Favorite excerpts from your novels.

[Naruzeldamaster]

"Up to trouble? Me? Nonsense darling, I've been a well behaved Kitsune for the past 2 thousand years! They might even let me out of parole for good behavior."

"You mean besides the oceans of booze you've been consuming, regularly, without restraint?"

"How the hell else am I supposed to cope with the solitude..."

"I....damn, I....don't have a counter for that..."

"Understanding, spite, and acceptance...that's why you're my favorite student."

"You sure it's not just cause I'm the only one still sane?"

"Maybe....maybe not..."

 

[Malik]

These are only a start, I might take some writing classes to learn other styles of writing.

I strongly recommend this, for every writer.

My degree is in English, with a linguistics minor, and effectively a dual concentration in sociolinguistics and the philosophy of language; I wasn't a creative writing major. I went to a school that has turned out a sh*tload of notable authors, though. My mother was a bestselling author, although she ghost-wrote for another author. I was born to the trade, won writing competitions in high school, wrote my first novel at 16.

Despite all this, I had ten novels rejected in the 15 years after receiving my degree. I had easily a million words of fiction, maybe two million counting throwaway drafts, under my belt before I self-published my first novel. But it has done very well, and continues to sell well. I'm now agented out of New York and have multiple publishers holding my new manuscript. It takes time to get good, is what I'm getting at, here.

You don't have to get a degree to be an author, especially nowadays--I know college is different, now, and much more expensive--but every author needs to keep learning. This is not a career you just walk into blindly. Being a successful novelist means a lifetime of dedication. It's nothing short of the kind of dedication and focus you'd need to become a concert pianist. Becoming a bestselling, full-time author is like becoming a concert pianist who has PBS specials and who tours with orchestras. (I can speak to this from experience; my wife is a professional opera singer.)

You'll keep getting better at writing until the moment you die, but on your deathbed, you'll still be convinced you're not good enough--you'll wish you'd held in there a little longer to learn the next thing about writing. And if that doesn't sound like the life you want to live, drop this hobby, because being a failed author can kill you, and not learning how to write will sure as hell ensure that you fail. Fundamentals of the writing craft--composition, theory, grammar, literary history--are as critical to an author as reading music and proper fingering are to an aspiring orchestral musician. And based on what you've posted, these are all things you need to study. Deeply, and for the rest of your life, if you want to do this.

I don't say this to talk you out of it. Quite the opposite. You clearly have the drive, and that's a great start. But it's not enough.

Get some classes under your belt. Find a mentor. Absorb books on the craft of writing. Join writing groups. Attend conventions, both for SF/F and for writing. Make friends. Find critique partners. Take their input seriously. Develop a thick skin; this is a full-contact sport. People will tell you things that are going to sting, and they'll say it about work you've put your heart and soul into. And never quit.

We all started where you are, right now.

 

[Finchbearer]

And then you get people who just decide to write a novel one day and get published! Doesn’t necessarily take years and years of hard graft.

 

[pmmg]

Everyones journey is different, but i suspect those who are successful in their first shot are way fewer than those who spend years improving their craft. Its not a good gamble to think you will write one and it will all payoff. To have that is almost like winning the lottery.

Ive known some who just blew me away with talent, but they were very few.

 

[Malik]

Everyones journey is different, but i suspect those who are successful in their first shot are way fewer than those who spend years improving their craft. Its not a good gamble to think you will write one and it will all payoff. To have that is almost like winning the lottery.

Ive known some who just blew me away with talent, but they were very few.

Holding to my earlier analogy, there are 10-year-old concert violinists. There are prodigious talents out there.

Odds are, if you're reading this, you're not one. That means you'll have to work at it.

 

[Finchbearer]

Like winning a lottery that you earned the right to win - along with a host of other people who are making that success happen. Particularly if it’s traditional publishing I would have thought. What I meant with my earlier comment is that I personally have read quite a lot of books by authors who before they became authors either did something else entirely or otherwise had little creative writing experience. Probably also a lot of ‘not what you know but who you know’ going on too.

