61
Books / Re: Favorite author
« on: May 01, 2009, 08:14:29 PM »
Hemingway.
News:
"Magic is what makes fantasy fantastic," someone says, "you can't apply rules to them or else it loses wonder!" I respond, "Sure, but if you want to write them you will certainly want to know how they work." Writing is all about execution, and I find applying some basic laws of physics to magic systems make them more understandable and realistic. Here, I'm going to outline my basic method for developing a magic system.
Column by Chaos2651
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62
Writing Group / Re: Alpha readers, please
« on: April 30, 2009, 09:02:44 PM »I would suggest that you look first for people that you know in Real Life and can meet in person.
I have one person I know that will. That's not enought for a honest opinion.
63
Writing Group / Re: Alpha readers, please
« on: April 30, 2009, 05:03:25 PM »What do you mean by crossover?
Not quite YA, not quite adult.
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Writing Group / Alpha readers, please
« on: April 30, 2009, 04:56:30 PM »
I need alpha readers for an incomplete fantasy crossover. (I hesitate to call it incomplete because I consider the "novel" to be a series of novellas, and this arch to be the first of the series. By that distinction, it is complete.) It is currently about 17,000 words (my word processor says 18,000, so it’s probably about a thousand words less than that). I just completing the first major character arch and I’m on the brink of expanding the story into another, more complicated arch. BUT I need to know which way to go with the voice of the main character.
It’s written in first person, has romantic themes, reads like a fictional memoir, is neither epic nor urban, and is set in a fantasy world but is character driven and very centralized. The setting is a world without humans: all the characters are non-humans. The magic is subtle, but plays a big part in the story. I don’t use any traditional fantasy species. It isn’t a quest, but a survival story (this arch anyway). Not much about the world is given in this chunk, but it is action packed and fast paced. I’ve been told by a reliable source that there are some disturbing themes in this, so spots are awkward reading.
Thanks!
It’s written in first person, has romantic themes, reads like a fictional memoir, is neither epic nor urban, and is set in a fantasy world but is character driven and very centralized. The setting is a world without humans: all the characters are non-humans. The magic is subtle, but plays a big part in the story. I don’t use any traditional fantasy species. It isn’t a quest, but a survival story (this arch anyway). Not much about the world is given in this chunk, but it is action packed and fast paced. I’ve been told by a reliable source that there are some disturbing themes in this, so spots are awkward reading.
Thanks!
66
Dan Wells / Re: Awesome Feedback for Dan!
« on: April 28, 2009, 12:11:49 AM »?? I live in the USA.…
If you have a credit card you can buy it online by following the link Fell posted up at the top of the tread.
67
Writing Group / Re: NaNoWriMo?
« on: April 27, 2009, 08:04:19 PM »
I would do it, but I'm afraid that one month of hard core writing will burn me out for a long peroid of time (I wrote seventy thousand words during one month a year ago, and I didn't put pen to paper for three months afterwards).
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Howard Tayler / Re: No more Tag?
« on: April 22, 2009, 06:54:08 PM »
Wow, learn something new ever day. I didn't pay that much attention to the ages when reading yesterday's strip...obviously. 
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Dan Wells / Re: Now's your time, Dan...
« on: April 22, 2009, 06:51:43 PM »So: because Ookla was totally right about the market timing, I sent this book to my agent, she loved it, I did some rewrites, and we are now shopping it around. So here's hoping.
Sweet! I would love to have A Night Of Blacker Darkness in book form.
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Howard Tayler / Re: No more Tag?
« on: April 22, 2009, 06:31:56 PM »
Para is nineteen? I thought she was younger, about fifteen.
71
Brandon Sanderson / Re: Forget sex. Let's talk romance.
« on: April 16, 2009, 06:43:57 PM »
I just finished Elantris, and I have to say Raoden/Sarene was sickening. They felt very artificial and it was definitely a “Mary Sue” kind of relationship. Like the overall novel, hated their relationship.
72
Writing Group / Re: Exposition: What is the best way to handle it?
« on: April 14, 2009, 11:08:53 PM »In terms of describing your characters, I've often found it difficult to decide where to place my descriptions of people. When I try and fail miserably (making it sound awkward), I try to fit it in and spread it out through a certain number of pages. For example, if a character is introduced for the first time, and you want to describe him, instead of finding an awkward spot to fit in a description, break it down and fit it in over time. 'Jake hurtled towards the ground, his dark auburn hair whipping around his face.' 'Jake leaped into the air, his long arms and legs giving him sufficient reach to… [blah blah]' So where you have normal sentences that do not necessarily require descriptions, fit them in. Just my two cents.
I think this is the "show don't tell" thing. Having a paragraph describing a character is blatant telling. Revealing what they look like through the story is telling.
73
Reading Excuses / Re: 3-30-09 Watashi no Aijin Part One
« on: April 09, 2009, 04:06:35 AM »
Sortitus, the creatures are without gender. Entirely without. Zilch, nothing, notta. They aren't asexual. They aren't anything sexual. To even use the term sex at when referring to their “gender” is very incorrect. (To even try to define their gender is asinine waste of everyone’s time 
.)
Also, I want to try and keep it as grammatically correct as possible = I'm not using as singular "they". I’ve done a lot of research before hand, and I’ve got a good reason for using “it” and using Japanese honorifics.
.)Also, I want to try and keep it as grammatically correct as possible = I'm not using as singular "they". I’ve done a lot of research before hand, and I’ve got a good reason for using “it” and using Japanese honorifics.
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Brandon Sanderson / Re: AMOL Split
« on: April 04, 2009, 04:35:49 AM »This thread should be locked, there is already one on this topic and another one on it that has already been locked. Go here for further discussion please.
There are already TWO threads.
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Movies and TV / Re: Anime Review!
« on: April 03, 2009, 01:06:20 AM »
Bleach the anime is pretty bad, but the manga on the other hand is really good. There are some similarities between Bleach and DBZ, but there is one defining difference: Tite Kubo is a better writer. Everything that has happened in the manga has been foreshadowed (something often forgone in manga and anime), and maintains the over arching themes. The story is character driven, yet Kubo manages to keep a tight plot while developing new characters at the same time, and pulling well thought out twists along the way. If you haven’t read the manga, you should really give it a try, the anime is a poor substitute.