#also if you see any typos in the expanded section no you didn’t I didn’t proofread so go with god ig | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

blueprint-han · 3 years

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[Image ID: A black picture with the title “HOW TO SUPPORT FANFICTION AUTHORS” written in bold caps lock, colored with a winter forest picture. End ID.]

Well, this post has been made countless times, but I’m making one too because I’ve seen a lot of people say they’re new to tumblr and don’t know the whole “reblogging is better than liking” rule and other stuff. So without any further ado, here are ways YOU can support the fanfiction authors. Now keep in mind this applies to almost every author out there, not just the stayblr fandom, so if you’re a silent reader (or even if you aren’t), I advise you go through this post. Warning, this is a fairly long post going into detail, so yeah. I still expect you, the readers to read this, and if you’re a writer, feel free to lmk if i’ve written smth wrong or if you want me to add something! ^^

In this post I’ll go into thorough analysis of the pros and cons of each of the methods listed here and how YOU as a reader can show the authors whose fics you read more love and motivate them to produce content.

WARNING; LONG POST! GOES INTO A DECENT AMOUNT OF DETAIL. NOT EDITED, EXCUSE ANY TYPOS.

#1 : LIKING !

I think this is basic common knowledge, and a lot of people tend to do this. When you like the post, the author sees it, you see it, and if the author has their liked posts accessible (which majority of the time they don’t), and if someone deliberately goes to check it, then they see it. See why so many authors say just liking does nothing? Only liking says “Hey, I’m gonna tell you your story is not that good by simply liking it and not sharing it with other people. :D”

♯ PROS:

You’re telling the author that you've read their fic, and either you’ve enjoyed it to a certain extent, or you’re just saving it to read for later.

Likes are seen by you, the author and anyone who has access to your likes (which, most people don’t).

♯ CONS:

If you ONLY like, you’re not really helping the author’s work reach a wide audience because this site isn’t Instagram. Reblogging is the only way people can SEE our works. I’ll cover more on that in the next section.

In a nutshell, liking is good! But you should most likely use it in a combination with the other stuff I’ve listed below, because just the like itself doesn’t really do much in giving the author any feedback or interaction on their fics.

To clear shit up; I’m not talking about those people who don’t read the story or appreciate it in the first place. I’m talking about those who appreciate the fic, like it, but don’t leave any sort of feedback to show that.

#2 : REBLOGGING !

This is SO, SO important. I cannot stress on this enough. Let me explain WHY so many writers stress on reblogging content:

Tumblr’s tag system is inherently fucked up, and has grown more so over the year. I’m not kidding, at first, the fic either used to show up in the tags or it didn’t, but now, sometimes your fic can be REMOVED from the tags because of,,, idk tumblr tag shit. Anyways, as you can see, it’s very demotivating for authors at that point, because the major way for people to find their content and expand their blogs has been blocked.

Due to this reason, tumblr authors need to RELY on you, their followers to help spread their works to a wider audience. Now again, before you get me wrong, I’m not saying you ae forced to rb our works regardless of whether you like them or not. BUT, that being said, if you DO infact like the story, there’s no harm in reblogging, right? By doing this you’re indirectly telling the author — “hey! :D I liked your fic! Which is why I am gonna share it to my followers so they can read it too :D” Trust me, you’re doing nothing but helping the people who produce content for you to read. Seems like a worthy cause to hit the reblog button, right? It’s only a one, or maximum two step procedure.

Leave tags in your reblogs! Trust me, as an author myself and as much as I know from all my author friends, we oft check the tags of your reblogs to see if you found any part amazing or even if you have anything to say about the writing we put so much hard work into. Even a key smash or a “This was so [insert adjective] 🥺” is enough to leave a smile on your authors face.

♯ PROS :

You’re !! Sharing !! Your authors !! Works !! This leads to them getting more recognition, so for the content they’re so graciously providing for free, you’re promoting their blog and helping them expand it.

If the tags are being a shit, which majority of the time they are, then you’re literally making an author’s day by reblogging! You’re showing them that you, a follower and appreciator of their works are willingly sharing their content because it deserves to be seen by more people. Again before any dumb people decide to attack me, i am talking about people who like the fic but don't bother reblogging and are silent/ghost readers. I am not forcing anyone to read anybody’s work.

YOU’RE MAKING YOUR AUTHOR SO HAPPY WHAT MORE REASONS COULD YOU POSSIBLY WANT !! 🥺

♯ CONS :

Literally none, because as far as I remember no author is against reblogging of their works. It’s quite literally the way this platform functions. Reblogging is IMPORTANT.

#3 : COMMENTING/SENDING FEEDBACK !

This kind of overlaps with the previous section, but THIS IS SUCH AN IMPORTANT STEP !! When you leave feedback, you are directly giving the author something so much more valuable to them than high follower/note counts or money. Your feedback is literally our serotonin. I kid you not the number of times I’ve received a positive comment and smiled and it has made my day. There’s a reason youtubers (though not the best example, bear with me here because it was the only one I could think of) ask people to subscribe, like and COMMENT. The subscription is like a follow, the like is ofc like a heart, and the comment is equivalent to an rb with comments in the tags.

You might argue and tell me that a comment is basically like an ask so the reblogging step isn’t necessary, but I’m sure 99% of you use YouTube and you know that more comments leads to people’s videos boosted in the stream/trending charts. This is what reblogging does. Reblogging shares the piece with other people like minded, which leads to a boost in reads. You are literally helping your author grow.

It’s quite literally the same thing as youtubers. Youtubers NEED validation to keep their content creation going, so do writers, so do other ccs on this site. This post is however, focused on WRITERS, so keep that in mind.

♯ PROS :

By doing this, you’re giving author valuable feedback! It’s similar to what you do in rbing with tags. Interactivity with their fics boosts their note counts and helps expand their audience, so srsly, now think of it: your one comment is playing such a massive role to help ccs create more content.

Imagine how much of a difference the note counts will be in when every person who simply likes after reading the fic, reblogs, leaves a comment and sends an ask. the note counts would be high on each and every fic, which is validation in itself, but your comments would inspire the writer so much more! Please, don’t skip the commenting part. Even a simple one like: “this is so cute!” is wonderful.

♯ CONS :

Remember, if you’re gonna give constructive criticism (which I’m sure you all are smart enough to know if different from hate), make sure the author is okay with it. Authors need to be in a specific mindset and must be ready to accept criticism, so if you’re gonna give constructive criticism to them when they’re at a low point, it may demotivate them.

Just commenting, instead of reblogging and commenting in the tags/ reblogging and then leaving an ask in their inbox, while it gives validation in plenty, will not lead to the author’s work being spread. Therefore I suggest either reblogging and commenting in the tags or reblog and then leave an ask, or comment under the fic!

!! reminder; I am not saying that if you don’t rb and just leave feedback, your feedback has no value. We authors truly appreciate every bit of feedback, but this post is aimed to help you learn how to interact with and support authors, and make them feel more motivated, because the current scenario of liking and scrolling is taking a toll on their creative abilities. Take it from a person who’s been writing for a year.

#4 : COMMSIONING VIA THEIR KO-FI/OTHER APPS !

Before any of you attack me, let me tell you that this is not a step that is 100% necessary to do. ONLY donate if you can and if you genuinely want to, and if anyone is forcing you to pay for something against your will, you need to get yourself out of there.

Regardless, if an author has a kofi and you’re able to and you want to donate, you definitely should! It’s also a valid form of support.

#5 : ADDING THEM ON REC LISTS/ RECOMMENDING THEM TO REC BLOGS

This is such an underrated option, to be honest. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve seen my fic was recommended onto some rec list and it’s made me smile so hard. If you like some fics, create a rec list! They’re oft very popular amongst the fans too. Making rec posts is such a great way to share your favorite stories with others.

Rec blogs! I’ve seen a couple going around, and needless to say they are a great way to get someone else to read your favorite author’s work whilst also giving them your own feedback. These blogs oft accept recs via a form or ask box, and they leave your feedback along with their own, or else they’ll oft tag the author in the feedback post, so look! You’re basically helping your author share their fic to many more people, because you’ve given them feedback and a reblog.

♯ PROS :

Validation! Feedback! Reblogs! More exposure! Helping a blog grow! Spreading love! basically a run down of the stuff I’ve said before!

♯ CONS :

Literally no con of this. Unless, a one in a million case, this author says they don’t like receiving feedback/being tagged, and I’m sure NO person has said this before, at least none that I’ve heard of.

#6 : FINAL COMMENTS; MISC !

When an author points out about how the interactivity is drastically reducing, don’t just give them blind apologies. Yes, you feel sorry for not interacting as much, we understand, but rather show that you’ll become a better content consumer through your actions. We need to see that we’re not just throwing words into a void and that people are actually trying to be better content consumers.

Understand the fact that authors don’t get paid for this, and 99% of the time, these authors don’t take commissions either. They’re giving you novel worthy writings for free. Take Percy Jackson: You think the author would have felt motivated to write the subsequent parts, let alone two whole series based off of it if literally no one showed that they were interested? Rick Riordan has sales, he is being paid, there are millions of people and big agencies who provide him feedback. Now take that huge amount and simmer it down to an audience of maybe 10000 people This is what fanfic authors want. They don’t want your money, nor are they telling you to risk your lives for them. All they want is, a reblog, some tags, some feedback, some INTERACTIVITY. A sign that they aren’t throwing fics into the void and that people actually like them, some motivation to continue. Seems fairly easy to throw an rb with some tags, right?

Don’t bother to tell me that we do this for ourselves and we shouldn’t ask for likes and reblogs and feedback, because 1) you are consuming the content that we “write for ourselves” and 2) writers post their content here for interactivity and feedback. We could just not post and write and save our fics in our dungeon drafts for years. But we choose to post to entertain the readers, the consumers. And we aren’t even asking that much in return.

Don’t give me the whole “I’m scared that authors feel that comments are annoying” excuse either because seriously this has been DEBUNKED SO MANY TIMES. Istg, in the nicest way possible, if you still think writers are annoyed by interaction and feedback, after so many posts, long rants have been posted as to how we’re not, then you must truly be living under a rock. There, I said it. Please stop thinking this way, I’ll say it again, AUTHORS ARE NOT ANNOYED OF FEEDBACK, COMMENTS, TAGS, REBLOGS. WE LOVE IT. Saying this is like saying that the audience in a theatre play shouldn’t clap when the play ends because the actors would find it noisy. 🤡

I’ve seen some people saying they have anxiety issues and such, so pls note that I’m not invalidating your condition. If you’re trying to be more interactive, I really appreciate it! If you can’t, that’s fine too. You’re trying.

But for the people who have no reason other than feeling lazy to rb and comment, your lack of interactiveness is not excused. Please. Tumblr is a reblogging site. If you’re gonna consume content like authors are some sort of machines, I encourage you to go get some more perspective.

This site is not Instagram or the satan bird app. Your likes are appreciated but frankly speaking, they do nothing to the author except tell them “Hey i read ur fic but i'm not gonna support u :D” and honestly, that is detrimental to their creative capabilities and mental health.

DON’T FOLLOW AN ACC JUST TO MINDLESS RB THEIR SIGNAL BOOST POSTS AND THEIR REBLOGS OF GIFS AND NOT INTERACT WITH THEIR WRITING AT ALL ! Trust me, authors prefer a lower amount of interactive followers than a high count that doesn’t even give them any feedback. Again your follows are appreciated, but when you’re following, you know the type of content the author creates, so the author expects that the more followers, the more interactivity. These days, this is just becoming the opposite. So don’t do it! If you’re gonna follow to read, interact with their works. I promise, this will make both you and the author happy. A win-win situation.

In conclusion: SUPPORT YOUR FUCKING AUTHORS! THEY ARE NOT MACHINES THAT HAVE NO FEELINGS TO PRODUCE CONTENT FOR YOU! FICS TAKE DAYS AND DAYS OF PLANNING, PLOTTING, OUTLINING, WRITING, EDITING, MAKING TEASERS. SO JUST SHOW THEM YOU APPRECIATE THEM WITH AN RB. IT’S THE L E A S T YOU CAN DO.

