A few complaints have been posted about authors who begin a serial and then never seem to complete it. Since I currently have two serials awaiting an ending, I thought I would share some thoughts about my personal writing process.
First of all, whenever I write a serial, I do not begin the actual writing until I have an outline of the complete work. I do this for several reasons. One of these is the fact that writing TG fiction is an avocation, not an occupation. The only payment I derive from this activity is a modicum of bragging rights and the comments left by my readers. Unfortunately, it doesn't generate any sort of income. The demands of job and family take precedence. Lately I have had to put in a lot of time at work, doing necessary tasks in my home, and satisfying a number of personal obligations. When these priorities are satisfied I use what little free time I have to pursue my "optional" activities. This includes writing. So if I have to pause while writing a particular story, I can pick up where I left off when I get back to it.
Once I begin the actual process of writing, new ideas will occasionally occur to me, and the story will go into a somewhat different direction. For instance, when I started writing "The Academy" I planned on 3 episodes, but I ended up with enough material (as well as a good breaking point) to include a fourth. But I had my beginning and ending already outlined. My biggest set of episodes to date has been for "Kimberly's Summer Vacation." I have the ending outlined and will be posting at least four more episodes. I have already created two more episodes in addition to my original outline, and I can't guarantee that an extra episode will not occur to me. I have started writing the latest episode, but due to the intrusion of my "real" life I cannot guarantee just when it will be done. The other serial I am currently working on, "Hostile Environment," will have one more episode. It is outlined and the end is definitely planned.
There is, of course, the inevitable writer's block. Sometimes a story will flow from my mind faster than I can type. At other times I can stare at the screen and the words just will not come. Whenever I get writer's block I need to do something else for a little while. Sometimes this means I need to write a different story. Hey, sometimes I am dark and dangerous, and sometimes I am sweet and sentimental. It depends on where my head is at any one time.
So I apologize to any of my readers if the time between episodes becomes really long. All I can say is, I will definitely finish. Hang in there.
Serial chapters don't just happen
Tina, that's true for a lot of us. My current story has been hamstrung by life. I know where it's going, but finding the time and the proper mood to write is very difficult sometimes. We all want to do a good job, and sometimes that means taking longer than we'd like.
I put it to the readers out there, would you rather have new chapters on a regular basis, even if some of those chapters are of substandard quality? Or should we as authors take longer and post chapters when the quality is right, something we'd be proud to put our names on?
Hugs!
Karen J.
Change is inevitable, except from vending machines
“When a clown moves into a palace, he doesn’t become a king. The palace becomes a circus.” - Turkish Proverb
Epics and serials take a long time to write!
They do, especially when you have several going on. How does this happen? Wouldn't it be easier to just concentrate on one story?
This happens because writers do write, and they sometimes have a new idea or story pop into their heads that just has to be written. Then there is the writers block they get for a particular story! When this happens, they work on another or begin one that flows out of them at the time.
Would it be easier to concentrate on one story? In a word, NO! That just doesn't happen in real life, at least to me it doesn't. If you could only see my hard drive, GEEZE! I can write ten stories and make one out of the ten I have written and that is usually what I do. The short stories I have been posting are exactly that, several stories combined to make one complete story.
As you all know I no longer am posting parts of my epics or if you prefer, serials. I am also slowly working on removing the unfinished epics from this site. I am doing this because of all the negative crap I have read in blogs and posts about the "many" unfinished stories posted here. How some of the authors lamented on how they being superior writers never do this. LOL... Then there have been the more than a few readers adding to these blogs and comments lementing right along agreeing with the fact that we authors always start things but never finish them.
Well, in my case you are getting your wish. Too bad really, it takes a long time to write these and the comments and encouragement we get by posting these chapters and parts keep us focused more on a particular epic or serial. We are also able to make them a bit better for our readers when they can offer advice and input as the story progresses. Now, you wont have that chance anymore.
You'll have to wait for an indeterminant amount of time to be able to read a good story that could have been better if you had allowed us to post it in parts instead of demanding completed works.
I know not all of you are like this, and not all of you have made this demand. BUT, enough of you have and some very popular authors have made this known in a condescending way to those of us who post in parts.
