I have never published anything. Not a word, not a sentence. Didn't even know till last year that there was such a thing as an online writer's workshop. WOTF? Never heard of it until I signed up on Hatrack. I don't have a degree. I'm a house painter from small rural community. I live on a dirt road. I have trouble critiquing stories about subject matter I don't particularly care for. But here I am, doing something I've wanted to do for most of my life. The feedback I've received from this place has been fantastic - both negative and positive. I have an awful lot to learn, and at times it seems pretty daunting. When I read some of these posts I think, Maybe I don't belong with this group. Maybe I should just get real and abandon this hopeless dream of mine. But then that stubborn rural Missouri streak rears its head, and I keep plugging away. So for everyone here on Hatrack, that's my credentials. Take what I say with a grain of salt. Don't anyone leave on my account!
Posted by snapper (Member # 7299) on :
Trust me Anderson, you haven't driven anyone away.
We give newbies a break, hell we were all one at one time. It takes endless posts and you need to hammer away at a pointless argument, refuse to listen to your colleagues, claim mistreatment, and persistently insert yourself and your one man crusade whenever the opportunity arises before you drive anyone away.
Keep at it (the writing, not obnoxiousness).
[This message has been edited by snapper (edited March 01, 2010).]
Posted by KayTi (Member # 5137) on :
Sounds like you fit right in!
I'm my own anomaly, too. I decided as a New Year's resolution in 2007 to write. So I started writing. And can't stop! Actually, many days I can't seem to get started, I have both problems.
I didn't dream of being a writer since I was a little girl. I didn't get a creative writing degree in college (nor even take creative writing classes - I let my AP English score skip me out of all the writing requirements in my program!) I don't have an MFA in creative writing or the arts. I don't like literary fiction. I am a voracious reader, again, having gone on hiatus for about 10 years while having a career, then children.
I love to read. Have always loved to read. Getting back to reading after so many years off has reminded me of important things in my life. And it's because I'm a reader that I write. I write the kinds of things I wanted to read when I was a young teen first finding science fiction at my school's library.
I feel different from a lot of writers because this hasn't been my life-long dream. I'm still figuring out what I want to be when I grow up, but I think writing is part of that picture.
I've learned a ton in my almost 3 yrs at Hatrack, though. And I've read a ton - books for my own enjoyment and writing books to shore up my skills. Stick around, we've got loads to learn from each other.
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
Thanks, guys! I only wanted to be up-front. That way, if I ever begin to sound condescending or too big for my britches you all can go back to this post and remind me what I wrote. It never hurts to be humble.
Posted by philocinemas (Member # 8108) on :
quote:I have never published anything. Not a word, not a sentence.
Anderson, you and I are in the same boat - happy sailing.
Posted by BenM (Member # 8329) on :
If it wasn't for I'm a house painter from small rural community and rural Missouri I'd have thought you were telling my story.
Posted by Pyre Dynasty (Member # 1947) on :
I once painted a shed, and my area was rural when I was born. (It has since changed.) I've always wanted visit Missouri. And my only credit is a 3rd place in a little contest on the internet (the web page is now defunct.) We're all learning here, and we all have something to teach each other. If publishing credit were the standard for hanging out here I think it would be a quiet place indeed, and it would not help one person get their first credit.
Relax.
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
Oh, I'm perfectly relaxed. Just seemed things were getting a little heated around here. I thought I'd just let everyone know that my opinions aren't backed by experience or in any way professional.
Posted by Merlion-Emrys (Member # 7912) on :
That doesn't make them one whit less valid. At least not to the majority of us.
Posted by JSchuler (Member # 8970) on :
Going with my scant experience here, I think the most sought after input on the first 13 here is: would you read on and why/why not? For that, you don't have to be an expert on writing or have a fancy diploma in an expensive frame, you just have to like to read.
For writing, I think a degree is of questionable value. Sure, it helps to have a PhD in astronomy when writing hard sci-fi, but experiences are probably more useful in writing an engaging story than time spent sitting in a lecture hall.
