Writers

Are there any writers on Holla Forums?

Tell us your secrets!

I'm the author of a fairly well-known fantasy series. Five volumes published so far

The trick is to hook readers in with a great first three books, then stop writing completely for several years

young adult books?

not really. they contain a lot of sex

published writer/poet here.
I mostly write short stories,poetry,occult novels…etc

I'm not a writer but I'm a typist. What does that have to do with muh sekrits?

how much planning goes into a story?

do you create a list of people/groups and the relationships between them or just wing it?

That's really up to you. I like to plan out a basic road map and keep track of where everyone needs to be at by certain points but the space inbetween those points I rarely plan out ahead of time.
Play around and just write shit. See what works for you and figure out what you do well.

I've got a general idea of how I want some certain characters to interact but I mostly wing it. I've found that the characters change a lot in the process of writing the story.

as much as it takes, I see it as a refining process, I usually write a draft, then read it and keep editing as I read, then read it again, once I am satisfied with it, I start correcting typos till it's fleshed out and repeat as needed till it's publish ready.

for a story you need to take care of the plot,the chronology otherwise it can be a bit messy, unless you are writing an experimental type of story with random progression.

I usually draw a mind map for it.

100 words a day, genius or not.
learn from others' mistakes

thanks, jocko.

I think that's because characters are typically extensions of yourself and change as you do, as well as natural growth they'll go through as the plot moves along. I've had to get a lot better about keeping personalities nailed down so they don't drift too far too quickly.

Fledgeling writer here, and o fuck where is my everything going

More seriously however and for those that have published before, how do you get your works published? I know there are some self-publishing options out there, but don't have any particular insight into how well that works out versus traditional publication.

The most important part of becoming a successful writer is to practice. The second most important thing is to practice more. The third most important thing is to solicit and humbly accept the most criticism you possibly can.

how autistic are you about which medium you use?
always the same type of pen and paper, for example

I work for a website that reviews hentai related material. I hate anime with a passion, but it's the easiest job I've ever had. All I do is tell people what to jerk off to.

it's proust, jambo.

So accurate it hurts.

GRRM, is that you?
Shouldn't you be writing instead of shitposting?

Sometimes I Write… Mostly about Sex, Poetry & the Occult though…

I've never even tried to get anything published, but I write short stories or "creepypasta". I'd be a great writer because I'm very imaginative but the problem is that I'm a purely visual thinker, I can't put shit into words properly.

A few nights ago, I saw something moving in the corner of my eye as I was sitting on the porch. At first I thought it was a stray cat, but the second I looked closer I noticed it was scaly and covered in some kind of slime. It didn't have any eyes, ears or nostrils but its mouth was huge and full of tiny needle-like teeth that were twitching as it opened its jaws, preparing to bite into my foot. Reflexes kicked in and I jumped back, grabbing my chair so that I'd have something to defend myself with if it chased me. It didn't move any of its six legs, only opening its mouth wider and wider, its sharp teeth shaking faster and faster like they were about to fall off. That's when I realised they were indeed about to come off, only not the way I first thought; I stepped inside just in time to dodge the projectiles. I locked the door, went upstairs and never saw the thing again.

I'm not a writer, but I want to be. As it is, I'm just a useless "ideas guy". I have dozens upon dozens of story ideas, and the feedback I've gotten on them is generally really good. Sometimes I'll explain the plot to someone, or tell them the whole story the way I have it mapped out in my mind, and inevitably they love it and say they'd love to read the entire story, but I never finish anything.

I'll get started on a story, write out maybe a chapter's worth and then re-read it and it just won't feel natural to me. I never like the conversations I write out, I worry the characters way of talking isn't sufficiently distinct from one another.

My ideas are in various genres, mostly sci-fi and fantasy, I have a few I *think* are horror, but no one ever finds the stories scary, just "cool" or "interesting". I may be too detail-oriented for horror, which is disheartening because I've read so much Lovecraft.

