Hatrack River Writers Workshop: 7th rewrite discussion zone

This is topic 7th rewrite discussion zone in forum Open Discussions About Writing at Hatrack River Writers Workshop.

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Posted by keldon02 (Member # 2398) on :

I thought to go ahead and post this, as I've not seen anything about the 7th rewrite challenge.

If I get my draft finished by the deadline it will be a modernized version which portrays the mermaid, fisherman and son as victims of a powerful bruja. I dislike the classic human versus alien slant seen in so much of mythology, so am making the bad character human. My main troubles at this point are the 5000 word limit and trying to find time for rewrites.

Posted by NewsBys (Member # 1950) on :

I have tried several times to start on this rewrite, but nothing is working out.
Sorry Dakota, I really am trying, and am still interested in the challenges. This one is just giving me a headache.

Posted by djvdakota (Member # 2002) on :

Thanks, Keldon, for keeping me on my toes. To tell you the truth, I've been dragging my feet simply because I had my doubts that anyone was still interested. I was actually going to post something today along these very lines.

I am thrilled that you're working on something. And it's a rewrite. You can do anything you want with it. On the first rewrite we had an amazing variety of stories, from true-to-the-story rewrites like my Trip Trap (now up on www.anotherealm.com), to a sci-fi space adventure in which the goats and troll were ships and their captains, the bridge a portal between two stars.

The idea is to take the base elements of the story and recreate something that pleases you, and hopefully gains publication.

By the way, folks. How many of you have had your goat stories published?

How many of you have your goat stories running the submission mill?

I'll be posting the next rewrite challenge today. Take a look.

Posted by MaryRobinette (Member # 1680) on :

My goat story is in the mill right now.

I don't know if this will help any with the readwrite challenge, but the last couple of times I've looked at the story I thought the plots were too complicated for a successful short story, if I used all the plot elements. A fairytale can get away with more telling than a short story. At least that's been my impression, which could be completely wrong.

Posted by djvdakota (Member # 2002) on :

Fair impression, Mary.

I suppose that's why the FlashChallenge is so successful, because you don't feel like you're bound to a specific set of elements.

So, any suggestions on how to modify the Rewrite Challenge to help make it more...um...appealing?

This is not my challenge, folks. It's yours. I just agreed to do the footwork. So tell me what you want it to do for you. Can it do for you what FlashChallenge cannot? Should it go and bow to the next generation?

No skin off my nose, either way. Really!

[This message has been edited by djvdakota (edited May 07, 2005).]

Posted by HSO (Member # 2056) on :

Well, I have a thought, really...

Instead of fairy tales, let's choose some classic stories that are in the public domain and legal to post on a webpage-- I was thinking specifically of some short E.A. Poe stories... like The Pit and the Pendulum or The Raven, etc... Well, they may not be incredibly short, but they aren't incredibly long, either.

Posted by autumnmuse (Member # 2136) on :

I agree that the reason I haven't participated lately is that it is difficult to retell a long and convoluted story. Something very simple is better, which is why I believe the 3 Billy Goats Gruff was our best challenge.

If we simplify it back down a bit and choose subjects--be they fairy tales, myths, short stories or whatever--that have broad themes and relatively few elements, to maximize the amount of variables to play with, then I would probably jump back on the bandwagon. I just did a rewrite of Hansel and Gretel as a flash challenge. It sucked, actually, but I may rewrite it again.

Posted by MCameron (Member # 2391) on :

Mary and autumnmuse have a point. I managed to come up with an idea for the mermaid story, but it really was a novel-sized idea. There were just so many elements to work in. I really don't feel up to writing a novel right now, since I have trouble writing 3000 word short stories. I would certainly like to participate in the rewrite challenge, but feel a bit intimidated. One caveat, I haven't looked at the two newest challenges, so they could be different.

--Mel

Posted by keldon02 (Member # 2398) on :

My plan for paring the rewrite down to 5000 words is to delete a lot of the excessively broad and unconnected action and focus on the basic conflict. I'm turning a fable into a story of fable telling.

Passed the halfway point this week!

Posted by Robyn_Hood (Member # 2083) on :

I've been having some of the same problems as far as plot are concerned. The nice thing about fairy tales is that the story is simple and easy to breakdown. You can easily get to the bones of the story and start building on it.

Starting with the Canterbury Tales, things took a bit of a turn for me. The stories became quite involved, partly because they had been written to be complete stories.

Just my 2 cents.

Posted by dpatridge (Member # 2208) on :

i agree with everyone else. i have an idea for the 8th challenge, and i really do want to try to participate, but i'm having trouble shaving elements in order to take it down to a short story.