Recent content by STBURNS

EccentricGentleman, When I was writing my first Fantasy novel, I found that a good portion of my ideas were already done. Then one day, my spouse said "Hollywood has been doing that for years". I found myself not worrying about the plot but focusing on a story I wanted to tell. As a guy who was...

Sorry to necro-bump, But I read her rants before I wrote my fantasy novel. It helped me stay away from silly mistakes or easy ways out. Not everything she says is correct, but she makes fantastic points.

Michael, You make excellent points. In the music industry, they expect a higher quality demo than they did years ago. From a business perspective, I understand. The chances of a publishing company seeing the potential for a story and the cost to make it readable are factors. I guess the only...

Ben, I would love to read it. I will try to download it after work.:)

I think most of us could agree that a character can draw us in. I can forgive any writer about treading familiar ground if the character is written well. I will give any story a chance as long as they don't short change me with easy mastery of a craft (warrior, mage, etc). As far as the farm...

Caged Maiden, That was a very useful post! Thank you!:D I would love for someone here to critique my book, but I have not gathered the courage yet. I did get around to hiring an independent editor. I hope to be an elgant writer someday, but I hope to be able to share my stories with people who...

There are some awesome responses here. Margret Weis once told me during a meet and greet, "if you write, you are a writer". I can say that MANY people write better than I do. Am I a writer? Yes. But I am in awe of those who wield words with mastery and fluidity. To be honest, I would love to be...

Aidan of the Tavern, I thank you for your welcome. I hope to be able to be a productive member here. I am sure all of you have wonderful ideas. Reaver, thank you! It is great to be here.

Wow, really good thread and some great insight. I am, by no means, a writing master. I found out early that I have trouble editing my work. It is nice if you have a publishing team to troubleshoot plot holes, writing errors and such. I for one believe it is always good to have someone look at...

I usually dislike the "Writer's Darling" syndrome. You know where the story goes against the character's nature and no matter what, the main character always escape's death. I think your views on killing your character are right on point. In the military, leaders are moved around quite a bit. So...

Thank you Joe, I am all about learning and listening.:) JRFlynn, thank you for your encouragement. You summed it up nicely!:D

I kept the standard elves and dwarves. I killed of the world of man and provided new looks to certain races. Gnomes are mind controlling badasses who are feared through out the realm. Goblins are noble savages who are brilliant battle tacticians. Dragons have been banished and no one knows why...

A bing query and here I am!:D

Hello everyone! My name is Steven and I just found this wonderful site tonight. Until a few days ago, I was just some guy who has written a two novels that only a few family members have read. Though they were encouraging, I put my novels away after much rejection from publishers. Just...