New Writer's Group from this Board

[Aethon]

If you guys are having trouble getting through to Mickey's PM for any reason, my AIM Mail box is open as well as PMs.  The latter would be easier, but I can set up accounts as well.  So send me the same information Mickey listed above and I'll set up your accounts.

[trboturtle]

It is?  And I also did not get a response.  PM with info again, I guess?

Same here....

Craig

[Kali]

Y'know, I wasn't originally interested, but I could use a little "enforced" fun in my life right now.  Writing prompts would do that...

I may even throw in a critique or two, though I really don't like to do them.  Maybe I'll keep a list this time of people who take critiques well and those who don't, and only respond a second time to those who do?

[Mickey Finn]

Right now, I just need time to actually read and critique people's works at all...starting with those who did mine

[swalizer]

I'm definitely interested and PM'ed the illustrious Mr. Finn

[Maiafay]

Are you guys still doing this? I would be interested...

[Aethon]

Yes we are.  Feel free to send a PM to either Mickey or myself and we'll get you set up with an account the first chance we get.   

[Maiafay]

Yes we are.  Feel free to send a PM to either Mickey or myself and we'll get you set up with an account the first chance we get.   

I sent a PM to Mickey...thanks for letting me know!

[Fade]

this sounds great i sent a pm to mickey i cant wait to post some of my work i hope you guys will help me become a good writer



(god i need the help)

[The Deposed King]

I want to join.  I sent a message already, I hope it got through.


The Deposed King

[Mickey Finn]

It did, I'm working on it now. Work's been exploding

[skaoi]

*waves*  hi everybody.  i write in the fantasy genre and haven't been writing long.  i sort of backed into this, actually.  i've always been a voracious reader and my husband gave me a book last christmas by an author who i was following for quite some time.  i was all excited and creased the binding in eager anticipation of the treasure waiting for me inside...after trying to read the first chapter, put it down in disappointment.  it wasn't that it wasn't good, but i had that same awful feeling you get when you go out and spend an obscene amount of money on a meal, only to realize you can do better than that in your own kitchen.

so...i started writing.  since then, i've met someone to write with and we are working on a story together.  i'm a little shy of self-promotion, but am happy to share the link if anyone is interested.  since giving in to this heretofore unrealized need to write, i seem to be continuously taking transcription from the voices in my head.  i tend to be a bit of a detail monster and spend a tremendous amount of time editing.  it's like breaking out massage oils and giving our characters a good rub-down.  i love it.  it's fun to see so many people here who seem to share my particular brand of insanity.   

of course i'm here because i'm a fan of jim's books.  i actually have richelle mead's book, too, and it's wonderful. 

[Xenith]

Okay, how do I join the "by invitation only" writers' group? I'm an unpublished writer, although I've written bunches of fan fiction in the X Files genre. (Don't worry, Jim, I won't touch your world or Harry either!) I want to learn how to develop my own characters and am interested in a general supernatural/detective genre. My big problem is sitting down, or actually running fast, to write it. Traditionally I 'write' while running on a treadmill or doing some other activity, then sit down to decant what I've written into a computer.

So how do I go about it?

Xenith

[skaoi]

Traditionally I 'write' while running on a treadmill or doing some other activity, then sit down to decant what I've written into a computer.

i actually do this a lot as well.  i'm a cyclist and find that 'writing in the saddle' is a great way to work things out.  i also find it's the only place i can do poetry, but i have to get that down as soon as i get home or i forget it.

[Princess of Pique]

I hope you all don't mind if I add to your discussion. I've been a member of an online writers' group on Kelley Armstrong's web site for the last 2 and a half years.

Reading some of the comments on the last page here has prompted me to give you a bit of advice.
It's nice to have people give you critiques on your work; but by far, you learn more about writing, and become a better writer, by critiquing the work of others.

When you are doing a critique of someone else's work, your mind is open, looking for what makes the work good, and what needs to be improved; so you are actively thinking about the elements of good prose.  That active thinking sooner or later penetrates the cerebral cortex, and is adopted by the creative side of your brain.

One more bit of advice, if I may. When someone critiques your work, there are basically three responses you will have to their input:
1) "Holy cow, batman, why didn't I think of that?"

2) "Mmm. That's interesting. I'm going to have to think about that one."

3) "Well, this person obviously has no clue whatsoever."

And that's as it should be. Because only you are the creator of your story.

 

Susan