if I opine strongly about your work, it's because I like it enough to become invested in it! Anyway, I live in fear of offending someone with my critiques, so please accept my apologies in advance if it should happen to you.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: maxonennis on April 01, 2009, 07:34:28 PM
My name is Renoard or Fred, I'll likely answer to either.  Like I said on "email list", dunno if this constitutes crashing the party.  If not, then let me say that I am a Student of Divinity, ironically, in real life.  I have loved speculative fiction for more years than there has been an MTV and I dabble a bit at writing and criticism.

Mostly I'm a professional time-waster, though I haven't done the RPG thing since before D&D had Drow...

The Writing Excuses threads are fun and really helpful, so they lead me here.

Lol, you'll fit right in  ;D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on April 04, 2009, 05:55:46 PM
My favorite author is Roger Zelazny. I had the pleasure of receiving a letter from him allowing me to use one of his short stories for the film that got me out of college. Sadly he passed away before I could present him with a copy of the finished film.

Wow, RZ is my favorite author as well. Which short story did you do a film on?

Sorry it took so long to reply. I've been internet-less for almost 2 weeks! Yikes! I'm just now getting caught up.

I made 'Divine Madness' from The Doors of His Face, The Lamps of His Mouth, and Other Stories. Reread the story and then bake your noodle trying to figure out how I did it. Yep, 75% of the film is presented in reverse! Still tells a good story.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: swaindaddy on April 28, 2009, 01:20:33 AM
My name is Chris. I am married and we have one child (son). I love to write and have been doing it on and off for many years. I finally got around to finishing a novel last year and now I am addicted.

I write Fantasy in general but have a great love of Thrillers as well. I have been working on a book that is essentially about 14 years of world-building. Obviously, not full time. I hope to get to know more about everyone and look forward to helping critique. I also look forward to your opinions of my work when the time comes.

I am addicted to Writing Excuses, Jordan, Sanderson, Feist, Eddings, Goodkind and the like. I also love James Rollins, Matthew Reilly and of course Crichton.

I'm probably "the old guy" here at 35 but I am pretty immatur...young at heart.  Again, look forward to meeting all and getting involved.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: jwdenzel on April 28, 2009, 01:24:17 AM
Welcome, Chris!   Glad to have another thirtysomething boy daddy in the group.  :)

And congrats on finishing your novel.  Will you be sharing that with us, or do you have other stuff?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: swaindaddy on April 28, 2009, 01:28:49 AM
I would gladly share it but i am more interested in opinions of my current work. I am about 1/3 (53,000) through it and need some momentum. I am hoping that a group will help with that. Either way I look forward to seeing what everyone else is doing. Thanks for the hello!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: RavenstarRHJF on April 28, 2009, 02:08:26 AM
Hey, and welcome from a newbie!  Looking forward to seeing what you've got for us.  I'm not a great fan of thrillers, but I read 'em every now and again... and Crichton is one of the ones I revisit occasionally.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on April 28, 2009, 02:10:00 AM
Gotta love that guy.

The Great Train Robbery=masterpiece of genius
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on April 28, 2009, 02:10:43 AM
Welcome!

Yes, I think we can safely say you're not the only "old guy" here.

*grins and ducks thrown objects*
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on April 28, 2009, 02:57:45 AM
*continues to hurl random objects at Silk from position inside refrigerator*
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on April 28, 2009, 03:03:18 AM
Hey, that ain't fair! I wasn't taking shots at you!

I think I need a cane to wave in Shaggy's direction while telling him to get out of my refridgerator. Or something. ::)

(He didn't do it from the front yard JUST so I couldn't say "get off my lawn", I just know it. Kids these days, I tell ya...)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on April 28, 2009, 03:09:50 AM
Well I am at you.  :P

That won't work. I'm a determined little bugger.  :-X

And I llllllllike it here!!!  :D

You are one smart cookie, Silk. But…you're just not smart enough. Get 'em, Fritzel!!!!
 *Fritzel the german unicorn charges in and smashes into desk*
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Reaves on April 28, 2009, 12:24:57 PM
Gotta love that guy.

The Great Train Robbery=masterpiece of genius

Well said. That and TIMELINE are my two favorites of his.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Karl on April 28, 2009, 05:17:26 PM
I'm probably "the old guy" here at 35 but I am pretty immatur...young at heart.  Again, look forward to meeting all and getting involved.

I'll see your 'old guy' and raise you 'crotchety' and 'cantankerous', young man! I've got you beat by almost a decade!

Welcome nonetheless. I like having some help at this end of the age curve.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Renoard on April 28, 2009, 10:10:40 PM
Yeah Karl, we are probably of an age.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on April 28, 2009, 10:24:26 PM
Not me.  ;D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: benvolio3 on April 28, 2009, 11:39:00 PM
You know, with all this talk of old people... I'm feeling pretty young.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on April 28, 2009, 11:44:51 PM
*sends benvolio3 virtual high-five*
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Renoard on April 29, 2009, 12:58:35 AM
Is LAVRS joining the Reading Excuses or just spamming the profiles thread? ;)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on April 29, 2009, 01:02:12 AM
Well, if I'm doing the former, I'm also doing the latter–'cause as you know, wherever I go, I invariably spam.

And you spelled my name wrong.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Writerainge on June 02, 2009, 04:03:19 PM
Hello, I'm Writerainge... My writing monaker is Miranda McTavish.  (I'm a fan of alliteration).   I write because I have so many stories that are in my head I feel like there are real people in there just screaming at me to tell their stories... (some people call that crazy, I call it inspiration)   ;D  I mostly write Paranormal fantasy/mythology with a romantic (and often times erotic) edge.  Some of my inspiration comes from writers such as J.R. Ward, Karen Marie Moning, Lara Adrian, and Charlaine Harris.  I'm 24, live in Utah, work in Law Enforcement and I enjoy what I do... but my dream is to be a Novelist... So here I be, prostrating myself before your collective genius, hoping that you can help me mold myself into what I long to become.   

Thanks!  And it was great to read about all of you as well! 
~Miranda  aka. Writerainge
DISCLAIMER:  May contain frequent and gratuitous, L, V, S... and I'm generally against drug use.   ::)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on June 02, 2009, 08:21:17 PM
Welcome, Miranda! Good to have you here!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on June 02, 2009, 09:02:40 PM
Quote
I have so many stories that are in my head
It's a wonderful feeling, no?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on June 02, 2009, 10:17:21 PM
Since I didn't welcome you in the other thread, welcome! I look forward to reading your work and procrastinating critiquing it.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Renoard on June 02, 2009, 11:37:04 PM
Hello Miranda.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Writerainge on June 02, 2009, 11:57:31 PM
Thank you all!  I have tried to be present today and already have many stories to whittle away the hours in my inbox.  Good stuff.

Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: PW on June 05, 2009, 10:45:34 PM
My name is Clay but I post as PW.  I am new to the forums.  Avid reader, occasional writer (when my muse is kind) though I am trying to work more consistently on my stuff.  Write now (ha ha, puns are fun) I am working on a comedy/tragedy/action adventure set in a fantasy world in third-omnicient.  I thought of the project as a short story, but right now the plot is running headlong through the forest, trampling everything in its path.  I will have to wait until it gets winded and stops to catch its breath before I am certain.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: RavenstarRHJF on June 05, 2009, 11:24:27 PM
Welcome!  Always nice to have new readers, 'cause that means new feedback!  Plus, we might eventually get to read your stuff, too.  Just try not to get overwhelmed!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on June 06, 2009, 12:37:48 AM
Welcome to you both.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Writerainge on June 07, 2009, 06:53:45 AM
WELCOME!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: SomeHackWriter on June 10, 2009, 08:45:19 PM
I am SomeHackWriter.  You can call me Hack.  I escaped from my mother's womb 4 weeks early, and I've been trying like hell to get back inside one ever since.  The great tragedy of my life is that my tendency to stick my foot in my own mouth and my terrible since of direction make my task nearly impossible.  I spend my evenings in a drunken stupor, chain smoking, cursing little old ladies, threatening puppies, and generally being a public nuisance.  Occasionally I write my incoherent ramblings down on scraps of paper.  If I can find any of it the next morning, I might post some of it.  But you won't like it. 
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on June 10, 2009, 08:46:23 PM
...

So, what you're saying, is you've got the writer thing down then.

Awesome.

:P
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: mtbikemom on June 11, 2009, 06:40:09 PM
I want to read PW's book/story.  Not so sure about the Hack, though.  You're going to have to woo me, baby, if you really care.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: SomeHackWriter on June 11, 2009, 10:12:56 PM
Mine still needs a lot of work.  I'll let you know when it's ready.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Stormcryst on June 14, 2009, 02:48:28 AM
  Hello my name is Mickey. I'm 31 with a wife and two daughters that take up most of my time. I have been tinkering with an epic fantasy novel or two for the last ten years but have decided it is time to get serious. So I threw out those ideas for now and about three months ago started something new. I am still trying to establish the work ethic but for the first time I am within striking distance of finishing something.  I had an odd chain of events that lead me here. Robert Jordan to Brandon Sanderson to Writing Excuses and then to here. Glad to meet you and best of luck in your writing.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on June 14, 2009, 05:39:57 AM
Same chain here, Storm. Welcome to the institution. :D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: SomeHackWriter on June 15, 2009, 08:46:14 PM
The podcast about treating your writing as a job gave me the extra push to get serious, so I can relate to that.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Miang on June 16, 2009, 01:13:47 AM
Hello all :). I'm 27, working and in college full time which can make finding time to write difficult. I've been trying to establish the habit of working on my book every night and getting down at least 500 words of something but I'm not always successful. I have a lot of ideas, its translating them to paper and making sure that a new idea doesn't displace my old ideas to the extent that I can't write it out that I have been having problems with. I've been desperate for people to share my work with so this site is like a godsend for me. Trying to get the people you know to read your stuff doesn't work I've discovered. When I can get friends or family to read my work they say to me "It's good", which I hate. I think those are probably the two worst words in the English language.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Frog on June 16, 2009, 01:49:44 AM
Hey, Miang and all the rest of you newbies that keep sneaking in when I'm not looking! I'll look forward to reading your stuff.... and telling you that "it's good!" :P
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Liathiana on June 20, 2009, 05:32:32 AM
I am probably more influenced by Katherine Kurtz Deryni and Adept series. 

I read all of the introductions before posting and this quote leads super well into my own little biography! I go by Liathiana most times on the internet, though I'm known as Devani one or two places on the internet. It used to be that I would make up or find a different name for each site that I joined because I love names that much but then I figured it would be easier to recognize me different places if I used the same name. I'm not sure where I picked Liathiana up, I just know that from a very young age the name Liathiano was in my consciousness but I thought the "o" sound at the end sounded to masculine so when I first used it on a site I changed it to an "a". Most people call me Lia.

