EPT[bored] ask a published writer - Page 2
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ffswowsucks
Greece2298 Posts
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benjammin
United States2728 Posts
On July 13 2009 16:12 ffswowsucks wrote: Whats ur opinion in biographies? Do you plan on writing ur own? it's a tough format since you can't really fudge the details (see: 'a million little pieces' by james frey) i definitely use events and details from my own life in my work, but to write a biography you need a much, much more interesting life than mine since that's all the source material you have to choose from | ||
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d3_crescentia
United States4054 Posts
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emperorchampion
Canada9496 Posts
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benjammin
United States2728 Posts
On July 13 2009 16:19 d3_crescentia wrote: I hear that writing takes a lot of discipline; how much time do you spend on writing every day? i spend 3 hours a day minimum (9am-noon usually) every day working on my writing, which may range from writing something new, revising something i'm working on, or just reading i co-opted jerry seinfeld's productivity trick, which i read about on lifehacker: http://lifehacker.com/software/motivation/jerry-seinfelds-productivity-secret-281626.php i can't stress enough how important a routine is to improving writing ability. writing is a craft and skill like any other art. no one is expected to draw like escher the first time they pick up a pencil and no one can write like joyce the first time they try to write a story | ||
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benjammin
United States2728 Posts
On July 13 2009 16:25 emperorchampion wrote: Do you do any work with graphic meduim (graphic novels, manga, ect)? i'm just a run-of-the-mill fiction writer, but am a huge fan of art spiegelman. there's a lot to learn from those works, especially economy of words | ||
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Athos
United States2484 Posts
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benjammin
United States2728 Posts
On July 13 2009 16:38 Athos wrote: can you post any of your work here? (you'd probably sell more short stories if you gave out free samples). for more than one reason, i'd prefer not to i'm trying to share wisdom, not advertise! (besides, a short story published in a literary review typically gets paid out per page, not a percentage of the quantity sold) | ||
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Etherone
United States1898 Posts
What motivates you to write? | ||
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Athos
United States2484 Posts
On July 13 2009 16:47 benjammin wrote: for more than one reason, i'd prefer not to i'm trying to share wisdom, not advertise! (besides, a short story published in a literary review typically gets paid out per page, not a percentage of the quantity sold) Surely as a writer you must have some story that you're not publishing but still want to share with the world? Isn't that the point of writing, as well as blogging? I don't want to sound imposing, but it's a bit difficult to get a feel of you as writer if you're unwilling to post your own work. :/ Just by posting one excerpt of one story, your credibility would drastically increase. | ||
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benjammin
United States2728 Posts
On July 13 2009 17:09 Etherone wrote: LOL What motivates you to write? it's always hard to answer this question without just waxing poetic a professor of mine said that he was a writer because it gave his life meaning, it was the only thing he could contribute to the world that was worth anything substantial. i think i'm a version of that, but i do enjoy the challenge and the struggle, it keeps my brain active and never gets boring. plus, to have people appreciate or enjoy what you've created is better than sex, drugs, or sex on drugs | ||
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benjammin
United States2728 Posts
On July 13 2009 17:09 Athos wrote: Surely as a writer you must have some story that you're not publishing but still want to share with the world? Isn't that the point of writing, as well as blogging? I don't want to sound imposing, but it's a bit difficult to get a feel of you as writer if you're unwilling to post your own work. :/ Just by posting one excerpt of one story, your credibility would drastically increase. no problem, i'm just really trying to avoid this from becoming an analyzation of my work  here's the opening scene from a story that was part of my MFA application portfolio, this is somewhat representative of my writing style: Zeke is thinking about the gun again, and has been ever since Pete had found it. Pete was looking for a football and was running his hands underneath Tom’s bed when he bumped into something sharp and pointed. He dragged out a metal box big enough for a guitar, flipped the unlocked latches open and found it. They all stared at it for a while before Ian stepped up and lifted it, slinging the unloaded M16 over his shoulder, its magazine locked in a separate case. They took turns holding it and shooting each other, making rat-tat-tat-tat sounds and each dying a long, exaggerated death. Zeke is still thinking about it and forgets to listen to Ian talking to him. They are early again, and keep forgetting how late Pete’s family eats dinner. What does it feel like to shoot it? He wonders if he could handle its recoil, or if its force would send him flying. Ian drones on some more, made worse by his habit of staring at his shoes while he talks. He leans against the wood paneling of the wall with one boot pressed against it and struggles to keep his hair out of his face. “That’s what I was saying all along,” Ian says. “You know what I mean Zeke? How can she get away with that?” Zeke nods and says yeah, unsure of what he was yeah-ing. In the distance, Zeke hears a low rumble growing, and he peeks out between shower curtain draperies to see Tom approaching. The car, a banana yellow El Camino, peels its way down the street and stops at the last possible second, inches from the bumper of Pete’s father’s station wagon. In the driveway, the El Camino idles and waits for a song’s last guitar solo to finish before it turns off. Behind sunglasses, Tom steps out of the car and looks around. He kicks the car door closed behind him, crushing a paper hamburger wrapper in his hands and tossing it carelessly at a garbage can. Every movement, Zeke thinks, seems natural, every motion building a certain cool. He spins his keychain around his finger with one hand and runs his other through his hair, his dog tags bouncing off his chest as he walks. The front door flings open and Zeke’s eyes follow Tom as he walks past them. He stomps his way up a flight of stairs and Zeke hears a door slam shut a few seconds before Pink Floyd returns. Zeke searches his pockets for something to spin around his finger, but only finds a few sticks of gum and some stolen cigarettes. He curses his luck and pulls himself off the couch to pace around the room. Ian stays motionless throughout, content to stare at his shoes and brood. | ||
Rekrul
Korea (South)17174 Posts
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benjammin
United States2728 Posts
On July 13 2009 17:56 Rekrul wrote: do i have a future do you want a future? | ||
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lac29
United States1485 Posts
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benjammin
United States2728 Posts
On July 14 2009 02:43 lac29 wrote: Who is your favorite author and why? Have you ever read any Proust and is he any good? thomas pynchon, apart from just finding his work entertaining, i am in constant awe of his writing, especially his absolute fearlessness and confidence in his methods. when he gets going, i don't think there's a better sentence writer in english. the best introduction to pynchon is "the crying of lot 49". it's short, but you get everything that makes pynchon great in it. if you like that, you can move on to "V." and his epic "gravity's rainbow" i have not read proust, but people rave about "in search of lost time." iirc, it's like a million words long and over a thousand pages, and i've never had the time to commit to it, though i would love to | ||
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gchan
United States654 Posts
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benjammin
United States2728 Posts
On July 14 2009 05:01 gchan wrote: How much do you get paid for each short story and/or each page published? Do you get published often enough so that you don't need a second job? If yes, how often is it? the amount typically depends on the prestige of the publication (and prestige usually just means who has the most money). i'm lucky to get about $30 per printed page for the type of places i'm submitting to. on a 20ish page story, that's only $600 before taxes. i absolutely need a second job. i don't think anyone writes/publishes at a rapid enough rate to support themselves through short story publications. however, getting published has worth beyond the monetary value, as being able to add lists of publications to a resume is invaluable. | ||
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VIB
Brazil3567 Posts
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benjammin
United States2728 Posts
On July 14 2009 05:33 VIB wrote: Why does so many people don't capitalize the first letter of each sentence when you write? Are your novels like that as well? I cAn TyPe LiKe ThIs If YoU pReFeR it's just the internet, don't sweat the small stuff | ||
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