I listen to a few podcasts about publishing, I have a ton of books on the subject, and I've practiced the "snowflake method" a few times, but I don't know should I give up? I've heard at the end of the day if you're not writing, you're not a writer. Having great ideas isn't enough.

Also, a couple of the fantasy stories I see working as series, but I figure for my first novel I'll have to make some sacrifices to the editorial process, would I have a safer bet keeping those stories the way I want them if I tried to get a collection of short stories published first? Should I try submitting a bunch of short stories individually to different places and then if I succeed collecting them in one book?

I loathe fan fiction, but it's kind of the easy mode for writing since you don't have to give a thought to anything but the current story since it's all well established. It seems a fair number of fan fiction writers are managing to turn it into a real career though either going legit or actually getting to write the stuff they make fan fiction for, would it be a bad idea to try tossing a bunch of fan fiction online and try and gain a following that way?

Is there a market for true stories of failed romances with crazy women? For a while I thought I might try to get the story of one of the girls I dated for a couple years turned into a novel, but I don't know that it's something anyone would actually want to read.

Write fan fiction, then when you're done, change all the characters' names and shit and if you incorporate specific locations, change their names and incorporate some details of those places into the story without straight-up ripping off anything. Small changes in major parts of a location can require vast changes, which gives you more originality and you're going to have to write more and it'll be more original. It's like a snowball. Change one detail, it prompts another detail to change, etc. and eventually you'll be able to add more details to further distance it from being fan fiction. Then add more characters, etc. and you'll have more of the story written and it'll be more original.

In terms of publishing, why the fuck would you want to publish anything? For money? Fuck off.

I have an almost opposite problem. By all accounts I am a very talented writer, but I lack clear ideas, plots, and characters.

Marxism: the post.

I don't understand this pure top-down approach to anything.

Chose one

How many chromosomes do you have?

Practice, practice, practice. If you like an idea don't be afraid of copying it; see it as seed that will sprout its own tree. Don't write to appease others. Be critical about your job, know when is utter shit and when is a masterpiece.

Despite what you’ve read, your sadness is not beautiful. No one will see you in the bookstore, curled up with your Bukowski, and want to save you. Stop waiting for a salvation that will not come from the grey-eyed boy looking for an annotated copy of Shakespeare, for an end to your sadness in Keats. He coughed up his lungs at 25, and flowery words cannot conceal a life barely lived. Your life is fragile, just beginning, teetering on the violent edge of the world. Your sadness will bury you alive, and you are the only one who can shovel your way out with hardened hands and ragged fingernails, bleeding your despair into the unforgiving earth. Darling, you see, no heroes are coming for you. Grab your sword, and don your own armor.

...

Not at all – I keep a notepad, notebooks, & even sheets of paper handy to make notes on. Whatever I have close to me at the moment. I have a commonplace ebook on my PC, where I make longer notes, add links/sources, develop plot ideas & characters for later use.

.

The secret of his success?

Plagerization.

It's amazing how fast the word loses it's power once the truth is revealed. How meaningless 'god' becomes when the stories are all ripped from people that actually write and tell stories from true creators.

How vengence is played out at the end of time when Fenir eats the dumb meat that didn't pay and ate at his table. Look at you this time. Defenseless. Wordless. Aimless. Pointless.

Do you accept that you have to die to allow the cycle to renew or do you offer your children?

are there good places to post work to get the juicy criticisms?

I wrote many, many lyrics in a binder, mostly while stoned, and one day i woke up to find they all actually made sense and weren't just clever word play.

Proceeds to write more than anyone else in the thread.
Unfortunately: tl;dr

Does shitposting count?

I used to write when I was younger, and even got some poems published with my Literature's teacher.

When I switched to drawing, and then working in comics, I realized my creative side was wilder than most of my scripters.

I still write from time to time, mostly loose ideas for comics, but I'm having a hard time when it comes to connect shit together and make it work big scale.
I have several characters, in several stories, several universes with their unique traits and characteristics, but still, I have no fucking idea what to do when it comes to punctual stories.

I have imagination for world building, but lack creativity for believable characters and stories.