But anyways, my real first name is Caitrin. Which incidentally my parents found in A Bishop's Heir by...Katherine Kurtz! Which is why I'm going to get her autograph in the book when I attend Dcon this year. Caitrin is a Pretender Queen or some such, my parents named me after the bad girl! It's actually a Gaelic derivative of Katherine, meaning pure. My middle name is Ariel (I was born before the Disney Little Mermaid thank you very much!) and is Hebrew meaning "lion of god". It's actually meant way back in the day to be a male's name but like some other names (such as Lauren) it got kidnapped by the females. It's also the name of one of God's archangels so I like saying that my name means "Pure Angel" and leave it at that ;D After all, name's are supposed to say something about the person who wears them!

Did I tell you I have a fascination with names? >.>

Moving on!

I am just barely 22 years old from the last vestige of the wild wild west, the state of Nevada. I"m going to barely restrain myself from giving you all a lecture on how to pronounce Nevada since it seems most of you are from Utah and I'm hoping that means you already know the correct pronunciation. Now all we have to do is school California on the subject!

I grew up Seventh Day Adventist and was baptized when I was 13 years old. I have believed that I was called to be a missionary since I was 12 years old and felt that reinforced on each of the missionary trips I've gone on. Once I reached college however, I didn't find many majors in Missionary work. My interest in spirituality and religion had only increased over the years however so I became a Theology student. However, as most private schools are including Adventist institutions, they are quite expensive. I found myself unable to pay for another year at the school I loved. This was kind of the catalyst for a depression I had held for years since my parents divorced. It grew deeper and darker until I could return home to my family. It was something I fought on my own (and I don't doubt with quite a bit of God's help though at the time and even now I feel some kind of strange distance between us that I'm not sure how to close) and have eventually overcome.

I share all this because I believe all of our life experiences bleed into our work, most of the time unconsciously. If it gives you some kind of insight into the psyche behind the words maybe that will help you critique me better. I'm also the type of person that is generally very open when asked questions (even broad ones like the one for this thread) but I tend to be very close-mouthed and reluctant to volunteer information on myself out of the blue, even to friends or family. In some ways I find myself with personality traits that seem to be polar opposites and yet I am completely both. I think I'm going to have to copy that aspect into one or more of my characters. Or maybe this is something found in everyone? I haven't thought to ask before!

At the moment I find myself with a lot of time on my hands. I work only 9 - 12 hours a week. I need a better job with more pay and more hours (is that terrible english?) but until then I've decided I want to spend some of my time focused on writing. That is why I'm here! I know I am new so I'm going to ease myself slowly into things.

Thank you all for sharing and my apologies for such a long post! *goes back to continue reading introductions*

Edit: Oh and DUH. I read mostly fantasy. It's actually kind of funny...I love reading fantasy and watching sci-fi. What I write and what I'm interested in will always be fantasy. Most of the time my idea's are too big for my ability so I'm working on finding an idea that I love but it not so intricate that I couldn't write it well. We'll see how that goes! I really need to find discipline in writing, one of my biggest projects is just making myself write! Even though I love stories and making them up getting them onto paper (or screen!) is a different story.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Inanna on June 23, 2009, 10:48:24 AM
Hi everyone!

I made this account a long while ago, a Wheel of Time fan that hooked onto the Sanderson Craze, but never got around to posting a polite Hi.  Too many forums, perhaps.

My name is Andrea, I often go by the name "Arie" online (and off). Inanna comes from the Handle I made for the Brandon Sanderson website -www.mistbornempire.com-. I'm a hobbiest writer from a small city in BC, Canada, my background is simple hero-esque humble beginnings (-heh-). I write, sadly, more Roleplay than I do story telling. The bonus to that is that I'm 'really good' at Character juggling (20+) but I fail on plotting out a full sized novel, thus far, anyway. I have multiple worlds that dabble in various genre's and reader ages. Fantasy is the most dominant of the genre's with a little Horror, Childrens, Mystery and Sci Fi. My largest hurdle at the moment is understanding how to get a story form one point to another and be 'interested' in that storyline.

A few authors that I look up to are Sanderson (His humor), Sharon Shinn (She tells a well thought out story over many books without giving it away until she wants it to be known), Laurell K. Hamelton (Her ability to write from First Person and keep things interesting... Especially with the horror/thriller like beginning books),  Robert Jordon (World Building, although I don't actually 'like' his writing style), and Jonathan Stroud (He actually surprised me, with is extremely rare).

Anyway, Over all, I'm just stating to lurk these boards again due to listening to the "Reading Excuses" podcasts, and they are really useful, if at the very least they are kicking me in some area's and confirming a few idea's i've had to be actually good idea's. <3

That makes all this full of Winn.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shaggy on June 25, 2009, 02:28:41 AM
I agree with you about Jonathan Stroud. He's a pretty talented guy and I really enjoyed his books, too.

Haven't seen much about him around the forums, though.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on June 25, 2009, 03:08:12 AM
Anyway, Over all, I'm just stating to lurk these boards again due to listening to the "Reading Excuses" podcasts, and they are really useful, if at the very least they are kicking me in some area's and confirming a few idea's i've had to be actually good idea's. <3

You mean... Writing Excuses? :P

Glad to have you here!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Inanna on June 27, 2009, 05:38:48 AM
Yeah, that. :look


And Thanks! :)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: ApocRK on July 08, 2009, 09:38:49 PM
Hey guys

My name is Raphael. I just started writing about a month or two ago, so I have a lot to learn.  I'm also pretty young but I don't think that it will effect what and how I write as people would like to think. :P My stories are pretty mild and have to do more with character ambition instead of  'save the world' stuff. I kind of have a little motto when I describe what I write, I write about the state of the world not it's fate.

Fav writers are - Jordan, Sanderson, Glen Cook, Scott lynch, Rothfuss, Erikson, Jim Butcher, and lots more :) ( I have only started reading fantasy a couple years ago, not counting Jordan since I started on him a little longer back, and I have easily gone through 80+ books since then.)

I joined the writing group and i'm trying to read as much as I can and i'll be giving comments soon but I'm just so busy :P Ill try to free up my time a bit though.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: stridera on August 06, 2009, 11:37:11 PM
Hello All...
My name is Matthew Jones, but I often go by StriderA online.  I was born and raised in Salt Lake City, joined the Air Force when I was 22, went to Iraq once where I drove convoys, and I am currently a Software Engineer for Microsoft in Silicon Valley, CA.  Main influences to my writing are common fantasy works (since you can't really get around that) and Japanese culture.

I was another one that found his way over to this side of the fence due to the Jordon/Sanderson deal, but actually quite enjoy it.  It's nice to see so many people from my hometown as well. :)  (Too bad there aren't many from down here in Cali though...) 

Writing Excuses as well as these forums gave me the inspiration to pick up a book I started writing before joining the Air Force and give it another go.  I hope that you guys will help me keep up the momentum and inspiration to finish it so I can truly call myself a writer.  Cheers!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Recovering_Cynic on August 07, 2009, 04:30:49 PM
Well...  My name is Sean.  I'm going to try to introduce myself as concisely as possible, but that might be difficult.  Here goes:

Lets start with the present.  I'm an attorney.  I graduated from law school in April '08 from BYU Law.  I currently work for a judge helping him draft the court's legal opinions.  While in law school, I managed to get a scholarly work published dealing with Native American property rights and how they relate to tax exemptions on oil production... boring, but it got me the job with the judge I'm pretty sure.  Yeah.  Not too keen on my current job track.

Before law school I was  an English major, with a creative writing emphasis.  I managed to get a personal essay published in BYU's Inscape, but The Leading Edge rejected the one science fiction submission I sent to them.  As yet, I have failed to break into the one type of writing I'd really like to work in: science fiction and fantasy, but then I haven't tried too terribly hard.  I was too busy thinking I wanted to be a lawyer.

I've written various short stories and essays that have won prizes or contests, but nothing major, certainly not enough to pay the bills.  My dream is to make enough money that I can quit my day job and write full time.  Unfortunately, it took working full time as an attorney to realize how much I really wanted to be a writer.  I hadn't pursued it before because I didn't think it was a practical way to earn a living.  I don't care so much about practical anymore, but I have a family to feed, so I'm going to have to do writing on the side.

As to why I want to write, well, I love stories.  My favorite kinds of video games have strong story lines.  I can't sleep if the tv is on because I want to see the story through, even if already know how it will end.  If I start reading a book and get involved enough in the story line, I won't put it down, because I have to see how it all ends.  I especially love stories that have an original idea.  I love it when a book surprises me, gives me something novel to chew on.  That is what I want to write, short stories (and then books) that have at their core, an original idea.

A short list of my favorite authors before I end: Sanderson, Pratchett, Gould, Jordan, McAffery, Steakly, Poe, Card, L'amour, Harry Harrison, and hundreds more.  I can't even begin to give you a list of favorite books.   I used to down books like candy, but that slowed down a lot when I started college.

Anyway, that is the long and short about me.  I look forward to working with you all.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on August 07, 2009, 11:08:47 PM
Welcome to you both. I read most of the submissions but always forget to critique. :D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on August 08, 2009, 01:07:32 AM
Welcome indeed! Glad to see you both here :)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Peter Ahlstrom on August 17, 2009, 10:05:54 PM
Hey! I can suddenly see this forum now!!! (Thanks to Spriggan?)

I'll have to look through it once I have net access at home...
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Frog on August 17, 2009, 10:11:36 PM
Ah!!! He sneaked in! Security!

J/K. Have fun exploring. :)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on August 18, 2009, 07:13:04 AM
Err... He's on the brute squad.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shi on October 11, 2009, 08:15:55 AM
Hi guys! (including girls!)

My names Shannon, though feel free to call me Shi, cause it's, like, four letters shorter and a lot faster to write. I've been a here and there poster on Timewaster, where I've managed to waste much time, for a couple of years. When you guys started up Reading Excuses I was horribly afraid, and terribly intrigued. So I've decided to try and get over my fear and join up :)

I'm a 20 year old aspiring illustrator/author. I've been spending the last few weeks smiling on the outside and screaming on the inside as I try to put together a portfolio to get into art school and figure out how to pay for it if I actually do.

I've loved coming up with stories for as long as I can remember. When I was little I would make thing up with my sister (she did all the actual writing, I hated stuff like that), and I would help draw the stick people. When I was got older I dabbled a little in writing, but never got past page 6 of any story. It was about three years ago that I decided to really sit down and write something, and I fell in love with it unconditionally. I've managed to write one book, a MG fantasy adventure that as much as I want to love, has every cliche known to boy-kind, and also a short story, along with many a first chapters.

I write fantasy, though the flavor depends on the week. I'm very fickle, you see. Epic, dark, punk, sci-fi flare, or lighthearted, it's usually the polar opposite in tone from whatever I had just written previously. At the moment I have some stewing novels, and a quirky short story about an Atheist that dies and is sent back as an angel to save souls, but he really sucks at it. That whole faith thing keeps screwing him up.

