When someone presents their boobs to be signed, we'll know we've arrived.
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What do you say?
- Thread starter pmmg
- Start date
- Thread starter
- #22
pmmg
Myth Weaver
I'd offer mine, but so far no one wants to sign them.
Mad Swede
Auror
You know, I've never previously thought that my worth as a writer might be judged by how many women fans ask me to sign their boobs. Have I missed something?
Malik
Auror
You can sign mine, but I'm down to an A-cup since I quit drinking.
*wolf whistle* I'm an equal opportunity boob signer.
Miles Lacey
Archmage
"I'm earning minimum wage as the bus boy in this restaurant. What do you think?"
As for the boob signing thing? In my job a lot of female customers wear clothing that show off ample amounts of their boobs. The last thing I want to do is to see them exposed any further, let alone sign them.
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My mom was an author before me, and one of the many pieces of advice she gave me was to work widely, to gain experience that can be then taken to enrich the writing. In our house we say, "All for the writing." And as a result, I've worked over 30 jobs in my life. I've never been a bus boy, but I've been a terrible waitress, I've sold cars, I've been a staffing recruiter, I've worked with strippers (one of my favs), I've worked the camera on a morning news cast. At none of these jobs did the rate of pay have an impact on how well I wrote. I wrote damn well whether I was a staffing executive or if I sold popcorn. So, no, being a busboy has nothing to do with your skill as an artist, but it does have everything to do with the skills and experiences you take into your artistic life.
Ask Malik if jumping out of perfectly good airplanes makes him a better writer, or does it make him a more experienced human being who then takes that experience into his creative arsenal.
CreatureHollow
Dreamer
Goodness that's a lot you've jumped a lot between Lowan. I really agree with that view though with everything having value to the creative bank- gotta build it up where ya can.
I would like to come back to what I originally said and rephrase though cause I realize I could definitely worded my thoughts better and actually address the question asked haha
I do think my work is good and I gained a great amount of enjoyment from it even during periods where I thought otherwise. However, I also think it is hard to sell a story/writing as 'good' beyond how it functions due to an individual's subjective tastes.
Objectively a story can be good in it's form-- characters are consistent, the story progresses in a reasonable manner, things of that vein.
Subjectively a story can be good for a plethora of other reasons to a person's personal tastes. Sometimes the fact a character exists at all is enough reason, sometimes the worldbuilding that is superfluous to the overall plot is what makes it good to that person. When someone describes something as good, these things can tend to take priority to them over the former aspects.
It's an interesting facet of thought I think! Realistically upon being asked this though, I would probably say I think my writing is as good as it could be in it's unfinished state lol
I would like to come back to what I originally said and rephrase though cause I realize I could definitely worded my thoughts better and actually address the question asked haha
I do think my work is good and I gained a great amount of enjoyment from it even during periods where I thought otherwise. However, I also think it is hard to sell a story/writing as 'good' beyond how it functions due to an individual's subjective tastes.
Objectively a story can be good in it's form-- characters are consistent, the story progresses in a reasonable manner, things of that vein.
Subjectively a story can be good for a plethora of other reasons to a person's personal tastes. Sometimes the fact a character exists at all is enough reason, sometimes the worldbuilding that is superfluous to the overall plot is what makes it good to that person. When someone describes something as good, these things can tend to take priority to them over the former aspects.
It's an interesting facet of thought I think! Realistically upon being asked this though, I would probably say I think my writing is as good as it could be in it's unfinished state lol
I am far from alone in this sentiment, but I always think my work could be better, and I've been doing this since I could hold a pencil. I was my mother's heir apparent and she taught me well; that no work is ever truly done. It can be published, released into the wild, but in your mind it will never be done. Keep at it. You'll never finish, and you'll never reach perfection, but what a wild, wonderful ride it is to try getting there.
Writers never retire. We simply lay down our pens one quiet day.
Writers never retire. We simply lay down our pens one quiet day.
Malik
Auror
For a long time, I thought it was the first part, but it's definitely the second.