I will be liking this post here written by the lovely @chaninfused and @scriptura-delirus . Please take time to read it because if you weren’t convinced by my arguments, you will see how much frustration we as writers face on a daily basis. Please, just show support. Here is the post by @stayndays about how to get more people to read your work, because it also has a note on reblogging. Please educate yourself, and put an end to this mindless consuming culutre and bring up some interactivity.

If you’ve read this far, I want you to go to two of your favorite authors and leave some feedback in their inbox, and tag me in it (either tag me yourself or ask the author to do so, they won’t mind). Show your writers that our words are taking effect and you are becoming better consumers. I mean it. I’m serious. I want every single one who reads this post to do this. besides valid reasons, if you’re lazy to do this, you’re a part of the problem. PLEASE get more perspective.

Also, feel free to add to this post! I’d love to read your thoughts too, remember to be kind though. And, if I think your rb is somehow contradicting my points and is bringing down the reason I made this post, I will politely ask you to delete your comment, because this post is about being truthful about the harsh reality of tumblr consumers and how we can change it. I’m sure none of you will let it get to that point, though. <3 love you guys. 💓

And, just a reminder, don’t just blindly like this too. Do what I said before, and while I am not forcing you, I’d appreciate your reblog, because seriously, it took me 3 whole days to write this, plus, I’m sure this will help more of your followers understand the fault in consumer culture. haha, that’s it! This post was way too long uff.

also, this is ur cue to not be stupid in my inbox. You have something to say? Think I worded smth wrongly? I’m sure it wasn’t my intention to do so, point it out with manners.

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bettsfic · 5 years

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hey betts! can you give us any insight into your new drafting process (the one you mentioned on Twitter?) those results have me green with envy

sure! this is going to be a fairly quick run-down because i have to start planning my classes here soon.

(anon is referring to this tweet)

required reading

shitty first drafts by anne lamott, which is where i modified my process from

on fear by mary ruefle, which talks about procedure and i may have taken the wrong meaning from the essay but basically, my entire process is about mitigating the fear innate in writers’ block by having a procedure in place to counteract it

tools

google docs (or some other word processor)

google calendar (or some other calendar app; i wrote about my scheduling process here)

toggl (or some other timekeeping app)

airtable (i’ve also used trello, but i like airtable better. ps big thanks to @electricalice for introducing me to it! it’s a lifesaver)

pre-writing

so first you need an idea. whenever i have an idea, even if there’s 0 chance i’ll end up writing it, i add it to my airtable, plus any notes or details i come up with. i also copy and paste any text convos i have about the fic, like if i headcanon something with a friend. (i used trello for this until recently; it works just fine and is a bit easier to use. airtable also has a kanban function though, along with other formats, so it’s a bit more flexible)

airtable is a project management spreadsheet software. i’m sure there are others out there, but i started fiddling with this one and haven’t looked back. it takes a little while to figure out, and you might have to google some things you want it to do that aren’t terribly intuitive.

my fanfic table, filtered by ideas, looks like this:

(you may have to expand to look at it, also note that the pretty colors are a Pro feature of the app and i’m still on my trial)

the idea here is to have space to store my ideas. let’s say i hang out with a friend and we started talking about fic, and i bring up i have an idea for a endgame coda but i’m not really sure where to take it, so we start headcanoning back and forth, and now i have a few scene ideas. i made my endgame coda card already right after i saw the movie, so all i have to do is open the app and jot down the main points of my headcanoning. now when i go home and start working on it, i can easily pull up our brainstorming session.

narrative outlining

i have never been an outliner or a planner. i’ve always been a pantser. i have a premise and i run with it, and that worked for me for a long time. pantsing has a lot of benefits: your story always surprises you! you can get really immersed! it’s certainly the more whimsical writing process.

but what i found was that i would often write myself into a corner, or lose steam once i realized what should have been a 10k fic was actually going to be 80k and i didn’t like the story enough to sit with it for 80k. i also spent a long time thinking about future scenes and writing them down but losing them later, or forgetting about them.

so i started doing narrative outlines, which are just me going “and then THIS happens” repeatedly and sometimes inputting “and something causes this other thing” until eventually i have the whole story written out. the goal of the narrative outline is pacing. all you have to do is get the major beats down. it doesn’t have to be good. no one is going to see it (unless you want them to).

ideally my paragraphs will be all around the same size. those are going to become my chapters. if a paragraph is significantly shorter than another, it’s likely that i don’t have that beat fleshed out yet. i call chapters “beats” because to me, each one should have its own arc, and end at a high or low point in the story.

in my fanfic airtable, i have a table for chapters. all chapters of all multi-chap wips go here, and i can filter out ones that are complete later.

the beauty of the chapters table is that it can connect to your ideas/wip table and vice versa so everything is kept together. i had 7 paragraphs in my narrative outline so i made 7 rows.

notice i also gave myself a due date. i don’t really like due dates, but i’m trying them on for now and seeing how it goes.

i copy and paste the chapter paragraph as i go into the “summary” field. then, as scene or line ideas come to me, i toss them in the “scenes/lines” field. I was in a car for 8 hours and coming up with scenes all over the place, and i needed somewhere to put them. if i didn’t know where they went, i put them in my idea table instead, and filed them later.

you’re still idea-ing, you’re still outlining, but now it’s time to write.

gauge

i make a folder for the fic and open a doc and label it ch1. then i copy and paste the narrative outline paragraph into the doc and separate it out by scene with an asterisk between each one.

here’s where the timesheet and calendar come in. i have a reminder on my calendar to schedule the following day, and on that schedule i put my writing time. when it’s time to write, i start the toggl clock. at the end of each week, i put in my time in my personal timesheet.

the first chapter or 10% of anything i’m writing tends to take longer than the rest, because i need to get into the story, and choose the voice and tense and tone and things like that. so i take however long i take to make what i call a gauge. in knitting, a gauge is the thing that determines the size of the piece. if you’re knitting a sweater, you knit a little square to make sure the sweater comes out the size you need it to be.

so i write the gauge and it takes however long it takes. sometimes i rewrite it a few times, test out POVs and tenses and description and whatever else. what i like best, what seems the most sustainable, is what i choose. i wrote 3 chapters of a novel in present tense and a childish tone before i decided it needed to be first person reflective and i rewrote the whole thing.

don’t get frustrated with yourself if your gauge doesn’t work. that’s what the gauge is for. you’ll know you’ve chosen the right voice if, by the end of your gauge, you’re really eager to keep writing.

down draft & punch list

so now you’ve got a pretty gauge to follow, and the rest is going to be an absolute mess. the down draft is exactly what it sounds like – you get the idea down. i personally believe you need to tell the story to yourself a few times in order to get good at telling the story, or to know what the story is. you’ve told yourself the story once in outline form, and now you’re just breaking out the scenes a little bit more.

the key to the down draft is not to self-edit. i’m not talking about going back and tweaking typos and shit, that’s fine, whatever. i mean doubting yourself structurally. like, oh shit, you forgot to mention that they took off their clothes and now they’re naked.

here’s where the punch list comes in, which is yet another table. (i’ve also used google tasks for this, because it pops up in a side window. either works!) a punch list is a to do list. instead of fixing things, you put the thing on your punch list and save it for the next draft. a down draft is all about speed and figuring out where all the pieces go. revising during the down draft only slows you down.

the punch list is my solution to the contrived advice “you can fix it later!” to which i always say, “BUT I WON’T REMEMBER TO FIX IT LATER I HAVE TO FIX IT NOW.” as soon as you think of something to fix, put it on the table. it may seem like it’s faster to fix things as you go. it is not. i promise.

this is all my punch list notes for all fics, which i then connect to my other tables/filter as needed. put everything in your punch list. it’s better to make a punch list item that you don’t end up implementing than forget an important revision note. if you end up putting the project down for a while, you’ll want to know what you’d intended.

up draft

in the up draft, you clean up the down draft. here, i take each document in a new window, put it on the right half of the screen, and open a new document to put on the left.

then i rewrite the whole fucking thing. i pull up my punch list and fix all the things as i go, to the best of my ability. here’s where the writing gets pretty and fleshed out. but still, it doesn’t need to be perfect. you have more revisions to go. it’s important to remember during this entire process that everything can be changed. nothing is permanent. you’re not writing in stone. there’s no cost to words or documents, so you can revise as much as you want.

it’s also worth noting that the longer your project, the more sectioned out your story will be. sometimes you’ll have a chapter on a down draft and another chapter on an up draft. sometimes you might down draft out of order just to make sure you get your ideas down when they occur. whatever works for you. the idea is that you’re constantly building spaces in which to put your stuff that can be easily found and implemented. the creative process is messy, so you need to make clean spaces to put the mess in.

while you’re up-drafting, you’re still idea-ing and outlining and down-drafting and punch-listing. maybe you don’t have the answer to a problem yet, but you might later. decision fatigue in the creative process is real. this process is designed to mitigate decision fatigue. there are only ever so many decisions to make at once when you expand out your process like this one.

and sometimes, sadly, the solution to a problem never happen. that’s okay. what you write might be flawed. in fact it should be flawed. flaws are what make things beautiful. all you can do is the best you can do, and if it’s not good enough for your tastes, you can learn from your mistakes and try again.

beta

sometimes i have a beta and sometimes i don’t, depending on how confident i am about the work. when i have a beta, this is the stage i send them my stuff. sometimes i tell them specific things i’m looking for, like just line edits, or cheerleading, or whatever else. sometimes i have questions about whether or not something is working. i tell them what date i intend to post and when i would like edits to be done by, and if they don’t get around to it, that’s okay. i can just hustle a little harder in the next revision.

dental draft

here’s where, per anne lamott, you check every tooth. i implement my remaining punch list items and beta feedback, fix pacing issues, typos, unclear sentences, etc. sometimes i do the side-by-side window thing for chapters that are particularly messy, and sometimes i just fix the existing doc. by now your story should be looking pretty good, or the best you can get it.

final read-through :) or additional revisions :(

for fic, this is the point where i hit it and hope. i copy and paste the chapter/fic into an ao3 shell with the tags and summary i’ve kept in my airtable, and do a final readthrough. i don’t do it in the original doc because seeing it in a new font and format usually makes me notice things i’d missed before.

for ofic, here’s where you might need more feedback and more revising if your piece isn’t working yet, or if you’ve submitted it a couple dozen places and haven’t had it accepted. while this process is thorough, sometimes pieces still aren’t working for whatever reason. don’t throw anything away, though. keep it, file it, log it in your airtable, and maybe one day while you’re driving an idea will pop into your head and you’ll be able to come back to it.

this was a really really quick run-down of an extremely long and complicated process, but it works for me! i probably wouldn’t have been able to do this even a year ago. it’s taken me a long time to cultivate this kind of discipline, and i’m still a work in progress. so if it’s too much or too structured for you, that’s fine. maybe you can take one or two things for yourself and try them out.

#writing advice #process #Anonymous

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unrestedjade · 4 years

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fic writing ask! 6, 9, 10, 14, 18

6. Favourite pairing (of food + distraction to procrastinate on writing)?

This time of year, I'm partial to bing cherries and doomscrolling Twitter. Twitter really isn't much fun but it IS compelling.

9. Choose: losing a thought-out tumblr post OR leaving a fic up on AO3 for 24hrs with a very embarrassing typo?

I'd rather weather the embarrassing typo. I usually have at least one, anyway. My fics are growers, not showers, so one day means maybe three people will see it.

10. If your favourite author found your fics, how loudly would you scream in horror (in decibels)?

Train horns are about what? 170 dB?