Anyways, I'm excited to jump in!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Frog on October 11, 2009, 04:21:07 PM
Yay! Another girl. Not that I have any problem with the boys, but I always get excited for the girls because I write somewhat girly stuff (quirky fairy tale junk).

When I was little I would make thing up with my sister (she did all the actual writing, I hated stuff like that), and I would help draw the stick people.
That sounds like me and my sister, except, you know, I would write and she would draw the stick figures. Good luck with art school!
 
I've managed to write one book, a MG fantasy adventure that as much as I want to love, has every cliche known to boy-kind,
Yes, but did you do it well?

Welcome to the group! I'll look forward to see what you end up submitting.... and ripping it apart. :)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on October 11, 2009, 08:38:25 PM
Welcome, Shannon. :)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shi on October 12, 2009, 02:49:43 AM
Thanks for the welcome Frog and Silk!

And yay for girl power! That, and I'm probably even more frightened to submit something after your comment Frog...
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: RavenstarRHJF on October 12, 2009, 02:59:07 AM
Aw, don't worry about Frog's critiques... she's just honest, and honest is what you need to hear.  Just remember she's only one person.  Now, when all the critiques sound the same... that's when you need to worry!

Oh, and welcome, btw, from another of the oh-so-elusive females here.  ;D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on October 12, 2009, 03:20:37 AM
We're not that elusive, are we? o.o

Also, don't get too worked about Frog's critiques. Everyone knows that the critiques you really have to fear are mine.

=D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shi on October 12, 2009, 03:54:41 AM
Oh joy. It just keeps getting better :)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on October 12, 2009, 04:26:45 AM
You'd better believe it. ;)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Frog on October 12, 2009, 04:33:49 AM
Wow, I've got a rep! I'm honored and insulted. Both at the same time. Just remember if I didn't like you or your work, I wouldn't waste my time destroying it. I love writers just on a matter of principle ;D

Quote
Now, when all the critiques sound the same... that's when you need to worry!
Yeah, that is my philosophy too, along with making all the changes that are like, 'duh, why didn't I see that?' Unfortunately that happens far too often but that's why I keep you guys around.  ;)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on October 12, 2009, 07:18:30 AM
Just remember if I didn't like you or your work, I wouldn't waste my time destroying it.

That is oddly counter-intuitive logic.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Frog on October 12, 2009, 07:28:49 AM
Just remember if I didn't like you or your work, I wouldn't waste my time destroying it.

That is oddly counter-intuitive logic.
I swear it works... somehow.  :P
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: stridera on October 14, 2009, 11:05:08 PM
Yay! Another girl. Not that I have any problem with the boys, but I always get excited for the girls because I write somewhat girly stuff (quirky fairy tale junk).

Hey, I like girls too!  *drools*  ahem.. er..  wait... Welcome!  Can't wait to read your work.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on October 14, 2009, 11:11:09 PM
Indeed, I, too, like girls.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on October 15, 2009, 12:36:17 AM
"Oh, boy, boys... Girls!"
"Uhh, what about them?"
"Nothing really. I just like to say the word. Giiiiirls."
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: stridera on October 15, 2009, 12:48:48 AM
"Oh, boy, boys... Girls!"
"Uhh, what about them?"
"Nothing really. I just like to say the word. Giiiiirls."

Girls... fun to say.. fun to look at... fun all around.

Boys.  Not so much fun to look at* or say.  I feel bad for the girls.

*Obvious exceptions apply.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on October 15, 2009, 01:14:46 AM
I dunno, I don't really see what's so great about girls :P
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on October 15, 2009, 02:34:11 AM
I dunno, I don't really see what's so great about girls :P
There's a reason you're called "the fairer sex", and it has nothing to do with your complextions (anymore) or various innuendo-based interpretations. It may be because of the justice thing.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: PreposterousJustin on October 19, 2009, 04:34:05 AM
Hi, I'm TV's PreposterousJustin from the Internet. You may have not seen me on such shows as The Oprah Winfrey show, Dr. Phil, and Late Night with Conan O'Brien. You can catch me on my new show "Average Expectations: The untold story of a young man at his first year in university, Part one of three hundred and seventy five."

I'm an 18 year old university student going through my first year, and writing's just always been what I do. It's always been there, lingering in the background, tugging on a cancer stick, It was that woman in the red dress that seemed to be at every party, every social event you went too. Her eyes would speak novels of love, laughter, and lament, and the more you try to forget all of those good times you had, you know she's the best thing for you, and you've got to treat her right this time.
So, to make sure she doesn't file for divorce anytime soon, I want to take this whole writing thing much more seriously. My biggest influences would probably be Terry Pratchett, Douglas Adams, and various other sources really, I tend to change my writing style a lot. I tend to write whatever: Short Stories, Reviews, Articles, even a twenty page epic I wrote when I was twelve but am now too embarrassed to look at. I've sent my stuff around to friends, but I always feel like they are babying me somewhat, so I hope you guys are huge jerks with little consideration for my feelings unless you hurt them.

I hope to get to know you all, and I look forward to eliminating my excuses for not writing enough.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on October 19, 2009, 04:42:44 AM
You asked for it. ;D

Welcome!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on October 19, 2009, 05:11:09 AM
Quote
and I look forward to eliminating my excuses for not writing enough
.

Happy to be of service. You have no idea how happy.

...

I mean, uh.

Hi!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Recovering_Cynic on November 02, 2009, 05:45:02 PM
Justin,

I'm good at hurting things.  Welcome.  *smiles*
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: LongTimeUnderdog on November 02, 2009, 10:05:15 PM
Someone asked me to post here, my background.  Apparently he promised not to bite.  That made me sad to he

I'm 28, married, have a 3 year old daughter.  I'm a fantasy junkie who listens to "Yahtzee" to much.

I would like to say I have habit of slaying dragons and rescuing princesses, but they've only really been ladies in waiting held captive by monstrous kitchen concoctions gone bad.  And while the garlic bread golem wasn't too much trouble it did have a pretty nasty after taste, and let's face it, no lady in waiting is ever going to show her appreciation after you've scarfed down one of those.

So alas I had to settle for getting married the normal way (i.e spending hordes of cash on people who eventually became someone else's wife).  While I'm still rather shocked she agreed to the whole ball and chain routine, I can assure you it has had some pleasant consolation prizes.

My daughter suffers from a disorder with about ten different names, but the most common are VCFS and 22q11 deletion syndrome.  It's a lot like Autism, only you won't be able to tell she has it when she's older.

She's named after the coolest supervillain in the Batman Universe, with a sense of humor to match (which seems to have evolved into throwing Teletubies off the balcony).

The woman I suckered into marrying me (let's just say hypnosis was NOT something I was above) is a graduate student at Trinity International University.  She's also comparably hot to Ali Larter, though I am the better cook.

Oh yeah the writing stuff . . .

Well I'm actually a student of Ballet and modern artistic dancing who likes books too much.  I write weird fantasy that seems to boarder a bit too much on Sword and Sorcery, but never wants to stay there.  I love swords, martial arts, more swords, deserts, big swords, and pie.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on November 02, 2009, 11:01:22 PM
Man, I live in a desert and I can't stand it.

I ballroom danced once upon a time (and did modern/jazz/ballet once upon a once upon a time, but we don't talk about that unless I'm delirious ;)). Now I barely remember the basic steps. :P

Thanks for the foreground! Welcome!

P.S. Are these consolation prizes from the ball and chain routine or spending cash on other peoples' wives? I don't see how getting a ball and chain would have consolation prizes unless... *wiggles eyebrows and looks through your wedding pictures*
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: RavenstarRHJF on November 03, 2009, 03:46:31 AM
Hey LTU!  Nice of you join us.  Also, LOL! :D  We're all pretty weird here too, so you're bound to fit in.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 03, 2009, 04:54:21 PM
Well there's a fine way to welcome people. "We're weird too, you'll fit right in!" ::)

:P
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: RavenstarRHJF on November 03, 2009, 05:00:26 PM
So you're saying camaraderie is a bad thing? ;) :D  Besides... we ARE weird.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Frog on November 03, 2009, 05:35:07 PM
Besides... we ARE weird.
Speak for yourself. My therapist says I am showing a lot of improvement! :P
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: RavenstarRHJF on November 03, 2009, 08:38:47 PM
Oh, *pthbtb*
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on November 03, 2009, 08:42:41 PM
I fink the proper euphemism is "We're a diverse group..." ;D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on November 03, 2009, 09:12:26 PM
Quote
Apparently he promised not to bite.  That made me sad

Well, we can bite, if that's what you want :P
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Frog on November 03, 2009, 09:37:34 PM
Ew....
I nominate Chaos to take care of any and all biting.  :P
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on November 04, 2009, 02:34:11 AM
Nice, Frog.

Camraderie is good. Assuming that everyone who joins us is weird by default is probably not. :P

...Though, if they decide to STICK with us, bunch of nutcases that we are, for a significant period of time, then THAT's probably a pretty good indicator of weirdness, yeah :P

I am so not touching the "biting" comment.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: vegetathalas on November 05, 2009, 11:23:57 AM
Hello. I'm a newbie. I'm a writer living in Provo, Utah. I'm an award-winning journalist and have a piece in the forthcoming Orson Scott Card-edited "Ender's Friends" anthology. I'm also a former newspaper editor, but I lost my job in the recession.

I'm almost finished with the second revision of my third novel, Godsplay. None of my novels have been published yet, but I have an author friend who is planning on showing this book to his editor at Tor so I want it spotless before I give it to him. I'm hoping you can help with that. The beginning/middle of my book is AWESOME (not that I'm biased or anything...) but the ending is problematic.

I primarily read fantasy and I blog over at http://unrepentantescapist.blogspot.com.

I admit that I am addicted to badly placed commas. Please give me honest critiques, but also hugs. I'd rather have the critiques than the hugs, though :)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on November 05, 2009, 05:23:32 PM
Sweet! Glad we can have you here, vegetathalas! I look forward to reading your stuff!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Frog on November 05, 2009, 05:49:07 PM
*hugs*

Welcome!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: clarissavandell on November 05, 2009, 07:57:28 PM
Well.

I go by Clarissa, and I am utterly obsessed with writing.

I write stories with a hint of fantasy, to stories about aliens wielding magical swords.

Alas, I really get busy, and lately I haven't been writing as much....  Maybe it's because I'm online... no, that can't be it... ;D

I am trying to revamp a novel I've been working on for some time now.  Yes, it is the one with aliens and swords.

No stories published yet, unless you count the literary magazine at  my high school. 

And, like vegetathalus, the ending currently is bad.  So that is the main goal of my writing.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Frog on November 05, 2009, 08:10:21 PM
That sounds like fun. I'll look forward to seeing it.

*tries desperately to get off shiney internet and keep typing*
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on November 05, 2009, 08:11:36 PM
Aliens with magic swords? Awesome.

Have I added you to the email list, Clarissa? If not, send me a PM.