 

[BrittleBones]

It takes years of hard work and learning to become a writer. I've mainly gone the trad route but it took me 15 years of trying before a publisher said yes. I improved a lot in that time.

I think you've got a long way to go Super Fantasy - that's not to put you off. It's to make you appreciate what a long hard road it is. And that applies to self-pubbed writers as well. You've still got to produce professional quality work if you expect people to read it or even (gasp) pay for it.

And then there's S.E. Hinton, who published The Outsiders when she was 18.

But I digress. I think it's good to make finished products. Don't work on the same draft for ten years, get something done in two then move on from it. You'll get more improvement out of fresh ideas, I think.

 

[A. E. Lowan]

I strongly recommend this, for every writer.

My degree is in English, with a linguistics minor, and effectively a dual concentration in sociolinguistics and the philosophy of language; I wasn't a creative writing major. I went to a school that has turned out a sh*tload of notable authors, though. My mother was a bestselling author, although she ghost-wrote for another author. I was born to the trade, won writing competitions in high school, wrote my first novel at 16.

Despite all this, I had ten novels rejected in the 15 years after receiving my degree. I had easily a million words of fiction, maybe two million counting throwaway drafts, under my belt before I self-published my first novel. But it has done very well, and continues to sell well. I'm now agented out of New York and have multiple publishers holding my new manuscript. It takes time to get good, is what I'm getting at, here.

You don't have to get a degree to be an author, especially nowadays--I know college is different, now, and much more expensive--but every author needs to keep learning. This is not a career you just walk into blindly. Being a successful novelist means a lifetime of dedication. It's nothing short of the kind of dedication and focus you'd need to become a concert pianist. Becoming a bestselling, full-time author is like becoming a concert pianist who has PBS specials and who tours with orchestras. (I can speak to this from experience; my wife is a professional opera singer.)

You'll keep getting better at writing until the moment you die, but on your deathbed, you'll still be convinced you're not good enough--you'll wish you'd held in there a little longer to learn the next thing about writing. And if that doesn't sound like the life you want to live, drop this hobby, because being a failed author can kill you, and not learning how to write will sure as hell ensure that you fail. Fundamentals of the writing craft--composition, theory, grammar, literary history--are as critical to an author as reading music and proper fingering are to an aspiring orchestral musician. And based on what you've posted, these are all things you need to study. Deeply, and for the rest of your life, if you want to do this.

I don't say this to talk you out of it. Quite the opposite. You clearly have the drive, and that's a great start. But it's not enough.

Get some classes under your belt. Find a mentor. Absorb books on the craft of writing. Join writing groups. Attend conventions, both for SF/F and for writing. Make friends. Find critique partners. Take their input seriously. Develop a thick skin; this is a full-contact sport. People will tell you things that are going to sting, and they'll say it about work you've put your heart and soul into. And never quit.

We all started where you are, right now.

I always knew there was something I liked about you. My mom wasn't a best seller, but she did write humor, and she also raised me to the business. I was writing query letters in middle school. Looking back, I know it was because she hated them - like we all do - but cutting my teeth on rejection slips was good training for that thick skin. So when I say I've been hacking at this for 40 years, and me being 49, it's because my mom saved every. Bloody. Thing. I wrote, from Kindergarten to the Books of Binding.

The fact that she and my dad both got to hold the proof copy of Faerie Rising, and my dad looking at her and saying, "It's real!" will probably remain the best moment of my life.

OP, listen to Malik. He knows what he's talking about, and I'll usually say most of this to new writers but he got here first. This is a job - and yes, it's a job, a very hard job - that you have to not only love, you have to feel deep, abiding passion for. To me, the worst thing I could do would be to quit writing. It keeps me sane, quite literally. I know many authors who feel the same way. Good luck and godspeed, and we'll be here when you need us.