14. If you could take one word and publicly shame it for having inadequate synonyms, which would you choose?

Not so much the word, but the general vibe of the *action* of shrugging needs more synonyms. Or I just need to let go of my obsession with forced nonchalance, but that's unlikely to happen. *shrug*

18. Provide a summary of the hellscape that is your creative process from idea to publish?

Just follow these simple steps! 1. Flash of painfully specific dialog/vignette while I'm doing something else and cannot write it down. 2. Maladaptive daydreaming about said specific thing until I can get to my computer. (This part is very nice.) 3. When I get to the computer, under NO circumstances write down the thing, or even open the word processor. Mess around with playlists and games instead. 4. 3-5 more business days of daydreaming, now with alternate routes and/or an expansion at both ends of the specific thing. (This part is also very nice.) 5. Finally vomit up anywhere from 50 to 2000 words of exploratory drafting at 11:36 PM on a work night. (Either nice or extremely psychically painful.) 6. Crap, this is nothing like what's playing on repeat in my head. 7. Open a new document and make about five half-hearted bullet points that I'm definitely going to expand into a real outline this time; I've learned my lesson for sure. 8. Never, under any circumstances, look at those bullet points ever again. 9. Or make the outline. 10. Start something totally unrelated. This will help, somehow. 11. Come back to the original thing two weeks later, pick up in either a later or earlier section under the delusion that writing out of sequence will help. 12. Nope. It didn't. Just like every other time I've tried that. 13. Write paragraphs of utter crap until I stumble backwards into an idea that gets me unstuck. 14. Continue until I get stuck again. 15. Start another unrelated project to avoid this one. (Repeat up to 15x.) 16. Write another 3k of the original thing in a haze of my own genius. 17. This sucks and I'm a fraud and a charlatan and it's a good thing I have a day job because yikes. 18. Force myself to read over the draft, decide it's not actually that bad. 19. Make a few revisions. Now it's amazing! 20. Let it sit untouched in Scrivener until I hate it again. I picked at it too much; now it's overwrought and ruined. 21. Revise again. 22. Beta? Actually, they're really busy. I shouldn't be a bother. I don't even want to post this thing in all honesty. It's self-indulgent crap. 23. Read it again in two weeks. You know, really, it's not THAT bad. More revisions. 24. Fuck it, it's not like I'm querying Random House or something. 25. Think about posting for another 5-10 business days, but don't. 26. Spend fifteen minutes fixing all the formatting that got fucked between 4tw.com to Scrivener to AO3. 27. Finally post at one in the morning, weeks to months after I started writing. 28. Wake up to at least five typos and misspellings I somehow didn't notice between then and now. 29. Oh! What a nice comment! Maybe this was actually okay? I should reply to this very cool person. 30. Forget to do that for three weeks at least. 31. Have an idea for a continuation of the Thing or a completely random new idea that literally no one but me will care about. 32. Go to 1.

ALTERNATELY: 1. Get fish-slapped by a scenario I absolutely MUST read but it isn't anywhere. 2. Fuck it, I'll feed myself. 3. Write 10-20k over one weekend and screw up my back from sitting weird for too long. 4. Three months later, maybe post some of it. Read it to myself and chortle with glee ten times over that span.

There is no in between. And this is why I don't post very fast! It's a sickness.

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paramourparty · 4 years

Note

I’ve been debating getting into writing, can I ask what your writing method is? I saw you don’t have a beta and you also mentioned that you’re working on a re-write for the next chapter?

OF COURSE YOU CAN ASK, but whether my answer is helpful we’ll have to see 😅😂

TL;DR : no wrong way of writing. practice. I use outlines but don’t always follow them. I have no beta but will gladly accept any help. I’m a mess when it comes to writing but let’s be honest?? Who isn’t???

First thing to note, there’s no one right way to writing. Whatever works best for you will be your way. It might take some time to figure out what works but this leads to note number 2

PRACTICE. Write a lot. It doesn’t have to be good. Just write write write. The more you write the easier it sometimes gets. Especially when you find yourself on a good momentum, try to keep that up as long as you can.

In regards to my writing method, I’ve recently started working with outlines. It helps me keep track of the basic points I know I want to hit. And while I have all my chapters “planned out” some times it doesn’t go to plan at all.

Using my Home Again fanfic outline as an example, the first 3 chapters had two outlines because before I started posting/in the brainstorming stage, I had two different routes my fic could take. I ended up going with my second option.

A lot of my chapter outlines (full of typos I’m so sorry) are usually a list of scenes/dialogue I want to write. Sometimes I think about this on my breaks at work and I add it to this document. Once I start writing the actual chapter, I start highlighting the things I finished in green, and the stuff that didn’t end up in the chapter in red.

I don’t scrap the red parts completely only because some of the dialogue or the scene gets moved to another chapter (especially if I really like it).

As you can see in this next screen cap, my chapter 5 outline ended up being mostly red. Only because this red section is all dialogue that didn’t end up in the scene. It just didn’t fit with the mood chapter 5 ended up with so I moved it.

Sooo if you go the outline route, don’t feel disheartened if you don’t end up following it. LISTEN TO YOUR INSTINCTS. It knows something is up and when I tried to force that whole red dialogue in, it just didn’t feel right.

I mostly don’t have a beta, because I don’t know where to find one 🤣 if anyone is willing to help me with my poor grammar please hit me up.

But how I tend to write my chapters is a first rough draft. And then a complete rewrite as I review it. I do this because on the rewrite is when I’ll add all the description/emotion stuff. I forget it otherwise 🤣 i find it so hard to write. I plot mostly in dialogue tbh than anything else.

My draft will be full of sections that say [add description here] and then highlighted in yellow. Or it’ll be something like [expand this scene] because I got impatient and I wanted to write a different scene that my brain couldn’t ignore. (I don’t always write linearly, especially for this fic, since most of my scenes are separated by date). Am I making any sense?

Anyway. I hope this ramble was a little helpful??

#writing #personal #Paramour Party #my fic - home again #asks

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kyotakumrau · 5 years

Text

MIND-V vol.13 sukekiyo interview

to infinity

sukekiyo = a super talented group led by Kyo from DIR EN GREY will release a new audio and video collection ‘INFINITUM’.

As at the time of the interview for our magazine they were just finishing the work on the new material, we would like to deliver you the words of the 5 members who will tell you about the real image of the band at the moment as we will touch upon the outline of new work.

We would like to let you feel through this interview the atmosphere perfectly overflowing with the creativity of sukekiyo - that functions purely as a band, not as a unit or a project.

original text: Yousuke Hayakawa

photos: Takao Ogata

hair and make up: Jun Yamaguchi (EKYQ)

translation: kyotaku

(if you notice any mistakes, typos and so on please let me know 😅)

I wonder if it will become an album that doesn’t get old, place where you want to find yourself again when requiring stimuli.

－ Having in mind that at present your new audio and video collection 'INFINITUM’ is in the production stage (*interview took place mid March), I’d like to discuss the latest band image. In an earlier interview you have said that 'in case of sukekiyo, we start from breaking first’, how about this time?

Kyo: This time as well there were songs like that. For example the case of 'アナタヨリウエ -anata yori ue-’, we were doing a cover of 'Gerbera’ for MUCC’s tribute album, we have removed MUCC’s component and remade the song in our own colour at the time. I don’t think you will get that from listening, but originally the start was there.

－ It’s a song that shows sukekiyo’s peculiarity!

YUCHI: But it’s not like we’re flipping tables in anger (laughing), I think that’s the idea as well, that this band can try and rewrite the structure of the song to such extend.

－ sukekiyo members need to have really great adapting skills. You have to feel fine even when being driven into a sadistic situation.

Takumi: Yeah, it’s all very sadistic (laughing).

Kyo: Everyone in sukekiyo is pretty flexible so it’s not like everything has to be done certain way. That’s why I think the experimentation is greater this time, having songs like '沙羅螺 -sharara-’ from when we just formed and we didn’t question any ideas (everything was okay).

Takumi: 'kisses’ is a song that we were coerced to start playing live and it was also coercibly completed (laughing).

YUCHI: It was a song that we didn’t even touch during the rehearsal, but we played it on the first day, right?

Kyo: While we were on the move [to the venue] I was listening to our songs and the demo version came on, and I ended up coercing them 'this song is good. Can’t we do it?’

－ As I thought, [in sukekiyo] you have to be tough to survive (laughing).

Kyo: It was the first time I wrote the song composition down and sang while looking at it during the performance. When the intro started 'oh, A melody here’ and so on.

Mika: At the rehearsal just before the concert I made very simple notes [about tempo] like '4’ or '8’.

utA: Aah, yeah I saw that! Things like that tend to stop later during the tour, but many interesting ideas come like that.

Takumi: A way too 'early’ premiere (laughing).

－ How would you describe your new work?

Kyo: I’m hoping it will become an album that doesn’t get old. That there’s nothing quite like that… something that’s hard to classify as one genre, something that doesn’t get old, something you can’t plan to create. Something where you want to find yourself again when requiring stimuli.

－ When you create high quality music or concerts it wouldn’t be surprising if there were some disagreements during the creative process, but in case of sukekiyo I don’t think there is a negative tense feeling.

Kyo: Even when when something totally different comes up the reaction is 'I see, there’s a view like this as well’… everyone is mature so while taking in the good parts we try 'why not inserting this too?’, there is no fighting.

YUCHI: That’s why there’s no strange reservation. Enjoying our own version like 'it’s okay, let’s do it’ we’re able to create daring arrangements. We’re always sharing the stimulus/excitement.

Mika: Yeah. When first submitting songs there’s always element of surprise, and when we make arrangements it’s like mysterious cosmos/space…

－ Cosmos!

Mika: Yup (laughing). When we are exchanging data files, sounds and their sections start to appear during brushing up work. I’d think 'woah… it has an incredible space/vibe’.

Kyo: It has, hasn’t it.

YUCHI: It will just suddenly appear.

Mika: It turns out very cool, makes you like it.

Kyo: Even now there are many times when I get surprised 'woah something like that came out?!’. It’s… it’s like when playing shogi (Japanese chess) - 'where should I move next?’

Mika: It’s like deciding the next move. But instead going sideways (laughing).

Takumi: Like 'woah, going there!?’

Kyo: And like 'huh, so going there is the only option’ (laughing).

utA: That is exactly what it is like.

－ Quite a thrilling offence and defense (laughing).

Kyo: True. And recently subtracting is quite hard.

Mika: Basically, we just want to add more instead.

Kyo: Suddenly I’d notice that there are too many sounds and I’d try to listen objectively like 'this shout is unnecessary’; the last work to remove [sound/parts] is unexpectedly tough.

－ It is unheard of that you would run out of ideas. Kyo, do you feel the weight of responsibility coming from the position of the leader?

Kyo: Nope, I don’t think I’m the leader. I’m leaving that role to Takumi (laughing).

Takumi: (laughing) but I only [take charge] of the production details.

Kyo: I just expand my antenna (to collect info/data), absorb various things and present it to everyone, I want the world to know more about each good part… I have more of a promotional role.

－ A promotional role! But at the same time there’s also a position of the producer.

Kyo: A producer… maybe a half-baked producer.

Everyone: Hahahaha!

Kyo: I just make suggestions through images like 'could we veil in more emotion here?’.

Takumi: I find it helpful that we get words like those as a hint on a regular basis. Then, upon members digesting it, we can bring good side from Kyo and have sukekiyo do something new. Also, I think that the points we were strangely self-conscious about at the time of band’s formation are gone. Kyo had an image built until that point, trying to do something different… we were conscious about various things like that, but Kyo said 'people involved [in either band] are different��, and one thing that has changed is the point when I thought it’s fine not to think too much about things like that.

Kyo: About since we’ve released ADORATIO everyone stopped being concerned about various things. I kept saying on various occasions that 'sukekiyo is a band’. So it can be said that finally in all aspects it became true, that every member is even. I think fans and people who come to our concerts understand this.

－ That is true.

YUCHI: It feels like the band is becoming better and better, including the atmosphere.

utA: Talking about the point of being even, at the very beginning of the band I was submitting various types of songs, but now I only bring songs from my field of expertise. It’s not that I hate pop style songs, we do have the style of songs from YUCHI or Takumi. But thanks to that I don’t have to do it, and from now on as well I’d like to continue creating mysterious dark songs for the rest of my life. Deep inside I’m a really really dark person (laughing).