I really do not appreciate being insulted in a condescending fahion. A fashion that is very popular with a few popular authors. Those that love to voice their superior skills and schooling by demeaning those that lack their skills and educational backgrounds. Oh, they are skillful with their wordage aren't they? They can easily say, "We did not mean it to sound that way!" Yeah, sure you didn't, that's why you all say it that way often enough.
No, we the less fortunate that have not the skills and the educational backgrounds of the truly gifted here, have gotten the messege. What was the way they put it? Oh yes,
"If your story has no beggining, no middle, nor an ending before you start to write, don't post it!"
Ok, I won't until your demands have been met. To bad really, so many readers are missing out on a lot of new authors efforts and these rediculous demands are a prevention not an enhancement for authors to learn and grow. They prevent the very help we all seek from everyone here. We do have something in common with the superior intellectually enhanced authors, we do love to write!
Huggles All
Angel
I did not do a spell check or proof this. I did not check my grammar or anything else. I just let it flow. Let those who wish, the gifted ones, do that for me. We wouldn't want to set a bad example after all.
Be yourself, so easy to say, so hard to live.
You can find my stories by going to. http://bigclosetr.us/topshelf/taxonomy/term/39
The ones I deleted from this site are here. (Well, most of them anyway.)
http://bigclosetr.us/topshelf/weblink/go
"Be Your-Self, So Easy to Say, So Hard to Live!"
Serial Chapters
Karen - there is only one answer to your question. Serial chapters should only be posted if and when the author is satisfied with their work. Any author who posts something that they know is substandard to what they could do is hurting their own integrity.
I don't care if it take one month, two months or a year because readers will remember a good story and can always go back to refresh their memories before reading the new chapter.
Cheers,
Anne
The time it takes..
The time it takes to write a story is not really the question. We all realize that the creative processes are affected by many other factors. I commented where perhaps a blog may have been a better way to seperate my thoughts from a story comment, my apologies for that.
Another person's comment invoked thoughts about long waits between serial chapters and how some stories start out quickly and cease with no further words from the author. The editing method available in BC gives authors a way to show they are still considering the story after a length of time and the chance for readers to then show continued intrest. If an author has posted other stories we have hope they may return to a previous unfinished one. If six months go by where an author has not posted anything this site may be the only one that provides a way to let others know you're still considering continuing.
In fact a few months ago Angel did just that and asked what readers would like to see.
Thoughts on writing from a novice
As a novice writer, I'm always interested in how others write seeking that magic clue of helping ME improve my writing. It has taken me, almost 15 years to get over a hurtful comment made by someone, who read something of mine, without my consent,and pronounced it so bad, that I shouldn't even consider writing! The struggle to overcome this, and dealing with all of the voices in my head finally led me to write and post "The Princess's Wishes." Voices in your head? YES!, all writers who has "dialog" in their works, talk to themselves. I'm a long time compulsive reader and I've had my imagination inspired from everyone from Robert Louis Stevens to Jack L.Chalker. The process of taking an idea that has formed between one's ears and putting on paper is not an clean straight forward task. The litter of notebooks and memo-pads abound in scribbled bits and pieces of scenes and plots. For some, who have had help with superior schooling or mentor-ship it is easier, for others it's messy! Oh! at times it's like a line from a movie from the early 1980's named "Scanners." The villain played by Micheal Ironsides, had taken a drill to his head, to quote "let the voices out." Angel's comment about the emotion released in this messy creative process is well taken. One story doesn't politely wait for another to be completed, before the next one takes it's place in queue. The resemblance is more likea overloaded railroad yard with crazed engineers determined to ram their trains, though no matter what, with collisions inevitable. I have an Hard Drive comfortably full of half finished stories that has been "derailed" by another story before it's completion. In frustration, I researched successful writers, looking for the aforementioned magic clue for success. Wen Spencer who is the author of an popular Sci-Fi series, the Alien Taste has an very informative blog. Her best advice from there, I think is until you finish your story you have NOTHING! Nothing you can edit properly, Nothing to show others for advice, and Nothing to show for your work. It's just a fragment. Helped with advice from her blog and from the always helpful Science Fiction and Fantasy Writer's of America's the Craft of Writing, I finally finished a story! No one writes alone! From Angel and Karen who helped me edit it, to Bob at StarDust who told me, "Good, get some editing help," I had a real team helping me.
