Author Topic: Questions, Comments, Concerns?  (Read 74339 times)

Bdoomed

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on: December 18, 2012, 10:53:45 PM
If you have any questions about the rules, the schedule, or anything else, ask away here!  Alternatively, you can message me on the forums, or send an e-mail to eaflash@gmail.com or bdoomed@gmail.com.

I'd like to hear my options, so I could weigh them, what do you say?
Five pounds?  Six pounds? Seven pounds?


Unblinking

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Reply #1 on: December 19, 2012, 02:51:16 PM
So excited!  Must write something new for this, because I don't think I have anything around that meets the guidelines, either prev published, submitted to prev contest, or too long.

Was hoping the word count would be 750 words like the EP contest--but 500 is a worthy challenge.  Some of the favorite stories I've written are 500 words, but they are HARD!



Cutter McKay

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Reply #2 on: December 19, 2012, 08:36:54 PM
Whew, just finished the first draft of an entry. Very excited. Unblinking is right, 500 words is hard. But I made it work. Here's hoping...

I do hope PodCastle's Flash Contest goes back up to the 750 word count, though. I already have two fantasy stories for that contest cut, trimmed, squeezed, hacked, wasted, and bled down to 750 words. I don't think I could make them any shorter.

-Josh Morrey-
http://joshmorreywriting.blogspot.com/
"Remember: You have not yet written your best work." -Tracy Hickman


Bdoomed

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Reply #3 on: December 20, 2012, 03:59:41 AM
I think PC wants the 500 word limit as well.  Sorry to potentially burst your bubble.

Keep bleeding it? :P

I'd like to hear my options, so I could weigh them, what do you say?
Five pounds?  Six pounds? Seven pounds?


eytanz

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Reply #4 on: December 20, 2012, 08:34:16 AM
I think PC wants the 500 word limit as well.  Sorry to potentially burst your bubble.

Keep bleeding it? :P

Are you sure? Last I heard they were thinking of 750 but hadn't decided for certain.



Portrait in Flesh

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Reply #5 on: December 28, 2012, 05:40:40 AM
Hot diggity!  I'ma write me a coupla 500-word stories!

"Boys from the city.  Not yet caught by the whirlwind of Progress.  Feed soda pop to the thirsty pigs." --The Beast of Yucca Flats


FireTurtle

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Reply #6 on: December 29, 2012, 05:56:57 PM
*rubs hands together gleefully*
Excellent. Any excuse to be creepy is a good excuse indeed.
First story already done. Now for second creepy inspiration....come on brain...
Brains....BRAINS!!!
I love 500 words. It keeps everything from getting all bogged down and messy in my head...unless, of course, I want it messy. BRAINSSSSSS.
Now, I'm just being silly. Time to slither off and think some more.

Thanks, BDoomed for taking on this monumental task!

“My imagination makes me human and makes me a fool; it gives me all the world and exiles me from it.”
Ursula K. LeGuin


Ocicat

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Reply #7 on: December 30, 2012, 05:53:50 AM
PC really hasn't decided.



Bdoomed

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Reply #8 on: December 31, 2012, 02:08:20 AM
I'm quite excited for this contest.  I had a ton of fun running the last one, and I hope I can make this one just as fun, if not better!

I'd like to hear my options, so I could weigh them, what do you say?
Five pounds?  Six pounds? Seven pounds?


julius blaze

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Reply #9 on: January 02, 2013, 02:10:43 PM
I just got a bunch of first drafts for my first story (technically, my 7th draft) and I think it's mostly done.  I'm pretty pleased with it, especially since it's my first attempt at horror.  Horror is hard, Horror and a 500 word limit is damn hard. 

I've got my second idea for a story but it'll require a ton of research, and is a big gamble with regards to the audience.  Really excited for this!



Unblinking

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Reply #10 on: January 02, 2013, 03:13:35 PM
Still contemplating what I want to write.  Haven't been in much of a writing spirit for the last month or so, hopefully can get back into it before the deadline!



Unblinking

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Reply #11 on: January 10, 2013, 09:05:29 PM
Submitted story #1!

Story #2 is in a draft and out at first readers. Plenty of time to revise it and send it in.  :)



Fenrix

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Reply #12 on: January 11, 2013, 09:51:14 PM
I'm quite excited for this contest.  I had a ton of fun running the last one, and I hope I can make this one just as fun, if not better!

Are you doing microflash again for each segment?

All cat stories start with this statement: “My mother, who was the first cat, told me this...”


Thunderscreech

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Reply #13 on: January 11, 2013, 10:41:51 PM
Hard at work!  Was working on it this morning, about 2/3rds of the way done when I checked my word count and found it...  at 950.  Oh Crom, this is going to be hard.