EDIT: Nevermind, you just did! Silly me :)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: clarissavandell on November 05, 2009, 10:11:06 PM
No problem!   :D

Looking forward to critiquing!  And reading your critiques, of course.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on November 06, 2009, 06:04:24 AM
Welcome. I am the gatekeeper. You have three chances to answer my question. If you fail, you will be outcast from Reading Excuses FOR ETERNITY. Also, your soul will be forfeit and you will burn in hell FOR ETERNITY. You cannot withdraw, or I will follow and bore you with my inane drivel FOR ETERNITY. These are the rules, and they cannot be broken.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Frog on November 06, 2009, 06:11:09 AM
You cannot withdraw, or I will follow and bore you with my inane drivel FOR ETERNITY.
Of the three, that's the only one that is truly frightening. But then you didn't even ask them a question....
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sortitus on November 06, 2009, 09:49:41 PM
But then you didn't even ask them a question....
I do not see your point.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: lethalfalcon on November 08, 2009, 09:52:47 PM
Alex, I'll take "Madman rant" for 500. :)

I've just been added to the list, so I figured I'd post my background in case one of my oddish scenes makes it to your inbox.

I've been writing off and on since I was about 7. High school gave me a lot of spare time to write, although everything produced during that period is... something only a mother could love.  I primarily write what most would term epic fantasy. For loose definitions of the word epic. I occasionally dabble in sci-fi.  A lot of it depends on what my dreaming kicks up. I've been lucid dreaming for about as long as I can remember, and my subconscious does a better job coming up with ideas than I do by far. It just needs a pen name, and a neural uplink, and it'll take over the world.

Lately I've been attempting to write again, with one of my friends on a collaborative work, using NaNoWriMo as an excuse to actually put words on paper. So far, it's going decently well (though I'm way short of the mark for the contest). I look forward more to critiquing other peoples' works than by having my own butchered by your cruel, hurtful truths (j/k).

Oh, and I go by falcon, lethalfalcon, lethal, shmuck, that guy over there, and Josh.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: JustinCarmony on December 08, 2009, 02:49:34 AM
Well, I've been added to the list as well, and I thought I should go ahead and introduce myself. My name is Justin, and I am a full time web developer & designer.  I live in Ogden, UT with my lovely wife, where we just bought our first home. I love my job, it offers a great deal of challenges

As for writing, I first started while in Jr. High. I played a video game called “The Realm” online where I found of group of players who role-played in a “Free-Form” RP chat. I ended up RPing with that group of individuals for several years. We would RP our “sagas” via the Forums, where I had several characters who went on all sorts of adventures. This is where I gained my first love of writing. Several of the players still continue to RP every now and then. I have characters that have over ten years of history now, and it’s been a lot of fun.

Over the years I’ve been playing around with different ideas for different characters, stories, worlds, and such.  I’m trying to get back into writing as a source of letting off my creativity. I’ve been documenting & writing my notes now for a while, and hopefully I will have a few chapters here soon to share. I’m a firm believer in honest feedback, as I use it every day with work. Hopefully I can get some good feedback and direction from the rest of the group, as well as give some back.

Thanks, and looking forward to reading all of your own works.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: vegetathalas on December 08, 2009, 05:35:08 AM
Welcome and good luck, Justin! I know how hard it can be to return to writing fantasy after a hiatus...I've been having to read all these new authors because the fantasy books I grew up with are old, old, old.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chaos on December 08, 2009, 06:42:50 AM
Justin -

My love of writing came from RPing, too. Forum RPing, in my case. All the crafting of plotlines made me want to work on my own. Good to see I'm not the only one who got into writing that way!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Dark_Prophecy on December 27, 2009, 10:28:53 AM
Well, my name is Bryce. I'm currently working nights putting my wife through her Masters at Utah State in Logan. I have a lot of time on my hands, and I've always had a dabbling curiosity in writing, so I think that now might be my time to really get something off the ground.

I don't remember the last anything I wrote that was longer than 10 pages typed, so I suppose I'm a noob when it comes to fiction writing. I've taken some creative writing classes, and enjoyed them, but I don't imagine I'll learn all that much until I jump in and just write something of novel length.

Currently, I'm working on a young adult fantasy about a part-time guardian angel that has no title, so I'm just calling it "Part-Time Angel," and I just got an idea for a second novel having to do with magic being linked to specific dates. I've got maybe 15 pages of Part Time Angel finished, and hopefully I'll get to share those with you soon. And that's all there is to know about me!  ;)...well, there's a lot more, but I ain't telling!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Recovering_Cynic on December 28, 2009, 06:24:25 AM
Welcome Dark Prophecy!  Glad to have you.  We don't bite.  Much.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on December 28, 2009, 07:00:31 AM
Speak for yourself. I'm hungry.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: lethalfalcon on December 28, 2009, 09:12:02 AM
Hey, another Loganite (Loganian? Logander?). Enjoying the cold weather? I'm up here too. Welcome to the group.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Dark_Prophecy on January 01, 2010, 11:17:33 AM
Thanks. And no, I rarely enjoy the cold weather :P Wow, I always seem to run into people that live in the same town as me on the web. The entire world must be staling me   :-\
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Asmodemon on January 02, 2010, 06:31:09 PM
My name is Marijn (you can call me Asmodemon or Marijn, I don’t mind which). I’m 26 years old and I’m a developer of Serious Games in the Netherlands.

I started writing around when I was twelve or so, with a story that was a cross between the games “Secret of Mana” and “Illusion of Time”. Then I stopped for a few years and I can’t, for the life of me, remember why.

When I started again I wrote mostly fanfiction, which I found to be a great opportunity to practice. That’s until I found the limitations of working in another’s playground to be chafing, so now my focus has shifted to writing original fiction in my own worlds. 

I am currently editing my YA fantasy novel “The Citadel of Thorns” and plotting/world-building my next fantasy novel.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Dark_Prophecy on January 03, 2010, 02:43:38 AM
Welcome :D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Asmodemon on January 03, 2010, 03:57:43 PM
Thank you :)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: dead_possum on January 07, 2010, 06:20:00 AM
Hi, all.

Guess I'll just jump right in.

I grew up in Phoenix.

During my fourth year of medical school I found myself bored looking over the shoulder of a radiologist as he read study after study in a dark room.  I found my mind wandering to the future of medicine and suddenly something clicked.  I came up with a story idea about an interventional radiologist in the not-too-distant future who stumbles onto the schemes of a killer that uses cutting-edge technology to dispose of victims in ways that mimic medical conditions.  I obsessed about it until I had finished the rough draft about a year later.  Then I revised it a few times and sent out a couple of to-be-rejected query letters.  Getting into med school is a lot easier than publishing a novel.

Querying isn't as fun as writing, so while I was getting rejected I wrote another novel, a middle-grade space sci-fi story about a kid who doesn't realize that he's the weapon his captors plan to use on their suicide mission to their enemy's home planet.  I actually got a request for a partial on that one, so that was exciting.

Right now I'm in my last year of residency and I'm drafting another story.  The hard thing for me is balancing my family (wife+4 kiddos), work, and hobby time with what can at times be a pretty demanding schedule (I've had to put writing on hold for months at times).  The good news is that I've trained in emergency medicine, and ER docs average less than 40 hours a week.

My interests are pretty eclectic.  The last few books I've read are State of Fear, The Scarlet Pimpernel, and the first two of Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn books (which actually led me to this site).  Yeah, I'm kind of all over the place like that.

So that's me.  Since you asked.  Or did you?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Dark_Prophecy on January 08, 2010, 07:40:51 AM
Very cool. Welcome :D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Argas on January 12, 2010, 07:41:59 AM
I'm a full time student at UBC in Canada, majoring in history at the moment.

I started writing in 13 and started doing narrative fiction around the age of 15. I've gotten trapped in worldbuilding quite a few times. Though I've written various things past ten pages, I've never managed to stay interested or motivated enough to take them further. The podcast Writing Excuses has been very useful to me.

Currently I'm writing a fantasy story about a judge of the gods who has returned to the place he was raised, only to uncover a conspiracy that is outside his jurisdiction.

I look forward to reading everyone's works.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on January 12, 2010, 08:15:23 AM
Wait, are you at UBC Van or UBC Okanagan? I attend the latter.

Anyway, welcome to you (and everyone else who I haven't acknowledged on this thread yet).
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Dark_Prophecy on January 12, 2010, 02:38:03 PM
Welcome Argas :D
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Argas on January 12, 2010, 05:33:41 PM
I'm at UBC Van.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on January 12, 2010, 06:04:12 PM
Good stuff. =) (Though it would've been too funny if we'd attended the same campus.)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: MKDV on January 22, 2010, 03:01:03 AM
Hi. My name is Mary. I'm 25. I live in Atlanta. I recently graduated from the University of Michigan with an honors thesis in creative writing. My thesis was a book of poetry, though--it's been a while since I've tried to put so many words on a page. I'm working on my first book, a fantasy about a young man who gets recruited into a secret order of guardians who protect the world. I decided to join the workshop because I wrote about 25,000 words then lost confidence and hit a wall. I think I need a fresh eye. And I've been through a bunch of workshop courses, so hopefully I can be of help to someone too!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Recovering_Cynic on January 22, 2010, 03:47:15 AM
Welcome!  Do you like your fresh eyes with salt, pepper, or both?  Sauteed or flame kissed?  Skewered or . . . oh I'll shut up now.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shivertongue on January 28, 2010, 09:53:56 PM
Ah, who doesn't love the obligatory 'introducing yourself to people on a forum' post...

The name at the side says Shivertongue, but I also respond to Shiver, Knifey and Will - the former two are actual nicknames with stories behind them, only one of which is appropriate for younger audiences. 'Shivertongue' comes from my self-created Discordian pope name - Shivertongue Von Slamdance VI - which, obviously and cleverly, combines 'Shiver' with 'tongue'. The PG version of the explanation to which is simply that I have a considerably long tongue that I take great pride in. Make of that what you will...

I am currently starting school again, attending MATC in Madison, WI in the Graphic Design program (since this school does not offer a creative writing major, although there are classes I hope to take at some point in the future). Before this, I spent two and a half years at the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, majoring in Animation, before the culmination of a series of events and circumstances led to my dropping out/being kicked out during my junior year. The easiest explanation as to why is to blame my ex girlfriend.

I've been writing as long as I can remember - and, oddly enough, I recently found notebooks filled with stories from elementary school. I'm currently trying to find one from middle school, in an effort to discover when I started incorporating actual dialogue (Somehow, my third-grade story 'Windows of Time' went thirty pages with not one character saying a thing.) Regardless, as one might be able to imagine, getting kicked out of art school has the effect of killing the artistic drive for a while, but not the desire for creative outlet. I thus began writing again, returning to stories I'd started in high school as well as taking up, um, fanfiction.. *coughs*.  I soon discovered that, whereas before , my writing supplemented my art, my art soon began to supplement my writing - which, for me, made for much better stories.

