inkstains

Hello friends! It's a lovely day in Scotland albeit the freak weather warnings.

Reminders: contest 14 submissions, due Monday the 20th, at 10pm GMT (5pm EST).

All the recent fiction I've been reading has been set in cities, or near cities. Perhaps this is because ~interesting things~ tend to happen in crowded places, along with a side helping of pollution and claustrophobia. But what about other places? After all, cities aren't everything. What about romantic comedies set in tundras, or murder mysteries set in jungles?

How do you choose settings? Would you be willing to consider odd places to set stories? Why or why not?

Current Mood: silly

pipisafoat

Reminder: the current topic can be found here and is due on Monday at 10 pm GMT/5 pm EST. Take up the challenge!

Research. It's something nearly every story needs, and certainly something for every novel. Cultural information. Science. Philosophy. It all depends on your characters and setting, but even an extreme fantasy story needs some basis in reality to be accessible to its readers. How do you do research? I know some people research everything they think they might need before they start writing. Others stop mid-sentence to look things up. Others mark the place where they need the information and come back to fill it in later, after they finish the chapter or story. Perhaps more useful to the rest of us, where do you like to look things up or who do you ask when you have questions? I know of a couple communities on LiveJournal geared towards helping writers with their research, but they're very slow and not active. Share your favorite sources!

pipisafoat

I'm the kind of person who has to name the things around me, the things I use a lot. I also tend to use names that, um, aren't exactly normal. For example, my old computer was named Kaidon. I have various externals & the like named things like Jzaenya, Kalenye, and Evyenic (though this one is, apparently, spelled with Greek letters. Did I mention I don't speak Greek?). However, most of the time when I'm writing original characters, I give them pretty run-of-the-mill names. Sammy, Jessica, Jake, Brian....

How do you name your characters? Strange or common names, after someone you know, research into the meaning behind the names?

(Also, don't forget about submissions for the current challenge contest.)

azuire

Don't forget this week's challenge contest: Delicate! All dialogue or no dialogue.
Editors, don't forget to catch up with any edits you may have.

It's the last week before NaNo so I thought we'd have a bit of a breather with this week's TnT. I've been rereading some of my favourite Philip K. Dick novels and recalled a phrase from a teacher while studying them -- that PKD's books made excellent films because they were simply written that way. There's some books that we can agree make horrible films, and others that seem made for the adaptations, and yet others that are more suitable as long-running television shows, such as A Song of Ice and Fire, and there's some books that should be left alone: House of Leaves might make a good film or mini-series, but I would honestly prefer it remained a book.

Do you think there is a "best" medium for a story? Is it possible for a story to cross into other mediums successfully? What about your own work?

Current Mood: busy
Current Music: harry potter soundtrack

azuire

hello folks! forgive the lateness of this TnT.

reminders: this week's topic.

I'm a pace writer. Well, I try to keep writing regularly, exercise my creative muscles (self-discipline!). A friend of mine doesn't work this way. Inspiration has to strike him. Sometimes I find myself giving advice to "inspiration" writers about pacing themselves to produce more work, and sometimes I find myself hanging around waiting for inspiration on what to write, but mostly, I try to be regular. Habits help me.

So, how do you work? Daily word count/pacing? Burst of inspiration? Or both? (bonus question! has anyone actually been able to keep to daily wordcount outside of nano?)

azuire

Reminders: This Week's Topic. Editors, if you haven't finished previous week's assignments, please do so! They can be found under the editing tag.

Today's TnT Open Thread was brought you by the lovely

thorarosebird.

Do you find yourself writing about certain things when you didn't mean to? Or find recurring themes you didn't put there intentionally?

mercredigirl

Good day, folks! November is almost upon us, and you know what that means – NaNoWriMo! (Or, for the less voluble, there is

picowrimo, though I haven’t seen it catch on in a big way.)

I have a confession to make: I’m not the most qualified to talk about NaNo. After all, I’ve never done it – never started, to say nothing of never won. I guess NaNo just isn’t my thing – I like to set my own pace, and deadlines kinda freak me out. And then there are the folks who are really, really keen on NaNo and start planning the next year’s by mid-December!

So there’s a whole range of approaches people take, even as the Internet hunkers down for another month of 50k+ wordspam.

What’s yours?

How do you cope with writing? How do you cope with not writing as the rest of the crowd goes wild? How do you write/how do you hide? What does NaNo mean to you: communal fun, self-imposed asceticism, a groan of ‘oh no, not again’? Or what?

Go on, tell us! ^^

On the housekeeping side, don’t forget to check out this week’s editing post and the week two topic!

azuire

Congratulations to

draigwen for sweeping the contest! :D

Reminders: Week 1 Topic and Editing Post!

I came across one of my old pieces which I wrote to Bach's Little Fugue in G Minor (Organ). I'm not usually inspired by music, because if it has words, it gets in the way of my writing. But occasionally there are songs that can inspire me, or help me with the process. My current obsession is with Death Cab for Cutie, I really want to write something set to "What Sarah Said".

