Try some; it's good.
Wherein I ramble about books, movies,
music, TV shows, my life, and occasionally, hot emo boys.
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My ValentineGuide sequel = DONE
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Wednesday, January 10, 2007
Workshop Wednesday - the process
Right now, I'm trying something different. I saw on Ellora's Cave Call for Submissions update for December, they're looking for "Naughty Nuptials" Quickies, due by Feb 1, coming out in June (June weddings, I get it). That's a complete story, 10-15K, with lots of sex, written to spec and centered around a wedding in some fashion. I've never done that -- taken someone else's criteria and tried to write a story to fit it. I have no guarantee they'll buy it, of course, but I was curious:
How malleable is my muse? Will she work on spec?
Lemme tell you about my process, so far. I had parameters, and I started thinking, okay, what would be a good wedding story? Quickly, it came to me; I wanted to do a "My Best Friend's Wedding" type thing, only I hated that ending. I figured, here's my chance to fix it!
After I had a general idea, I needed characters, so I started here. (Li'l plug for the Seventh Sanctum name generators. If you have a story idea, but you're a sucky namer or in a hurry, you'll find lots of help here. You can find a generator to suit just about any genre or purpose.) I played with that until I had six names that I liked and then I thought, okay, what about a FRIENDS type setup, adding to the BF Wedding idea? If they're very close, more like a family, then when two of them are getting married (and another suffers from unrequited love), that would be a huge honking deal. (Yay, conflict!)
So I went forth and started writing. It was a little weird at first because it was...an artificial idea? These weren't people already living in my head, begging me to write about them. They were people I planned into being, which if you're an organic writer, you'll know exactly what I mean. It's just different. But as I get to know them, I'm enjoying this. It's actually clipping along fairly well; I've finished over 5K in two days. I'm not sure how good the end result will be, because I never write short fiction. I don't know if I can succeed at this, but it's a valuable exercise, I think.
So how are your ideas born?
By overhearing a snatch of conversation? A dream? A piece of music? Do they have to come spontaneously or can you write on commission?
I challenge all of you to test your creative process and report back. Will your muse work on spec?
How malleable is my muse? Will she work on spec?
Lemme tell you about my process, so far. I had parameters, and I started thinking, okay, what would be a good wedding story? Quickly, it came to me; I wanted to do a "My Best Friend's Wedding" type thing, only I hated that ending. I figured, here's my chance to fix it!
After I had a general idea, I needed characters, so I started here. (Li'l plug for the Seventh Sanctum name generators. If you have a story idea, but you're a sucky namer or in a hurry, you'll find lots of help here. You can find a generator to suit just about any genre or purpose.) I played with that until I had six names that I liked and then I thought, okay, what about a FRIENDS type setup, adding to the BF Wedding idea? If they're very close, more like a family, then when two of them are getting married (and another suffers from unrequited love), that would be a huge honking deal. (Yay, conflict!)
So I went forth and started writing. It was a little weird at first because it was...an artificial idea? These weren't people already living in my head, begging me to write about them. They were people I planned into being, which if you're an organic writer, you'll know exactly what I mean. It's just different. But as I get to know them, I'm enjoying this. It's actually clipping along fairly well; I've finished over 5K in two days. I'm not sure how good the end result will be, because I never write short fiction. I don't know if I can succeed at this, but it's a valuable exercise, I think.
So how are your ideas born?
By overhearing a snatch of conversation? A dream? A piece of music? Do they have to come spontaneously or can you write on commission?
I challenge all of you to test your creative process and report back. Will your muse work on spec?
Labels: Workshop Wednesday
Part of the reason I think I might take a stab at this (assuming an idea comes to my head in the next 24-48 hours) is because some of the best pieces I've written so far were FanLit chapters. There's something oddly freeing about writing around someone else's ideas.
Good luck with your story, Annie. I'm sure it'll be great. And maybe I'll have one of my own...
Like I said in the post, I'm not even sure I can tell a complete story that isn't rushed and stupid in that many words. But I want to try!
Who's up for it?
I happen to know the muse can sometimes produce on demand--on deadline--and to someone else's specs (3 Harlequin wins, + another final elsewhere under my belt to prove it) but I always like the challenge of stifling my long-winded self (which is what drove me to the HQ contests in the first place. If you think 10-15 is tough, try 1500!)
Off to see what's required for a "Naughty Nuptial"
Good luck, Ann(ie)!...You too Jacq!
One question for you, Annie, before I embark on this. I've never ready anything out of Ellora's Cave. I know you read of a lot of ebooks, and I'm wondering if you have any particular favorites in their line that would be a good illustration of what a E-rated story looks like? Because I don't want to go down one path thinking it's got the right amount of spice only to discover it's too little (or too much, although that seems more unlikely, LOL!).
Just about any quickie would give you a good idea what they're looking for, though, but Shelby Reed is my absolute fave EC author and she has a new Quickie out for the holidays called Pictures of You. I highly recommend you rab it for an example and because she's an amazing writer. I don't know why she isn't famous yet.
Sex is definitely the motivator for the story I've got floating around in my head (where DO these things come from? I have no idea!), so it looks like I'm on the right track there at any rate.
I'd jump up and down and say I'd love to crit yours if I weren't staring at the Feb. 1 deadline and starting now (plus really trying to hammer of revisions to my full by the end of the month). If I poop out and don't manage to finish in the next 7-10 days, though, I'll be happy to crit yours.
P.S. Damn! I keep failing word verification!