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» Hatrack River Writers Workshop » Forums » FAQs and Links to Discussions » HUB - The Hatrack Utility Belt - A MUST for Writers (Page 2)

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Author Topic: HUB - The Hatrack Utility Belt - A MUST for Writers
MaryRobinette
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According to you guys, I'm still Trapped in Reykjavik chasing ninjas... Jerialy, JFK is a relatively nice airport; if you were stuck in LaGuardia I'd feel sorry for you.
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Jeraliey
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I dunno....the only place I could stay overnight was on a stone bench. Not so much fun...
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MaryRobinette
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Alright. I've thrown down the gauntlet.

The Quest for Survivor

[This message has been edited by MaryRobinette (edited March 19, 2005).]

[ August 01, 2015, 01:05 PM: Message edited by: Kathleen Dalton Woodbury ]

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HSO
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Gauntlet picked up.
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HSO
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It occurred to me that our "Quest" really needed an antagonist... I've chosen our beloved mikemunsil for this honor. I hope that's all right, Master Munsil.

[This message has been edited by HSO (edited March 21, 2005).]


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MaryRobinette
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He's out of town. An excellent time to pick him. Mwahahaha.
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Robyn_Hood
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Oh well, too bad for him -- after all he is a card carrying RPO.

quote:
Ditto on the HSO critiques, and might I add that if you ever need to be offended, HSO's your guy! Just take offense to anything he says, no need for rhyme nor reason.
There is even a professional registration now for HSO ofendees, of which I am the proud holder of Registered Professional Offendee License #1.

Now, I'm sure that soemthing HSO said on this topic offended me, but you know what? I don't even have to know what it is to be offended by it!

All kidding aside *smirk* HSO gives as good as he gets. ~ MikeMunsil



He should know what he's getting into if he turns his back for too long.

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HSO
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It would now appear that Master Munsil's role as evildoer has been handily usurped by Christine.

Perhaps the two will meet in battle at some point, fighting over who can prevent the heroine from reaching her goal? Such a thing might be very cool indeed.


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Jeraliey
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I would be up for that, but I don't think I should get a vote since I'm apparently unconscious.
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RFLong
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I felt the need to write myself in.

Is this sad?


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Jaina
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If it is, we're in the same boat, cause I did the same thing. But I figured that I'm the one who asked to do another story--shouldn't I get at least a cameo?
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HSO
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I got to be evil in the last one. I'm content to sit this one out completely. Being an evil antagonist twice in a row wouldn't be fair, and might be too much like a cheesy sequel to a bad horror movie. And suddenly being good in the new one would feel wholly inappropriate because I was evil last time. I'm happy to sit back, lick my wounds, and watch the action unfold without me as I dream up a plot to thwart our heroine in the next installment a few months from now.

Anyway, the Quest is all messed up for some reason, and I have to scroll horizontally to read it. Can something be done about this? I'm losing patience scrolling back and forth, and it's well known that I have little to begin with.


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Christine
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I was getting really annoyed by that too...and then I realized it was my fault. Doh!

I have edited the offending post (my cats did it, I swear ) so that there are line breaks and the darn thing doesn't just keep going off the page.


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HSO
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Thanks... I had no idea why it was happening. Maybe it was your evil alter ego that did it and not the cat?

Still.... Blasted cats on keyboards! I was doing a crit a few days ago, and Shadow, our despotic black and white female, kept leaping on the keyboard to get my attention. I believe I got most of the "jsdkjfko;j9fkdjfk 2020200kdjkdjfk" out of the crit, but if I didn't, I'm sure the author will think I'm absolutely crazy -- or crazier, depending on who it was...


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RFLong
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I miss owning a cat. I just have children at the moment. No cat of mine ever put toast in the disk drive. *sigh*

Sorry Christine, don't mean to scare you

R


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HSO
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There are some who would argue that cats are better than children. When the argument comes to disk drives and toast (not with butter and marmite, or butter and jam, I hope -- that would be bad), cats usually win.
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djvdakota
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quote:
HSO: I'm content to sit this one out completely.

Too late, buddy! You're in it now!

Mwahahahahahaha!