Mika: (laughing) It’s true that we have freedom to have any ideas for songs and videos, we can solely pursue what we are enthusiastic about… thanks to that we can roll in an incredibly good direction.

－ That enthusiastic mindset to pursue things is also a must.

Mika: But there’s something warm there when doing so instead of desperation. It’s not like there are restrictions or we have to do it no matter what… but we do have to make it by the deadlines (laughing).

YUCHI: It doesn’t feel like a strange obligation.

Mika: It doesn’t. There’s still this soft feeling that was there when we just started the band. It’s soft but super intense.

Kyo: That 'soft’ part as well, everyone (other people) probably cut it down. If you do that a band would become too inflexible, it wouldn’t be fun, the relations between band member would be stiff/cold, but we want to avoid that.

－ That means you can expand the possibilities of the band.

Kyo: With that feeling, I think that sukekiyo’s ideal shape from the start of the band is continuing until present. Even as the band keeps changing that’s okay as long as everyone is enjoying themselves.

－ As we talked before, it’s about the shape a band should naturally have.

Kyo: Yes. Isn’t it usually impossible for everyone to just freely pursue what they like? I think my most important job is to have everyone focus on that part, and to introduce it to various people. I’m thinking every day about what to do to be able to tell more people about it.

－ That doesn’t sound like you would be a 'band that everyone would go for’.

Kyo: Yeah. I often hear that [as a band] we’re hard to approach, but it’s not like that. There’s just one thing - it’s best to come to our concerts wearing black clothes.

Everyone: Hahahaha!

Kyo: In the venue it will be quiet. So if anything I think it is easy for people who come for the first time. You just have to stand and keep looking at the stage, there are no special moves during songs and so on, so I think it is easy. There are no things like special timing to raise hands or sing together. There might be many deterrents like feeling alienated or that it’s hard to go as there are many regular fans (fans who go to all concerts). With sukekiyo it’s absolutely okay to ignore that. Just for the hall performances, please watch the concert staying seated.

－ It’s a conversation that awakens us to the truth…! There will be sukekiyo TOUR2019 FORTY where you can experience the performance, but I have to say that the simplicity of the tour title is unexpected and mysterious.

Kyo: That’s the number of added band members birthdays. At the moment we’re working on the album jacket, it also has a geometric pattern created by combined figures of the band members birthdays and so on. It came from wanting to include more of the band members potential. I would like you to look forward to the final release, including this part.

#sukekiyo #kyo #京 #匠 #未架 #takumi #mika #uta #mind v #interview #translation

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satoshi-mochida · 3 years

Text

Some thoughts on my last Gamefly rental, Song of Memories.

It did not get off to a good start from me. First, I was kind of tired when I decided to start playing. And you know that ‘MC’s best friend whose always has bad romantic luck that people don’t like and acts like a horndog’ trope? Yeah, it starts off with one of them. It thankfully moves past that part fairly quickly, but I learned my lesson from when I played Our World Is Ended, which I started playing while I had a headache and had a bad time for a while, so I held off on getting back to it when I wasn’t tired.

There is a decent amount of fanservice, though it’s spaced out and actually less obnoxious than I was expecting, but the game does unfortunately make the mistake of putting it in a couple scenes that are supposed to be more serious, hurting the mood, in my opinion(thankfully not many).

Though it’s not even close to the point of being unable to tell what’s going on, there’s quite a lot of text goofs, like a couple naming inconsistencies, and typos that I think needed a second pass to clear up. Seems like third lines in dialogue boxes had a bad habit of having the first letter cut off for some reason.

Oh, and one heroine, Fuuka, is the MC’s adopted/non-blooded-related sister.

Decided to get my more negative thoughts I had on it out of the way first. If that hasn’t made you decided to skip it, good, since there is plenty more to it than that.

The game uses something like Live2D and a unique ‘Emote’ system for the dialogue and, surprisingly, CGs, and actually does something neat with it: at some points in both, they have the characters do several different things, such as change expressions on the fly or look at speaking characters instead of looking forward the whole time, and it actually looks like it’s done pretty naturally most of the time to me. A few nameless characters, and specific enemies, don’t get this full treatment, just the standard ‘looks like they’re breathing’ effect. This might make more sense to see than have described to you, though. If you’ve played Yuzusoft VNs, they do something similar, but are still just static images. I hope this system gets used again in another VN.

Speaking of the CGs, the MC, default name Minato Kamishiro, is drawn in them without visible eyes(the way he’s shown is like a generic character with his eyes meant to be hidden under his hair), or sometimes his face is cut off by the screen, and I think that hurts the impact some of the CGs he’s in, since it makes him much less expressive compared to the others.

A fun extra that you get after getting a character’s Normal or True End is letting you mess around with the character portraits and the various poses/emotions they have that lets you see how expressive they are.

There’s a very handy flowchart that you can use to jump around to pretty much any point in the story you’ve seen before, which makes getting all the endings easier, as well as a Trophy that requires you to pick every dialogue choice, which can get monotonous, at times, especially all of the ones for D4U.

At one point, a battle system is introduced, using virtual idols to fight enemies(just roll with it; it sort of makes sense later), which is pretty much just a very simple rhythm game(though higher tier moves are more complicated). They can be skipped if you want, and you still gain EXP(expect for certain fights later on). There’s only one battle before the route split(except if you’re going for Akira’s), though. Its mostly done fine, though there’s no HP bar for enemies(only the MC has visible HP), and a few battles just have static art that doesn’t react to damage, which made me think I was doing something wrong at first. If they decide to have something like this again, I hope they expand it to look more fleshed out, like it’s from a normal RPG game.

The first half of the game is the ‘Joint(Common) Route’, where you work on getting onto a specific heroine’s path. After a certain point, the second half, and a specific character’s route, begins. It’s probably best to do one full blind run before using a guide. There is a Bad End for the Joint Route, but it’s pretty hard to get it accidentally.

If you’ve seen the game’s actual box art, which isn’t what's shown above, you know it has quite a different tone. Though the official descriptions hint at it, I’ll put stuff about the second half’s events under a Readmore.

On a certain day, which you’ll probably be able to guess, someone with the X-Virus starts attacking people, and chaos ensues. There’s even a second opening made for this section, to help set the mood.

The shift in tone is a bit jarring, and even though I knew it was about to happen, it actually startled me for a second, but what happens is foreshadowed at a few points during the game. I think this is where the story starts picking up more, too.

Since this is the point where the story splits into Character Routes, the events of each, for the most part, are all pretty different from each other, though some specific details and events are a constant through each.

For the heroines, I liked Yuno, Satsuki and Natsume’s routes the most, and though I didn’t hate it or her, I liked Fuuka’s route the least, for the reasons mentioned above. Kanon’s seems like the one that’s probably supposed to be ‘official’, since she’s very important to the story’s events, is front and center in the official art, and gives the most background information on what caused the outbreak.

Makoto has a route, too, where he actually acts like a good friend instead of his usual self in the end, though it stops before the outbreak.

This part of the story, like Devil Survivor that has a similar premise, is good at showing people’s possible behavior changing, and losing their humanity and rational thinking during such a lockdown, though I feel the former does it better, overall. Themes like the mobs of survivors possibly being scarier than the monsters is something shared between the two, I think.

Speaking of, the ‘horndog best friend’ I mentioned above, Makoto, gets changed by the events that kickstart the story’s second half pretty differently depending on the route. In one, I’d say he redeems himself in my eyes, while in another, he goes way off the deep end. I can see what drove him to become like that, but it and something else he almost lets happen are inexcusable.

At certain points in the section, you’ll have to pick where to travel on a map, one section at a time, and it’s possible for random battles to happen here. The rate increases on repeated playthroughs.

...not to get too topical, but due to current events, some parts where characters that are known to be infected with the X-Virus go out to where some groups of people are getting relief supplies just kind of bugged me. ^^;

I was skeptical of it first because of previews, but this was actually worth taking the chance on playing, some annoying parts mentioned above notwithstanding. Each route is also fairly long(some shorter or longer than others). I want to see them use that Emote system in another visual novel; it really helps add more life to characters during dialogue scenes.

I did use a guide, but I’d recommend trying it mostly blind unless you get stuck, since it’s not spoiler-free.

Next game being sent is: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan.

#Song of Memories #Thoughts on my rentals

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lextenou · 7 years

Text

Mirandy Fic Rec Reviews 2017-07-11

I had a couple friends ask for some fic recs for Mirandy. I will be posting more as time allows. Fics are not rated by me - if they’re listed and I’ve written about them, I recommend you read them. I have also included my own thoughts on these stories and my favorite quotes from them. As these are reviews, there are spoilers ahead. Also, heads up - assume that all fics have happy endings unless I specifically say otherwise.

A Chance Encounter by smhfiction

Summary: Takes places five months after Paris.

When Andy is unexpectedly thrown headfirst into Miranda's life, none of them will ever be the same again.

Words: 46490

Ah, classic hurt/comfort. Andy witnesses the horrifying accident that almost claims Caroline's life, and manages to record what could easily be her last words on her cell phone, in addition to capturing footage of the accident itself. She drops everything to be with the Priestly family in their time of need, despite not having had any contact since that fateful day in Paris. Through ups and downs, including Andy's unexpected pregnancy after her one night stand with Christian, quitting her job instead of handing over the video of Caroline, and Miranda, the two of them come to a greater understanding of each other.

Though it begins as hurt/comfort rather dramatically, there are immediately strong domestic fluff elements. Touches of angst sprinkle through, with robust communication helping to pave the way to a happy ending. Anyone would have drama after being in a fatal rollover car crash, and Caroline is no exception. It comes out all good in the end, and the journey there is entertaining. There is strong dialogue throughout, which can be off putting if you're expecting more prose or examination of what is inside their heads.

The prose is tight and enthralling. Each revelation comes naturally and explains further their personalities and decisions. Characterization is dependent on if you believe that Andy had grown up after leaving Runway. If you do, its spot on. If you don't, it will be difficult. The difficulties that Andy has with her family over the pregnancy and her coming out are deftly handled. The movie that plays in my head as I read this one is incredible. Plus there are great fluffy scenes sprinkled throughout between moments of angst and terror. There are a couple of minor typos - "luck girl" instead of "lucky girl" for instance - that do not detract from the story. Some words are misused but their meaning is clear - alluded instead of eluded - with contextual clues giving more than enough understanding. These minor issues are easily overlooked if you don't get tweaked by them. If you do, steer clear.

Favorite part of the story: Andy's shiny steel spine. She stands up for herself and her child, she remains firm regarding her relationship with Miranda, and states clearly who and what she wants. It's delightful.

Favorite quote: “Look, Miranda. I am sorry for Paris and everything that you’re going through. I won’t pretend to know how that feels.” Miranda arched her eyebrow, but didn’t say anything. “I would like to be your friend, see where this takes us, and I will be there for you and both of your daughters.” She nodded satisfied with where this was going and clutched her yogurt to her chest. She could feel the tears beginning and fought them back. She seemed to cry over the stupidest things. “But, this is the last vanilla yogurt, and I’m sorry, but you can’t have it.”

How to Become a DragonMaster by dhamphir

Summary: After walking away from Miranda in Paris, Andy decides to make her way on her own terms and finds professional success in an unexpected way. This is her story. Question is, will it end the way she wants it to?

Words: 10960

Documenting Andy's determined personal growth after leaving Miranda in Paris, we see the ways in which Andy forcefully navigates the course of her own life. Eschewing anything from the world she knew, Andy is bound and determined to NOT owe Miranda a damned thing. Granted, this is hard since she wants to be in publishing. She makes friendships, and reaches great personal success because of the friends she makes along the way.

A bit dramatic, definitely slice of life, this one has strong character growth as the driving factor of its plot. If you want to see the way that someone can go from former second assistant to successful, this can show you the way. Lighthearted, but with a touch of gravitas, it does a lot in a compact story.