Malik, Iowa?

 

[Mad Swede]

A. E. Lowan said that writing is a passion. And it is. But there are many reasons why we as writers have that passion, and what may help you is working out what it is that drives your writing. Knowing what drove me to start writing also helped me to work out what sort of stories I wanted to tell and based on that helped develop my style. Malik mentioned writing classes, but I would add that before you even consider taking classes you need to be able to express yourself well verbally and preferably also in your professional work. By that I mean that you have to be able to express or explain something clearly and concisely, because only then are you able to add all the descriptions of scenes, actions and emotions that add depth to the core of your story without losing the story itself. As The Dark One says, writing stories that others want to read takes practice and dedication.

 

[Demesnedenoir]

After blowing off Iowa Writers Workshop—WHAT THE HELL WAS I THINKING?!—I didn't write for a decade, then studied screenwriting at UCLA, then after a couple of near misses, I decided H'Wood was insane, I didn't write again for almost two decades. Once writing again, I ended up with an editor who owned a small publishing house before selling out, and she informed me that the Big Five were just as nuts as H'Wood, so I went Indie. Which is a lot cheaper than putting together an Indie movie, which i came close to doing, heh heh. My formal writing classes outside of screenwriting equals 2, and they were crap. First novel I ever finished won a few Indie awards, both major and minor. When I was in my twenties, I consciously decided not to write because I held a theory that I needed to live some life to put into the books and make even fantasy real. I kick myself for getting going so late, but what the hell, life is more than sitting at a keyboard. Whether you learn by reading (some people swear by it) or by classes (some people swear by it) or by writing a million words (some people swear by it) or self-study (some people swear by it) or by mentor (some people swear by it) the main thing is to refine your craft and understand story. Those are two separate but related disciplines.

Even if born with talent, the craft should be refined. It took a lot of years before I had the discipline to refine my talent, mainly because I was out there having fun, LMAO. Who the hell wants to sit around typing all damned day? It's still a bitch to sit still so much, but the discipline of age fixed that... mostly. People can be big hits when they're young or crappy writers, but it's usually more because the story captures the zeitgeist than they are great writers.

 

[Demesnedenoir]

After that babbling, I figured it a good idea to get back to snippets of our writing we love! So, here we go, this from the rough of The War of Seven Lies that I'll release in June...

"An offer of arbitration—"

"Lessons aren't taught by pissin' your pants kindness; the Broldun learn best with their faces shoved in the shit and blood of the battlefield. Remember that, boy."

Warlord Buldane Choerkin's stern stare left Guvarek without room for challenge. Warriors and lords didn't fear his title alone, he bore a tempter to match his stature and skill. His form dominated the space of the council tent, the table he leaned against damned near disappearing behind his fur-clad bulk. If peace could be found this day, it would be in this tent, but it seemed the man was in the mood for blood instead of beer.

"Aye, my lord." The phrase cinched Guvarek's gut with quivering unease, and he shifted his weight in the hopes of allaying his misgivings. Winds whipped the tent's canvas, fierce enough to make the fire's flames dance and swirl the gray smoke rising for the open peak. Some said high winds were an ill portent for battles, but did the same apply to debates? Alone in the warlord's tent wasn't the place to question commands, but it was better than not alone. "Our enemy today is Clan Broldun. Distant kin, but kin—"

Maille rattled, a fist of iron links chill on Guvarek's cheek, and his head snapped to his shoulder with the force of the hit. He puffed his chest and brought his eyes back to meet his lord's. Buldane's grandmother being half Broldun wasn't going to stall the coming battle.

"If you weren't my son, I'd plant your head on a pike. Heed my wisdom, boy. Annihilation is victory, absolute and unquestioned."

"Aye, my lord." Guvarek's hand strayed with the urge to rub his jaw as his tongue wiggled a loosened tooth, but he fought the urge and hooked his thumb in his swordbelt.

