FacebookTwitter
Hatrack River Forum   
my profile login | search | faq | forum home

  next oldest topic   next newest topic
» Hatrack River Forum » Active Forums » Books, Films, Food and Culture » Putting It Off

   
Author Topic: Putting It Off
SteveRogers
Member
Member # 7130

 - posted      Profile for SteveRogers           Edit/Delete Post 
I've decided that I'll put off being anti-festive. Because I want to be festive.

I guess writing the story I'm thinking of wouldn't really be anti-festive, but I don't want to write it quite yet.

But doesn't it sound cool? (See brief summary below.)

Ok, well. Picture this, there is a young boy who thinks that Santa is the coolest guy ever. He absolutely nearly worships the man. He gets an annual picture with the big man.

One year the mall Santa tells the kid, "Kid, get a life. Santa is a fake. Just as fake as this stupid beard."

Not only is the Santa a depressed drunk trying to get some cash, but he has also crushed this young lad.

The kid grows up, never really forgetting the mall Santa. On some level, he was pschollogically damaged by his previous revelation. And he realizes this.

So, he decides, somehow, that there is only one way to fix the problem. He quickly becomes a serial killer who specializes in the grisly murder of shopping mall Santa Claus'.

That is all I've got mentally right now. But I am looking forward to writing it. I have another story I want to write first. But I will spare you the details.

Posts: 6026 | Registered: Dec 2004  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
GaalDornick
Member
Member # 8880

 - posted      Profile for GaalDornick           Edit/Delete Post 
You know what, it's such a good idea I think I'm going to write it first! *races off to write story*

[Evil Laugh] [Wink]

On a serious note, I suggest you plot out the whole story before you start writing. Make an outline. I mean, what happens once he becomes a serial killer? That's it? The story is over? What's the point of the story? Think about it before you start writing and make sure you know what you're doing before you start because once you start writing you don't want to stop and wait another month until you come up with an idea about how the story will continue.

Posts: 2054 | Registered: Nov 2005  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
SteveRogers
Member
Member # 7130

 - posted      Profile for SteveRogers           Edit/Delete Post 
I don't do that. I sit and just write. It comes to me as I go. I don't think I've outlined a thing I've written except for essays for school.
Posts: 6026 | Registered: Dec 2004  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
GaalDornick
Member
Member # 8880

 - posted      Profile for GaalDornick           Edit/Delete Post 
From OSC's "How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy:

"Good stories don't come from trying to write a story the moment I think of the first idea."

From everything I've read about writing, every author recommends you plot and outline before you start writing. I'm pretty sure it's not a good idea to just sit and write whatever comes to your head before you know what you're actually writing.

Posts: 2054 | Registered: Nov 2005  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
SteveRogers
Member
Member # 7130

 - posted      Profile for SteveRogers           Edit/Delete Post 
I don't write it RIGHT away. I mentally outline my plot. I usually write the story a couple of weeks after it first pops into my head, so I have time to have brilliant revelations.
Posts: 6026 | Registered: Dec 2004  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
James Tiberius Kirk
Member
Member # 2832

 - posted      Profile for James Tiberius Kirk           Edit/Delete Post 
That sounds like it would be a fun read.

[and for the record, I consider you lucky. I'm kind of on the opposite end of the spectrum: I outline and outline, but never write anything.]

--j_k

Posts: 3617 | Registered: Dec 2001  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
SteveRogers
Member
Member # 7130

 - posted      Profile for SteveRogers           Edit/Delete Post 
If I were you rather than an outlining sometime, I would just sit in front of a computer and type. Improvise if you have to, that is part of the fun.
Posts: 6026 | Registered: Dec 2004  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Teshi
Member
Member # 5024

 - posted      Profile for Teshi   Email Teshi         Edit/Delete Post 
I think that for an established author who's writing a novel he intends to publish, plotting is extremely important. The established or practiced writer already understands how to deal with stories and knows how to make a scene good and spontaneous without the actual spontenaeity (can't spell it).

For someone who's honing his storywriting skills, he should write all he can as soon as he gets the urge to write. Go for it, Steve.

[Smile]

Posts: 8473 | Registered: Apr 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
quidscribis
Member
Member # 5124

 - posted      Profile for quidscribis   Email quidscribis         Edit/Delete Post 
Every writer has their own best method of writing. For some, plotting in detail is the best way to approach writing (me, for example). For others, it's writing by the seat of their pants as the scenes come to them and as their characters tell them what to do (Fahim). Others are somewhere in between.

Do what works best for you, as a writer. That's what matters.

Posts: 8355 | Registered: Apr 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
   

   Close Topic   Feature Topic   Move Topic   Delete Topic next oldest topic   next newest topic
 - Printer-friendly view of this topic
Hop To:


Contact Us | Hatrack River Home Page

Copyright © 2008 Hatrack River Enterprises Inc. All rights reserved.
Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.


Powered by Infopop Corporation
UBB.classic™ 6.7.2