What I really enjoy about this is that it shows a natural progression of character growth. Andy's journey reads quickly, but is highly enjoyable. No real issues with this one - its well written and edited.

Favorite part of the story: That they come together as equals. Its something that is missing from a lot of stories, but is captured very well in this one.

Favorite quote: “I’m 53 years old.”

Andy’s smile widened into a grin. “Did I mention I like older women?”

Dogs? Really? by jehc

Summary: Miranda discovers that Andrea writes fan fiction.

Words: 23883

A sequel of sorts to "Cats? Really?", this story treats the first one as a fanfic that Andy writes during her downtime. For context, I do recommend reading the first. It gives much additional depth to this story.

Definitely comedic, with some of the best utilized crack elements I've ever seen, this story treats its subject matter with tongue firmly in cheek. It is almost as though we're part of a great big in-joke with the characters throughout, especially if you've read other Mirandy fics. It reads like a long form love letter to the fandom that still achieves its main accomplishment of allowing Andy and Miranda to realize they're head over heels for each other. I definitely recommend reading some other fics before delving into this one - it will make the experience all the more enjoyable. Don't let the humorous nature of this one fool you - there's still sprinkling of angst and idiots in love in these pages, up until the point that they properly communicate.

Switching back and forth in perspective between Andy and Miranda, this story does a lot to expand on their relationship in a fun way. The rollicking romp does a masterful job at keeping them in character and allowing them to explore further. Emily is wonderful in this as well; the little snippets of her are a riot.

The way that Miranda is presented is fascinating. Andy figures it out in a great line. "Most of the shit she does is a total goof on all of us. It’s like she is so smart that she is bored and she amuses herself by scaring people." The guessing at what jehc stands for is similarly riotous. It's fun, downright fluffy, and it just plain works.

Favorite part: the exploration of the Devil Wears Prada fanfic world. It is absolutely hilarious to read Miranda's responses to fanfic. Runner up: that Cassidy and Caroline write fanfic. It's delicious.

Favorite quote: When Emily realized what she had said all color drained from her face. Andy had been sure the Brit was about to pass out. Miranda had then silently locked eyes with the younger woman and after letting her stew for a moment reached out and patted her on the cheek.

“Well, Emily you have finally found the women’s section of the La Perla catalogue.” Miranda’s voice was low and silky. After another short stare down she said, “So pull up your new big girl panties and find me a new assistant!”

Like Andrea, Like Family, Like Life, Like Love by GinStan

Summary: Andy realizes Miranda is acting oddly and is determined to help her ex-boss.

Words: 30786, 48748, 99444, 295898

This series is one of the longest in my collection. Its epic length is outmatched by only a few in my entire library. It is definitely worth the investment.

Starting with Andy realizing there's something wrong - namely that Miranda has put out an all brunette issue of Runway - she inserts herself back into Miranda's world to find out what's wrong. Problem is, the thing that's wrong goes deeper than one might initially suspect. Angst and laughter inhabit this world, as does a memorable duet dance to Madonna's "Vogue" and a regrettable devotion to Cincinnati chili. The full fledged exploration of not just Andy's family, but Miranda's as well, is something I didn't know I wanted until I read this. The twins are threaded throughout with great effect, and the subplots are great.

Featuring some fantastic cameos by everyone's favorite beleaguered Detective Jo Polniaczek and her socialite/CEO wife Blair Warner (originally from “The Facts of Life”), the progression in this series is natural and enthralling. I've re-read it multiple times, and each time its a wonderful journey.

This is a story about family, love, and taking or making life as we want it. There are all sorts of things included in the mix - drama, comedy, angst, thrills, romance. From the start, it's clear that this journey isn't one that will take long to get them together - it is the domesticity and journey forward that drives this one. Family action and reaction is a major point of this story as well, with a cast as broad as is presented, there are numerous subplots that are able to be explored.

There are fabulous delvings into realistic responses. The biggest "gimme" in this fic, as in the thing you accept without question to make the story work, is that Miranda is so open from the start. The drugging makes it clear why this would be, and as the story continues, we’re given further explanation of just how devoted Miranda has been to Andy since before the start of the story. Miranda normally is so controlled with her displays that Andy wouldn't trust what she sees until she gets hit with a clue-by-four. In this case, that starts with the all brunette issue of Runway and gathers steam from there, so Andy gets on board quickly enough.

This series is one of those that is bandied about as a classic. It truly is. Not just for the length - that makes it epic. The story itself, the buildup of their relationship and how it grows and deepens...THAT is what makes this a classic.

Favorite part: Its hard to pick just one thing. Its so well built upon what comes before, but I'd have to say probably Andy and Miranda's families. The subplots with them make what is already real into so much more. Tante Louise is a hoot and a half.

Favorite quote: "Oh, Jo… When you tell your wife that you met Miranda… tell her, you wore the Armani, and that Miranda gave you a nod. You got that? A Nod. It's very important."

"What's so important about it?"

Andy grinned. "It's going to get you so laid." She laughed at the look on Jo's face. "Trust me."

It’s All Relative by Hawkbehere

Summary: Andy Sachs revisits her Runway past and finds the landscape changed.

Words: 214720

Ambushed outside of work by her fellow journalists, Andy is surprised to be told that Miranda has been shot. So begins this broad, riveting tale that spans everything from a hideous belt buckle, Dalton scholarships all the way to a moose head named Charles.

Miranda’s motivations are clearly elucidated in this one. It’s clear to us as intelligent readers exactly why Miranda is so insistent that Andy not leave - and when it’s discussed in the text, Andy sees it too. The mutual respect and uncertainty between them is explored, as is the need for them to find their own balance. Throughout, we’re given glimpses of a truly wicked sense of humor in Miranda. I about die laughing every time I read the following: Miranda lowered her voice and said in an accent straight out of Brooklyn, “You go big and you pay de tab—it’s de kissa death to guys like dat.”

This is one of those stories that leaves you with deep impressions and that you think about for years afterward. Between the varied cast and the incredible pacing, we’re introduced to characters that feel like family. It is a sadness to reach the end and no longer be able to spend time with them.

Hurt/comfort, drama, touches of comedy, domesticity, angst, family, altruism, the Dragon in full force - this story has it all. Subplots of other characters coming together and embracing what it means to fall in love are threaded through this, to great effect. This has one of my favorite Serena/Emily subplots. It also has fantastic medical research done for it, and it shows. Terminology and protocols are well portrayed. It also has a curious thread throughout - Miranda is the matriarch of an ever growing family, because Andy is there. It is downright heart-warming.

There are so many great parts in this story that it’s hard to winnow down which ones to discuss. This is one of those stories that you run across right before you want to pass out at 1am and spend the rest of the night reading. It remains one of the best novels I’ve ever read.

Favorite part: Miranda’s vast and varied accents are definitely up there. Jesus. So are all the characters. But my favorite part of all of my favorite parts is Emily’s wedding speech. To delight in the improbable is a gift.

Favorite quote: Caroline looked up into Dr. Allen’s eyes and saw something she hadn’t seen yet in this jovial tough-talking stranger. She realized it looked something like anger.

The woman leaned down and whispered, “I live emergency medicine. Unless you go into my field or off to war, you will never, ever see a fraction of the brutality or horror or sadness or bravery or goodness or sheer fucking grace of God that I do every day. That’s great for you but you know what?”

Caroline’s eyes began to sting but she jerked her chin so the doctor continued, “Sometimes? Sometimes God is really damned kind and a 30-ton truck doesn’t hit you or you don’t fall off the 10th story of a building. Sometimes, He sends exactly the right size enemy—something or someone you can beat if you’re willing and brave. He gives you a choice and a chance. When God’s feeling real generous? He sends someone like Andy a rat but sends someone like your mama that piece of shit who shot her.”

She lowered her voice another notch, “They both stood up and bled for the people they loved, you hear me girl? I have seen way too many people die who met something too big for them. Don’t you dare disrespect them. Not if you love them. You should thank God, Caroline. If they had to bleed and suffer, and evidently they did, you should thank God they met something they survived.”

#fic recs #mirandy #mirandy fic recs #shouldn't really be surprising that these are included #to those who read these fics that is #I've got a lot of fics to get through for this so I will be splitting this into different parts #about 1500 fics give or take a few series #hopefully I can get to a couple more fics in the next few days #this being posted is totally fullboyle's fault #love that shithead

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paralianblue · 7 years

Text

The Cockpit

AKA the short story included at the end of special Waterstones copies of Broken Homes, which most of the RoL fandom don’t have access to. I happen to have a copy of that edition, and (seeing as how it’s impossible for the majority of the fandom to access it in any other way) have typed it all up below. Please enjoy, let me know if there are any typos, and note that I do not own copyright etc to the following:

The Cockpit

'It's not easy being a bookseller,' said Warwick Anderson - bookseller. 'Especially in that branch. It's a listed building, so Waterstones can't put in a lift and we have to carry the stock up and down the stairs.'

'So you were tired?' I said.

Warwick took a sip of his coffee. We were in a spare office at Waterstones' gigantic art deco store on Piccadilly that the company had made available to us. We were there because Warwick Anderson refused to go within five hundred metres of his old store in Covent Garden.

He was a white guy in his late twenties with slightly mad blond hair flying up into spikes.

'Well, I already had to do the overnight on my own, so that didn't help,' said Warwick, because the perennial problem for all retailers the world over is the customers. Not only do they clutter up the shop, but they also demand to be reminded of the title of a book they read a review about in the Telegraph, given directions to the Lion King, helped to find a book their mum will like and, occasionally, purchase some actual merchandise. All of this customer-facing activity gets in the way of the shelving, merchandising, stickering, destickering, table pyramiding and stock returning that is necessary for the smooth operation of a modern bookshop. The bigger stores can have whole shifts devoted to coming in early and making sure their shelves are ship-shape, but small stores have to resort of the occasional overnighter.

'You can get a tremendous amount of work done if there are no customers in the way,' said Warwick. 'It's crucial if you have to move a section or something.'

'And you were on your own?' asked Lesley.

'Yes,' said Warwick, who was obviously disturbed by Lesley's face mask. 'Peggy had been with me the night before, but last night it was just me.'

Lesley checked her notebook. 'This would be Peggy Loughliner?' she said.

'That's right,' said Warwick, looking anywhere but at Lesley's face. 'I was in the basement shifting celebrity chefs from one end of the cookery session to the other when a book hit me in the back.'

Warwick had spun around, but found he was still alone. There was a book at his feet. It was Banksy's Wall and Piece. Fortunately it was the paperback version.

'Or else that would have really hurt,' said Warwick.

Spooked, he'd taken the time to check the rest of the shop, including the staff areas and the three entry points, but didn't find any evidence that he wasn't alone. He went back to his shelving and was more annoyed than frightened when he was hit on the back of the head by a soft toy - the kind on offer at till point. He was just about to whirl around and catch the perpetrator red-handed when approximately five shelves of the Art section hit him in the back - including two display shelves of Art Monographs.

'It's not funny,' said Warwick. 'Some of those Taschen books are huge.'

Actually, the CCTV footage was sort of funny, in a cruel YouTube kind of way. Unfortunately, the camera had been positioned to cover a blind spot behind the till so the books were already in mid-flight before they appeared on the screen. Warwick was just visible on the left of the frame being knocked down by the sheer weight of art. Worse than that, a couple had struck him squarely on the back of the head, rendering him semi-conscious.

He'd managed to stagger to the phone at the downstairs till and dial 999 before collapsing. The response team had been forced to break in, adding to the damage. And, having waved Warwick off in an ambulance, they called in the store manager to take care of the door before being called away to deal with a birthday party that was explosively decompressing outside the newly rebuilt Genius Bar in the piazza.