I'm going on a little tangent so bear with here. DANGER: ON COMING TANGENT! I've played Role-playing-games for many years and one of the Duties as an game-master is the care and nurturing of new game-masters. I encouraged them to go ahead and get that game-book, write down that idea, listen to what they're saying, and when they run that first game, I tell them what I liked, and what could be done better. I believe that is why, BC works so well not RPG, but for writers. There is real talent here and the many helpful readers and writers make BE what it is. I've made what I hope are constructive and positive comments, because in my own work, "I" can come with enough negative ones all by myself. Writers do have to be nurtured, but the nature of comments can be hard sometimes. Commentators can be sweet and good humorily offer advise or like disgruntled Drill Sargents, blister the ink right off the paper! When that's your heart and soul on that paper, that "blistering" HURTS! I wish, that I took criticism better, because sometimes, just sometimes, there is good advise there as much as I don't like to admit it. Are these people bad? NO, they're not, that's, like that Drill Sergant is their style. it's how they've learned that gets them the best results.
Enough RANT! Even when the story is finished someone will go hey, what that all about. I looked at it, all of the editors missed it, but a reader found a flaw. Okay, like George Lucas who has remade Star Wars 2 TIMES now, you go back and tweak it. It's never going to be perfect, but you try. Serials are a question mark. Do you finish the work all at once before getting feedback or release it in pieces. I seem to remember that much of Jules Verne, Charles Dickens and Arther Conan Doyle works was released in Serials. I leave that up to you!
As all ways BEWARE:grammar and spelling errors!
HUGS for everyone!
Thanks Erin for BC!
grover-
Serial v. Real life
Thank you Tina for your response to this.
I have no idea if more than the single person who wrote me is waiting for more "Scenes", so my reaction may be taking umbrage at a remark not meant and an apology for a slight unfelt by anyone, but I feel the guilt of a story that is not moving fast enough.
I could blame the fiction of real life, the reality of troubles in my own head or of recalcitrant characters (They had the right to object - in attempting to hurry things along, I pushed them too far too fast.).
The truth is mostly my own lack of discipline and a confluence of piddly stuff that has made it hard for me to enter the fantasy that is my story.
Readers should not think that they want an end to the story more than the writers, believe me I feel a commitment to my characters, one and all, and long to get back to them. I started a project that was too ambitious. It had a firm outline and vision at the beginning, and I still adhere to it in all major ways. And it will be finished as long as I have access to a computer (not a given).
It is true that starting a serial is making a promise but it would only be counter-productive to post unfinished bits and pieces. I want each part to give some small piece of enjoyment; to be a truffle in the box of chocolate that is life (or - it seems more appropriate to me lately - in the basket of fungi).
I'll never write a story in this way again, but the serial format was very important to me at the beginning: i truly did not know if anyone in the world would like my story and needed the encouragement i received here! But don't demand to much, just take the morsel offered and enjoy (or not) and know the writer WANTS very much to give you more.
I do know that i owe an appology to many people over the last few months because I have not been giveing that encoragement. In fact I have not even been reading; just lurking and looking at comments. That, i also feel sorry for, but i've been - nevermind - Just, I'm sorry to those I have missed or slighted; i'll get to it soon.
Joy and Love,
Jan
what kind of story is it?
Some serials are more frustrating than others. When a chapter tells a fairly self-contained episode, even if it's part of a larger story arc, it's not as bad to read. But when a chapter is just some chunk of a story that doesn't have its own beginning and ending, I'd rather wait until the entire piece is finished to read it.
From an absolute novice
I hope you don't mind if I throw in my two cents.
You see, to be very honest, I never actually intended to write a story in the first place. I had sent Maddy Bell what I thought was simply a good storyline idea for her Gaby series. I wrote it out like a chapter, and well, Maddy liked it and asked me if she could post it on her site.
As such, Drew's Meltdown became more than just a simple story idea.
This is the first story I have ever written, and unlike many of you, I did not have an overall plot line or storyboard to follow. The story has simply been progressing as inspiration comes to me. In that way this has become a very organic process for me.