Now, when it comes to queries, I'm staying the hell away :P
Posted by MartinV (Member # 5512) on :
quote:But here I am, doing something I've wanted to do for most of my life.
In the end, that's all that really matters.
quote:I have an awful lot to learn, and at times it seems pretty daunting.
That makes two of us. For the past two weeks since I got the WOTF story critiques all I ever think about is: what am I doing?
Posted by Crystal Stevens (Member # 8006) on :
I hear you, andersonmcdonald, and feel exactly the same way. I'm a high school grad and a production worker in a factory. I live in the country surrounded with small midwestern towns. I felt so overwhelmed the first time I found Hatrack, and I was scared the death when I finally got up the nerve to join. BUT it was the best thing I've ever done for any chance to start a writing career.
Sometimes, I wonder if I'm out of my mind to even try. After all, I'm 58 years old with retirement right around the corner. Well... seven years from now. If I ever publish anything, I'll be in my 60's by then, but having my name on a book that's mine has been a dream for most of my life. And with help from folks like those here on Hatrack, maybe, just maybe, that dream will become reality.
I, too, hope I haven't offended anyone on this forum. I love it here and would hate to endanger my stay, which I hope will last for many years to come.
Posted by shimiqua (Member # 7760) on :
Oh Crystal, you may just win the contest for least offensive person on Hatrack. At the very least you would get my vote.
I try to be humble, but I am actually a very talented writer with more credentials than I have wall space.
I'm totally kidding. I have only ever submitted two stories, and they were both happily rejected. I'm a stay at home mom who did actually always want to be a writer. That, and an Actor, Drama teacher, songwriter, Psychologist, social worker, and Foster parent. (Preferably all at the same time.)
I started writing because I was bored and desperately wanted a book, but being poor, car-less, and stuck at home with a child that only napped in his own crib, I started to write a story of my own just to entertain myself. Four years and more than 150,000 words later, I still write as a way to entertain myself. I post on Hatrack, because (sad but true) there is a good chance that these scathing crits will come from my only readers.
I still dream though, of one day having my named published somewhere. I dream that my life will be important. It's all just a fancy dream, and as Terry Prachett once said, "Anyone can dream, the real trick is to wake up."
So I am trying not to waste my time, and learn as much as I can.
I apologize if I have offended anyone. I never mean offense. ~Sheena
Posted by WBSchmidt (Member # 8533) on :
JSchuler wrote:
quote:Going with my scant experience here, I think the most sought after input on the first 13 here is: would you read on and why/why not? For that, you don't have to be an expert on writing or have a fancy diploma in an expensive frame, you just have to like to read.
I agree with you. One thing I'm trying to teach myself as I critique others' works is to only judge based upon whether the story interests me and makes me want to read on. I try to avoid commenting on the way a person writes their scenes just because "that's not now I would do it." It's their voice and I have no right to make suggestions that would encourage them to change that voice. The only valuable opinion I can give is to say where I got confused or wanted to stop reading. We're all readers (or should be ) and that is enough to let others know whether a story works or not. After that, the author may evaluate our opinions and act upon them or not.
I also hope that I have not offended anyone. One of my shortcomings here is that I don't critique enough. I am so frustrated right now in trying to develop my "writing process" that I forget to visit the F&F to offer my thoughts (such as they may be).
--William
Posted by InarticulateBabbler (Member # 4849) on :
Confession: I think at one time I was the single-most-offensive person at Hatrack. Even when I wasn' trying to be.
Now, I just don't care about that. Take me or leave me, but never just dismiss me... I try to live by that too.
I am published. BUT, if not for Hatrack, friends I met through Hatrack, and some harsh critiques...I can certainly say I wouldn't be.
So, when I give a critique (which I only rarely offer here anymore), I try to offer as much insight as I can. That used to mean breaking a first thirteen down by PoV, conflict, grammar, excessive adverb usage, typos and hook--but, I learned about all of those aspects by doing that. Today, I know if I go through all of the work I used to, someone will oppose it all and it'll fuel an arguement. I was never here to argue; I've always been here to learn. I'm still learning, and learning different aspects of writing.