A DS from the CW's PCU, that's the Charing Cross Primary Crime Unit to you, evaluated the case and, since Warwick had suffered only a minor concussion, there didn't seem to have been a break-in prior to the arrival of the police, and nothing appeared to have been stolen, assigned it to his most junior PC with strong hints that it should be cleared, dumped, or passed into oblivion by the end of the day. The PC, who shall forever remain nameless, had been at CW with both me and Lesley and had been following our subsequent careers with the same appalled interest engendered by the early round contestants in Britain's Got Talent so he decided this was just the sort of weird shit that the Special Assessment Unit, aka The Folly, aka those weirdos, had been formed to deal with.

'You know what I reckon,' said Warwick Anderson. 'I reckon it was a poltergeist."

I don't have time to talk about the nature of ghosts here, but let's just say that, like the mentally ill, they almost never pose a danger to the public. And when they do it hardly ever involves throwing physical objects about. However, according to Nightingale, when they do start flinging the furniture it can be very serious. So I arranged for us to spend the night in the, possibly, haunted bookshop.

'And I have to be here because?' asked Lesley.

'So there's corroboration if anything happens,' I said.

'And Toby?' she asked.

'To wake us up if anything happens,' I said.

The shop manager, a short, round, and strangely asymmetrical white man in his mid-thirties, also wanted to know about the dog.

'Don't worry,' I said. 'He's specially trained.'

'Oh, he's special all right,' said Lesley.

The Covent Garden branch of Waterstones had been created by purchasing three shops - one medium sized one on New Row and two small ones on Garrick Street - and then knocking them all together and fitting out the basement. This gave it three entrances, four till points and a very odd shape. Lots of dead space, I noticed, ideal for shoplifting.

I asked the manager about it, and he said I'd be surprised by what got stolen.

'Poetry mainly,' he said.

'Really?' I asked.

'Really,' he said.

I supposed that being right next to the Garrick Club they got a better class of shoplifter.

I'd noticed an interesting windowed dome over the main till on my first visit, but when I did a cursory historical and architectural search online that afternoon I couldn't find any reference to it at all. I got the impression that the central section had once been a hall or a boardroom - somewhere built for display.

The manager would have preferred to have spent the night in the shop with us, but but we suggested that if he was that worried he could always wait in his car outside - he declined.

Once he'd shown us how to lock up and set the alarm, in case we left early, and had a strained telephone conversation with his cluster manager, he departed with many a worried backward glance.

The ground floor was an L-shaped space mage up of obviously quite a large hall, the main entrance, and a similar size section at an angle which contained the main till with the glazed dome above it. The stock room and loading bay were behind the till and at the other end two smaller wings, children's books and travel, ended with doors out onto Garrick Street. A set of central stairs led down into the basement where Art, Self-Help, History, Politics, and the ever-expanding Cookery section lay.

We did what we've come to call an Initial Vestigia Assessment, or IVA - which consisted of wandering around the shop trying to sense if anything occult had happened inside. It wasn't easy, because books have the same effect on vestigia as those egg-shaped boxes of foam have on sound. It was a phenomenon much commented on in the literature, or at least in the literature I'd managed to skim through that afternoon. Most practitioners cite the effect as the reason why it was much easier to have a nap in one of the Folly's libraries than in the smoking room where they were supposed to.

There was definitely something at the main till under the dome on the ground flood. A whiff of the slaughterhouse mingled with shouting, excitement, desire, disappointment and rotting straw. Downstairs, where the 'attack' had taken place, it was just your normal central London background of pain, joy, sweat, tears and the occasional inexplicable horse or sheep.

According to the literature there are basically two types of ghosts, those that only show themselves when people are present and those that only come out when nobody is there. There are Latin tags for both types but I can never remember what they are. So the big question was whether to set up camp where the unfortunate Warwick Anderson was buried in books or to wait in the manager's office and monitor via CCTV. In the end we decided to wait in Art, where the attack had taken place, and if nothing happened after three hours to move to the office - which was closer to the staff room and the coffee in any case.

'Hold on,' said Lesley as we settled into our chairs. 'Didn't the children's section used to be downstairs?'

'I don't remember getting called to a job here' I said.

'I used to buy presents for my nieces and nephews,' she said. 'And the children's section was there.' She pointed to a square alcove whose shelves were currently labelled Street Art, Interiors and Photography. Street Art being graffiti with a dollar value on the international market.

'At least that bit was where Harry Potter and Road Dahl were,' she said. 'Although Tracy preferred Darren Shan to Harry Potter. I used to check the table for new stuff.'

The display table in the alcove was currently sporting a sign which read 'Never Without Art', a category which appeared to consist of big glossy books with tastefully photographed white women on the cover.

I rummaged around in the go bag for the first of the snacks and Toby lay down on his back at our feet and stuck his legs in the air.

At least we had plenty to read.

In three hours I ate two packets of crisps, a ham sandwich, and read sixty pages of Policing With Contempt by Victor Baker, the alleged pen name of a serving police officer in some force up north. Whoever he really was, he really hated paperwork, political correctness and yearned for the simpler days of yore. I reckoned that if his skipper ever worked out who he was, he was going to get a close-up look at the good old days via the application of a telephone directory to the tender parts of his body.

We decided it was time for coffee and a possible shift to the manager's office.

I'd just put the kettle on when Toby started barking.

Me and Lesley looked at each other and then ran for the door. We would have made it back to the Art section faster if we hadn't tripped over each other's feet in the narrow corridor that ran past the manager's office. By the time we got there it was all over.

There were four neat stacks of books lined up in front of our chairs.

'Symmetrical book stacking,' I said. 'Just like the British Library in 1896.'

'You're right, Peter,' said Lesley. 'No human being would stack books like this.'

Having established that some sort of weird shit was going on, step two, in the as-yet completely theoretical Modern Procedure Guide for Supernatural Police Officers, was to try and categorise what it is that you're dealing with. With ghosts, the easiest way was to pump a bit of magic into them and see what form they took.

I conjured a werelight which caused Toby to take refuge behind the till counter - he's a veteran of many of my practice sessions.

Shadows flickered amongst the shelves as the werelight dimmed and took on a crimson hue.

'Definitely something,' said Lesley.

'I can't see a figure,' I said.

Usually a ghost would have manifested by that stage.

'Give it some welly,' said Lesley.

I upped the intensity of the werelight until it practically gave off lens flare. Then suddenly it shrank down to a small sapphire blue star and winked out.

'Uh oh,' said Lesley and we both dived for the safety of the till counter just in time for the shop to explode.

Well, not explode exactly. As far as we could reconstruct it later, fully half the books in the basement shot off their shelves and would have sailed across the shop if they hadn't met the books from the opposite shelves coming the other way, with a rattling sound of collision.

Strangely, some areas were left untouched. Not one Nigella Lawson book left its shelf, but every single copy of Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist was later found jammed into an air conditioning vent.

'That didn't feel like a ghost,' I said.

Toby licked my face, which was disgusting, but there was no way I was sticking my head above the level of the till just yet.

Lesley cautiously took her hands off her head and risked a peep over the counter-top. When nothing bad happened, I joined her.

'What did it feel like?' she asked.

It had felt a bit like the first time I'd met Mama Thames or when Beverly Brook kissed me or the Old Man of the River had turned his gaze upon me. Like the smell of blood and the taste of plasticine, like crossed legs and chicken feathers.

'Definitely not a ghost,' I said. 'I want to check something.'

We tiptoed over the books on the floor and up the stairs, which were fortunately free of books, although a display case full of Dan Brown books had been flung into the travel section.

A drift of brightly coloured volumes for toddlers and early readers stretched out from the Children's section towards the stairwell. I motioned Lesley towards the area under the dome.

'Tell me what you sense,' I said.

Even without her mask on it can be hard to tell what Lesley's thinking. The damage to her face has stripped all the markers that we rely on to read the expressions of others. Still, I was getting better at interpreting what I did see, and what she showed under the dome was puzzlement, then disgust and then recognition.

'Cock-fighting ring,' she said.

'That's what I thought,' I said. 'All that excitement, activity and on top of that the power that gets released at the point of death.'

'Chicken ghost?' said Lesley. 'No, wait, you said it wasn't a ghost.'

'Do you know how gladiator fights got started?' I asked.

Lesley indicated that not only did she not know this interesting historical fact, but that she would like me to impart it some time before old age and death.

'They started as a religious ceremony at grand Roman funerals,' I said.

'And you know this because?'

'Horrible Histories,' I said.

'So you're thinking what?'

I told her.

'You're kidding me,' she said.

'Okay,' I said. 'Say something bad about books.'

'What?'

'Say something disparaging about books and reading.'

'Why me?' asked Lesley.

'Because it will be more convincing coming from you,' I said.

Lesley looked around self-consciously and then said: 'Nobody ever learnt anything from a book.'

I thought I heard a rustle downstairs - and so did Lesley.

'Books are for losers,' she said.

Definitely movement, and it wasn't us. I checked and it wasn't Toby either.

'Oh my god,' said Lesley as we went downstairs.

'Exactly,' I said.

'Yeah, well don't sound so smug,' she said. 'Look at this place. It's a mess.'

'I have a plan for that,' I said and told her.

'Not me again,' she said.

'You've got a better voice,' I said.

Lesley agreed and, after a moment's thought, went upstairs to fetch a book from the Children's section. She waved it at me when she came back down.

'Harry Potter?' I said. 'Really?'

'Since I'm reading,' she said. 'It's my choice.'

I created another werelight, a nice gentle one, and addressed the bookshop at large.

'Hello,' I said in my brightest voice. 'My name's Peter Grant and tonight we're going to play a game called 'put all the books back in order.' And if you're especially good and well-behaved, my friend Lesley's going to read you a story.'

Lesley, the coward, claimed she had a medical appointment and left me to explain it to the manager the next morning.

'There's a god living in my branch,' said the manager when I was finished.

'A Genius Loci,' I said. 'A spirit of place. And it's more accurate to say that it is the shop - in a metaphysical sense. A god or goddess of books and reading.'

'But why here?' he asked plaintively.

'Well, it's a book shop,' I said.

'So what?' asked the manager. 'My last branch didn't have a local god in it. None of the other managers have ever mentioned anything like this - I'm sure I would have remembered. Why here?'

Because, I thought, the cock-fighting ring on your top floor provided a reservoir of vestigia which interacted with all those young minds reading books downstairs, and a spirit of a place formed like a pearl around a bit of grit. Only I wasn't going to tell him that. Because not only could I not prove any of it, it was also a bloody dreadful simile.

Then the Children's section had been moved upstairs and the poor little deity started to feel unloved.

'Just one of those things,' I said.

'But what am I supposed to do about it,' he asked. 'Sacrifice a goat?'

'About once a week somebody has to sit down and read it a book,' I said.

'What kind of book?'

'It's not the book that's important,' I said. 'It's the reading.'

#long post #rivers of london

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anewenfartist · 7 years

Text

Writing Critique for the ENF-Sports Contest

Writing Critique

The following are judge comments on the writing submissions (for people who wrote, and agreed they’d like to see the critique on their work from the judges). The critique isn’t meant to reveal what judge placed you in what spot. The comments and submissions will be in no particular order. Judges were not required to provide comments, but they were allowed to if they felt they wanted to share their thoughts with the contestants.

Even if it’s not your entry, I encourage any artists to look at this critique and consider it. Reading critique of someone else’s work could give you good insight what to do with your own art too!

If your stuff isn’t listed here, but you want it to be, let me know. I can edit your stuff in.

There is an exception to the writing comments. IGankMid did a great job of organizing their thoughts, but some tie into other critiques. Sorry if there were writers who didn’t want this public, but this one has to be posted as a whole. So everything from Gank will be here:

sta.sh/015aopok87ht

princebuffoon.deviantart.com/a…

- The start's nervousness and build up is great with such nice little details and observations as she prepares. As it continues, it's clear word choice is definitely a strong suit of yours, fantastic vocabulary and ability to paint little moments. There are some grammatical errors here and there, though very few, and probably not as noticeable to a reader who isn't scouring it critically. The buildup continues to be great, my heart racing along with the stories character. I'm of course left wondering 'why' she entered of course, but that seems to be less and less important as you're so wrapped up in the events. A fantastic entry!

