lvlocalgirl
Agent
just killin' time until dawn
Posts: 516
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Post by lvlocalgirl on Aug 25, 2009 1:18:33 GMT -5
So I'm in a Borders book store and I look around I think, "What is the point of trying to write my story. Look at all these books. It's probably already done anyway." So my question for our Ms V is Have you ever felt like that --OR ---what else might have been discouraging to you along the way and what helped you push passed it? Thanks in advance  |
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Post by MsKay on Aug 25, 2009 1:51:39 GMT -5
ewww great question stace!
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Post by Vicki Pettersson on Aug 25, 2009 7:42:49 GMT -5
Oh Stace. I hate that you're feeling this ... because I know exactly how debilitating it can be. YES, I've felt this. Still do sometimes when considering Teh.New. I was so discouraged at one point that I seriously thought (for about five minutes {G}) giving up. Then I realized, no. I love writing. So even if I'm never published I'll do it for myself. It's my meditation, the way I keep myself sane. So I decided to write something I loved, with no real idea of where it would go in the marketplace because I had no idea *what* it was. I was just determined to write. And stay sane. And you know what it was? THE SCENT OF SHADOWS. Write for yourself. Write for fun. The rest will take care of itself. |
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Post by deathlynx on Aug 25, 2009 16:41:01 GMT -5
Write for yourself. Write for fun. The rest will take care of itself. So how did you have the courage to actually send it out to agents/editors? It doesn't bother me that I'm not going to make money off of it (well, not a living or anything), or even that no one may ever really care for it, but I'm terrified the the official people won't even want to touch it... |
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Post by debim on Aug 25, 2009 19:44:16 GMT -5
Write for yourself. Write for fun. The rest will take care of itself. So how did you have the courage to actually send it out to agents/editors? It doesn't bother me that I'm not going to make money off of it (well, not a living or anything), or even that no one may ever really care for it, but I'm terrified the the official people won't even want to touch it... But.....you won't ever know if you don't try. Do you want to live your life saying ..."I wonder if I could have been published if I had tried?" Life is too short not to take a chance on something like this... |
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Post by Vicki Pettersson on Aug 26, 2009 9:02:50 GMT -5
Well, honestly, once I'd finished I looked at it and liked it so much that I thought, "There's no way someone isn't going to love this like I do." And ultimately someone did. But I want to stress that I wrote it *for* me, not *to* market -- which I think is rather like putting the cart before the horse. (And is just as cliche'd.) Write something you are *dying* to share with the world. That you love so much it hurts. Then you just have to share it.  Write for yourself. Write for fun. The rest will take care of itself. So how did you have the courage to actually send it out to agents/editors? It doesn't bother me that I'm not going to make money off of it (well, not a living or anything), or even that no one may ever really care for it, but I'm terrified the the official people won't even want to touch it... |
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Post by deathlynx on Aug 27, 2009 17:20:09 GMT -5
lol...in my case it's not even a question of wanting to write it, but having to get it out of my friggen head...Which brings me to my next question, and this one is for all the various writers on the forum...
Do you ever get dragged a bit farther forward than you're ready to write? I keep having issues thinking about three books ahead as I write...I think that's what used to give me problems keeping to one book, because most of those were as long running as the current project is...
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Post by miki on Aug 27, 2009 17:54:21 GMT -5
Hm, I'm not that way at all. I have to finish what I'm writing before I can move on. I tried writing Shim without finishing Blue Moon Rift and just couldn't do it. Had to finish the first before going on to the second.
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lvlocalgirl
Agent
just killin' time until dawn
Posts: 516
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Post by lvlocalgirl on Aug 27, 2009 22:33:25 GMT -5
DL..I tend to get sidetracked by new ideas myself. I really LOVE the new idea and it seems so much more fun than what I'm doing. However, for me, I find that as soon as that new idea turns into the work of the other one then I'm distracted by idea 3 so I decided to just write down the IDEA alone and not work on it until the first thing is done. Vicki! Thanks so much for the pep talk and sharing your challenges with us. Of course, great advice. |
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Post by deathlynx on Aug 29, 2009 18:09:54 GMT -5
Well, for me it's mostly brief scenes that I have to jot down notes for...that ends up with partial outlines even before I get to the novel...
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Post by elle on Aug 29, 2009 19:19:01 GMT -5
I'll write a scene, but that's all I'll see at a time, and I usually have no clue where it really goes in a story or anything, so I just have to wait until I'm done with my current project or get sick enough of it to go work on something else and then, if I still have the inspiration for it, I'll work on the random scene, try to expand it, see where it goes in the bigger story line. or I may have a starting point for the story and as I'm going along, it'll just click that this scene that I wrote a while ago goes there. *shrugs* but I'm kinda bad at keeping to just one thing.
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Post by Raven on Sept 1, 2009 16:08:34 GMT -5
Great encouragements! Wonderful. Keep it up, all of you.
DL, if they don't like it, find another "they" to throw it at!
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Post by Vicki Pettersson on Sept 10, 2009 8:55:14 GMT -5
DL --
Absolutely, but I just jot quick notes to myself and then remind myself that I have to write *this* book first. (Actually, my editor reminds me too. *wry g*)
Stay focused, and the ideas with legs will still be there when you're ready.
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