Is music useful or hindering to you? Have you written pieces that are enhanced with music accompanying them? Share away!

Current Mood: excited
Current Music: little fugue in g minor (organ)

azuire

First of all, a warm welcome to all our new members! We're in the middle of our fortnightly contests right now, so please feel free to play FLOG or nose around while waiting. If you have any questions or concerns, just contact any of the mods :)

Secondly, Congratulations to

tefnut and

draigwen! You move ahead to week 2. Everyone else, please feel free to play FLOG!

Thirdly, reminders: Week 2 Topic and Editing Post!

I've just moved to a new place and there's a local writing group recruiting.

Now, I know they say writing is a solitary art and most of us have taken to the internet to share our work (case in point: this community), but I've never been part of a group that meets up every week or so to discuss writing, and I've rarely met another writer in person. I have to admit I'm curious.

What do you think of these writing circles? Any stories to share?

azuire

Reminders: This week's topic and editing post! Both are due this Saturday, so I hope everyone's on top of their game. (If not, best of luck!)

Remember, if you have suggestions for prompts or TnT topics, feel free to let the mods know :)

Some writers really like their thesauruses.

I mean really. I think it's fantastic to learn new words (cachinnate), or see a less used one pop up (defenestrate, vitriol), but when I have to stop reading and run for the dictionary, it becomes a nuisance (asseverate).

What do you think about Thesaurus Word of the Day? Should we dip into less-used words to write, or will everyday language suffice?

pipisafoat

Congratulations again to

pippin for winning the 4th contest!

Your topic for the first Challenge Contest, Tear Down The Wall, will be open until 5 pm GMT Saturday - stretch yourself into something new in 500 words or less!

Don't forget about your assignments, editors, which can be found at this link along with a question for the community as a whole.

One of the greatest challenges for an author is to write believable characters who are from a variety of backgrounds and not just a cookie cutter of themselves, or of the self you wish you were. Depending on the story, this can mean characters of a different time period, geographic location, culture, socioeconomic background, race, gender, or even height and weight - you wouldn't believe the number of people who fail to take into account that a 4'9" character simply can't reach the spices over the stove without a stool or someone else's help.

Think about all the character-fails you've seen. Don't share them except in the most general of terms, and don't link them to any specific author, but rather think about what knowledge you have that the author didn't that made you recognize them as fails. Share that knowledge here to help other authors do it right next time! If there's a type of character you've not seen enough of in other people's works in general, let us know about their characteristics and how to present them believably and without offense.

As always, please remember to keep a respectful tone here, to authors who have been misinformed as well as other community members sharing their insights with you.

pipisafoat

Congratulations to

pippin and

xandorius, our joint week 1 winners!

wellington, you weren't far behind - please feel free to play For Love Of the Game this week!

The week two topic can be found here - entries are due this Saturday at 5 pm GMT.

We also have some volunteer edits, if anyone has the time and inclination:

Poll #4183 Volunteer Edits

This poll is closed.
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 2

View Respondents

Just one needed for each. Thank you!

View Answers

draigwen - In-Depth
1 (50.0%)

greyen - In-Depth
1 (50.0%)

kylaye - In-Depth
0 (0.0%)

1stmate - Light
0 (0.0%)

Open floor for today's Tips & Tricks. How do you brainstorm? Do you share ideas with others? Do you have any ideas, especially for this week's topic, that you'd like to share?

Anything else you want to share? We're open :)

pipisafoat

Congratulations

kylaye for winning the third contest! And a special recognition note to

pippin for putting up such a good battle as well as coming in second with the topic "second" - that's just magic or something.

Don't forget to submit an entry for the 4th contest! Also, editors, keep on plugging with these edits, please!

For this week's Tips & Tricks, we're going to be playing some ~~nerd~~ word games. All of these are taken from the book Wordspinner by Sterling Eisiminger. Behind the cut for length, you'll find a matching game for clichés...

( Wordspinning Fun! )

azuire

Reminders: Editing Post and Week 2 Topic! :D

Last year's NaNoWriMo introduced me to Write Or Die, an incredibly useful program for getting up to a wordcount within time limits. For people like me, who are constantly distracted by other things on the internet, it was a lifesaver, even if it has annoying music. I also regularly write with paper and pen to avoid the aforesaid internet problem.

So, how do you combat distractions while writing? Share away! and remember, if you have ideas for a TnT discussion, feel free to PM us.

azuire

Reminders: Editing Post, and Week 2 Topic!

Hello everyone! Today we're having an open T&T thread, for book recommendations!