(But only in a supporting role! )


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HSO
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Thanks, Dakota. Oh, well... maybe that HSO will turn out to be my nicer alter ego -- a clone perhaps.

I had to laugh when you gave me strong hands because I never really think of them that way.

They are strong because I play piano and guitar for several hours each day (I've been accused of having the "grip of death"). Yet I also have long, slender fingers which makes my hands look... how shall I put this... not-so-masculine, I suppose. Ideal for playing instruments, though, and typing. However...

...with the exception of the middle knuckle on each finger, every joint is double-jointed. This is not the advantage that it might at first seem, it is actually a hindrance, especially for guitar. But it does make for fun party tricks.

(Pointless note: My toes are double-jointed, too. Nearly impossible to break a toe when they can bend back a fair distance.)


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djvdakota
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TMI, HSO! TMI!

Oh, the pictures I have in my head...


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Rocklover
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Sorry I have been off the boards for a while. I took an hiatis to actually work on my day job (i.e. do report cards, hold parent teacher conferences, and take a week to recover. Whyew!) Anyway, here I am, just tuning in.
I must say I feel the need for an EveryReady Wit Sharpener on my HUB. Otherwise, I have not a chance of keeping up with this crowd.
Hmm. I wonder if Saturday Night Life is looking for writers.... There are more than a few on this board who could really run with that!

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Rocklover
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Mike, you should know better than to leave town. Look what happened to poor HSO when he offended us all by taking a week off....

[This message has been edited by Rocklover (edited March 27, 2005).]


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HSO
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two weeks, rocklover. Two very lovely, sun-drenched, warm weather weeks. Ah, the memories.

Sorry, Dakota, for giving you too much information. At least I didn't tell the story of when I learned my fingers were double-jointed... that, while funny to me, would probably have been far too much.


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mikemunsil
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Bump
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mikemunsil
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Bump

There were so many new members lately that I thought it appropriate to bring this benefit back into focus.


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jeduthun
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How about a Seam Ripper, so we can escape these long threads and get back to writing?

Ha!


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DeepDreamer
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*bump*

Mine came with Limited Edition Simplification Scissors. "Limited" is right. Mine have already gone dull, and I've been searching for a good scissor-sharpener.


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sojoyful
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What about a No-Slip Grip Opener, for extra torque when you just can't open that story no matter how hard you try?

[This message has been edited by sojoyful (edited August 30, 2006).]


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Josephine Kait
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I did think of one addition to the HUB that might come in handy: tickets for the Train of Thought. These tickets can take you anywhere you need to go, but beware the Lost Train of Thought. If you get on the LTT by mistake, there’s no telling where you’ll end up.

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honu
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I have found a handy gadget that works well for run-on-sentences. It's called a snipenator and allows you to shorten sentences add the appropriate punctuation and begin anew. free to all takers that want to add it to their hub
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Patrick James
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I want to add that to my tools. The catch is, you have to show me how it works.

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deebum25
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Ladies and gentlemen, I give you...the Proofenator. When finished writing, a Proofbot appears in a hologram and reads your story out loud to you. Good for reducing grammatical errors and comma overload.
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KayTi
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I'm long overdue for adding my contribution:

A time dilator. You aim it at your computer screen and bam! Only one hour of real time passes for every three hours writing time. You'll have to buy the booster pack to get the 5x effect (no, the effects are not stackable...)


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Corky
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How about some kind of seat-of-the-pants reinforcement or inflatable seat cushion for all those "pantsers" out there who write "by the seat of their pants" instead of outlining?
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Treamayne
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quote:
Originally posted by Josephine Kait:
I did think of one addition to the HUB that might come in handy: tickets for the Train of Thought. These tickets can take you anywhere you need to go, but beware the Lost Train of Thought. If you get on the LTT by mistake, there’s no telling where you’ll end up.

What do you do when the Train of Thought derails after you board?

Does the HUB have some kind of Thought Impact Warning Sensor to let you know when incompatible thoughts are about to collide?

V/R

AT

PS: Links in the first post are *now* broken

Fixed, I hate it when my fingers type faster than my brain thinks.