Bdoomed

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Reply #14 on: January 11, 2013, 11:07:20 PM
I'm quite excited for this contest.  I had a ton of fun running the last one, and I hope I can make this one just as fun, if not better!

Are you doing microflash again for each segment?

Yup yup! :D I had a lot of fun doing them last time, they are generally unobtrusive, and some people seemed to like them!

I'd like to hear my options, so I could weigh them, what do you say?
Five pounds?  Six pounds? Seven pounds?


chemistryguy

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Reply #15 on: January 18, 2013, 12:15:48 PM
I'm very disappointed in myself for not having tried my hand at writing a flash story for Escapepod, so I'm jumping into this one.  This would be my second real attempt at writing fiction.  It's going at a snail's pace, but I should have a working story by the start of next week. 

Can't wait to have it torn to pieces.


DoWhileNot

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Reply #16 on: January 18, 2013, 07:02:32 PM
Yep, I'm in too.

I've got two stories I want to use - one is a 3,000 word short story I wrote for nanowrimo that I'm going to try to shrink down to 500 words... so far the going is pretty rough... and the other is one that I'm writing just for the contest.  I'm done with the second draft on it, but I'm running into the problem that my wife is usually my editor and she REALLY doesn't like horror.  Are any of you using editors?  My daughter is actually a pickier editor than my wife is, so she would be an option except that this is horror and horror can be kind of disturbing.  I'm not sure I want her editing my stuff. 

How do horror writers find editors that like horror, but don't want to participate in the Pseudopod contest?



lowky

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Reply #17 on: January 19, 2013, 12:05:24 AM
http://www.buzzfeed.com/expresident/writing-advice-from-famous-authors

some actual good advice, I love the mark twain quote at #16


Bdoomed

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Reply #18 on: January 19, 2013, 09:07:54 AM
Some advice from one of my favorite authors these days.

http://www.slideshare.net/PatrickEMcLean/how-to-kill-a-word

I'd like to hear my options, so I could weigh them, what do you say?
Five pounds?  Six pounds? Seven pounds?


Fenrix

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Reply #19 on: January 19, 2013, 04:29:45 PM
I am amused that both those links used Stephen King quotes about editing. They're compelling quotes, but boy does he not follow them.  I'm not convinced he has an editor.

All cat stories start with this statement: “My mother, who was the first cat, told me this...”


eytanz

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Reply #20 on: January 19, 2013, 05:22:07 PM
I wonder how many of those quotes are real and how many are apocryphal.

The McLean slideshow is pretty good advise for turning poor writing into mediocre writing, and mediocre writing into shorter mediocre writing. It won't produce good writing (though if you already have a piece of good writing and need to shorten it, say for a flash contest, it might be helpful).
« Last Edit: January 19, 2013, 05:23:54 PM by eytanz »



Sgarre1

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Reply #21 on: January 19, 2013, 05:49:59 PM
This also seems to confuse fiction and non-fiction, which have differences of approach.  It's a great primer on how to write terse, pulp fiction, I guess.  I still think far too much non-fiction is full of unqualified statements and absolutes, both of which are completely in line with this approach.

And what of style?  As someone who enjoys fiction from all time periods, this piece seems like a boot camp training ground for the dismissive "boring, old-fashioned writing " critiques from people (potential writers) who should know better, or being taught better.  Evelyn Waugh and Henry James would never survive such "standards".



eytanz

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Reply #22 on: January 19, 2013, 05:57:31 PM
You know, I read a lot of Escape Pod slush. About 2-3 stories per day. And I can honestly say that "too many adjectives or adverbs" is almost never a problem. Or at least, in the cases where it is a problem, it's always a minor problem compared to even bigger problems in the text.

There are plenty of stories I read which are bloated and feel twice as long as they should be. But almost always in those cases, the authors need to remove or rewrite whole paragraphs. Removing words from sentences will just lead to a bloated story with shorter sentences.



lowky

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Reply #23 on: January 19, 2013, 08:56:26 PM
I am amused that both those links used Stephen King quotes about editing. They're compelling quotes, but boy does he not follow them.  I'm not convinced he has an editor.
i  tend to agree.  can you imagine how much more useless crap he must write if he does?


Scattercat

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Reply #24 on: January 20, 2013, 03:50:46 AM
As far as writing microfiction, I would give the following advice, based on my experience:

1) Use dialogue sparingly.  Dialogue eats up wordcount like crazy because so many of the conventions of polite conversation involve useless verbiage.  It's very engaging, but it's expensive.

2) Word choice becomes highly important.  If you can compress two sentences of adverbial phrases into a single more potent verb selection, you should do so.  Yes, you'll have to use some "said-isms."  This is not the capital sin it is reputed to be.

3) Skeletonize your story.  Get it down to the most basic structure of what you want to convey and the minimum details required to do so.  Expand from there.