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Messages - THETA

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Author Craft / Re: Book title Patterns
« on: July 10, 2009, 03:50:07 AM »
Quote from: BobForPresident on July 10, 2009, 03:47:10 AM
I can't title my stories til they're done. My novel has been title-less for six months now.

I cannot make a satisfactory title until i finish a story.  A real story, not my 2,000-5,000 word compositions or even the lengthier 35,000 word ones i have.  The two attempts i made at an actual novel had several drafts of titles throughout the process of writing, but i assume that i'd ultimately come to the decision at the very end.

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Author Craft / Re: What's your style?
« on: July 10, 2009, 03:46:35 AM »
I find that i write very modern characters with a much older tone of voice.

My characters of course speak with the snark, sarcasm, and witty repartee that dominates contemporary writing and is currently very popular, but my descriptions of places and omniscient views on characters are usually with the florid style of a much older generation.  Remember how Tolkien took three pages to describe the Old Forest and the dry, intelligent commentary of Jane Austin's third person omniscient narrator?   

Thus i vacillate between fast, humorous, hard, modern dialogue and languid descriptions of characters, moods, and places. 

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Author Craft / Re: The 2009 Bulwer-Lytton Bad Fiction Contest Winners Are Here
« on: July 10, 2009, 03:35:04 AM »
Oh wow, parodies.  That means they were purposefully made this way.  I think it'd be real mean--even if it is deserved--to win a contest for a work you thought was good.

I did enjoy the one about the untimely death of the hot-air balloon one though.

*snickers*

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Author Craft / Re: Book title Patterns
« on: July 10, 2009, 03:27:08 AM »
Yeah, Meyers (or her publisher) was smart to choose iconic single images rather than a campy harlequin nonsense to match the crappy--excuse me, campy inside content.

I do think title patterns are a great idea if managed correctly, but not essential.

It's like rhyming in poetry. The important part is the concept, but what really makes a poem impressive is being able to have a beautiful flow of words while still getting the same point across, it makes for much better literary art.  I hate those pieces of classic crap "poetry" that's like a long sentence divided up in random places.

A common title pattern is to leave one word the same throughout.
Ex. Inkheart, Inkdeath, Inkspell
Magic Burns, Magic Bites, Magic Strikes

I think they're cool, but they can only add to something that's already good.  If the story's bad, it doesn't matter how clever the title is.

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Author Craft / Re: Richelle Mead's Work! (Board Member goes pro)
« on: June 03, 2009, 05:31:38 PM »
Succubus Heat was great. 

The line that made me feel the most was when Georgina admitted she didn't want to make immediate peace with Seth out of pride.  I personally could relate.  When a relationship ends, i end it with an ax and refuse to look back.   

My favorite issue addressed was the question of "Why do people have to make deals with the devil to get what they want?  Why can't they make deals with angels too?"

Fantastic and the end wasn't as anticlimactic as the last two.  The last two had such a huge build up and then it had like a four paragraph resolution.  I like books to end with a bang (and not just the romantic one either, i need action).  I also have a weird soft spot for Jerome.  Maybe it's the John Cusack look or how he swings between protecting his people and being an asshole.  I dunno, but i like him and Carter and Hugh. 

One thing i kind of didn't like but was okay with
(click to show/hide)
  It just seemed too convenient.  I'm not a fan, but it could have been worse or stupider.  It was fine really.

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Author Craft / Re: Authors and Procrastination
« on: April 08, 2009, 07:45:50 PM »
Character casting.  I've posted about it before.  It makes you excited to return to your story when you've spent eight hours finding the right face on the internet.  I usually don't use well-known actors or actresses.  I go for random models or random people whose photos are posted on the internet on photography sites and stuff.  Trust me it works.  When i completed a story that i posted on this one site i also made a slideshow/video of all my characters looks and posted it on youtube for my readers.  It was cool. 

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Author Craft / Re: How Not To Do, Part Deux
« on: April 08, 2009, 07:42:59 PM »
*gags*

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Author Craft / Re: Keeping track of characters...
« on: April 08, 2009, 07:39:32 PM »
Admittedly i always start with a stereotype.  In classic literature they would have been called archetypes and they still are, but i use real world character bastardization slang.  For example...

Matt- angry teen
Marie- emo
Lobo- nervous guy

My character grows as i figure out ways on how to purvey their personality while writing or how i stagger the other characters understanding or finding out why that character is the way they are.   

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Author Craft / Re: Keeping track of characters...
« on: April 06, 2009, 11:56:33 PM »
I plan my stories way ahead.  I think planning ahead on who goes where, what their purpose is, and their personalities is very important.