I write fantasy, for the most part - Epic Fantasy, Modern Fantasy, etc - with occasional touches of mystery, steampunk, humour and horror, and the odd sci-fi. Basically whatever seeds are planted from the innumerable daydreams that bombard me throughout the day. I have yet to finish a book, although several short stories have actually been finished (most of these, however, have since begun to grow in to larger, more complex novels..). I have yet to submit to a publisher or magazine or, um, anything, mostly due to time and the whole 'needing to finish something' thing... You know, trivial matters.

I enjoy critiquing and being critiqued, though, which is one of the primary things that has brought me to this little corner of the interwebnet. Fun fact: art school critiques have had the dual effect of allowing me to sit through the most brutal of criticism without taking offense, and given me the ability to tear something to shreds whilst simultaneously letting the target know exactly what works and what doesn't. So, when I get around to submitting something, be as brutal as you like. None of you can match Mr. Yi; he made people cry. (He also made them better artists at the same time; I'd still like to punch him, though..)

And it appears that, similar to my novels, I'm having trouble coming up with an ending for this post. (Even worse, I'm rewriting parts of it... ) Hmmm... "LOOK! A monkey!" *clicks 'post' and runs off*


~Shivertongue
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: LongTimeUnderdog on January 28, 2010, 09:58:04 PM
An artist turned writer with art that supplements writing.  Could I finally have met someone as anal about having everything drawn before it hits the story as I am?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shivertongue on January 28, 2010, 10:08:05 PM
Actually, the way I work is more often along the lines of drawing the parts of the story that I'm having trouble writing. More often than not, writers block, for me, can be broken by drawing the scene I'm having trouble with. Something about being able to see, even just a small piece of what I'm trying to depict, works wonders for me. The big problem is when I have artist's block when I have writer's block...

Characters, however, must be drawn before they are written. If I don't know for certain how they look, it begins to nag on me as I'm writing them. Worlds must be mapped as well, not to mention any major cities where stuff may be happening.


~Shivertongue
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: LongTimeUnderdog on January 28, 2010, 10:12:21 PM
wow, it's like . . . my long lost brother . . . Anyway  I could con you into emailing me some of those pictures?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Shivertongue on January 28, 2010, 10:22:42 PM
XD Sure thing, as long as we work on a basis of equal exchange. If you do the same or similar, I'd love to see some of your pre-writing artistry. Send me a PM or something if you wanna hash out details.


Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: KhyEllie on February 07, 2010, 10:52:09 PM
I started writing little stories with a group of friends when we were ten, pertaining to some characters we had created in a Sonic video game(If you know what I'm talking about, we all had several of our own chao). They wrote little info guides and life stories for their characters, but I discovered that I couldn't write two-page stories and started on one that ended up at about fifty(typed). Since then I've been writing fantasy and changing that original story into people(not chao) and fixing the storyline so I might one day have a good book to sell.
I've always been a stronger reader than writer, so I'm not planning on ever doing full-time writing or anything, just as a pastime.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: ubiqe on February 15, 2010, 04:08:10 PM
Hi all. I've been lurking around here for some time now, but I guess it's time for me to introduce myself... My name is Aga, I'm a PhD student at the moment - hopefully not much longer. And I don't write  ;) Well, not really. I don't have any writting background (you guys have some impressive history in that regard  :o), I didn't write any stories as a kid, nor I have any plans of becoming a writer. Unless you count in scientific papers. But that's boring as hell.  Well, I have always read a lot  - mainly fantasy and I always had my own ideas for how the books should develop. But I didn't get down to writting anything (apart from some fanfics) cause other people seemed to be better at that - and it's so much easier to read other peoples hard work, isn't it? But some weeks ago I had this nice idea for a story and I decided to finally produce something on my own (I really should be writting my thesis instead  ::) ) That's what brought me here. I'm a total beginner and I hope for some constructive reviews. My main problem is of course the language - I'm not a native english speaker so writting in english might not be the best idea, but it's not like I try to make money with it...
And hopefully I can submit something quite soon.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Aginor221 on February 15, 2010, 05:20:08 PM
Hey, I'm Aginor (yes, WOT reference), but I'll go by Tyler too, doesnt really matter. I've been lurking for a while on the writing threads so I decided to join. I'm a senior in high school and applied to university of south Florida with the intent of majoring in creative writing and minoring in English.
   I write fantasy with magic but no elves, dwarves or other Tolkien related propaganda. I'm currently working on a middle grade fantasy, actually thats kind of the wrong word. To say I'm "working on it" is wrong because I haven't actually seriously written it yet. I write the outlines and think of what I want going on, but I never get past the opening before writers block. So hopefully I get pushed into actually finishing my brainchild. I did some writing in elementary school - entered a contest for screenplays and wrote a monster that made absolutely no sense about space monkeys and flying hamburger rockets.
   Yea I know, anyway I stepped away from writing after that and read a lot more, and came back to it in my freshman year. Where -  lo and behold, I wrote another monster that made no sense. I have since joined a journalism class and two college English classes, and I think my writing has significantly improved.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Chuck M on April 14, 2010, 12:27:17 PM
Man, this hangover is killing me. I hate waking up from a three-day bender with no idea where I am or how I got here. This is the last time - third last time this month. Or is it four? Does anybody have a cigarette and a Valium?

If my head clears for an extended period of time, I write. My work is incoherent gibberish. I can barely see the lines on the page through bloodshot eyes and a cloud of smoke.

This seems as good a place as any. I think I will stay a while. Just prop me up at the bar and play some Doors on the jukebox.  Pour me a stiff drink. Scotch, if you've got it. Hold the ice and leave the bottle.

Call me Chuck.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Talyn on May 24, 2010, 11:17:12 PM
Hey there

I'm squeaky new to TWG (found it from Writing Excuses actually), but after poking around a bit, I think I'd like to join this group. As it's monday, I probably missed the email for this week, but that works too. I'll just settle in and see how things work, and maybe I'll have a submission for next week.

I'm a discovery writer, which has caused some interesting continuity problems, but I also have a issue with editing. I literally have pages and pages of notes on things to fix. I cannot allow myself to do more than that or else I end up in an endless editing cycle. It's what killed my last three or four novels. Maybe one day I'll resurrect them.

My current novel is a humorous fantasy told in first-person. I find it easier to write in first-person, though I know it's not everyone's cup of tea. Look forward to working with you all!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Justice1337 on May 26, 2010, 03:45:23 AM
I've been participating for just a couple of weeks now, and I like what I've seen.  I think I'll stay here for a while.

I grew up reading Fantasy and Sci-Fi, mostly the greats of the 80's.  I've spent most of my life in school up to this point, with a JD and one other graduate degree, but oddly I've never felt seriously enough about my writing to take any coursework on it.  So, most of my writing education comes from the old How-To's at the bookstore.

As for what I write, I like speculative fiction a lot.  Starting with your own world is really good I think if you want a blank canvas.  And that's really the only way I feel safe in exploring certain things that I like to write about, such as war, politics, prejudice, government, etc.  I prefer Fantasy to Sci-Fi because I find science to be often too intertwined with its own philosophy.  So, most of the Sci-Fi I write comes out really unconventional.

I also write Romance and what I suppose could be called "Mainstream", although the paranormal makes it feel sort of like Steven King, from what I've been told anyway.

I've entered some contests before on a small scale, but I'm working on my first novel that I feel confident enough to submit to the major publishers.  I've got a feeling I'll need a strong writing group to encourage me through the incoming tide of rejection letters.  I look forward to getting to know you all. 
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Recovering_Cynic on May 26, 2010, 03:50:18 AM
Yay!  Another lawyer!  Evil forces of the world unite!  Where did you get your JD?  Have you done anything with it?  Law was my plan to pay the bills while I wrote on the side.  I've found it harder to write on the side than I thought though.  How do you make it work?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Justice1337 on May 26, 2010, 07:49:16 PM
Woot!  A fellow barrister.

I got my JD from USF (University of San Francisco), and I've been a member of the California bar about 2 years.  What's your story?

Writing on the side is tough, but I think working in the public sector is a bit easier than being an associate at a law firm, if that's your bag.  Where I'm at, it's a traditional 9 to 5 with very little work to do outside the office.  And being able to open Word and edit while at work helps too.  Weekends are a gift from heaven.  I've gotten as much as 10,000 words done in a given weekend. Often though, my writing on the weekends uses a foundation in idea-workshopping that it takes the whole week to lay.  Oh, and writing quickly for me leaves a piece riddled with things to edit, which is maybe not as large of a problem because I find editing do'able at work.

But yes, it is slower than it would be if I had no bills to pay :)  Maybe one day we'll both be able to write for a living!  That would be nice (provided I can get my wife to undertand).
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Recovering_Cynic on May 26, 2010, 08:09:08 PM
Same boat different ocean.  Got my J.D. at BYU in 2008.  Finishing a clerkship with a judge in Texas, but haven't found anything to do after its done here in three months.  Market is tough as I'm sure you know.  I also want to write full time, but convincing my wife of that will be . . . interesting, even if I do manage to sell a book.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Justice1337 on May 27, 2010, 04:35:43 AM
Brigham Young?  Doesn't Brandon Sanderson teach creative writing there? 

A lot of people here seem to be from Utah, is that because of writing excuses?
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on May 27, 2010, 04:56:45 AM
When TWG started I think it had something to do with The Leading Edge, which is the speculative fiction magazine that BYU puts out... um... however often they put it out. (I think I remember reading this somewhere, but I could be totally wrong--mostly because I'm too lazy to go back and look. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.) That and the number of Utah authors that frequent here probably bring in some local traffic. *shrug*
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Recovering_Cynic on May 27, 2010, 05:03:41 AM
I found out about TWG through writing excuses and I found out about writing excuses through Brandon Sanderson's website and I found out about Brandon Sanderson's website when it was announced he would be finishing the Wheel of Time series.  The fact that he happened to have gone to the same school as me was just icing on the cake.  I don't think he actually started teaching there until right after I finished law school which is a shame.  I was an English Major once upon a time and I would have LOVED to have taken a class from him.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Comatose on June 15, 2010, 12:01:21 AM
Hi, I'm Comatose, known in some worlds as Matt Wiens.
I write fantasy, and have done several short stories, but am currently working on a novel.

This project started a few years back (three I think- yikes!) when I entered a portion of it in a contest.  I got second place, and the short story, entitled Sin's of a Hero was published in the anthology "Fledglings" for young fantasy writers between the ages of 11 and 16.  Now I'm 19, and still have not finished the blasted novel (and am not yet halfway done I might add).  I've come to Reading Excuses for a couple reasons.  First I think a regular submissiosn schedule would keep me motivated and writing every day (or as close as I can get).  Second, all though I've spent years (all my life basically) honing my imagination and planning process through endless day dreaming and the like, I feel my prose and style could use some serious work.  I've come away after re-reading a section numerous times thinking it fell short of what I intended it to be, so any help with that would be great!

My entry currently has the working title of River Lord, and you'll find more out about that when I get my first submission in.