[ December 14, 2011, 05:19 PM: Message edited by: Treamayne ]

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Kathleen Dalton Woodbury
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Not broken or now broken?

I fear that all links to past topics may be broken since the forum upgrade. I haven't had a chance to run a "search" and locate the new link information.

Anyone who would like to volunteer to do that (and email me the corrected links), not just for this topic, but for any such broken links, especially in the FAQs area, would earn my undying gratitude.

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LDWriter2
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I've missed this thread or just plain forgot about it.

But it sounds intriguing.

Treamayne you sure you were on the right line? I've gotten on the Lost train thoughts before and it has derailed a time or two.

Of course the Train of Thought has derailed once or twice for me. I find though that it can be put back on the track. Sometimes that takes a lot of work and heavy machinery but as I said it can be done.

So maybe the HUB should include a beeper that contacts the right helper when the train derails.

But as to a Thought impact warning device. There is one but it's way too big to fit on a belt. Maybe in a backpack... maybe.

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Treamayne
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Sounds like we need a Military style version of the HUB. An Alice pack or Survival Vest with room for the spare power supplies, and lots of Molle Hooks for hanging the various gadgets.

Anyway, I thought I would add new links for the 3 stories referenced above. Hoep the new links work as they should.


Story 1? - Destination: Reykjavik - An adventure in 13 line installments

Story 2? - Trapped in Dallas

Story 3 - Quest for Survivor

[ August 01, 2015, 01:14 PM: Message edited by: Kathleen Dalton Woodbury ]

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mayflower988
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I am so confused! What is this? I get the whole idea of the group story, but what's the deal with using lots of commas and figuring out who's not committed and exploring ideas beyond your reach? Is this just a bunch of advice on what to do and what not to do?
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Kathleen Dalton Woodbury
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mayflower988, the Hatrack Utility Belt is a virtual (as in, only available in the webiverse or the "ethersphere" or as electronic impulses) tool belt made up of wishes and things that writers might be able to use to make their stories better.

The "stories" listed above were virtual adventures certain Hatrackers made up for themselves as they used tools from the Hatrack Utility Belt. They are a kind of joint story we told ourselves about each other for fun.

Interspersed among all of the nonsense you may find bits and pieces of useful advice and information, but it's mostly silliness.

So don't worry about it. (It's as real and as imaginative as the Hatrack Treehouse--which is as real and as imaginative as you chose for it to be for you.)

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mayflower988
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Yeah, sorry. I guess I took things a little too seriously.
I figured it was something virtual, but I was just wondering about all these different concepts of helpful/non-helpful things. It sounded like there were a lot of things I hadn't heard of yet, and I'm trying to learn as much as I can since I'm just starting to write and I want to be a good writer. So that was just me wondering what I was missing out on. :)

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Kathleen Dalton Woodbury
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Posting so this topic will be visible again.
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Josephine Kait
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So that's the counter to the Invisibility Booster... Posting! [Big Grin]
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Smiley
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Dumps out HUB contents on the table.
"All I have left is a big red button marked 'Flashback Button'. I wonder what this thing does."

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TaleSpinner
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Press it if you don't know who you are, how you got to the table, and how you got hold of the HUB and if you can't remember the 60s and wish that you could.
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Smiley
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Languid psychodelic shimmers wave before my eyes. I'm dizzy with nausea as flashes of teenagers with puffy hair, striped long-sleeved pullover shirts, and bell-bottom jeans fly by in front of me. Young drivers in long-tailed convertible cars built of actual metal squeel tires and blow heavy exhaust from tail pipes into the air. A thin man in a grey suit, white shirt, and thin tie walks over and hands me a long flower box.
"Open it," he says.
I slide the red ribbon off the white box and open it to find a multi-pocketed leather belt with the letters H.U.B. embossed on the palm-sized brass buckle.
"It's yours. Use it anytime you have a writing block or are stuck with a bad plot twist," the man says. He steps back and disappears into the psychodelic haze. "It's great for all sorts of things." His voice dies in echoes.
"Thanks," I say. "Now all I need is a table to spill out the contents and see what each item does."

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