DreamerHey everyone, I'm David.
I've known I wanted to be a writer since I was just a kid, and since I read Lord of the Rings, there was never any doubt in my mind that epic fantasy would be my focus. I also enjoy science fiction, but I don't write much of that. Despite always being clear about what I wanted to do with my life, I didn't write much through my teen years. I wasn't discouraged or anything like that; I just got caught up in the second half of my teens. For the sake of reference, those five years kicked off with the 6-month period of my life during which I genuinely believed that writing was going to be something I did on the side while touring as a rock star. That pretty much cooled off when I realized that 1) my guitar skills are about on par with that 'sensitive' guy playing Wonderwall in the corner at every party you've ever been to in your life; 2) my singing voice is good enough that I might be able to win the local awkward Idol copycat (that beloved show that pulls in four contestants and three judges, sells two tickets, and crowns one glorious future architect each year); and 3) I am not dedicated enough to music to put in the effort to improve either of those skills.
It wasn't until late last year (I'm 22 now) that I finally realized that if writing was ever going to be my career as I have been saying since I was eight years old, I would have to stop talking about it and start, you know, writing. So I started dedicating a few hours each day to working on a rotating set of projects and immediately fell victim to worldbuilder's disease with ALL OF THEM. I'd say my writing/plotting style is about 80% architect and 15% gardener*, so I tend to try to get down at least some loose structures of the world, its magic, what drives it (politics, religion, agendas, etc.) before ever writing a word of prose. I kept getting caught up in all of that and then getting distracted by another shiny idea I'd have.
Finally, trying to halt the steadily growing collection of world-building documents occupying my hard drives, I sat down and decided that since I need practice, I'd write a short novel with minimal world-building in a more traditional fantasy setting than I'd normally use and focus primarily on my character, dialogue, and show-don't-tell skills. A month and a half of fevered world-building later, I scrapped that plan entirely, haha. However, apparently that approach got me to focus, because I'm currently around 30,000 words into the first draft for that novel, and I'm projecting upwards of 300,000 words for the finished story. There's nothing like a big old doorstopper of a fantasy tome, haha. I'm hoping to ramp up my speed to the point that I can complete my first draft by the end of the year, but if that turns out to be unrealistic, I can deal. I've also started a short story on the side as a blockbreaker project that is threatening to burst its bounds and turn into a novel, and if it does, I might have to shelve it until later to make sure it doesn't suck up my focus.
My favorite authors include new guard folks like Brandon Sanderson, Patrick Rothfuss, and Scott Lynch, and some of the usual suspects like Tolkien, George R.R. Martin, and Neil Gaiman. Terry Pratchett definitely also makes the list. I read a lot, and I have a tendency to like most things, so a complete list would be too long.
Hoping to find some minds as addled as my own here!
* The other 5% is gin and tonic.
I've known I wanted to be a writer since I was just a kid, and since I read Lord of the Rings, there was never any doubt in my mind that epic fantasy would be my focus. I also enjoy science fiction, but I don't write much of that. Despite always being clear about what I wanted to do with my life, I didn't write much through my teen years. I wasn't discouraged or anything like that; I just got caught up in the second half of my teens. For the sake of reference, those five years kicked off with the 6-month period of my life during which I genuinely believed that writing was going to be something I did on the side while touring as a rock star. That pretty much cooled off when I realized that 1) my guitar skills are about on par with that 'sensitive' guy playing Wonderwall in the corner at every party you've ever been to in your life; 2) my singing voice is good enough that I might be able to win the local awkward Idol copycat (that beloved show that pulls in four contestants and three judges, sells two tickets, and crowns one glorious future architect each year); and 3) I am not dedicated enough to music to put in the effort to improve either of those skills.
It wasn't until late last year (I'm 22 now) that I finally realized that if writing was ever going to be my career as I have been saying since I was eight years old, I would have to stop talking about it and start, you know, writing. So I started dedicating a few hours each day to working on a rotating set of projects and immediately fell victim to worldbuilder's disease with ALL OF THEM. I'd say my writing/plotting style is about 80% architect and 15% gardener*, so I tend to try to get down at least some loose structures of the world, its magic, what drives it (politics, religion, agendas, etc.) before ever writing a word of prose. I kept getting caught up in all of that and then getting distracted by another shiny idea I'd have.
Finally, trying to halt the steadily growing collection of world-building documents occupying my hard drives, I sat down and decided that since I need practice, I'd write a short novel with minimal world-building in a more traditional fantasy setting than I'd normally use and focus primarily on my character, dialogue, and show-don't-tell skills. A month and a half of fevered world-building later, I scrapped that plan entirely, haha. However, apparently that approach got me to focus, because I'm currently around 30,000 words into the first draft for that novel, and I'm projecting upwards of 300,000 words for the finished story. There's nothing like a big old doorstopper of a fantasy tome, haha. I'm hoping to ramp up my speed to the point that I can complete my first draft by the end of the year, but if that turns out to be unrealistic, I can deal. I've also started a short story on the side as a blockbreaker project that is threatening to burst its bounds and turn into a novel, and if it does, I might have to shelve it until later to make sure it doesn't suck up my focus.
My favorite authors include new guard folks like Brandon Sanderson, Patrick Rothfuss, and Scott Lynch, and some of the usual suspects like Tolkien, George R.R. Martin, and Neil Gaiman. Terry Pratchett definitely also makes the list. I read a lot, and I have a tendency to like most things, so a complete list would be too long.
Hoping to find some minds as addled as my own here!
* The other 5% is gin and tonic.
Myth Weaver
Glad to have you with us, David. Welcome!
Auror