I look forward to sharing my work with you, and reading yours as well :).
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Renoard on June 15, 2010, 08:19:03 AM
Good to meet you Comatose.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Valkynphyre on June 24, 2010, 07:54:29 PM
Hi, My pen name is Kirk Vaunter. And... I don't think I've ever eaten a fish...


I lie a lot, too.

I'm an aspiring writer, still working on my first book... 2 years and 3 chapters down... But lots of worldbuilding done. Got several notebooks filled with maps and short excerpts. Haven't typed much up since Access t oa computer with Microsoft Word is limited. ARGHUBUBBLE!

Hoping that having deadlines will help me with that. Not the Word thing, the Worldbuilders Disease. Working title for the book is Val'Kyrie, but that'll have to change. Best contender for title: Gold, Steel, and Gods. Nah, maybe Gold, Steel, and Fire. But once I post some, I'll be open to suggestions.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on June 24, 2010, 07:58:18 PM


I lie a lot, too.
[/b]

Well, yeah. Lying is pretty much what we do here. ;)

Welcome to the group.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Renoard on June 24, 2010, 10:32:05 PM
I on the other hand never lie.  It's just the missing pieces that confuse the audience. :P

Hey Kirk.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Comatose on June 27, 2010, 03:04:00 AM
I always lie and never tell the truth.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: wisteria_purple on July 14, 2010, 06:26:09 AM
Hello, I just found myself here, so I might as well introduce myself.

I'm a college student who's just starting to get into the meat of his chosen major. I dabble in a lot of things and writing has always been sort of a pipe dream. Exposure to critique should help, eh? I do favor reading to writing so I'm particularly looking forward to seeing everything this group has to offer.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: hubay on July 14, 2010, 06:56:07 AM
Hey there, you can call be hubay, if you want. I'm a junior advertising major at Marquette in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I've been trying to get as much writing done over the summer as possible, since my schedule will get pretty hectic come september. I'm having trouble staying on track though, so I'm hoping this helps my productivity.

The novel I'm writing is secondary world  fiction that I've tentatively titled Fathers of God, but we'll see if that sticks. I'm fascinated with the ancient to medieval middle east - not that I'm remotely middle eastern myself - and it shows in my writitng. I'm less interested in the sort of "arabian nights" style of story so much as the older myths of the semetic peoples. I'm also intrigued by early gunpowder warfare, so when that all combos together you get a world influenced pretty heavily by the ottoman empire.

I enjoy writing about politics more than straight warfare, though war definitely takes a prominent role in my stories. I spend more time working on the causes of war - when it's more than mere aggression - than the war itself. Anyways, I'm about  17,000 word into my novel but a lot of that isn't connected. I'm looking to start churning out words on a regular basis, and maybe improve my critical eye along the way.

Edit: After perusing the forums for a little while, I realized that the name for god in my book is EUOL (variant on judaic El) Don't tell Mr. Sanderson.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Daddy Warpig on July 15, 2010, 05:03:22 PM
Hi. I just ran across Reading Excuses while pillaging the Writing Excuses website, looking for info on a Utah writer's critique group. RE seems like just what I was looking for.

I'm a former radio talk show host and newspaper columnist, currently between jobs. I've been writing for a long while (home brew RPG, mainly), but only started focusing on fiction recently. I'm piecing together a novel, my first, and would like some feedback.

The novel is called When Gods War. It is a "second world" fantasy novel. Here's the pitch:

Captain Karrus thought his war won.

Well-educated, wealthy, the son of a famed hero, he seemed destined for greatness. Unjustly convicted of treason, he was sent into exile and spent ten years fighting bandits and raiders on the frontier.

Unexpectedly placed in command of the armies of his nation, he led them to victory against the gravest threat his country had ever faced. Then, on the eve of his triumph, he was stripped of office and ordered back into exile.

That night, a massive cataclysm destroyed whole cities and rewrote the geography of a continent. In the aftermath, Karrus once again found himself unexpectedly in command, leading a band of refugees out of the desolation, towards home.

I'm looking forward to participating in RE. Cheers!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Aeriim on August 11, 2010, 10:15:16 PM
Hi everybody!

I've been on this site for a couple of years, actually. I just never bothered to venture outside of Brandon's main forum. : )

I'm a recent high school graduate who's headed off to BYU - Provo this fall. I'm currently working as a technical writer and editor for a local scientific laboratory, editing scientific journal submissions and writing up fact sheets and various other communicative materials. The job is kind of a love-hate relationship - yes, I get to spend the entire day writing professionally, but writing technical papers about cellulosic biomass for biofuels isn't exactly my preferred genre. ; )

I plan on going into Animation in college, and hope to one day work at Pixar. In the meantime, I write simply because I love doing it. Not that I wouldn't love to do it full time, of course. : )

I've been writing since I was a little kid, but got more seriously involved in creative writing towards the end of my high school career. I've focused mainly on short stories, but I am currently in the planning stages for a new novel idea I recently had. It's very heavily fantasy, with a good dash of post-apocalyptic. It's still kind of hazy, detail wise, so I'll provide a more concrete description once I get the change. Hopefully  I can start the actual writing of the story within the next month, so that I can get everyone here to help me along.

OH. Also, since I'm completely new here, I would be happy to edit anything that's already been sent to everyone else. Just send me an e-mail, and I'll try to get back to you as soon as I possibly can.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Derby on August 19, 2010, 04:16:10 AM
Last December I discovered Writing Excuses (I don't recall how ???) and I listened to the podcasts.  I enjoyed them so much ;D and saw how helpful they could be that I went back to the beginning and listened to them all.  And it has been worth it for both entertainment and advice.

Since the genres of the three talented authors who bring us the podcast are not my preferred genres for entertainment, I knew little of the titles they referred to.  I did make it a point to read Dan's I Am Not a Serial Killer, and the first three books of Brandon's Alcatraz series (I'll get to the fourth).  Also, I am following Howard's Schlock Mercenary web comic.  This has helped some.

It was from the postings at the WE that I found this site.  I don't need a guide for wasting time, I'm among the best already. 8)  I don't do it with RP or video games.  But I do need honest critiques for my stories.  And that is why I'm here.

About me.  Although I've never owned one or raced in one, I am called Derby.

I dropped out of college :( before most of you were born.  Meant to go back the next fall but still haven't made it :-[.  I had written a few stories back then but nothing became of them.  I recently took one of the concepts of a story from that period of my life and rewrote it.  It came out much better and will be posted here soon.  A long time ago I wrote a few dozen poems.  Don't really do poetry now except a very rare short poem which I would like to say falls in the style of Ogden Nash. ;D

Not really sure what genre my stories fall under but I'll be submitting them and the critics can decide for me. They won't all be the same, I suspect.

Somewhere down the line I hope to write a full length novel.  Not an epic nor a trilogy, just a story.  Time will tell. 

I will be happy to critique any short stories of any genre and may do some chapters.  I don't know that I have the knowledge to critique on a number of aspects that I've heard about on the WE podcasts.  Still, I hopefully can be of some use to other writers here.

Many times I have heard and read that it takes a good ten years to become a published/successful author.  Time is not on my side so, since I'm out of excuses, I'm going back to write. :)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Zardog on August 19, 2010, 11:00:00 PM
Hello there.  I've recently started writing fiction again after many years of ignoring my creative writing side.  So, I guess that would make me fairly new, with a lot of experience in other areas.  I have a CS background which pays the bills, but is no longer related to anything creative.

I've spend many years reading, from Asimov to Zelazny and many in between.  I've been reading some of the new authors, like Peter Brett, Rothfuss and Sanderson.

So, I consider myself in "learn" mode and I'm attempting to iron out my prose more than anything else.  I have been looking at different forums and asking around about writing groups trying to find the right fit.

I have a blog I started in July dedicated to what I am reading and writing.  A few short stories, an ongoing first draft for two novels that I'm posting as I go.  One fiction and one non-fiction.  I also have a couple of private novels that I plan to look at selling one day.

I'm happy to exchange emails and do test reads of chapter samples to give my feedback.  Reviewing others and seeing how things go from first-draft to final-draft, examining prose, structure, etc. is what I'm after here.

Hopefully I can contribute and learn at the same time.  If your interests are similar, please feel free to contact me.

My blog: Zardog (http://www.zardog.com)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Kierlionn on September 02, 2010, 03:42:05 AM
Hey, I'm Cardon, but in a lot of the RPGs I play I go by Kierlionn. I am a junior in High School and I am hoping to improve my writing skills and perhaps write a small book. (Very small, under 200 pages.) I actually don't plan to go into writing as a career but I absolutely love to read, I plan to go into computer programming.

Even though I love to read Sci-Fi and Fantasy I have never quite considered myself creative, I excel at writing factual papers but when asked to do anything creative struggle quite badly. Through doing this I am hoping I can overcome that struggle and greatly improve in my creative writing abilities.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: fireflyz on September 20, 2010, 10:03:17 PM
I'm a mid twenties male from the northeast.  I have a degree in political science with a minor in history.  I've spent six years in the us army infantry with combat tours to afghanistan.  I'm interested in fantasy as well as just good writing ala Stephen King when he's not trying to scare the crap out of you.

I've been writing for about three and a half years now.  I've written three full length novels.  The first was a 140k and the first third was terrible as I was just beginning to learn.  The second was much better, 130k, but still not great.  The latest I'm still revising.  It's the first novel that I've focused solely on one protagonist and delved deep into thier psyche.  It has potential, but is still my baby.  I'm planning on submitting to agents in october/november. 

I've also written a 60k novella, a 40k novella, and a handful of short stories (less than 15k).  The feedback I've been getting from my alpha readers has been positive.  I like my latest work...I know its the best I've done yet, is it worthy of publication?  I don't know. 

That's really why I've joined this group.  I have only read a few other novice authors and they all needed a lot of work.  I'd like to have the opportunity to see what else is out there and where I stack up.  Personally, I write because I love writing.  If it takes another ten years or another twenty to get published...that's fine.  But I'm determined to get there.  Any questions, feel free to ask.  I will probably submit a few samples in the near future.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Stormblessed on October 08, 2010, 01:51:19 AM
I'm nineteen from Sydney, Australia. Studying economics at university, and working part-time in a bookstore. I have an addiction to books - especially fantasy. I have so many ideas for different fantasy stories. Here are a few:

1. Fantasy murder mystery. Follows the PoVs of both an assassin and a police officier. Obviously there is a bit of cat and mouse happening here, but things become complicated when both characters get swept into a bigger battle - a battle between a King and a Goddess.

2. A kids fantasy set in Paris. Hero is an amnesic american kid (they can tell by his accent). He gets recruited into a parisian theiving crew, reminiscent Charles Dicken's Oliver Twist, where he finds out that magic is not just slight of hand. Magic system based on clockwork mechanisms and Insular art.

3. Another kids fantasy set around a Temple of Light that randomly appears in a city, that only a couple of kids can see. It is full of puzzles and secrets that must be uncovered if they are to win against the growing forces of darkness.

