Progress and Submission Reports

[Silk]

We're happy to take the--ah, blame--for your success.

In other news: My major project (the band website) is almost done. I'm reading a friend's manuscript now, and then I'll start getting caught up on all you lovely peoples' submissions.

(Why am I doing my friend's ms first? Well, because I'm all caught up on your submissions as far as January. I've had this manuscript since September. Fair's fair. )

[Dark_Prophecy]

I've been ever so quiet for several months now, but I'm back! I've been busy working, taking care of my 1 year old son, and generally just trying to live life. I haven't had too much time for writing, but LTUE got me excited again, and then I really got motivated when I won a flash fiction contest (albeit a very very small one) on a favorite website of mine. After that, I got the idea to maybe start a serial novel on my book review blog, but in the end I think I've decided to just go through the critique process and write it as a novel, because it's just too cool an idea not to be published in the traditional way.

And yes, being published, as always, is the goal. I love writing because I enjoy it, but if I can get paid to do it as well, then why not?

The new story is called Last Call.

The status of Part Time Angel is....well, mostly dead. I've finally got an idea that excites me, a real plan for the whole novel that I can work with, and will. I'm just liking writing Last Call so much that I just can't make myself get to it.

So, if there's not too many people submitting this Monday, I'd love to shoot you guys the first little bit of Last Call. Eventually I'll get back into Part Time Angel as well, but it's all about the Last Call right now

[lethalfalcon]

So... okay, apparently, while having another of my wonderful (not) restful naps (I don't really sleep, merely nap, considering they don't last, and I'm such a light sleeper that pin drops awaken me), my mind decided to add a huge chunk of flesh to the skeleton of a story. Is it one I was already working on? Of *course* not!

And what do I do? Write? Foolish mortal, how boring that would be. No no no, instead, I spend upteen hours *modeling* one of the characters. So, I give you, in its mostly complete rough form, T'Garin.


His real name is Tarynissigarin, which roughly translates to "the sky's reflection" (literally, "sky's clone of color"). His mate, Aramel (Arameldrith), will come later, once I get wings and more features on T'Garin. They're about lion-sized, so pretty much unable to ride (I suppose a small child could do so, but they don't and won't; the added weight would make it very difficult besides).

I'm very slowly progressing on Heartglass. The next chapter would probably be done if I actually sat down and worked on it for more than 10 minutes at a time. But DRAGONS!  (it's my oooh-shiny). I'm a bit torn, because this new story would be far more... exciting to me, but honestly, I'm a little scared of actually writing it. Dragons are also a very touchy subject around me; if they aren't done right, they absolutely suck, and I don't want my precious imaginary animals sullied. So, am I up to it? Dunno. Heartglass I have a lot more of the actual story down, too. With this other one, it's more like a lot of scenes, and one main arc.

And then there's my work. Ever present, and very needy. If only I could count code, I'd be a published author in no time.

[Silk]

Some line edits on the current manuscript and a bit closer to nailing the timeline. Other than that though... I'm starting to despair of ever getting this thing done.

[Shivertongue]

Started the first chapter of Wavepainter tonight. With luck, should have something to submit on Monday.

[Renoard]

I was sick with a really high fever about 3 months ago and I lost all momentum.  Ugh, I hate trying to reengage with a novel that has been on the shelf for a while.

[Chaos]

I've been writing Mistborn fanfic. V_V

Okay, that requires some background: I'm doing a Mistborn forum RP, and I wrote a new prologue for the setting. One of the scenes in said prologue turned out extremely well. It's sort of sad, actually. It's essentially fanfic, and yet that scene was the first scene in a long time where I thought "Holy crap, I nailed it." I would've much preferred to get the same effect doing my own work.

[Comatose]

I am almost finished the second part.  I thought I was moving into the last scene, but it was too much, so I split it and half.  I also spread the very busy scene before it into two parts, and now I like both a lot better.
That being said, it's kind of frustrating to have done so much writing today, and still have the whole last scene left to write.  It feels like I didn't get anywhere, even though I did.

PS: Chaos, your prologue is really great.  I liked it a lot.

[Silk]

1100 new words on Fall, Stars, Fall today. Probably 2500 new words over all, and deleted, I dunno, 2000 or something of the old stuff?

Gonna spend some time tightening and smoothing out rough edges (again!) later today, but really I think that's about it for this piece. Phew.

[Comatose]

I could use some more feed back on the scene I submitted before I get too much into revisions.  It's really short, so it shouldn't take you long to read at all.
I'm not ignoring the things you guys have been telling me about my work, I'm looking forward to making working on the changes you suggested.  I just wanted your opininion on something a little more recently written before I got deep into my revisions, so I know if there are still any major problems with my current writing style.

I've started listening to the Writing Excuses Podcasts, and some of them have been really helpful.

[Silk]

Not to worry. Personally, I find that the easiest way to kill a project is to go revision-crazy before I finish a draft of it. You don't have to immediately jump on revisions just because people thought you should make some changes.

[Asmodemon]

I wouldn’t recommend doing revisions either until you’ve completely written the first draft. Anything you edit now will need further editing and revisions once you’re done anyway, so you risk just wasting time now. You can’t successfully revise a piece until it’s done – only then will you have all the pieces in front of you and you can edit things to fit the bigger picture.

Remember this is your first draft, it’s not supposed to be perfect and neither will your revised chapters be perfect when we get to read them. You’ll get new critiques and you’ll want to revise things again, which will put you in the same position as you are now. But if you finish your first draft you can hold up the critiques against the bigger picture and more successfully decide your story’s path.

Speaking for myself, I know I’ve given you a lot of suggestions already, which may have discouraged you from continuing your first draft. That’s never been my intent; I think you should continue your first draft. What I suggest is that you make notes of what has been pointed out so far, think on it a bit, and then continue to write the remainder of your story with those points in mind. If you’ve already got changes in mind, write those down, and continue as if you’ve already made the changes in the earlier chapters.

It’s your decision of course, but that’s what I think.

Also:

I am almost finished the second part.  I thought I was moving into the last scene, but it was too much, so I split it and half.

I don't know how many parts you want to write, but it sounds to me you're already pretty far under way. Just press on, you're almost there.

[Comatose]

Don't worry, your critiques haven't discouraged me (my job has, but that's another story).  I'm actually am noticing my writing improving in the more recent chapters.  Please keep them coming!  Let me know what I'm doing good or bad.  Like I said before, this is the first advice I've really ever gotten on my writing, so anything an everything helps!

I'll take this latest advice to heart though... I do really want to see that first draft done.  Maybe I'll make July and August my own personal NaNoWriMo's, and just push through to the end .

As for progress... I've had none the last week.  Bogged down at work (ugh), I've got to learn to write when tired and sleep deprived!

[Asmodemon]

I hear you, it's been a busy few months for me at work as well - deadlines after deadlines after deadlines.

I've got a pretty long commute every day coming and going to work so I've taken to write on the train to get my writing time. It's a hard thing because trains and busses never fail to make me sleepy, but on good days I can type a a few hundred words and that's progress. Not lately though, too tired to do anything but sleep or read

[Silk]

For those of you who remember that flash fiction piece I sent out a while back, Cobwebs and Silhouettes, I've done some revisions on it in the last little while. Not quite as much as I'd like (that unexpected trip out of town really threw me) but some, and I know more or less where I want to go with the rest of the revisions.

I've also been making decent headway on some background stuff for a novel in the same setting. Maybe I'll make that novel my next big project. (It appears to be ousting several other contenders.)