* * * A creative and effective combination of the main contest themes. The story is well-paced, managing to keep things constantly moving while still fully explaining the premise, and held together by a view from Six’s internal narrative. A great entry!

kinkyquill.tumblr.com/post/160…

- The grandiose start with the competitors on stage made for a good scene set up. The variety of events and characters allowed for a couple of different angles to be covered. This has the risk of some parts feeling a bit lacking in depth though. A bit of a more careful eye should also be considered for editing, some errors did seem to slip by. The characters seem a lot of fun, and it seems like a lot of stories could be told with them, as groups or even individually. Interesting risk with the ending, leaving it up to the reader.

* * * This entry was very on-theme, good job! Since there were so many characters in a relatively short story, there wasn’t much time to get invested them all. I wasn’t previously familiar with any of the characters in the inter-narrative, but their personalities came across quickly through their actions and reactions. I didn’t expect the cliffhanger ending, but it won me over.

anonenffan.deviantart.com/art/…

- The start is a bit slow and stilted, but things pick up with the clever idea of a song from her past inspiring her. The character's personality I feel were well thought out, her want to win and do better fueling herself to push herself in other risky ways. The vocabulary at points feels redundant or too reused. You do a well enough job avoiding grammar and spelling errors. The ENF was on the light side as well at the start, but you do eventually pay off that risk with some true proper conflict and worry.

* * * This story had one of the simpler settings, which allowed the character and plot to take center stage. The slow build of tension worked well, finishing strongly with an exciting conclusion. The details were well thought-out too, from “Run to Cure the Common Cold” to “Average Jill’s Gym.” Quality writing, as usual from Anon!

ldnnld.deviantart.com/art/Bare…

- A fierce rivalry of events with mischief abound is a good set up. The embarrassment aided upsets were a nice touch. Characters were a bit cliché and lacking much depth, but were still fun to see sabotaging each other. I feel some scenes could have used a bit more focus and descriptions, just to add a bit more zest. Still a fun little story with some classic pranks.

* * * This story had a nice symmetry to it. It was predictable, since you knew that one section would very likely build and reverse on the next, but I still found this structure aesthetically pleasant. The competitive spirit of both characters showed strongly, but I didn’t pick up much else about who they are. There were a few technical mistakes, but they didn’t get too much in the way of the story. (I’d suggest getting someone to proofread next time, though.)

- ewong247.deviantart.com/art/Ka…

- I found the story to be fun, good use of determination to play to get her to stay so undressed. Your descriptions were good too. The biggest crippling issue with the story though is that you at times seem to really get the wrong word put into some sentences, sometimes to the point where I wasn't sure what it should be. The story would do well from a proof read where the lines are spoken out loud I believe.

* * * This took a kernel of reality and expanded it into a whole story. Katelyn felt like a real character (although none of the background characters resonated with me particularly). There were a couple of typos (e.g. “ur was useless” instead of “it was useless”, “they naked fighterfeel” instead of I think “the naked fighter fell”?), but overall the story was still well-written.

www.asianfanfics.com/story/vie…

- I like the set up, and felt the girl's dynamic was cute. I think Eunjung gave in a bit quickly to give up her panties though, there could have been more time spent with that, to clarify it being such a big deal. Some of the dialogue feels a little stilted too. Pacing could be stronger as well I feel, but overall the story was fun. The romantic angle was also very sweet. Oh, no points were docked for this, but hosting your story on a site that won't censor it to non members is probably best in the future for contest entries. Don't want to make it tough on judges and readers to get to your content.

* * * Definitely a cute concept. The sports and ENF are mostly confined to the first half of the story, with the second half being more romance. My main problem was that a lot of the characters’ actions felt somehow hollow to me, not really meshing with the personalities I was seeing in their words and reactions. It might have helped me follow along if the story spent more time to highlight their motivations for all these hijinks. The hijinks themselves were fun though, and the general story structure was solid.

divides.deviantart.com/art/Ane…

- Another entry with a very unique setting, taking full advantage of the openness of the contest! High stakes game that forces players to play along with ridiculous whims is definitely a great concept as well, and it's handled in as fun of a way as the fun that the princess and such seem to have with it. Only thing I feel the story lacked was getting to know a few of the characters better or focusing on some moments more. * * * A lovely take on alien Calvinball! There was a humorous undercurrent throughout the story, with plenty of cute moments from the protagonists. There were a bunch of characters, but each of their personalities came across clearly during the short story. Congrats on a fine ENF sports story!

tyvadi.deviantart.com/art/Goob…

- I would have to say this is one of the more original sports for the contest for sure. I loved the fascination of our main girl as she is so transfixed on her petrified schoolmate. A shame to see it end in such a "To Be Continued" but that's a shame because I do want to read more, and that's a sign of a good stoy for sure. Your grammar and spelling seem to be quite well done. Yet really, it doesn't feel criminally short and unfinished, so probably your greatest flaw.

* * *

This was definitely an unexpected and unique setting, compared to the other entries. Though this judge was completely unfamiliar with slime/petrification, they were integrated in a way that didn’t unduly distract from the main contest themes. The structure and details of the story were well-crafted, and it had plenty of sports and ENF elements.

rrrrrricossssssuave.deviantart…

- The setting of course stands out as pretty original, don't see many stories like this set in ancient Greece! There are few small tense errors or missed spellings, especially as the story goes on. The contrast of the many men around her, some so intimidating as our antagonist, is a strong contrast to our ENF star, which works I think for adding to her sticking out more. Very happy to see her win as well.* * *A very interesting entry! The setting and tone both match with a sort of “ancient legend” feel, which was a different take than most on the contest themes. It made for an effective story! The core structure was simple - a hero overcoming an obstacle - but it’s a classic one! The style made the story very immersive. (I didn’t notice any big English problems, except an occasional strange tense. E.g. “Clyo has never seen a more magnificent temple” was a sudden present tense.)

http://lunagold1.deviantart.com/art/Strip-Basketball-683619069?ga_submit_new=10%3A149619

- The story's biggest problem is that it's a tad straight forward. Events followed by events without much highlighting or focusing on any subjects. The overall premise is a great set up for a story. With a bit more polish and spice added, you'd have a great tale.

* * *

I could see this working well as a script for actors - it’s dialogue-focused and has the main beats for actions. I liked that there was a surprise ending. The spelling/grammar mistakes were somewhat distracting, so I’d really recommend getting a friend to help proofread.

http://pokemorphomega.deviantart.com/art/contest-Stripshooting-680527642

- The sport is definitely a fun idea. Girls shooting and making other girl's clothes vanishing is fun. A few inconsistencies in terms of personalities and rules I felt. A few grammar mistakes like missing words cause a bit of a delay in understanding a sentence or two. The characterizations feel a bit forced and sudden without much build up too. The tonal difference between cute exposure and death is a bit stark as well.

* * *

The repeated character death really made this story hard to read for me. I had to read it at an emotional distance to get through it at all, which hampered any impact it could have had otherwise. I'm sure there's a target audience for this story, but at least for this judge, the casual killings got in the way of everything else.

http://jawolfadultishart.deviantart.com/art/Melty-Times-at-the-Pool-Contest-Entry-682799317

It's interesting to know so clearly ahead of time what will happen. Suspense surely does build, wondering when disaster will finally strike. Really enjoying some of the attention to detail you give. Your vocabulary is definitely not a weak point either. There are few grammar hiccups I noticed as I went. Especially thought your description of the suit coming apart was pretty great. A very fun short tale overall.

* * *

A pretty simple ENF story, with a typical setup/reveal/aftermath structure. I couldn’t really get a feel for who Amanda was as a character, apart from a bit at the end when interacting with her friend. I liked the content of the two descriptive paragraphs: the one starting with “Her lungs burned” and the one starting with “The judge raises a hand.” However the first few words weren’t very representative of the paragraphs’ contents, so they would have been easy to accidentally skim over if I weren’t in contest-judging-read-every-word-mode. It might have helped to split them up into two or three paragraphs, to let the reader know which beats are important. (Erotica readers can be impatient, so you have to guide them!)

http://disc.yourwebapps.com/discussion.cgi?disc=58894;article=58654;title=The%20ASN%20Story%20Board

You have some really good atmosphere to the story, that's for sure. Nice angle part way through as well with using commentary as an alternate way to narrate the story partway through to change it up for a bit. Good job capturing the excitement and action too. The main flaw I'd say is the story could have focused more on some ENF themes. So a bit of a miss with the theme since so many other types of emotions take over the story, and ENF was supposed to be a big deal of course.

* * *

- Cool world-building! Kate has a good character arc over the course of the story, which is the main strength of this entry. (I didn’t connect very much with Maria or the other background characters while reading, but maybe others did.) The sci-fi setting was a cool backdrop for a “dangerous racing” story.

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crazy-figures-coll · 7 years

Photo

Good, could be a lot better. Been sewing for 15 years or so now, and as a re-enactor corsets are the basis of my historical underwear set. I usually have my corsets made for me as it's time consuming and frustrating to fit one's self, but they always come out with a more modern tubular shape instead of the hourglass shape of the victorian era. So, in my research and attempts to educate myself as fully as possible before I take on building a corset of my own I bought this book. Go to Amazon

More like a pamphlet This is another example of getting taken advantage of by online marketing. This book is PAPER THIN!! More like a pamphlet. On top of this it has very little to no info inside teaching you HOW to make corsets, its just a book on the theoretic behind corsets and there makings. Don't expect patterns, or measurements, or even styles. Do expect tool names, and pictures of said tools, and deciphering language on what and how each tool could be used if you ever did learn how to make a corset. Go to Amazon

Very basic; needs editing This book covers, as the title suggests, the basics of corset making. It is geared towards the home sewer who has never made a corset before. It does a good job of covering the materials, tools, and skills needed to make a fairly basic corset. She uses two commercial patterns as examples, both of which are easily obtained and affordable. There are clear, greyscale illustrations throughout the book, but few pictures. The only color pictures in the book are on the front and back cover, and only the front cover is large enough to show any detail. Only the most basic fitting concerns are mentioned, so it may be necessary to find other references. Go to Amazon

Good, but you SHOULD know... I've read about halfway through the book, and it is very informative and easy to read with good, clear illustrations. There are some editorial problems such as typos, but only minimally. BUT, what I didn't realize is that this book contains no patterns. You need to have a pattern to use the book. As far as I can see, the only thing in the book's description about patterns is in section three in "Altering and fitting." It's a really informative resource, and maybe I should have realized that I'd also need a pattern, but I wish that had been made clearer in the book's description. The author recommends using either Go to Amazon

Good for beginners Good for starters, but has some misleading things.. I bought a lot of equipment I didn't need.. as I found out later following historic methods. What is best is the recommendation to use "German plastic boning" - definitely right and saved me a lot of money.. but it would be nice if it had a section on reed boning methods. A lot of this I didn't need like how to fit, and a lot of it I needed more - like how to sew the boning, which presser feet, and more about the fabrics that I learned by trial and error (a lot of error) I especially felt lost about how to make the casings.. where is the boning inserted - my first attempt had the bones sticking out of too thin lining fabric. Overall well written and a good starter guide. I recommend buying this along with an historic stays pattern and experiment a while. Also note couteil fabric should be used for final product to avoid previously mentioned "poking". Go to Amazon

Great book for beginners, but only for beginners. This book is a bit expensive for the size but it is a good foundation for those just beginning corserty. However, this book is not really appropriate for those that are looking to expand their skills. For one thing, the book teaches some bad habits, such as using a hole punch when inserting grommets. This compromises and strength of the fabric and weakens the corset.You should always use an awl. This book also neglects a lot of fitting issues as well. Overall though it is a good addition to my sewing library. Go to Amazon

Just a Great Book Is it worth it? (Sewing Edition) Five Stars Great book very detailed Great for beginners Five Stars Five Stars I think it is a great book for getting it right before experimenting Seems to be a good basic book for the beginning corsetier Five Stars

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kristinejrosario · 7 years

Text

All Editors are Not the Same, so Which do You Need?