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
Fire away, InarticulateBabbler. That's what I'm here for. In addition to being inexperienced and unpublished, I also have a thick skin. As for any critiques I might give, people can take them or leave them. No offense meant, none taken.
Posted by satate (Member # 8082) on :
I think we're ready for a group hug.
Honestly though, I have learned so much from both giving and recieving critiques. Also, I've never been offended by anyone here and I hope no one's ever been offended by me.
(Except for that one person who gave me that horrible critique - just kidding - never happened)
Posted by Robert Nowall (Member # 2764) on :
Well, speaking as a guy who's (a) been hanging 'round here awhile, and (b) has failed to sell a single story in coming up on thirty-five years of trying, I wouldn't worry about what anybody else has done or is doing, or what they are and aren't posting. I might get cheesed off by someone's supposed advantage, but that's it.
I think I may have done some damage to myself and my chances at various points in my writing career---mostly of the "not studying the proper things" rather than offending people. But I'm not going to let myself be intimidated (or stopped) because I find some writer has a degree in English composition or some such. I'll try to make up for my loss by learning (or, in some cases unlearing) what I can to make up for it. (Just the other month I got some good advice here I hope to be able to take. And that happens all the time.)
I suppose the moral is: Write your own thing and then worry about it. And have some fun along the way.
(I do worry about having been at it so long that my habits are formed and I can't change what I need to change...)
Posted by MAP (Member # 8631) on :
I too am a newby to the writing thing. I haven't even submitted anything, but I will. I want to be published, but I know I still have a lot to learn before I have a shot at it.
I respect those on this site who have been published, and I appreciate their contributions. I know they know more about writing then I do, but I also learn a lot from those who are not published.
I wish that this place was more open to working out conflict. I would hate my remarks to be taken the wrong way. I have never meant to be rude or disrespectful to anyone here, and I hope if someone thought that I was that they would call me on it.
I really think that things can easily be taken out of context on the internet. If we were all meeting in real life, I think we would all get along better.
Posted by billawaboy (Member # 8182) on :
C'mon with a name like Anderson Macdonald you have to be a writer. It feels like a classic Scifi or fantasy writer's name. The Alchemage's Equation by Anderson MacDonald. See?
Speaking of which - what kinds of stories do you wan to write? standard fiction? scifi? fantasy? something in between?...
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
Ok. You got me. I'm a bestselling writer with hundreds of novels to my name. I'm sipping a martini on my yacht as I type this. Ha. Anderson McDonald refers to the "small rural community" I live in. Hmmm. Maybe I should keep it for a pen name... Anyway, I like both science fiction and fantasy, but I write primarily fantasy. I just like swords and bows more than I do metal and rivets.
[This message has been edited by andersonmcdonald (edited March 03, 2010).]
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
But I'm not much into wizards and spells. Or elves. Or fairies. Or unicorns. Hmmm.. What the heck AM I writing????
Posted by billawaboy (Member # 8182) on :
According to Bruce Sterling if you have the President of the United States involved in your story that's a straight up fantasy (well...thriller spec fiction)
what was that old way of getting a pen name: take your pet's name as your first and your street name as your last?
Hmm...I need to buy a pet and name it...what's a good name for a pet...
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
Sniffer
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
How would that work for you?
Posted by sholar (Member # 3280) on :
My pets have awesome names. I could be Loki (mischief god), Mars (war god) or if we go by dead pets, Rasputin (he was a goldfish).
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
Sniffer is way better.
Posted by billawaboy (Member # 8182) on :
Percy Potter and The Bagpipes of Oblivion by Sniffer Anderson MacDonald
the name is better than the title for sure...
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
KDW, is there a complaint department on Hatrack? "Bagpipes of Oblivion" was supposed to be a secret. Now thanks to billawaboy the whole world knows the title of my upcoming book. Foul!
Posted by Kathleen Dalton Woodbury (Member # 59) on :
Sorry, emails to me are the only complaint department (though lots of people tend to use the forum that way ).