4. A fantasy trilogy in a land stalked by fae like beings, where politics is a powerful force, and stability is crumbling. The main character is a druid, that must complete a prophecy if they are to survive the oncoming storm.

I have 3 or 4 more ideas, not so much stories, rather than worlds and cultures that I have established, some set in this world, others in made up worlds.

As you can probably guess, I'm really good at world building and character development, but I'm having problems with chapter by chapter plotting. Hopefully I can find some help in this forum. Cheers!! (and i apologise for dumping all this information on whoever reads this  :P)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: akoebel on December 19, 2010, 11:38:39 AM
Hi all, I'm Arnaud from Paris (France).

I'm 39, and have a PhD in Physics, though I don't work in that field anymore : now, I do software architecture for an IT company.

I've been reading fantasy for a long time, and come to love mostly political intrigue  found in GRRM, Robert Jordan, Steven Erikson, and Lois Bujold. I also like historical fiction (love Bernard Cornwell) and would love to write in that genre one day (though right now, it's too much research work for me to consider it). I don't usually read SF (except the Ender's series) and don't plan to write in that genre (If I did, it would have to be hard SF, and that too means lots of research).

I started to write pretty late (last year) for reasons yet unknown to me. Well, listening for hours of WritingExcuses probably had something to do with it :-)

In that year, I wrote a fantasy novel (130k words), a short story, and started a new fantasy/mystery novel (currently at 45k, should end up at 125k).

The short story experience taught me that I really need to write in long form; how can-I show a new world in less than 10k?
Writing comes pretty easily to me, being a discovery writer, but I found out that I'm lousy at revising, either I don't want to kill my darlings, or I don't see what's wrong in them, so I need your help!

I plan to workshop my first novel with you when the last draft will be completed, probably in early February (waiting for alpha readers comments to get in).

I'm also looking forward to read your chapters and offer whatever comments I can, so I'll see you all around!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: RiaRaen on December 24, 2010, 02:14:32 AM
Hello
My name is Ria, I live in London although that isnt where I am from. I am a born and bred shropshire lass :) I am a lover of fantasy fiction and most rainy days you will spy me with a robert jordan in hand. I am a daydreamer and it is from my daydreams I get inspiration.

I always had an itch to write, so I just sat down one day and started writing the book I always knew was deep down inside. My biggest problem is my love of description, adjectives are my game, I also worry terribly that readers will get lost in my ramblings! So I am hoping you lovely people will help me cut out all the weedy bits and help me refine what is at best a novice attempt at a novel!

Hugs from England
xx
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Renoard on December 29, 2010, 05:10:37 PM
Hi Ria.

I may have to pick your brain a bit. Nothing too difficult like the average flight spead of swallows, etc. Just a question of what a London Audience might find more believable in terms of geography. (e.g. a European prince arrives and wanders about in Essex incognito. Should he arrive on the quay's near London bridge or down river in Tilbury.) You know simple stuff. :P
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: aqualibrium on December 30, 2010, 04:15:42 AM
I'm a late twenties male in the southeast. I started writing stories when I was child, although I sidelined that and started to get into music composition.  I was in that strong until about 5 years ago when a friend of mine asked me to write some music for a play she was working on. I enjoyed working on the musical so much that I decided to embark upon my own, which I finished last and produced this year with a local theater group. It went over well and I decided I had the writing bug and I had more stories to tell so I wrote another musical which I just finished. My two musicals were both comedies, and I wanted to move into some more serious matter. Unfortunately, the story that popped in my head just wouldn't work at all on the stage for practical purposes.  The idea of writing a novel was downright terrifying to me so for a while  I was stuck, do I write the story or not?

After listening to a lot of writing excuses podcasts I've decided to plunge in and see what happens. If I end up drowning, at least I had fun along the way right? My biggest fear is that I am used to writing in a very limited space. I had 16,000 words to tell my last story (welcome to the world of scripts), and so I have to keep reminding myself that I can slow down and fully flesh out what is going on. I know many suggest short stories before a novel but I feel like I have a strong sense of what makes a good story, I'm more concerned about my prose quality. I'll guess we'll just have to see.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on December 30, 2010, 09:46:51 PM
Sweet, someone else who writes musicals! (Okay, that makes it sound as if I've actually written musicals. I haven't--I've written songs and I've written stage plays, but the one musical I actually set out to write petered out when I realized I didn't have a story. Still working on it. ::) )

Anyway, welcome to the group!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: sceneTK421 on December 31, 2010, 06:36:25 AM
Hello, I'm Sean. Or Scene or TK421... whatever, doesn't really matter to me. I posted this on the introduce yourself page and thought that I should post it here too since I would like to be a part of the Reading Excuses club  ;D

I have been writing for a long time (with no formal training really). Shorts, screenplays, and unfinished novels most recently. I am also a filmmaker and photographer, currently living in Southern California, and I look forward to connecting with other writers here.

A few of my favorite authors are Robert Jordan, Mark Twain, Ray Bradbury, Shel Silverstein, William Goldman, Charlie Kaufman, Neil Gaiman, Stephen King, Jean Shepard, Steve Martin... wow this could go on for while, just know I left out some huge influences.

Some of my favorite films include, The Big Lebowski, The Princess Bride, Monster Squad, Toy Story, Ratatouille, Finding Nemo, Star Trek (JJ to the A), Black Swan (saw it last night and it is still with me), Inception, Magnolia, The Red Violin, The Bicycle Thief, City of God, Rope, Inglorious Basterds, Made, Ed Wood, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, The Jerk... and this list is even longer than the writer's one, and again just know, a lot of great influences are left right out.

I am a big Disney nerd. Especially Disneyland, old live-action feature films, feature length animations and the old cartoons. I am a film buff (out of the game for the last few years though due to something that would take a long time to explain). I draw and paint and make maps, and just create whenever, however, and wherever I can.

All in all my taste is very eclectic.

I am currently reading George R R Martin's A Clash of Kings and love it.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: aqualibrium on January 03, 2011, 02:52:12 AM
Sweet, someone else who writes musicals! (Okay, that makes it sound as if I've actually written musicals. I haven't--I've written songs and I've written stage plays, but the one musical I actually set out to write petered out when I realized I didn't have a story. Still working on it. ::) )

Anyway, welcome to the group!

I wasn't planning on submitting any of my plays or musicals to the group, but if you ever want to read my work feel free to PM me. I'm always looking for feedback.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on January 03, 2011, 04:40:27 AM
Cool--I might take you up on that. But probably not until this semester is over.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: madelste on January 03, 2011, 05:29:06 AM
Hi all, I am a former Cleveland farm boy, who went to school and law school on the east coast and ended up staying there and becoming a corporate attorney.  From a writing perspective, I am a poet first, a song writer second and a story writer third.  As I am too old for American Idol and I was born in the wrong era to make a living as a poet, I have recently been spending more time with short stories and world building exercises (no novels yet, but lots of ideas).  I have no formal training (law school doesn't count), but I am always reading something (mostly science fiction, fantasy and classics).  I am one of the group of readers that will reread entire series of books over and over again (kind of like putting on a comfortable sweater or meeting up with an old friend).   I am looking forward to reading other writer's works and participating.

-Mike  a.k.a. "madelste"


Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: halo6819 on January 07, 2011, 07:48:16 PM
Hello my name is Robert Moreau. as a new years resolution, i resolved to finish the book i have been working on for the last year or so (currently sitting at 20k). I met with a nice guy in line for the Way of Kings signing in San Diego and he mentioned that there was a great writing group here at time wasters.

I live in Los Angeles, with my wife and dog. I work in a hotel (used to do graveyard, god i wish i had wanted to write back then...). My bookshelf is filled mostly with fantasy and sci-fi, i tend to find an author i like and try and read everything that person has published (Asimov, Card, Feist, Jordan, Rice, Rowling, Sanderson) though recently i have been trying to branch out and read some others.

The novel im working on right now is a sci-fi near future earth. Alot of it is cliche, but im not too worried about that at this point as im not entirely convinced i can write a novel length manuscript!

Can't wait to see what everyone else is up to!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: becoop on January 07, 2011, 10:26:43 PM
Hi all,

I'm from Nashville, TN. and work as a computer programmer. I've been writing on and off since I was in high school, but only became a bit more serious last year. I found the group through the writing excuses podcast and I was really excited to join. I'm hoping to really learn more from being able to be involved with others that write by reading their works and participating in the group. I'm currently working on a novel that I began with NanoWrimo 2010 and right now I'm going back through and doing rewrites of the rushed work during November. Thanks for letting me join.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Silk on January 08, 2011, 02:51:48 AM
Welcome, guys!
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Juan Dolor on February 27, 2011, 12:58:55 AM
Hello, everyone.  I'm a 35 year old single man from the midwest, although I have spent most of the last decade in the Boston area.  I am trying to finish a social science PhD this year, and writing fiction in my spare time helps keep me sane.

I write mostly sword and sorcery (as opposed to high or epic fantasy), but I've also done space opera, horror, comedy, and plain old contemporary fiction.   Mostly I stick to short stories and novelas (and short plays), but I've started a couple of novels, including one I have been trying to finish off and on for the past few years. 

As an undergrad, I published one of my short stories in a literary magazine, and lately I've been thinking about trying to get back into that game.  I'm hoping that this group can help me both polish my work and figure out the nuts and bolts of getting published.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Catharascotia on March 08, 2011, 04:59:19 AM
Hi.  You can call me Cat.  I'm 19 and a sophomore in college, hoping to go into archaeology.  I write...alternate universe urban fantasy?  I don't know what to call it, because urban fantasy evokes images of werewolves and vampires in dark alleys, and it's not like that at all, but it is fantasy, and a lot of it is urban, though some of it takes place in the countryside...argh.  Okay, it's definitely not epic fantasy or sword and sorcery or anything like that.  It's also on the boundary between YA and adult fantasy.  Anyway, I've been writing novels pretty consistently since I was 14.  My first series sort of sucked, but has some (I think) good ideas, which I'm stealing and parceling out to other stories.  I have completed another series of 5 books which I think is a good bit better and which I hope to get published one day, but my hopes aren't high.  Anyway, now I'm writing a sort of sequel series.  I've done NaNoWriMo once, but for several more years I just hung out in the forums and didn't actually participate.  And that's enough about me. 
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: SkyhunterCommander on March 09, 2011, 08:09:36 PM
Hello, everyone. I am a twenty year old college student from New York. I am currently majoring in English with a Creative Writing focus, and I plan to have at least one minor or a second major, probably History or Psychology. I have also been taking my school's Publishing Certificate Program, which is geared toward getting people jobs in the industry. It's basically my not so much fall-back as something to do if I don't get published before I finish school, and the publishing classes may have even been more useful than writing classes, as I have learned quite a bit about publishing, which should help make me a more savvy writer. (Not to mention that part of the program involves getting an internship, which will allow me to meet people in the industry and form relationships that could be helpful when I get to the point of being able to submit a manuscript.