 

[Malik]

I always knew there was something I liked about you. My mom wasn't a best seller, but she did write humor, and she also raised me to the business. I was writing query letters in middle school.

What really prepared me for this was Mom receiving fan mail for the "author," who IIRC was a pen name belonging to the publisher with a stable of ghost writers cranking out "the author's" books, and having bestsellers doing it, but having her own work turned down for publication for literally her entire life. She died with nothing published under her own name, yet she got fan mail. I have no visions of sugarplums about this industry.

I have a massive, world-changing deal on the table right now--handshake done, waiting on the lawyers and the paperwork--but I know better than to get excited. My mother's experience, plus my own with 15 years in the music business including 2 major label deals, lets me know better. This is the entertainment industry, and it will kill you if you let it. Work hard, and be proud of what you do, people. In the end, it's all you have.

Well, a fan asked me to sign her boob, once. That was pretty cool.

 

[Demesnedenoir]

Yeah, I know a guy who had a handshake deal in H'Wood and then became persona non-grata overnight. Blindsided him.

Hoping for the best, that way I can use you as a connection to get slapped around by the man, heh heh.

What really prepared me for this was Mom receiving fan mail for the "author," who IIRC was a pen name belonging to the publisher with a stable of ghost writers cranking out "the author's" books, and having bestsellers doing it, but having her own work turned down for publication for literally her entire life. She died with nothing published under her own name, yet she got fan mail. I have no visions of sugarplums about this industry.

I have a massive, world-changing deal on the table right now--handshake done, waiting on the lawyers and the paperwork--but I know better than to get excited. My mother's experience, plus my own with 15 years in the music business including 2 major label deals, lets me know better. This is the entertainment industry, and it will kill you if you let it. Work hard, and be proud of what you do, people. In the end, it's all you have.

Well, a fan asked me to sign her boob, once. That was pretty cool.

 

[Malik]

Malik, Iowa?

I'd never get out of the Midwest alive. Or without warrants. Nooooooooope.

 

[damselsgotballs]

Favorite excerpts?

the only trick of friendship, I think, is to find people who are better than you are — not smarter, not cooler, but kinder, and more generous, and more forgiving — and then to appreciate them for what they can teach you, and to try to listen to them when they tell you something about yourself, no matter how bad — or good — it might be, and to trust them, which is the hardest thing of all. But the best, as well.”

-A Little Life

 

[Super Fantasy]

Most of my experience so far is writing poetry and short stories, I feel like novels are more in depth.

 

[Super Fantasy]

There seems to be many writing styles, and I feel as if they can sometimes be combined.
Although i'm still very new to writing.
Many of my posts on this thread are short stories i'm working on, and only started writing.

 

[Super Fantasy]

When the three of them walked inside of Ovartremest Horizon, they noticed a meowing fox purring.
And the store looked to be a standard store, that sold various things.
And after a while of browsing the wares of the store, the owner greeted them.
She was a younger woman who seemed very knowledgeable.
"I see the three of you made your way to my store, we get few customers these days."
"Because the corporations own so very much of our world."
"Im Rinty, the owner of Ovartremest Horizon." She told them her name, but only after some time of talking.
Rinty seemed bored from a lack of customers.
And her store had a certain kind of rebellious vibe.
"What is your store named after?" Yizzy asked Rinty.
"If I told you, I would need to love you, and im fresh out of love these days." Rinty joked.
But Yizzy, Rivona and Vynid were distracted by all of the wares in Ovartremest Horizon.
There were many novels, and the store reminded the them of Hidden Agenda.
Yizzy noticed a novel titled "The Rinjinji", and it wasn't long before Rinty noticed Yizzy skimming through the novel.
"The novel you are holding is about the Rinjinji and their war against the Rengenshi."
"It details the Rinjinji revolution."
"Do you support the Rinjinji?" Rivona asked.
"No, I have a different political philosophy." Rinty said in a weary tone.