So, you want me to delete billawaboy's post? Sorry. It doesn't violate the registration agreement.
I do have one question, however. What does one do for a pen name if they live on a numbered street?
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
Hmmm.... Forego the street name. Get another pet. Fido Sniffer.
Posted by aspirit (Member # 7974) on :
Hi, I'm Sora Jewel. That doesn't work. Hi, I'm Sky Jewel. Sora Jueru? Pen names are hard.
Posted by aspirit (Member # 7974) on :
Anderson, I also like your current name. Do you write about animals?
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
Namesarhard Penn
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
Well... Animals do play a big part in the epic fantasy I'm currently writing. One very large animal in particular. Think of a horned animal that resides in the Rocky Mountains.
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
Only bigger
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
Maybe I should have said "antlered".
Posted by billawaboy (Member # 8182) on :
KDW - pick the last or only number, find what it's called in another language. That's the last name.
andy- I'm gonna start calling you "one-liner" Anderson.
Posted by Kathleen Dalton Woodbury (Member # 59) on :
I remember seeing a name that gave me a chuckle: Unbekannt Maedchen.
Posted by genevive42 (Member # 8714) on :
quote:take your pet's name as your first and your street name as your last?
I thought that was how you got your porn name.
Posted by billawaboy (Member # 8182) on :
(Genevive...shhhh) lol
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
I thought billawaboy was his porn name.
Posted by shimiqua (Member # 7760) on :
My pen name would be Chaucer Lockwood, and I gotta say, I dig it. ~ Chaucer Lockwood
Posted by Crystal Stevens (Member # 8006) on :
Actually, my user name IS my pen name... if I ever get anything submitted. When my brothers and I played make-believe as kids, I was always Crystal Stevens. Then, before I found Hatrack, I put a story on fictionpress. I'll never do that again and haven't been back to that site in well over a year. But you had to have a pen name to be able to post anything there. I chose Crystal Stevens from my childhood days.
I'm not really ashamed of my real name but thought a user name was supposed to be something other than your real name. Hence, I used Crystal Stevens here on Hatrack instead of Ginger Karns. Yep, that's my real name. Now I have to decide which one to write under. Right now, I'm thinking my real name.
Posted by Pyre Dynasty (Member # 1947) on :
Machine-Gun 13. That sounds more like a military robot's name than a writer's name, oh well.
Posted by sholar (Member # 3280) on :
I'm going with my dead goldfish's name and current street: Rasputin Belgravia.
Posted by JSchuler (Member # 8970) on :
As my name would be Tigger Ramapo, I'm going to say it's a porn name Posted by posulliv (Member # 8147) on :
I knew it was mistake to name my cat Hugh, but buying that foreclosure on Jass Street? It seemed like a good idea at the time.
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
I just got that
Posted by aspirit (Member # 7974) on :
Can't type... laughing too hard. Hugh Jass is definetly a porn star name.
Okay, now. Pyre, what kind of pet is named Machine-Gun?
Posted by InarticulateBabbler (Member # 4849) on :
I would never use my pet's name. But, my porn name is Testiclese the Mighty. Posted by billawaboy (Member # 8182) on :
Check please!
Posted by andersonmcdonald (Member # 8641) on :
Maybe I should have thought twice before titling this thread "Newbie Confessions"!
Posted by InarticulateBabbler (Member # 4849) on :
Posted by Unwritten (Member # 7960) on :
It takes guts to post after that one IB. Anyway...my porn/pen name would be Molly Arnold, which I actually kind of like, so thanks for that!
I worry so much about how fame will affect my home life. Paparazzi stalking my children, crazed fans sneaking into my hot tub, you know the drill. I'm hoping a pen name will allow us some semblance of normalcy.
Posted by Pyre Dynasty (Member # 1947) on :
Machine-gun is the kind of name a seven year old boy gives a cat who purrs so constantly, so loudly and so heavily that she doubles as a neck massager.
Posted by InarticulateBabbler (Member # 4849) on :
quote:It takes guts to post after that one IB.
Seen my flicks? One thing I have is a LOT of guts.