Each recommendation should give a brief summary of the book and why this book has earned a place as one of your favourites. A simple 'because I liked it' usually isn't enough to convince someone, so tell us why we should pick it up ourselves. :-)

I'll go first!

title: If on a winter's night a traveller
author: Italo Calvino
why: You are trying to read a book called If on a winter's night a traveller. As you venture further into the book, it comes apart at the seams: the walls between fiction and reality start to fade. Little mysteries in the plot come together (like how the titles of the chapters make up a coherent sentence). A definite must the next time you want an armchair adventure.

pipisafoat

Reminder: Week One entries are due Saturday at 5 pm GMT - blow the dust off that keyboard and get cracking!

I write both original and fanfiction. Usually, I only share fanfiction with other fans of the same show(s), but every now and then I write some fic for an unrelated writing contest like Inkstains. Even without that, I have some original characters who appear in more than one piece. There's always a fine line to walk with either of these situations, especially if you write in a more obscure fandom. Most people are going to at least recognize Harry Potter if you use him in a piece of fanfiction; they'll understand to expect magic. However, raise your hand if you would recognize Jake Foley. No hands up? Maybe one? It's a lot harder to bring a secret agent with nanobots in his body to people who have never seen the TV show Jake 2.0

How do you be sure your readers can relate to characters you're already familiar with?

As an added bonus, if you have a favorite original character of two, introduce us to them! Tell us about them and/or share your best piece with them in it.

pipisafoat

Hello, all! Don't forget about the week two topic, week one editing post, and runoff poll - this closes at 5 pm GMT (noon EST) today, so get your votes in!

If anyone has any ideas for a TnT or weekly topic, please let one of the mods know! We'd love to have your input.

One of the hardest things for me as a writer is feedback. I mean, I love a "nice job!" comment as much as anyone else, but it's not particularly helpful. What was nice? My characterization? Plot? Writing style and word choice? By the same note, a "that sucked lol" comment isn't too useful, either. I do like to know when someone doesn't enjoy something I write, but I'd also appreciate knowing why they didn't like it; if it's a clichéd plot or unrealistic characters, I could keep that in mind the next time I write, but if they're against the subject matter, I don't need to worry about it. And there are the pieces with difficult subject matter where readers appreciate the quality of writing but not the subject - how do you reply to that? My usual "Thanks for reading, glad you enjoyed" is useless here.

As a reader, it's also tough to give useful feedback. It's much easier as an editor, but when you're just a reader, you're never quite sure how much you can really say. It's all well and good to point out a typo, I feel, but to offer content criticism where it isn't welcome can get you into a right mess, even if it is concrit (constructive critique). On the other hand, if it is welcome and you don't offer it, you leave the author feeling the way I described in the first paragraph.

How do you decide what's acceptable to leave as feedback? If you receive vague comments or feedback that you feel criticizes your piece too harshly, how do you feel about it, and what do you do?

azuire

Hello everyone! Hope you're all getting a plethora of ideas for the Week 1 Topic! Meanwhile, it's Tuesday, and here's another TNT column! Remember, if you have an idea for a discussion, feel free to PM it to us!

Allons-y!

My favourite parts of the writing process are:
a) characterisation. I enjoy giving each character the breath of life, so to speak. Learning strange things about them: how they react under pressure, what their favourite colour is, and if they're prone to putting ketchup on bananas. One of the first questions I ask a character is, 'If you're in a dark alley and someone attacks you, what do you do?'
b) endings. I love that satisfying feeling of finishing a work: I have so many half-baked ones lying around. Especially if it's a long work, that I forgot about and came back to.

So, what are your favourite parts of the writing process? And what are your least favourites, if any?

Share away :-)

azuire

Good evening everyone (at least, it's evening where I am). Hope you're all well. Welcome to the first Tips and Tricks column! All future entries will be searchable by the "tips and tricks" tag. Members, if you have an idea for a TNT discussion, feel free to PM it to us!

Allons-y!

I like to scribble. My current notebook has several pages that go on in messy longhand. When I was younger, I had my own typewriter and used that to hammer out my work. But to share writing on the internet, I have to type it on my computer, and for this I use OpenOffice: it has very convenient folders. I sometimes use WordPad if I'm in a hurry. I don't like Microsoft Word because it continually eats my work (and corrects my spelling). Recently a friend of mine bought Liquid Story Binder, and I saw another explaining how to use yWriter. Both seem very satisfied with their respective writing programs. So, what do you think about these programs? Which one(s) do you use? And where do you prefer to write, in notebooks, or on keyboards?

Share away :-)

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by writers, for writers.

TnT: the mountains are blocking the view

TnT: Researching

TnT: Naming Characters

tnt: don't judge a book by its movie

tnt: wordcoooounts.

tnt: what do you mean it's symbolic

TnT: November Hell (AKA NaNo)

tnt: feeling groovy.

TnT: writing circles.

tnt: thesaurus

TnT: Varied Characterization

Results & TnT - Brainstorming

Poll Results & TnT - Wordspinner Game

tnt: write or die

tnt: recommendations!

Tips & Tricks: Character Accessibility

Tips & Tricks: Feedback

TNT2: the process

TNT 1: Notebooks galore

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November 2012

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