- Thread starter
- #31
pmmg
Myth Weaver
Unfortunately, no characters jumping out of planes in mine.
Mad Swede
Auror
Agreed. I was in a nordic infantry regiment, which means you spend all your time in the forest or up in the mountains, either on foot or on skis. Whilst I learnt a lot about people doing that, it was all the various peacekeeping and peace enforcement missions I served on which gave me most of the experiences I use in my writing.
This is key. If it isn't finished, I'm not judging. The half-finished sculpture is neither good nor bad.
Demesnedenoir
Myth Weaver
I've had many answers for this over time, most of them smart ass like better than the average bear, but eventually, I just started saying "yes" and depending on my mood and the manner of questioning, I might say, "I dunno, but I've won some awards" or some variant. The standard response to that is, "Oh" which I guess means the point was made, heh heh. Many, many years ago a friend of mine and I were talking (admittedly inebriated) and he was one of the few people to read my stuff. We were chatting about writing, stories, and a rather famous author came up as to how I could be writing stuff like him and I said, "I can write better than X." And his natural response was, "Then do it!" And I said something like "I write better than X but not good enough for me." It took a lot of effort to get my writing where I was satisfied with it.
I have interior confidence, but it took years to just get to the point of saying "yes" because I don't like cocky people.
Side note: Now I have readers telling me I write better than X, so at least a handful of people agree with me, LMAO.
I have interior confidence, but it took years to just get to the point of saying "yes" because I don't like cocky people.
Side note: Now I have readers telling me I write better than X, so at least a handful of people agree with me, LMAO.
Demesnedenoir
Myth Weaver
I don't know David Mack personally, but I know people who do, and he was at a Con once and had some woman with a body-length tattoo of his Kabuki character show up at his booth... The gist of the story was not being able to decide whether he should be more honored or creeped out, heh heh.
Me? I'd have a hard time not wondering if someday this woman might not have me strapped to the bed and be getting ready to break my ankles with a sledgehammer, heh heh.
Me? I'd have a hard time not wondering if someday this woman might not have me strapped to the bed and be getting ready to break my ankles with a sledgehammer, heh heh.
- Thread starter
- #36
pmmg
Myth Weaver
When someone is breaking my ankles to keep my writing, I might feel I have arrived
Malik
Auror
You write beautifully. There are passages in Eve of Snows that I would stop and reread.
Demesnedenoir
Myth Weaver
Always good to hear praise from a respected opinion! Thank you.
Off-topic: I had a reader some months back who got into indie fantasy after reading EoS, and I turned him onto Dragon's Trail, and he was going to do more indie reading because of those two books. I got a comment the other day that those are still his two favorite indie books.
Off-topic: I had a reader some months back who got into indie fantasy after reading EoS, and I turned him onto Dragon's Trail, and he was going to do more indie reading because of those two books. I got a comment the other day that those are still his two favorite indie books.
Prince of Spires
Auror
My own feelings regarding my writing very much depend on where I am in the process. Usually when I'm working through the first draft (around the 3/4 mark) it will all feel terrible. There's a long slog ahead and it all sucks and why did I even start and I should just throw it out and start that new project bouncing around in my head.
Then when I sit down to edit that first draft, and I re-read it for the first time it will actually seem pretty decent. Not perfect by any means, but better than some published books I've read. And then later in the process, after I get it back from my editor and I make the final changes, it will actually read like a real novel. Which somehow always surprises me.
As for what I answer when asked about my writing, it's usually something like "I sell a handful a month and people seem to like them. Read them and see for yourself."
Then when I sit down to edit that first draft, and I re-read it for the first time it will actually seem pretty decent. Not perfect by any means, but better than some published books I've read. And then later in the process, after I get it back from my editor and I make the final changes, it will actually read like a real novel. Which somehow always surprises me.
As for what I answer when asked about my writing, it's usually something like "I sell a handful a month and people seem to like them. Read them and see for yourself."
Sydnie
Dreamer
"I'll let my sales answer that question," said with a smile, followed by scurrying away before they can ask any questions about my sales~