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- Go to Writers Must Feed Like Piranhas
ariel70, that's funny
posted by
Azur
on August 9, 2005 at 4:27 AM
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Ca88
One read some time ago of a woman on state benefits in Britain, who described her experiences of this as ... " Being treated like a piranha!" ( pariah )
posted by
ariel70
on August 9, 2005 at 4:21 AM
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I'm not sure I like being a piranha *grin*... But I do hope you get the job!
posted by
Ca88andra
on August 9, 2005 at 4:17 AM
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Gypsyredhead, you are lucky to be able to let it all hang out...
posted by
Azur
on August 9, 2005 at 2:29 AM
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Maybe...
I think about what I want to write about and how I'd tell it to the person sitting in front of me. Then I just start typing. I rarely edit but if I do it's to change past/present tense. I tend to flick back and forth between the two. When I write poetry, I let it take off on it's own. It always turns out better that way
posted by
RedHeadedGypsy
on August 9, 2005 at 2:08 AM
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Talion, that sounds a bit like what I described in my "Would You Go To Great Lengths To Improve Your Writing?" on August 4. Check it out.
I think those main elements are essential to get down first
posted by
Azur
on August 8, 2005 at 9:40 PM
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MayB
I write my fiction in layers. I start with the action, the good stuff, a few words, a sentence or two, that gets the ball rolling. Then I go back and add what comes before or after. Next I add detail, descriptions, editing as I go along. I go over and over a scene, polishing here, trimming there, until I'm sick of it and move on. Occasionally, something good is the result.
posted by
Talion
on August 8, 2005 at 9:11 PM
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MysticGmekeepr, I agree. However, just as a thought, sometimes it is good to include a word that is out of character with the rest to make the writing sharper and more compelling. It draws the reader closer
posted by
Azur
on August 8, 2005 at 9:02 PM
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MayB
not think so much about the words they choose but how they link the sentences. Do you think about that when you write?
Yes I do, but I write poetry alot... Even so I think its certainly as important as the word one chooses. I like words to "feel" right on my brain when i'm reading them, like they flow effortlessly from some unseen fount
posted by
MysticGmekeepr
on August 8, 2005 at 8:43 PM
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Did you mean to say BLOGGING Usual Suspect?
posted by
Azur
on August 8, 2005 at 8:08 PM
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There's no thinking....
THERE'S NO THINKING IN WRITING!
posted by
UsualSuspect
on August 8, 2005 at 8:06 PM
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I do think about what I'm going to write.
Unfortunately, that's why it takes me sooooo long to complete anything!!
posted by
Joe_Love
on August 8, 2005 at 7:29 PM
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I just put what's in my head down
on the paper. As you've seen, that's quite a mess. Cleanup is somewhat like sifting through a 20 car pileup. Organization is the key? Or is it having a good editor? Great blog, I am looking into writers conferences...
posted by
Flumpystalls3000
on August 8, 2005 at 5:45 PM
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I bought one of those digital recorders a few years back and filled it up
too fast. I'm afraid I'll run down the battery trying to transcribe the material from it. And if I were to replace the battery I'd lose everything, so it just sits there now. Eventually all my notes will fade away.... I'm finding fast typing is the best cure. And. Yes, I do think about how to connect thoughts in paragraphs, etc....
posted by
WindTapper
on August 8, 2005 at 5:18 PM
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The overall flow is important. I think some use a recorder if they can't jot notes down fast enough.
Ben.
posted by
A-and-B
on August 8, 2005 at 4:42 PM
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I write what I see, feel, and think and the characters motivate and speak for themselves. It just bubbles up. Its the rewriting that gets better.
posted by
cmoe
on August 8, 2005 at 4:34 PM
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"feed like piranhas" is an interesting visual...I can just see you, eating it all up!! I guess you know, I like to have everything all "planned out" before I begin...but really, I wish I could do it the other way!
posted by
Julia.
on August 8, 2005 at 2:42 PM
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Jimson, that sounds like what the famous author does - so no it's not strange
posted by
Azur
on August 8, 2005 at 2:30 PM
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Hi!...
I have a few characters fuzzy in my head when I start, and I don't think about how the sentences flow. I let my characters grow as the story grows and I just kind of start writing and let the story and the characters lead me... I don't know - I'm strange!
posted by
SomeoneElse
on August 8, 2005 at 2:09 PM
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Hmm maybe I'll have to look into attending one...
just to see what it suggests to me for future plans. When I write something that I really want "perfect" (I confess - I never do this for blogs or comments!) I think about removing all of the excess words and making every sentence active vs. passive.
posted by
FactorFiction
on August 8, 2005 at 12:47 PM
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MayB,
Chomp, chomp.
I did some volunteer ushering at The Ilkley Lit festival last year. Twas very enlightening being allotted writers I wouldn't necessarily have gone to had I been a paying punter.
Bonne chance for that short-list. Everything crossed here.
I don't think I do think much about the links between sentences. Perhaps I should. Maybe I've been suffering from conjunctivitis - I believe that affects such things.
posted by
_dave_says_ack_
on August 8, 2005 at 7:57 AM
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i too am just like the first author you mentioned...... but then again i am not writing fast paced action thrillers either.....
i would consume a literary festival as well, i imagine...
posted by
mmm-w
on August 8, 2005 at 7:34 AM
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MayB,
I'm like the first author you mentioned. I usually have a general idea of what I want to write about, and about my characters. They I let them evolve on the page. Often, the person I thought a character was, doesn't turn out to be so. Re: the job.... Just continue to be joyful and positive about writing, and it will all come. (Don't mean to always harp on the positive energy thing...but it does work.)
posted by
NCwriter
on August 8, 2005 at 7:26 AM
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