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Author Craft / Re: Richelle Mead's Work! (Board Member goes pro)
« on: April 06, 2009, 11:54:40 PM »
Jerome's my favorite character ever.  I'm looking forward to see what all the hullabaloo is about with him in the next novel.

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Calendar Event Discussion / Re: "Turn Coat" released April 7, 2009
« on: February 06, 2009, 01:45:14 AM »
awwww, but i can actually drive to San Diego.

*sniffles*

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Calendar Event Discussion / Re: "Turn Coat" released April 7, 2009
« on: February 06, 2009, 12:31:40 AM »
There's no California ones?!  Usually there's an excess!  Or is that different from the "official" signing tour?

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Author Craft / Sci-Fi Story Summary
« on: December 30, 2008, 04:03:16 AM »
This is me killing two birds with one stone.  First bird, me trying to learn the ways of creating a successful book jacket summary.  Second pain in the ass bird, "advertising" my friend's story.  I'd like feedback on both the execution of the book summary/hook and on how the general story sounds.  More importantly, does it sound eerily like any Sci-Fis you've ever encountered.  Here goes...

Are you still considered a genius if you took up a military conscription on impulse and ended up on a special missions ship with a rank that's about as noticeable as the ship's many flooring tiles?  No clue, all I know is that Papa General wants one of his own to be the one to hit the switch if the mission goes badly.  Bastard blood is still thicker than water.  Well eat your heart out Dad, I didn't even need to carry out the order.  When we reached our destination, we jumped right in the middle of an alien war and they're both looking for an idiot to join up.  Good thing I'm still a genius, right?

So the story is that there's two alien races.  One alien race is a insectoid race, collective mind, lotsa disposable troops, that jazz.  Another alien race is an advanced humanoid reptilian race.  Basically, dinosaurs who in their fairly recent past, combined their DNA with the primitive ape people of their planet to evolve.  The Insectoid are out to simply devour other worlds.  The Dino-men want to embrace the newcomer Earthlings with open arms which they will easily turn into a vice grip of an inescapable alliance.  The enemy of my enemy is my friend, right?  Well, can you trust a race of Dino-men when they've enslaved the entire population of primitive humans on their home planet?  Friendship, not so forthcoming.  Especially since there's plenty of division within the Dino-men race without the Insectoid threat.  What is a lost ship from Earth to do?

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Author Craft / Re: Succubus Dreams
« on: October 07, 2008, 03:45:48 AM »
I love the Succubus series.  It gives intelligence to slutty romances.

My only problem is something that not only appeared in this newest installment, but in Succubus on Top too.  For such a long, suspenseful, eventful rising action, the resolution is always way too quick and convenient.  In Top we spend 200 pages reading about how she slowly comes to the realization that all her friends were under the influence of crazy ambrosia sauce just so Jerome and Carter could give her a splinter that blows up the demi-God, which took all of a 10 page chapter.  Same thing with Dreams, 200 pages of weird dreams and power drains and going to Erik and Dante for information just to have a short chapter on the angels bagging Nyx.  The actual bagging of Nyx took all of three paragraphs.

I mean, i get having a resolution that parallels the chaos of battle and whatnot, but i think in this case Ms. Mead's concern is more with the falling action or denouement than the resolution.  But hey, Succubus Dream was the only way i could relax after a hectic week at high school. 

To Mij, i believe she might have underutilized Doug in this novel, but i think she put more into Hugh in Dreams, which i liked since my favorite secondary characters in the series is probably Hugh, after of course my lurid fascination with Jerome.  Love Jerome.  Evil, protective, authoritative, looks like John Cusack--what's not to like?   

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Author Craft / Career as Publishing Editor
« on: September 30, 2008, 03:55:58 AM »
Although i wouldn't risk my bread and butter on being a full blown author, i was thinking that working as an editor or marketing consultant or some such thing at a publishing house would be the next best thing.  I mean, being paid to read and write my opinions on it and correct grammar or other errors sounds amazing.  However, when i researched an editor's salary rates on Payscale, i found the results rather dismal.  Of course, Payscale doesn't take into account i might work my way into a major publishing house and make buku bucks, but it's quite fair and accurate as according to many other jobs as comparison to reality, such as an aerospace engineer or pharmacist, ect.  50,000 after five years isn't poverty level, but if i became a doctor like i originally planned, it's almost laughable.  I have the grades for the medical field as well as the passion and fortitude, but there's something about books and literature that arouses me more than the dogged pursuit of curiosity i feel for medicine and science.  I'm not sure.

There any editors on board?

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