I find it a fascinating exercise for me to work out concepts and ideas that I have wished to express but always been too reticent to voice (read afraid).
Truth be told, before February of this year, I had never written a thing. Not a story, not a poem....nothing. Inspiration for my writing takes on many forms, and essentially when it hits, I sit down and let it flow from my fingers.
What you see when you read what I have written, except for parts 3,4 and 5 of Meltdown which Samantha proofed for me, is exactly what I wrote when I sat down at the computer. No spell check, no grammar check, no proofing. Absolutely raw.
And yes, like Karen J., life certainly does get in the way of writing. Due to a number of reasons I didn't sit down at the computer to write for over 2 months. And in ten days, wrote 2 pieces of poetry, a Christmas parody and about 8 pages of part 6 of my serial. I find that the writing comes to me when it comes. And if it seems to be a long time to the reader, then I apologize. But for me, at least, I would rather be happy with the result as opposed to trying to force the writing and turning out a piece of tripe that everyone, including myself, would not be happy with.
I guess I just work it all out in my head, and at some point my brain says "Right then, this works and I'm happy with it. Now sit down and write it out." And I do. And the results end up posted here.
Anyways, I have to say to all of the authors who write serialized stories that you have my undying admiration. It is much harder than it looks, and being able to maintain a coherent storyline and character line through many chapters is a challenge that I hope to succeed at.
Cheers to you all!
Kate
"While the rest of the human race are descended from monkeys, redheads derive from cats."
Kate
"Before you diagnose yourself with depression or low self-esteem, first make sure you are not, in fact, just surrounded by assholes." William Gibson
Serial chapters and life getting in the way
I suppose I am as guilty as anyone else of not pushing chapters out on a regular basis.
I would love to have the time, but running two businesses and working 12 hour days means that I don't always have the time to write. Hell, some days I'm so tired that I can barely think let alone write a piece of fiction that grabs people and holds their interest.
Also, I don't know about how others write, but I find that when I do find time to write a chapter, I tend to have sort of verbal Diarrhoea, where I can write a couple of thousand words at one sitting.
Thats the thing with my writing, I do it spurts then I get blocks.
It does upset me a bit when I get comments and complaints about the times when I am slow in producing work. I suspect that it is from non writers who do not know about the angst we creative types have when trying to write something that others might like to read.
Hugs
Sue
Real Life
I've come to terms with the fact that I enjoy investing the hours of research and writing, and the enjoyment of others in what I've produced is like chocolate icing on the cake.
I do have other and far more important responsibilities, and my stories will come in second place to them.
I will finish Amazon. In fact the last part is already started, though out of sequence.
I will finish Ma'at.
The chapters will come as quickly as possible, consistent with what I consider acceptable quality.
Nicole (a.k.a. Itinerant)
--
Veni, Vidi, Velcro:
I came, I saw, I stuck around.
Sure You'll Finish It ... Bru ha ha ha!
As to serials, or is it cereals?
I got into writing to work off some off the emontions that my mother's impending death brought out. I had written before but on a very limited basis -- for myself or for a sci-fi club newsletter -- so I found I liked it, old habits and all of that.
Not that I'm all the good at it, technically it's BAD -- you should see my first drafts -- though I'm getting better -- to badly paraphrase Monty Python and The Holy Grail. I admit sometimes my chapters are not self-contained, but then the ideas come as THEY WILL. I do have an overall plan in mind for Timeout and plan to wrap it all up periodically so if I do stop, you won't be left hanging.
I admit you are all acting as my scratch monkeys, lab rats or what have you, so be patient.
As to Itinerant, how will you ever finsih given RL, and editing/proofing my stuff?
As to Sue Brown and Angel, I can wait.
Best wishes,
John in Wauwatosa
John in Wauwatosa
YOU GIRLS ARE MY HERO.
From the comments i've read i think you are all wonderful. you are all helpful and i feel i can go back and try to clean up the story i submitted.
once i clean it up and go more in deeped on other point, i will re submit the story.
I also agree that other issue are first and do hinder the time it take to write.
but i will strive to make my writting as good as the rest of you.
anyway, by for now and xoxo hugs:)
Jo Ann
Jo Ann