I have been writing, on and off, since eighth grade, when I first got the idea for a novel that I finally think has a proper direction, and I have sufficient writing skills to finally complete a draft (longest previous draft was somewhere around 120 double space WORD pages long). As of now, I am at almost 12,000 words into my novel, and I have a full chapter-by chapter outline.

My novel is probably best described as an epic fantasy in space, or a sci-fi epic (I'm really not quite sure exactly what classification it would fall under). It has a sci-fi setting, but to me the novel feels more like an epic fantasy, and there are some fantasy elements in it.  I also have several ideas for fantasy novels, which are all still in the worldbuilding/outlining stage, though I have written short segments/scenes for some of my writing classes (including a scene which I workshopped in my Fiction Workshop class yesterday, which makes me confident that I am capable of making a living writing). I don't intend on telling that whole, strange story in this post, but to put it simply, the class liked my writing, and gave some good feedback (as they have in my other classes where I wrote sf/f stuff) and the older professor said he 'could not encourage that' and did not give me any useful feedback.

I really should have joined Timewastersguide a long time ago, but I'm glad I did now. I desperately need people who actually read and write in my genres to give me comments on my writing, and everyone in my classes writes the most dull literary fiction (which my current professor, of course, loves). I  hope to get useful feedback that will help me finally complete my novel, and get me working on more things. (I apologize for the length of this post)
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Will777r on May 18, 2011, 03:04:37 PM
Hi all :)

You can call me Will. I'm a 36 year old married man with four beautiful kids and I just got serious about writing a year ago. I've been writing since I was in High School, but started on my current manuscript about 10 years ago. Last June, I finally convinced my wife to read it. When she finished chapter 6, she asked for more and I had to tell her there was no more yet. Well, she was rather upset and strongly encouraged me to pursue my writing more seriously. So, I finally completed my 1st draft last October. It's an epic/high fantasy, currently standing at 140,000 words. I'm in full blown edit mode right now and hoping to pitch it to agents and editors by the end of this year. I entered it into the Genesis contest and placed as a Semi-Finalist, so it's generated some good feedback and a lot of interest.

I'm a part of two writer's groups currently, but while I appreciate the feedback and encouragement, none of them really enjoy fantasy or sci-fi. I'm a big fan of Brandon Sanderson and happened to click on his forum link the other day, which led me here :) I was very excited to see a writer's group that has a great interest in speculative fiction. So, I look forward to reading your material and hope you'll enjoy helping me with mine :)

Will
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: lfalin on May 31, 2011, 04:33:03 PM
Hello,

I'm Lee. I'm 32, married to a wonderful woman, have five crazy and awesome kids, and just finished my PhD in Genetics and Bioinformatics at Virginia Tech. I've always been interested in Science Fiction and Fantasy writing and now that I'm finished with my degree I have some time to be more active in that pursuit.

I like writing Middle Grade and YA SF&F, Epic Fantasy, and some non-fiction (which I won't bore you with  :) ).

Since I don't live anywhere near any genre fiction writers that I know of, I was really excited to find out about this writing group from the writing excuses podcast. I look forward to reading and sharing.

Lee
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: cjhuitt on June 11, 2011, 12:43:00 AM
My name's Caleb.  I'm in my 30s, and a computer programmer by day.  Lately I've started writing again (it's cheaper than WoW).  So far most of my writing has been fantasy.  I enjoy most types of sci-fi and fantasy in varying doses.

This will be my first attempt at an online critique group.  I hope it works out.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: orestes on June 15, 2011, 03:21:02 AM
Hi everyone.

I go by Justin. I found this forum while perusing Brandon Sanderson's website.

I've done the writing group thing a few times. Both groups I was involved in dissolved due to either critique disagreements verging on fistfights or people acting out a nuclear holocaust as a result of aforementioned critiques. I don't believe, however, that either method truly worked to improve their writing, but alas, so it goes.

I've written for a long time, well over a decade now, but don't consider myself a veteran. I've won a few awards for short stories here and there (literary fiction), but I'm still awaiting the day I arrive at that dreamy moment when I receive an OK on a manuscript. I like to think comets and meteors will crisscross and festoon over the sky when that happens, though, for now, they seem to form a huge fist, flipping me off (and I think that fist is my own).

As of now I'm an Intermedia Sculpture student at the UofU.

I have gone on several hiatuses throughout my writing "career," though the last (and the longest) one spanned a year and a half in the wake of my disillusion of my formerly declared English major. I found myself yearning for fantasy and science fiction, though I still often read literature, particularly South American literature. I have written three/four novels (do tens of thousands of freewriting account for something as well?), but all remain unpublished and to this day rest at the bottom of my desk drawer. I've finally found my voice again, and wish to explore a world and story I've been actively imagining for a decade.

What I write is dark, speculative, and introspective.


Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: yoringel on July 09, 2011, 07:15:32 PM
hallo,
i´m a newbie in this forum and in writing generally .
don´t know if you have to start writing as a child to become an author. many authors have always written.
i didn´t and i´m just learning.
i come from a more visual field and always have drawn my stories . i study costume design and would like to earn my living as an illustrator. but at both of these jobs you are working with other peoples stories . this can be much fun if you work with the right people. but i would like to tell my own stories. so - here i am , trying to learn all about writing.

hm is there something else to tell? well i´m a big reader (ok more a audiobook listener) like everyone here i guess. i read in all genres but i think in my own work i will always be a sci-fi/fantasy/horror geek ;-) . i would like to write children-picture-books or books for young adults (and of course publish those).
at the moment it´s the end of the semester, there is much to do and i´m illustrating a story of a friend . i´m still in the research-stage for my own story and hope i will start to write in the semester holidays. i would like to write in english, what is not my mother tongue, because i just want to get better in english, most of the books i read  are in english - so i have in writing more the rhythm of the english language and i would like to move to the uk, usa or canada ... or sweden (but i´m awfully bad in learning new languages XD )

oh and partly why i´m here - do you know this situation? :
i just meet with friends in the university or with my parents and i begin to say
"i just read a new book..." and everyone goes ´not again´ .
 and when i get to  "... it´s so well written and i didn´t see the end coming and how the author uses here and here the words - this is genies"..." they are only half listening.
and when i then begin with "oh and then i listen to this sci-fi book but it´s really not sci-fi how you think it is" - then i lost them.
so it´s nice to find a forum like this ;-) !

so, thats my life (and wishes) in short ;-) - hello everyone


Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: globalbergonzi on July 15, 2011, 10:31:48 PM
Hi I'm new here, but have been listening to Writing Excuses since Season 3.

I have a thing for hard science fiction, hence why I write a lot of short stories revolving around hard science fact. My first work, which is now lost, was a Halo Fan fiction, but since then I have only worked on original stories. I was the director for an audio drama anthology show called "Seminar" (produced by pendant productions). One of my short stories was adapted, by myself, into a short. You can find the episode that features my adapted story here:

http://www.pendantaudio.com/seminareps/Seminar38web.mp3

(Mine is the second story, titled "No")

The original ending is different from the one in the audio version.

Anyway, I look forward to reading all of your stories.

The story I'm working on now is a fantasy with some real science. The premise came out of the idea of reversing of magic with science. Basically, science is fiction and magic is fact. But, that soon turned into a story where a world outlaws science. And only magic is allowed. But, the magic is split into two categories, mage and wizard magic. I'm not sure if this is going to be a novel or a novella. But, it's my first project that isn't planned as a short story or screenplay/audio play.

–Michael B.
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Lucid on July 28, 2011, 04:02:27 AM
Hi everyone.  :)

I'm new here. I'm 35, married, and mom to five awesome kids.

I write Urban Fantasy. I've been writing since I was a kid but nothing serious until last year. I'm now on my fourth novel since October. Let's just say the others were a real learning curve.

I'm really hoping to get an agent this year.  So far, I'm only 1/3 of the way done with the book I'm working on now, so I've got a long way to go. I also have the others, which I may end up trying to do some editing on but those stories need so much work that it would be easier to set them all on fire.

I love to read Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy and any free moments not spent on writing are spent reading.

This isn't my first crit group experience, but none of the other groups lasted very long. I'm hoping this one lasts for a long time.

Celeste
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Amnonian on July 31, 2011, 05:17:27 PM
Hello all.  :)
I write epic fantasy, and am currently also toying with romance.
I have a bad habit of abandoning my stories for new ones. My longest draft is 20k words.
That's my first time in an online writing group, and I'm hoping to have a fun (and productive) time.  ;)
- Amnonian
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Sir Robert on August 03, 2011, 06:45:31 PM
Greetings fellow scratchers!   My handle is Sir Robert but you may call me Sir Robert.  I live in IL.  I am 41 and am raising 7 beautiful daughters.  I write fantasy YA and am looking for help with a story I just switched to First person.  I have been in many critique groups before and love giving as well as getting a different pov. 
Title: Re: Your Background
Post by: Mad_Scientist on August 08, 2011, 08:40:02 AM
Hi all.

My name is Matthew Hollingsworth, and I just decided to join this writing group on the recommendation of Chaos2651, who I know from the 17th Shard forums.

But enough about why I joined. Who am I? Well, as I said, my name is Matthew. I am 25 years old, and male, though you probably could have guessed that from my name. My preferred forms of entertainment generally involve fiction in ny of its forms, though I especially love books, video games, and anime/manga.

I am also an aspiring writer, which is another thing I'm sure you could have guessed.  :P I actually didn't originally want to write. When I was younger, I loved math and video games. (And I still do now that I'm older, I just love other things as well). I wanted to either become a highschool math teacher or a video game designer, and I figured I could break into the video game industry as a programmer, so I assumed I'd be doing something related to math as I got older.

Then tons of personal stuff happened that would take pages and pages to explain, and reveal too much about my family anyays. Some of them probably wouldn't want me blabbing everything to the net. And I'm honestly not sure how comfortable I'd be doing it myself. So... moving on.

As time went on and I came up with my ideas for video games, I realized I really loved creating the story concepts for them, and coming up with interesting ways to take advantage of or incorperate video game conventions into the stories. I realized I loved writing, and so I figured I now had two ways to maybe break into video game design. Programmer, or writer.

Then I realized I truly loved writing more than anything else, and that I would be perfectly happy telling my stories as novels. And so my desires have changed, and I now aspire to be a writer. Though I certainly wouldn't mind working on a video game if I got the chance.

My genre of choice is fantasy. I enjoy reading books in other genres, I'm just not sure I'd enjoy writing them. I love creating unique worlds for my characters to live in, so I'd probably love writing Sci-Fi as well. I'm just not sure I know enough to write good Sci-Fi right now. Oh, I could probably do ok if I did extremely soft Sci-Fi, but my personality is such that I'd want my stories to be a bit more grounded I think. Yes, I have no problem coming up with totally insane things in fantasy, but if I say "this is happening in the real world," I want to be able to at least sound realistc. So for now, I'm focusing on writing fantasy.

Anyways, I figure that should be ok for an introduction for now.