A question that frequently comes up in writing and blogging groups I’m part of is: ‘anyone know a good editor?’

This is usually followed by comments of ‘I used this guy once but it was a frustrating process’, or ‘mine was ok, but I’m not sure I’d recommend them.’

I’ve come across so many people who were really disappointed with the editor they hired to help them with their books or blog posts and in almost every case, once I’ve done some digging, I’ve discovered it was because their expectations of their editor were completely unrealistic.

How so?

The most common reason is that many people think the job of an editor is to take their words and re-write them to sound heaps better. That’s not editing, however. That’s ghost writing. Something that usually attracts a far higher price tag than editing (and for good reason. A skilled ghost writer takes your concepts and ideas, turns them into something coherent, ensures the writing sounds like you … and allows you to put your name on it even though you didn’t actually write it).

So, if editing isn’t ghost writing, what is it then?

In the perfect world, editing is four-stage process*. While it may seem that these four stages apply only to the editing of long-form content (like e-books and print books), it does also apply to short-form content like blog posts and articles:

Stage 1: Developmental editing

When we’re talking books, developmental editing occurs at the very start, preferably before you’ve started putting pen to paper. It’s where the editor considers both your idea and the intended market and determines whether:

The idea is sound

The idea will resonate with the intended market

They will also look at the ‘hook’ of your book – the angle from which you intend to deliver your idea – and help decide whether that’s the best angle, or if there’s another that would work better.

Editors of magazines and online publications also do the above when someone sends them an article or a pitch. They ask themselves ‘is this idea one that will resonate with our readers?’. If it won’t, they’ll either reject the piece or ask you to re-write it from a slightly different angle.

Stage 2: Structural editing

It doesn’t matter if your writing is amazing, your ideas brilliant and your target market perfectly primed to receive your ideas. If your book or article jumps around all over the place and doesn’t take the reader on a logical journey, it’s going to struggle to resonate and get traction.

When it comes to books, a structural editor will check that the order of chapters, and the sections within chapters make sense when it comes to delivering on the promise you’re making (via your title and sub-title). They ensure the information contained in each chapter is actually relevant to that chapter. They ensure the flow within each section and between each section is smooth and logical. They cut out stuff that doesn’t support the ideas you’re trying to communicate. They’ll also point out where the holes are (i.e. which bits need to be expanded on).

For a blog post or article, structure is just as important as it is for a book. You need to start with a strong hook, (pull the reader in), then deliver the information you’re trying to impart in a logical fashion that flows nicely and delivers a nice payoff for the reader.

Stage 3: Line editing

Once the structural editor is done and you’ve made the changed they’ve recommended, that’s when it’s time to bring in a line editor (often called a copy editor). These guys literally go through and look at each line.

A 45-word sentence might be cut into two sentences.

Redundant words like ‘that’ will be removed.

Unnecessarily long and convoluted sentences will be shortened.

Line editors also check for grammar and consistency of formatting, (bullet points, headings, quotes etc), and ensure what you’ve written is clear as a bell and easy to read.

Stage 4: Proofreading

The human brain skips quite easily over typos because it tends to see what should be there, not what’s there. Taht’s wyh yuo cna qiute esaily raed tihs setnecne!

That means proof readers are worth their weight in gold. For every one of my books, literally hundreds of people read them prior to publication. And while those people did pick up errors and alert me to them, in every case, when my proof reader did her thing, she picked up heaps more tiny mistakes, errors and inconsistencies.

Shouldn’t the line editor have picked these things up? Not really. The line editor is busy ensuring every single line reads well. They can’t be expected to pick up every proofing error too (although they will pick up most).

I want my blog posts edited – do I need all of the above?

In short, yes. Which sounds crazy, but the reality is, the editor of any online publication or magazine is doing all of the above as a matter of course every time they assess an article for their site.

In my role as editor of Flying Solo, I work through every piece I accept for publication and ensure:

The idea is one that is relevant to, and will resonate with, our readers.

The article is structurally sound. (The first paragraphs contain a good hook and introduces the premise, the mid-section presents an argument to support that premise, and the conclusion wraps everything up nicely.)

The grammar is good, each line is crystal clear and words, lines or paragraphs that aren’t necessary are removed.

Formatting is consistent and there are no spelling errors.

What if you’re writing a book?

Then I’d highly recommend at least three, if not four separate people do each stage noted above.

While a good developmental editor is usually also a strong structural editor, the former approaches your book with from a marketing point of view. They will help make your book saleable by figuring out the best angle/premise for your idea to ensure it will resonate deeply with your intended market. The latter is all about setting up the bones of your book to best deliver that idea via strong narrative flow. These are related, but discrete skills.

Line editing is a different skill again. Where development and structural editing take a higher level view of your book, line editing goes deep into the weeds. As someone whose skills lie in the realm of structural editing, I’m well aware of my ability to be a ‘good enough’ line editor, but not a great one.

Finally, as already mentioned, asking someone to both line edit and proofread your book is setting both of you up for failure. Once your line editor has been through your book once, they would need to go through it again to proof read it. And once they’ve been through your book once, they lose the ability to proof read properly because proof reading should be done by a completely fresh pair of eyes.

If I can’t afford all these people, which should I choose?

I do understand that if we’re talking about a book, getting it edited by four different people is costly. So, if funds are limited, where should you spend them?

Line editing would be first. It doesn’t matter how good an editor you are of your own work, a good line editor will make everything so much clearer and make you sound so much better. They will also pick up most proofing errors.

Structural editing would be second. One, because a good structural editor will likely examine the book with a developmental mindset first. And two, if your book is not set up in a logical way, flow will be compromised and it will be hard to read.

Proofreading would be third. As I’ve already mentioned, you can send your book out to 10 people to read and they will get most of the proofing errors. A good proof reader simply takes the level of professionalism in your book up another notch.

Which leaves developmental editing to last. The one time you would bring developmental editing to the top of the list is when you’re self-publishing a book and it’s super-important to you that it goes well. In this situation, a developmental editor will be invaluable to you with regard to clarifying your idea, ensuring the angle you’re coming at that idea from will hook the intended reader strongly and also inspire them to share with their friends.

How to avoid being let down by an editor

The short answer is – make your expectations very clear.

For a book, ask the editor if they’re doing all four stages outlined in this blog post, or just one. It it’s all four they’re doing (and I really advise against one person doing this), the price difference will be much more than if they’re only doing the line edit.

If it’s a blog post you’ll want one of two things:

A ‘full edit’

Determine whether the core idea of the post is relevant to the target readers

Determine whether the post is structured to deliver that idea in a logical and satisfying way

Check for grammar and ensure each line ‘sparkles’

Proof read

A ‘line’ or ‘copy’ edit only. In which case you would expect they will:

Check for grammar and ensure each line ‘sparkles’

Proof read

Keep in mind that if it’s #1 you want, it will cost more than #2.

The final word

Editing is a process that’s poorly understood. Editors can help by establishing expectations before they quote. Writers/bloggers can help by making their expectations clear. My hope is that by reading the above, we all now know the right questions to ask at the start :)

* Many in the writing industry combine the first two stages above and preach a three-stage editing process. I strongly believe the first two stages are quite discrete skills and need to be discussed separately.

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richardrobertsimsuccessblog · 7 years

Text

All Editors are Not the Same, so Which do You Need?

A question that frequently comes up in writing and blogging groups I’m part of is: ‘anyone know a good editor?’

This is usually followed by comments of ‘I used this guy once but it was a frustrating process’, or ‘mine was ok, but I’m not sure I’d recommend them.’

How so?

So, if editing isn’t ghost writing, what is it then?

Stage 1: Developmental editing

The idea is sound

The idea will resonate with the intended market

Stage 2: Structural editing

Stage 3: Line editing

A 45-word sentence might be cut into two sentences.

Redundant words like ‘that’ will be removed.

Unnecessarily long and convoluted sentences will be shortened.

Line editors also check for grammar and consistency of formatting, (bullet points, headings, quotes etc), and ensure what you’ve written is clear as a bell and easy to read.

Stage 4: Proofreading

The human brain skips quite easily over typos because it tends to see what should be there, not what’s there. Taht’s wyh yuo cna qiute esaily raed tihs setnecne!

I want my blog posts edited – do I need all of the above?

In my role as editor of Flying Solo, I work through every piece I accept for publication and ensure:

The idea is one that is relevant to, and will resonate with, our readers.

The grammar is good, each line is crystal clear and words, lines or paragraphs that aren’t necessary are removed.

Formatting is consistent and there are no spelling errors.

What if you’re writing a book?

Then I’d highly recommend at least three, if not four separate people do each stage noted above.

If I can’t afford all these people, which should I choose?

I do understand that if we’re talking about a book, getting it edited by four different people is costly. So, if funds are limited, where should you spend them?

How to avoid being let down by an editor

The short answer is – make your expectations very clear.

If it’s a blog post you’ll want one of two things:

A ‘full edit’

Determine whether the core idea of the post is relevant to the target readers

Determine whether the post is structured to deliver that idea in a logical and satisfying way

Check for grammar and ensure each line ‘sparkles’

Proof read

A ‘line’ or ‘copy’ edit only. In which case you would expect they will:

Check for grammar and ensure each line ‘sparkles’

Proof read

Keep in mind that if it’s #1 you want, it will cost more than #2.

The final word

The post All Editors are Not the Same, so Which do You Need? appeared first on ProBlogger.

All Editors are Not the Same, so Which do You Need?

#Richard Roberts IM Success Mix #All Editors are Not the Same #so Which do You Need?

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silvino32mills · 7 years

Text

All Editors are Not the Same, so Which do You Need?

A question that frequently comes up in writing and blogging groups I’m part of is: ‘anyone know a good editor?’

This is usually followed by comments of ‘I used this guy once but it was a frustrating process’, or ‘mine was ok, but I’m not sure I’d recommend them.’

How so?

So, if editing isn’t ghost writing, what is it then?

Stage 1: Developmental editing

The idea is sound

The idea will resonate with the intended market

Stage 2: Structural editing

Stage 3: Line editing

A 45-word sentence might be cut into two sentences.

Redundant words like ‘that’ will be removed.

Unnecessarily long and convoluted sentences will be shortened.

Line editors also check for grammar and consistency of formatting, (bullet points, headings, quotes etc), and ensure what you’ve written is clear as a bell and easy to read.

Stage 4: Proofreading

The human brain skips quite easily over typos because it tends to see what should be there, not what’s there. Taht’s wyh yuo cna qiute esaily raed tihs setnecne!

I want my blog posts edited – do I need all of the above?

In my role as editor of Flying Solo, I work through every piece I accept for publication and ensure:

The idea is one that is relevant to, and will resonate with, our readers.

The grammar is good, each line is crystal clear and words, lines or paragraphs that aren’t necessary are removed.

Formatting is consistent and there are no spelling errors.

What if you’re writing a book?

Then I’d highly recommend at least three, if not four separate people do each stage noted above.

If I can’t afford all these people, which should I choose?

I do understand that if we’re talking about a book, getting it edited by four different people is costly. So, if funds are limited, where should you spend them?

How to avoid being let down by an editor

The short answer is – make your expectations very clear.

If it’s a blog post you’ll want one of two things:

A ‘full edit’

Determine whether the core idea of the post is relevant to the target readers

Determine whether the post is structured to deliver that idea in a logical and satisfying way

Check for grammar and ensure each line ‘sparkles’

Proof read

A ‘line’ or ‘copy’ edit only. In which case you would expect they will:

Check for grammar and ensure each line ‘sparkles’

Proof read

Keep in mind that if it’s #1 you want, it will cost more than #2.

The final word

The post All Editors are Not the Same, so Which do You Need? appeared first on ProBlogger.

from ProBlogger http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ProbloggerHelpingBloggersEarnMoney/~3/YmLMiJ3tj8s/

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