Posted by MrsBrown (Member # 5195) on :
I have five first names to choose from... Chipper, Slink, Begger, Lynx, Maybe. Street name: Ferryman Quay.
Maybe Quay?
Posted by Bent Tree (Member # 7777) on :
I dunno I Like Slink Ferryman
Posted by Bent Tree (Member # 7777) on :
This reminds me of the whole Smothers Brothers debate.
Posted by Meredith (Member # 8368) on :
Let's see. Well the current cats are out. Furby, Ink Spot, and Widget. Nothing there. If we go back to cats no longer with us, there's Christian, D'Artagnan, Beethoven, Buttons, Peso, and Lotus Blossom. Although Lotus Blossom did at least go by the nickname "Libby". That might work. Chris on the other hand was "The Slasher" and Buttons was "Bad Boo the Screen Slayer". No help there. Way back to childhood cats we have Taffy and Tiger. Nope.
The dogs, well. Micah will always be a masculine name to me, so we'll set that aside. That leaves Aliza. My childhood dog was Missy. I refuse to use that.
We're down to Libby or Aliza, neither very appealing to me.
I live on a numbered street. So, there's another problem. The nearest cross streets are Gramercy and Van Ness. Yech. Libby Van Ness sounds like somebody snooty, at least to me.
If I ever need a pen name, I think I'll just go with a childhood nickname--Merry--and another family name (really long story) Gilliland. Merry Gilliland. That could work.
Or else I'll just stay who I am.
[This message has been edited by Meredith (edited March 06, 2010).]
Posted by Merlion-Emrys (Member # 7912) on :
Well that settles that. You get the cat suit, genevive gets the bunny suit.
Posted by Meredith (Member # 8368) on :
Well, there were the turtles, Hickory and Dickory. And a few fish, but they never lasted long. I actually caught Tiger killing the last of them. We don't talk about the ant farm.
Oh, and the parakeets, Holly and Noel (guess when I got the parakeets.)
In my defense, every one of those cats was born here to a feral mother and domesticated. Widget was actually brought in at four days old, having been abandoned by his mother. I really should put up one of the pictures of Aliza and Widget on my blog. (He thinks she's his mother.)
On my part, only the dogs were planned.
Posted by Merlion-Emrys (Member # 7912) on :
Don't try to escape your fate, it shan't work.
Posted by genevive42 (Member # 8714) on :
Three days after I was born I was brought home from the hospital and the family dog, a scottie-poodle mix, jumped up in the bed and licked my head. Her name was Fuzzy. Since then, my life has seen a cavalcade of critters.
Then there was:
Patch - the blue parakeet Snooky - Lhasa Apso - awesome friend Sparky - goldfish Radar - the hamster Hannibal - the dwarf rabbit Twinkie - Another blue parakeet, but much smarter Cat - calico cat Chaser, Midway, Shilo, Gracie and Tater - Fancy mice
And I've lived on Norton Street and Del Amo Blvd. and Berendo.
There's one more hamster, a grey cheek parakeet and a bunch of fish and some lizards whose names I can't remember.
So where do I start? Tater Norton? Twinkie Berendo?
Posted by genevive42 (Member # 8714) on :
I only had one bunny. Posted by Merlion-Emrys (Member # 7912) on :
You cannot escape the bunny suit!
Posted by genevive42 (Member # 8714) on :
Fine, I'll wear the bunny suit. What color is it?
Posted by Merlion-Emrys (Member # 7912) on :
Probably white. But you don't have to ride a giant carrot, or even a bass guitar with a lawnmower motor in it. Since inevitably, that would lead to you smacking me upside the head with it, opening a N.O. portal inside my skull and causing giant robots to erupt from my forehead.
Just the ears and the tail will do.
[This message has been edited by Merlion-Emrys (edited March 06, 2010).]
[This message has been edited by Merlion-Emrys (edited March 06, 2010).]
Posted by genevive42 (Member # 8714) on :
And what kind of suit do you wear Merlion?
Posted by Merlion-Emrys (Member # 7912) on :
I try to live by that too. 
).
